Spooky Blog Tour-Scare Ground by Angela Kecojevic

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Great staging for this spooky blog tour. Delighted to receive a ticket, black feather & balloon for admission to the “unexpected, extraordinary, daring” and creepily chilling Scare Ground. Thank you @NeemTreePress @The_WriteReads @WriteReadsTours @ajkecojevic

PS: Posting late because I had an encounter with Pepper’s Ghost.

CHARACTER ACROSTICS

Sinister

Killer Fashion Sense

Enigmatic

Lithe

Theatrical

Electric

Rebellious

Nocturnal

Adventurous

Naughty

Cloud Watcher

Young

Adventure Seeker

Reader

Trustworthy

Helper

Unexpected

Reliable

BOOK BITE

A deliciously atmospheric and theatrical slice of Victorian mystery set where everything is not as it appears to be.

BOOK HAIKU

Rooftop acrobat

launches into a world of

sinister secrets

where scares, illusions

and dark magic enshroud her

eerie destiny.

Can she discover the truth

at the Scare Ground where there’s proof?

BLURB

Roll up, roll up, the Scare Ground is in town!

Twelve-year-old Nancy Crumpet lives above a bakery and her life is a delightful mix of flour, salt, and love. Yet her mind is brimming with questions no one can answer: Why did her birth parents disappear? Why does she have a strange talent? And what is the significance of the mysterious silver mark on her wrist?

When the sinister Scare Ground arrives in Oxleas Wood outside the market Greenwich Nancy is convinced she will find her answers there. Lured in by an enigmatic ringmaster with a love of the macabre, are Nancy and her loyal friend Arthur ready for the sinister world beyond the gates?

BOOK TASTERS

Tickets will arrive attached to black balloons. A single black feather tied to a piece of string. Greenwich will hold its breath”

Skelter Tombola bore the proud hooked nose of a warrior rook. His hands were thin and bony, his teeth too small. Shark teeth. White and sharp. A black velvet hat sat crooked on his head; it was dusted with more than a dozen black feathers”

In the way Arthur dreamed of oceans and exploring, an ingredient was missing from her own life, one she suspected was wrapped up in mystery and intrigue.”

Life sized skulls rested on top of each gatepost, creamy white bones with hollow black eyes. Skeleton fingers, thin and lifeless, gripped the rails from the other side. There were no bodies attached, only hands. White roses and blood red carnations lay scattered all over the ground. “

Extracts from Scare Ground

BOOK BLOGGERS- SPOTLIGHT

I thought that the setting of a Victorian fair in the woods outside Greenwich was perfect:  spooky, eerie and ripe for unexpected frights and shocks.  I’m a huge fan of maps in books, and this one has a wonderfully detailed map which shows not only the locations mentioned in the story, but the different rides visited in the Scareground.  I felt that the description of the fair with its illusions, magic and rides – bringing both scares and delight – was brilliantly immersive.

https://bookcraic.blog/

It is a powerful and creepy story that cast a spell over me and held me in its grip until I’d finished reading, leaving me wanting more.

bookwormhole.co.uk/2023/09/blog-tour-review-scareground-by-angela.html

It’s a fantastic and eerie read which I’d recommend to anyone who enjoys a spooky children’s story with good and interesting characters, and a fun fair with a truly macabre feel to it!

https://thestrawberrypost.wordpress.com/2023/09/19/blog-tour-book-review-scareground-by-angela-kecojevic/

It’s a story about fairgrounds, and our desire to experience the kind of thrills that scare us, and the powerful attraction fear has on our souls.

http://www.bookwormhole.co.uk/2023/09/blog-tour-review-scareground-by-angela.html

GOOD NIGHT TO READ MINI REVIEW

Angela Kecojevic delivers an intriguing Middle Grade Victorian mystery with touches of the Gothic and the macabre. Her language is gloriously atmospheric and dramatic. Silvery mists swirl around the reader wrapping them up in sinister secrets and perilous quests. They follow the inquisitive, lively and mischievous Nancy into a mesmerising world of illusion with charismatic characters as she delves into the terrible truths of her past.

With visual clues in the Chapter Headings, and evocative personification of the Sky, this book surprises. It is a psychological study of the theatricality of fear and the symbolism of associated colours. Kecojevic highlights the importance of confronting your worst fears and exploring new horizons. She balances the light of the nurturing environment where Nancy grows up with the dark of dread.

Under Scare Ground’s pageantry there are significant messages about self esteem, celebrating difference and special talents, being courageous and valuing the bonds of friendship. It touches on the damaging effects of bullying and loneliness. Readers are also made aware of how it’s important not to let the darkness in.

An entertaining Middle Grade debut with a flavour of Victorian life, lots of discussion points and an ending that begs for a sequel. Kecojevik’s construction of the forbidden fair where malevolent forces reign is creative and imaginative. Scare Ground is the perfect Autumnal treat as the cold nights draw in and Walpurgisnacht beckons.

Catch a Deadly Waltzer or climb into a Raven carriage if you dare.

GOOD NIGHT TO READ REVIEW RATING- 4 CHOCOLATE LIBRARIES

QUOTE SPOT

My passion for books took me in the direction of school libraries. Becoming a librarian and promoting reading amongst children, especially the older year groups, was the best career move I ever made (before writing!). “

“R.L. Stein was a great inspiration to me with the Goosebumps series. Alfred Hitchcock too. I spent hours watching their masterclasses on creating suspense. They understood the right balance of fear and reality. It took a lot of practice ensuring the level of scariness was right for Scare Ground. I wanted Scare Ground to offer those ‘jump scare’ moments but also to include other important things like friendship and bravery. I wanted Nancy and Arthur to face their fears and try to overcome them. Everyone is afraid of something. It’s how we deal with that fear that felt important to me.”

FIVE FUN FACTS ABOUT ANGELA KECOJEVIC

1. Angela’s mother owned a bookshop when she was a child
2. Angela’s favourite childhood read was The Secret of Killimooin Castle by Enid Blyton
3. She has created characters for the multi award winning children’s adventure park Hobbledown in Surrey
4. Scare Ground was inspired by Battersea Power Station and Victorian Fairgrounds
5. Angela is a member of the Climate Writers Fiction League, a group of international authors who use climate issues in their work. 

ANGELA’S INFLUENCES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Title: Scare Ground
• Author: Angela Kecojevic
• Publisher: Neem Tree Press
• Publication date: September 7th 2023
• Length: 354 pp
• Genre: Adventure/Mystery/Victorian England
• Age group: Middle Grade

DISCOVER MORE

From School Librarian to Children’s Author by Angela Kecojevic

Victorian Fairs- Research

Dictionary of Victorian London

https://www.victorianlondon.org/entertainment/greenwich.htm

Sheffield University

https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/nfca/researchandarticles/historyfairs

Scareground (Limited Edition Signed Paperback)