In the second book of the Dreamhouse Kings series we are introduced to an assyrian assassin and an old man who must leave his nursing home and get back to the old house the Kings now live in to help them. A strange man is trying to force the family out. He knows about the portals into other worlds and he knows about their missing mother. While traveling to other worlds to try to find their mother, the children and father must start school as if everything is okay. This is made difficult when David breaks his arm and the strange man has hinted to the doctor that the broken arm and other bruises are from an abusive father. This is just one of many tricks he tries to get rid of the family. He finally bribes the police into arresting their father, but is unable to get the children out of the house. ( )

Great book - read my review here: http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.c... ( )

Watcher in the Woods picks up the eerie, engrossing story begun in House of Dark Shadows, which saw the King family move from Pasadena to the small town of Pinedale when their father Edward accepts the position of principal at the high school, and into a house with a dark history. From the first page of this Christian-published young adult novel we are plunged once again into the high intensity, rapid fire setting of the first. Liparulo cuts to the chase, providing a bare minimum of exposition in the first chapters to remind readers of where the story left us at the end of book one.

This series is one that builds upon itself, adding question upon question, layer upon layer of mystery and uncertainly to the storyline, while revealing few answers. These titles do not stand-alone; each is an integral part of the story. Each book needs to be read in sequence in order to follow along.

David and Xander, the King brothers, throw themselves fool-hardily into the search for their missing mother. Frustrated by their father’s lack of action they take matters into their own hands despite their father’s cautious prohibitions and warnings. This rebellion against their father marks the initiating of the downward spiral of the King family into the darkness that becomes more palpable throughout this title.

The King family struggles to maintain a somewhat normal façade (with little success) when dealing with the townsfolk of Pinedale. Edward King starts his new job and the King siblings enter the school year in unfamiliar surroundings. Together the family embarks on a plan of deception, and outright lies to mask the disappearance of their mother. I was so dismayed to see this plan being carried out with little concern for the word of God. This is only book two of the series, but as the characters involved are professing Christians I hope to see God dealing with this blatant sin in their lives before the series comes to an end.

Watcher in the Woods is not as cohesive a tale as the first book. Liparulo includes a lengthy scene which appears unconnected from any other events in the series to date. This odd scene seems only to serve as a respite from the relentless action. I am surmising that he will further explain the meaning of this incident in future books and is only starting to weave this thread through the story.

New characters, mysteries and challenges arise but few are solved. The King family learns some rudimentary operations of the portals in their new home, but so much remains to be discovered. I feel that we are barely at the beginning of learning how and why the house and portals work, but this installment hints at a fuller explanation in the near future.

While the ending of the first novel left us hanging with the disappearance of the King’s mother, it pales in comparison with the monstrous cliffhanger Liparulo works up to this time. Anyone who has taken a creative writing course can tell you that the climax ought to occur approximately 80 – 90% of the way through a story, leaving the author time to wrap up loose ends and come to a conclusion. You can’t expect that sort of formulaic tale telling with this series.

A frenzy of action builds up to the climax, and Liparulo leaves us there with no conclusion. Three dramatic, time-sensitive events occur simultaneously at the end of the novel, bringing stress levels to a crescendo before cuting us off abruptly with the words “NOT THE END”. Whew, what a ride. Dreamhouse Kings fans are looking longingly towards the January 2009 release of Gatekeepers, the third title in the series; harbouring the distant hope of a conclusion, an ending, someday. ( )

A fun and brilliant story idea! I liked this book, but it did not keep me wanting more and more like the previous Dreamhouse Kings book. It was a fun continuation of the saga but nothing more. I would recommend this to others who've read the books, but this book definitely wouldn't be able to stand on its own. ( )

The second book in this teen series is better than the first. The story keeps moving along and there are some nice twists. Still, very simple fare compared to Liparulo's adult novels. It's good enough I'm sure I'll read the next one, and if I'd read it at 12 years old I would have loved it. Only OK for the adult reader though. The King boys begin the search for their mother, the family encounters a sinister stranger who wants their house, and an old man in a nursing home in another state senses that he must go there. ( )