“If you read this book late at night, as I did, in a dark and quiet house, as I did, you may feel the same chill I did-the someone-is-looking-over-your shoulder chill. This is a great book for learning about plantation life, but reading it at night will definitely give you the creeps.”. “The bits of truth that Lois Ruby weaves into the story are what make it mysterious and chilling. “This plot-twisting ghost story is full of history, friendship, romance, betrayal, and jealousy.” -School Library Journal “YAs will enjoy the characters' struggle between reality and myth in this innovative ‘ghost story' overflowing with the power of love, friendship, and courage.” -KLIATT “A genuinely spooky and engrossing ghost story.” -Jennifer Armstrong, award-winning author of The Dreams of Mairhe Mehan This middle grade novel was inspired by the author's visit to the plantation and her experiences there.Īt the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied. Laurel Oaks is a thinly disguised version of the legendary Myrtles Plantation in Louisiana, which is on the Smithsonian's list of the ten most haunted places in America. Shifting back and forth from Lila's world in the present to Daphne's world in the past, the true story of what really happened that fateful night finally comes to light.

Daphne's spirit senses that Lila is the very person she's been waiting for, the one who can prove her innocence so her spirit can rest at long last. One spirit eager to tell her story is Daphne, a slave girl at Laurel Oaks in the 1840s, who was blamed for the poisoning deaths of two girls and their mother. But secretly, Lila suspects there are ghostly presences willing to communicate with her, and her alone. When Lila and her family visit Laurel Oaks Plantation in Louisiana, her parents and brother scoff at the claim that the house is haunted.

A haunting historical mystery based on real life events, told in the alternating points of view of a contemporary girl and a 19th century slave accused of a horrible crime.

The secret of laurel oaks by lois ruby