Down a Dark Hall

Written by Lois Duncan

Narrated by Emma Galvin

A paranormal rollercoaster ride with goosebumps at every turn--now a motion picture starring Uma Thurman and Anna Sophia Robb!
Kit Gordy sees Blackwood Hall towering over black iron gates, and she can't help thinking, This place is evil. The imposing mansion sends a shiver of fear through her. But Kit settles into a routine, trying to ignore the rumors that the highly exclusive boarding school is haunted.

Then her classmates begin to show extraordinary and unknown talents. The strange dreams, the voices, the lost letters to family and friends, all become overshadowed by the magic around them.
When Kit and her friends realize that Blackwood isn't what it claims to be, it might be too late.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hachette Audio
• Release date: Apr 19, 2011
• ISBN: 9781609417994

Lois Duncan

Lois Duncan is an acclaimed suspense author for young adults. She has published nearly 50 books for children, including <I>I Know What You Did Last Summer</I>, which was adapted into a highly-successful horror film, and <I>Who Killed My Daughter?</I>, a non-fiction book about the harrowing experience of her daughter's murder. Lois was the keynote speaker at the 2010 NCTE Convention.

Reviews for Down a Dark Hall

[lynnmpk · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyable read with lots of mystery and unexpected twists. I thought the end was a bit abrupt, that's why it's only getting three stars. I just needed one more chapter for it to feel like a fully finished story.

[sturlington_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I believe this is an updated revision of a book originally published in 1974. This is a story that my preteen self would have loved. It is set in a spooky isolated boarding school and involves ghosts and ESP. I thought the story was pretty good and appropriate for younger readers, but the ending seemed abrupt to me. I would have appreciated an epilogue of some sort. I also have to respect Duncan for having the cojones to pass her own poetry off as being written by Emily Bronte, but I wasn't quite buying that. I found the potential romance, with its age difference, a little off-putting, but it remained only potential and was never developed, so I guess that's okay.

[angelalam-300700 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good, solid book for a preteen.

[thornton37814 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was in fourth grade when this book made its debut. A classmate read the book, and the rest of us checked it out as soon as the previous person returned it. This book, along with Phyllis Whitney's Window on the Square led to my reading lots of gothic romance and romantic suspense novels as a middle schooler. I noticed its availability as a Kindle e-book a couple months ago and decided I wanted to re-read it. Kit's mother and step-father enroll her in Blackwood Hall, a very selective boarding school with only four students. When Kit arrives, she feels the presence of evil. Each character shows talent previously unknown. Unable to communicate with the outside world, the girls must stick together to fight the forces of evil. As I began reading it, I realized the Kindle version was an updated version because the girls talked about e-mail and Internet and owned cell phones and laptops. At least one minor character's name was also updated. I still want to read the book's original version, but the overall story remained much the same. I think I remember one or two scenes from the 1974 version which were changed in the update, but I really need to read the original to make sure I'm remembering correctly. The ending seemed a little rushed when I read it this time, but the book still entertained.

[eyelit-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

cheesy and bizarre. I found this book to be trippy when I was 11 or so.

[liblb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Kit has mixed feelings about going away to boarding school while her mother and stepfather honeymoon in Europe. There is something strange about the school, despite its splendor. And while her best friend, Tracy, wasn't admitted, she looks forward to meeting other girls to share the Blackwood experience with. When it turns out that only four girls have been admitted, and the Blackwood staff becomes just as scarce, as well as secretive, Kit's suspicions grow. Each of the girls begins showing unknown talents, but the art that they are producing is not their own. Kit and the others need to figure out what is happening at Blackwood... and how to escape.

AR level: 5.3 UG
Lexile: 750
Recommended for: teens

[yona-414000 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

These are such great little thrillers. I swept through this in no time at all and liked every page. Ashley and Wendy, did you know that there's a Lois Duncan discussion group the includes Ms. Duncan among a pretty small number of members. I haven't looked closely yet but I joined. Next one is The Third Eye.

[lquilter_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another supremely creepy YA thriller from my childhood. This time, an evil boarding school is possessing its pupils with the ghosts of geniuses past to produce hidden masterpieces. Duncan is in fine form.

[andersonden · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A sort of "scary", paranormal story. Duncan does suspense well and got the teenage girls' characters right. I go back and read this every few years. It loses a little tension with age (and expectation) but is still good.

[oceanbreeze217 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is one of my all-time favorites. This author is amazing.