Shortlist year: 2010
Shortlist category: Children's literature
Published by: Allen & Unwin
When Eloise's get-rich-quick dad moves them back to his home town to turn the derelict family mansion into a convention centre, Eloise feels an immediate bond with the old house. She begins spending all her time there, ignoring her strange grandmother and avoiding the friendly boy next door.
Then Eloise meets a 'ghost girl' who may or may not be from the house's past, and events take a strange—and ultimately dangerous—turn.
Beautifully written, poignant and gripping, this is a charming and atmospheric story of personal growth, overcoming grief and the true nature of friendship and family.
About the author
Kate Constable
Kate Constable was born in Victoria but spent much of her childhood in Papua New Guinea, without television but within reach of a library where she 'inhaled' stories.
She studied Arts/Law at Melbourne University before working part-time for a record company while she began her life as a writer. Her novels, The Singer of All Songs, The Waterless Sea and The Tenth Power form the internationally acclaimed Chanters of Tremaris series. The Taste of Lightning is a stand-alone fantasy novel set in the same world.
Always Mackenzie is a teen novel published in the Girlfriend Fiction series.
Kate lives in West Preston, Victoria, with her husband and two daughters.