Reviewed by Taylor Rector for TeensReadToo.com

After moving from her New York home to Carmel, California, Suze's life is finally looking up!

Her days are filled by parties and good hair days - what every teenage girl can relate to wanting. The only thing that Suze wants to change about herself is the fact that she can see ghosts who want to pass messages along to friends or family. She is a mediator.

Even though everything seems to be going her way, Suze has a ghost that seems to be connected to Tad Beaumont, the hottest guy in town, who also happens to have asked her out. Suze just can't understand what Tad and this ghost have to do with each other.

And then she meets Tad's father.

NINTH KEY is the second book in THE MEDIATOR series, following SHADOWLAND, and is a fun addition to your bookshelf. There is a good mix of ghosts, romance, and creepy characters! Another fun Meg Cabot book! ( )

an exciting book filed with action, tension and adventure ( )

I adored the first book in the series, and the second one was just as much fun. I read it in two sessions ina single day. it's fast, fun, light and fluffy. The perfect book in 40'C (100'+F) weather. ( )

The Mediator Series by Meg Cabot is about a girl that can see ghosts. This becomes a little tricky when she moves from New York to California only to find a gorgeous ghost is already living in her bedroom. Not only does Suze have to deal with Jesse there is another ghost trying to kill people at her school. I loved these books, Suze was so down to earth and Jesse was so crushable. ( )

Very fun book! I loved it from page one to the end. A quick fast read! Awesome! Recommend to teens! ( )

This is book two in the Mediator series, and I thought I had more of the series, but I guess I don't. I think girls will really like it since there seems to be a little bit of everything; suspense, mystery, romance...
I keep thinking she's going to end up with Jesse and then nothing happens...
I'll definitely be buying book three sometime soon. ( )

Sixteen year old Suze Simon is a Mediator...she can see and talk to ghosts. It is her job to resolve the problem that is keeping them here one earth. The ghost of a dead woman has been visiting her at night screaming at her to "tell Red he didn't kill me!" Suze believes that "Red" is a local developer. but when she goes to deliver the message, she gets involved in some very strange events, including nearly getting herself killed.

I've been listening to the Mediator series on CD and thoroughy enjoying it. Somehow, the audio version makes the story come alive. The reader, Johanna Parker, has the voice of a 16 year old girl down pat and fully inserts the humorous voice of a typical Meg Cabot character. ( )

Suze Simon has a major problem. The problem isn't that she can talk to ghosts or that a super-cute ghost is living in her room or even that she is being made to live across the country from her native New York along with THREE stepbrothers. Her biggest problem is that she is sweet 16 and never been kissed, nor ever even had a boy interested in her. It's not that she's ugly (she's not), or stupid (Suze is quite witty if she does say so herself.) It's that no one can quite get past the fact that Suze seems as likely to smack you around as give you a hug. Maybe she should consider a change in 'tude? Then again, considering her mediator duties and all the ghost-busting she's had to do since arriving in California, it could be that the attitude is all that stands between staying alive or joining her unwelcome charges.

It has been a while since I first read Meg Cabot's Mediator books and I've been curious if they would stand the re-reading test and be as good now as I remember. I can certainly say I still love it! Suze's sarcastic, if slightly self-important, views on life made me giggle all the way through the story. This particular volume has a couple of my favorite scenes to grace the whole series, most specifically we get to see Suze's first kiss (LOL!) and the climactic scene at the end, despite all the fried fish. Also, I have to mention Jesse, who is the number one choice for my favorite hero in any book series, young adult, adult or otherwise.

Now that I've given into the temptation of re-reading this one, I guess I'll have to continue on and do the whole series over. They're just that good! ( )

I really like Susannah's character because she kind of sassy and a "kick butt" kind of girl. She's got a really strong personality but it has many of the issues that a teen girl faces...being embarrassed...wanting a boyfriend, and all that.

All in all, this is turning out to be a solid series in the genre of urban fantasy and I highly recommend. ( )

Another enjoyable installment in the Mediator series. I liked that this book basically took up days (or maybe a week) later than the first book. There is a twist in this book, which I found surprising but novel. I also like that even though Suze has been doing this her whole life, I am getting the feeling that she is learning new things about her gift and that her character is going to be growing. Maybe not, though! ( )

This book is almost as good as the first in the series. There's a good deal of action and a lot of funny lines. It definitely makes you want to read more. I just want Jesse and Suze to kiss already! ( )

Life is good for Suze in her new home in California. She is making friends, tolerating her step brothers, and best of all is asked out by Tad Beaumont. So her pesky Mediator duties don't seem so bad until the ghost of a murdered woman starts screaming next to Suze's bed each night. So Suze needs to track down a murderer and the trail looks like it is leading straight to Tad's door. ( )

I almost wished that the vampire angle had turned out to be "true". ( )

I adored the first book in the series, and the second one was just as much fun. I read it in two sessions ina single day. it's fast, fun, light and fluffy. The perfect book in 40'C (100'+F) weather. ( )

Not as good as the first book, but still fluffy fun. This book suffers from a) not being as much about high school, and b) not really being much about ghosts. I think a lot of the fun of the first one came from the twisting of high-school tropes (new girl not fitting in with popular girl... because popular girl is a murderous ghost). In this one, however, it follows a standard "sassy girl gets in trouble with Evil Bad Man for knowing too much" formula, and really has very little to do with ghosts at all. Also missing was a lot of the interpersonal interaction with the secondary characters, and the scenes at the high school... almost everything was focused on Suze and the Evil Bad Man (and Jesse, occasionally). I'll keep reading, both because these books aren't a particularly large time investment, and in hopes that the next book will get back to the fun standard the first one established. ( )

A brilliant follow up to the first book "Shadowland", Carroll keeps all the elements we know and love Susanah's smart mouthed attitude, Jesse the hot Latino ghost that shares Suze's room (hubba hubba!), and a dilemma that only Suze as the Mediator who can see and speak to the dead can resolve. Suze is woken in the middle of the night by a very agitated ghost all she will say is to tell Red that "he didn't kill her, that it wasn't his fault." Suze finds Red only snag is that he's a vampire, whose cute son is interested in Suze.
The book builds upon the first novel brilliantly it's loaded with pop culture references and humour that will delight Buffy fans. My favourite scenes are those between Jesse and Suze especially when he catches her in the car kissing Red's son, her indignation that he is spying on her and his barely concealed jealousy is priceless. The edgy relationship Mediator and ghost share definitely makes this one to keep reading. In short a must have for any teen reader who likes plot as well as humour. ( )