I.R.L.

by Jenny Goebel

A spooky tale of virtual school gone very, very wrong...

Not every kid would be thrilled to move to rural Alaska, but sixth grader Lucy is eager to leave her bullies behind and start over. However, it turns out that Lucy's new school does remote learning from October to April, when the roads become too icy to navigate safely. Being the new kid is hard enough -- how is she going to make friends when she can't meet anyone in person?!

Luckily, the sixth grade class at White Pine Secondary School is tiny (just thirteen students) and they're all super nice and really welcoming. While chatting on zoom, they ask Lucy lots of questions about living in the big city, some of which strike Lucy as a little odd but she just chalks it up to the fact that her new classmates have spent their whole lives in a VERY small town.

As the ice starts to thaw, Lucy grows increasingly excited about meeting her new friends in person! But when she enters the school's address on her phone's GPS, it leads her to a crumbling, clearly abandoned building with a rotted wood sign in front -- a sign that reads White Pine Secondary School.

There's nothing else in sight... except a tiny cemetery with snow-dusted headstones poking out of the frozen ground. Headstones will some very familiar names on them . . .

Lucy doesn’t know what to believe. Are her new “friends” pulling an elaborate prank? Or is truth far, far more horrifying?

Genres: Horror, Middle Grade, Paranormal, Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Ghosts

176 pages, Hardcover

First published February 4, 2025

About the author

Jenny Goebel is the author of GRAVE IMAGES, a forthcoming middle grade novel from Scholastic (Nov 1,2013).

She lives just outside of Denver, and if she's not hiking up a mountain or mothering, or doing both simultaneously, she's probably sitting at her computer writing.

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an elementary media specialist, this book popped up on my book fair radar. I have a lot of students who are interested in horror, and when it is a new to me author, I like to check it out before bringing it in. That way, I'm ready if a parent questions it.

That being said, this is one of the best children's horror books that I have ever read. It mixed a century old tragedy with modern-day tech. One thing that I really liked was that Goebel managed to build a story around a young protagonist without completely dumbing down the adults in her like (the disney channel effect as I like to call it).

Overall, it had some moments I am sure will give some of my students chills, but still remain age appropriate.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my students got this at the book fair and devoured it in two days. She "really, really, REALLY" wanted me to read it too, and I'm glad I did. Not only is it a nostalgic throwback to those very first spooky stories that got me forever hooked on true crime/murder mystery/horror, but now I have a very special way to connect with her too!

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So funny story but I was recently teaching fifth grade and this is the book they were doing as their read aloud and I read the blurb and thought it sounded good. I went home and told my daughter and she said she has been wanting to read it so we got it from the library and did a buddy read. And yall I found myself getting so into this middle school book, it was hard to put down haha. If anyone has an 8-13 year old who loves to read, I highly recomend this!

[Sarah B · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had started off a tad slow but once it got going it sure packed a solid punch! And I was totally hooked too. The aloneness that Lucy feels living in a super isolated woods in Alaska comes through so clearly and then the freaky stuff starts up. Unfortunately she doesn't know how to deal with it and what do you do when your parents don't believe you? They only think you don't want to go to school but the truth is much darker. And her ghastly classmates are after her.

Was this story intense? Yes! And it was most definitely fun reading as well. The story builds slowly up to a large climax, but until it hits that peak of high danger each individual incident is worse than the one preceding it. And there is no one to help her.

When I had picked this up, I hadn't expected such an excellent exciting read. This definitely surpassed my expectations. Great descriptions in here too.

Lucy was a little annoying at the very beginning because I was thinking "why doesn't she take a photo to show her parents" but if you can get past that scene the story becomes a real firecracker of a read. Some solid hauntings in here. And it's very vivid too; just what I like!

If you like scary ghost tales you should try this one.

[Sharae · Rating 4 out of 5]

this story was a fun kinda spooky and it reminded me of the horror/thriller books i’d read as a kid in elementary and middle school 🥹

shoutout to the contoured librarian on tik tok for making me want to read this book!!

[maggie nalli · Rating 3 out of 5]

as to be expected

[Not Sarah Connor Writes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good, creepy moments a young horror fan will enjoy but an ultimately disappointing story. Trust that even young readers can figure out what's going on without having to have action after action happen in an attempt to keep readers engaged!

Read the full review on my blog!

Also, I am more active on Storygraph now so if you want to see what I'm read right away, follow methere!

[annabel lecklider · Rating 2 out of 5]

*this was a scholastic book fair purchase*

2.5⭐️
the main character was kind of annoying and don’t even get me started on HER PARENTS!! like i’m pretty sure your daughter just told you her classmates were trying to k!ll her and you ignored her?!??!!!?

don’t get me wrong, she also needs to learn how to use her head. like your house is on fire 🔥🔥🔥 and all the electronics are going crazy and random ghost kids are coming at you and what do you do? attempt to put out the fire?! wrong move! who in their right mind would do that. JUST RUN. it’s that simple: run out of the house.
andddddd after you found out these kids were dead and trying to bring you to the grave, you were terrified and what did you do?? join the zoom call??!! these kids want you dead and you decide to have a nice little group chat video call? wrong move again.

i might be being a little aggressive because also i know that every horror story is based around a main character who walks into all of the traps

this book was quite hard for me to keep reading because i was just unmotivated. it also didn’t help that this is way below my reading level but hear me out the story sounded good and the book fair trailer was 🔥.

i did, however, appreciate that i shared a name with one of the ghost students!!!! spelled the exact same way too: a-n-n-a-b-e-l 🤩🥳😎🤓😘 👻😝🤯
it kind of felt like when your name is the main character of a math problem in like second grade and everyone looks at you. unfortunately i was never lucky enough to have that happen to me. 🥲

nowwwww can we talk about connor’s departure??? it was so sweet and in my opinion, cut short. we definitely could have kept it going with the emotional goodbye.

anyway read this book if you like ghost children, haunted schools, fire, old men chasing young girls through a forest (still a little confused about that scene), dead birds, ghost boys that fish 🩵, bully victims and books! ❤️

[tenshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

˚₊‧꒰ა 3.5 / 5 ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚

If you like:
♡ supernatural
♡ horror
♡ resourceful main characters

TW: bullying and death.

❥ Kids can do it all (even kill).

❥ I was interested in this from the scholastic book fair trailer. It did live up to the hype. If you are the target demographic of this book you will love it. If you are an adult who was influenced from tiktok just remember it is middle grade.

❥ The characters have quite a bit of depth to them and feel like real people. I did dislike the MC's parents so much though - especially her mom. I hated how she treated her and dismissed any and all of her concerns. You would think a parent would be more gentle and attentive to the things their child says after knowing they have experienced bullying.

❥ The book does a good job at highlighting different complicated feelings such as guilt, empathy, sympathy, and have a strong focus on childhood bullying. I felt so sad for Connor when reading. It doesn't have much in ways of *handling* bullying. It could have offered some sort of lesson or idea on how to handle it - instead it felt a bit more like 'welp. that did happen'. To be fair not every book needs to have a 'lesson' in it.

❥ I feel like the one thing that could be improved upon in this book is the ending - which is why it is a 3.5/5 for me. It felt rushed, and kind of like the author knew how she wanted it to end and didn't know how to get from the climax to there, OR simply didn't know how to resolve it and went with the first thing that popped into her head. Don't let the ending stop you from reading though!

[Lisa Pineo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a short (even by middle grade standards), soft horror novel for tweens with some mystery and a remote location. Lucy and her parents moved to an isolated part of Alaska for her mom's dream job at an energy lab. She's been doing her schoolwork via the internet with other kids in the area and is about to go to school at the local secondary school (she's in grade 6; I guess K-5 is elementary?) in person as the storms and snow are dwindling. She starts noticing weird things about how her classmates talk and are dressed and the electronics and things at the lab and in her house go wonky on a regular basis. Things get even weirder when she tries to go to school but finds a burnt out relic where the students said they would be and a little graveyard next door. Things go sideways from their with dead kids (or is it just some elaborate prank?), a creepy old custodian, negligent parents, a possible friend (or enemy) and threats at every turn. I really liked the mysteries in the book, the foreshadowing, the slow reveal of who the kids were and what they wanted, Lucy's thinking and brave actions, and the happy (and possibly creepy) ending. There were a couple of icky descriptions and plenty of creepy stuff but not anything too disgusting or terrifying. Great for kids and teen who want a spooky without graphic descriptions horror story.

[Danielle Chatman-Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

My goddaughter picked this book. She read it from her school library, and it was the one she was most excited about when I asked her what she was reading lately. So I decided to check it out and it was surprisingly good! There are elements that I didn’t like such as the apathy and distance that the parents were portrayed to have in the book. I would like to think that if a child is going through a huge transition that at least one, if not, both parents would be a bit more attentive. So I don’t like the message that teenagers have to go through life alternate experiences without any type of support system or guidance from those who are there to do just that. Overall, I did enjoy the thriller, the suspense, and the consistency of the story. I thought it was a wonderful read, and I hope that my goddaughter decides to pick up more thrillers and horror books in her future.

[Hannah Weise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess this was a popular book in my oldest kiddos class. So he got it and was excited. He wanted me to read this first and wow...I'm super impressed. I really really enjoyed this book!
What is great is that this was short and to the point. There wasn't much build up, the story got started right from the start.
This was totally my jam, ghosts, hauntings, unfinished business, Alaska...

[Erica Schramm · Rating 4 out of 5]

My daughter and I read this book together. It was perfect for her at age 11...just enough suspense and a cliff hanger ending 😳 Thanks for the Book Laura!! :)

[Heather Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

From my daughter:
I have always been looking for a twist, and turning thriller book. This one is definitely the one you want to get! So if you’re looking for a mystery get I.R.L.!

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a middle school ghost book, this is a pretty scary, well-written one.

[Dorothy Iris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw this at the Scholastic book fair for my students. The promo video was so captivating I wanted to read it! A great intro to thrillers with paranormal elements!

[Sherrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is featured at my Scholastic. book fair so I wanted to read it since it seemed very popular.
I would be interested in seeing what the kids say about it. I love scary stories and enjoy reading middle school young adult horror stories. This one just fell flat for me.

[Vincent T. Ciaramella · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son bought this at his Scholastic Book Fair for us to read. He knows I love ghost stories and I was so touched he thought of me. We had a blast reading this one. He thought it was super scary and I loved the story as I am a cyber school teacher. Thank you to the author for writing this to make a memory for me and my son.

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

After watching the Book Fair trailers, I knew this is going to be the book the students will want. They love scary and this trailer will hook them. It has a different cover for the Book Fair which I think is better and less creepy than this one.

[Jen Nishi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t know how I feel about this one. I mean it’s a solid 5/5 cover, it will sell itself at my school library. Storywise it’s a bit underwhelming. It starts immediately in the middle of the haunting with very little build up. It is short which means the kids will not be intimidated by it but there is very little character development. I didn’t know enough about any of the characters to really care. It’s written in first person but it didn’t go into any detail about the MC and her feelings and experiences or life. As a grownup I had to suspend my disbelief a lot. Like what kind of parent doesn’t notice that the school your child is attending is not real? Any adult would’ve found all that fishy. It was a mediocre read. Solid ghost story but with very little character development all very surface level.

[Rachel Jackson · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Scholastic Book Fair, a highlight from my childhood, recently came to the local schools in my area, and as I was pondering which books to purchase, a few of the students I work with told me that they had just read I.R.L. and it was a really great book. It wasn't one originally on my list that intrigued me, but I figured I'd get a copy and see what all the fuss was about. The first one-third or so of Jenny Goebel's book was intriguing, spooky, and suspenseful, and I had no idea how she was going to make anything work in the end. And, unfortunately, turns out she didn't in fact make much of anything work in the end, and I had a bunch of confused, infuriated feelings floating around in my head while reading parts of it.

Lucy Bell-Rodriguez and her parents have moved to the tiny town of White Pine, Alaska, and when she gets there she discovers she can only attend online school, not in-person, which is already a big red flag on behalf the parents, or at least you would think. The teacher never makes an appearance and cancels school a lot, and Lucy never makes friends with anyone her own age, except for one strange encounter in the woods with a red-haired boy that comes to mean a lot more later. So right off the bat there are weird elements to this story. But then things get even more complex when some paranormal or supernatural events starts to happen: electronics malfunctioning, lights flickering on and off—and all of the students in her school seem to have the same names and identities as some kids who died in a fire a century ago! Dun-dun-dunnnn!

It was shortly after this point in the story that I lost interest. Up until then, it was an interesting premise: were these the same dead children back to haunt the school? Did they want revenge? Were there souls lost? But then Lucy's naivety and fear takes over the entire book, as well as some confusing and faulty premises about the energy-harvesting methods at her mother's secretive work nearby and somehow using an electric element named phantomium—a mineral found plentifully in the graveyard where the dead children are buried, conveniently—to power the spirits of the spooky children. It just didn't make any freaking sense at all, and Goebel did not sufficiently explain anything at all after this point. Not to mention the totally absentee parents who not only did not question the online learning thing from the start, but a mother who constantly belittled and ignored her child for no good reason, prompting this whole situation to probably go much more awry than it should have.

And then, of course a cliffhanger. Which also made no sense. Yikes. This book had potential, but it fell flat pretty quickly. Next!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Young horror fans will find a lot to their liking in I.R.L. It has a spooky setting, complete with an eerie sense of isolation, dark woods, and unexplainable sights and sounds. The bullied heroine, who is eager for a fresh start in a new place, is sympathetic and relatable. There's plenty of action to keep the reader engaged. It's definitely a creepy little book, but it never gets too scary or graphic or menacing for its intended audience.

That being said, the book's setup is very illogical. What parent moves to a very rural town with a middle-schooler and doesn't check out where the kid will be attending classes? Even if they are to begin going remotely, wouldn't the child want to see their actual school? And the rest of the town? It makes no sense that Lucy nor either of her parents are that isolated and cut off. I liked the novel's premise (illogic notwithstanding), but the story gets predictable and lacks the depth I wanted from it.

On the whole, I liked I.R.L. It's a quick read that kept me entertained. I didn't love it and, in the end, it was just an average read for me, hence the 3-star rating.

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for violence, scary scenes, and scenes of peril

[Danny Welch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jenny Goebel isn't an author I've heard before, but that isn't too surprising since she writes for middle-grade readers, which I haven't been for a very long time. 'I.R.L.' though had a really interesting premise about it, that I couldn't help but give it a shot.

Moving to Alaska for her mother's new job at a nearby scientific facility, Lucy is eager to leave her troubled past of being bullied behind her. Initially, her new classmates in the virtual classes seem nice, but on her first day, she discovers the school burned down a century ago, and she suspects her new classmates are cruel pranksters. When she stumbles across a graveyard of dead children, she realizes that something far more terrifying is going on.

Jenny Goebel, despite being an author for middle-grade readers, has written a very atmospheric and spine-chilling story that is fast-paced and filled with tension. I really liked the ideas in this one, and I'll admit I think Jenny did a terrific job at executing them. It's not an amazing read by any means, but the characters are engaging, and it certainly has a few disturbing scenes to send a shiver down your spine.

Overall: A well-written horror novel for middle-graders. 8/10

[Nik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been struggling to read lately (neuro condition), and I thought making the playing field easier would make reading possible for right now. With that in mind, I picked up a juvenile fiction book I bought used somewhere a long time ago because despite its target audience, it looked really interesting. I've never really cared much about reading levels when it comes to reading anyway, and a lot of the books I read even during my good times are still young adult novels. I'm glad I did because this was an excellent read with mystery, suspense, and thrills all around. A paranormal ghost story wrapped around themes of bullying and growing up. On top of that, I was able to read it in a relatively short period because it was an easier read for me, and it may just be that I need to keep reading this way for a while before I can get back to a good enough place to read the variety of books I'm used to. That's honestly fine though because I really like this author's style, and I fully intend to look at at least one or two of the other books it looks like she's written. Hit me with another juvenile fiction ghost story. I ain't scared. Or am I? 🤔😹💚

[Misty McClaskey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this at my school’s book fair and am sooooo happy I did! This was unputdownable! I told all of my students to get in line to borrow this!

Lucy’s move to Alaska from California was pretty seamless. During the harsh weather, her school day was spent on zoom with all of her classmates. When April hits, school is back in session in person and Lucy is nervous, but excited to meet her friends IRL.

Upon arrival at the school, there is notably something wrong. The school building is in ruins. There are no students, just Lucy. She can’t help but feel as if she has been hopelessly tricked for the sake of laughter. Surely this is a prank? Upset at being the butt of their joke, Lucy turns to head back home. That’s when she notices grave markers beside the ruined school house. Each headstone bears the name of each of her classmates. With her head spinning, Lucy treks back home to see what she can figure out. But the amount of weird things that begin to happen cannot be a coincidence. Lucy is not only interested in figuring out what is going on in this Alaskan wilderness… but she also realizes she is in danger…

Bravo, Jenny Goebel and Scholastic. This is a winner!!!!

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucy, a sixth grader, has just moved to Alaska and doing remote learning from White Pine Secondary School. All students seem to be excited to meet her in person. However, when she follows the directions, given by one of the students to the school on her first day of in-person learning, she finds a dilapidated building with a graveyard bearing the names of her classmates. Lucy is confused, is this a prank on the new girl or something far more sinister?

The plot was engaging but felt a bit predictable. I loved the character of Connor and how he slowly revealed himself to be more than just an innocent child unlike his peers who already appeared to be creepy. While some twists feel anticipated, the unfolding of the story offers enough suspense to keep readers turning pages, especially younger audiences who may be new to mysteries. Overall, it is a good read for those who love a good adventure mystery, even if they suspect what lies around the corner.

[K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Content warnings: bullying (in the past), child death (in the past), fire

I was sold on this based on the trailer that Scholastic put out. Like...what a fantastically creepy concept. Kid moves to rural Alaska, starts online school because it's winter and too snowy to actually GET to school, finally gets to the day where she gets to go to school for real and meet her classmates face-to-face only to find that.......there's a cemetery there instead? And all the gravestones have her classmates' names on them. It's brilliant.

The execution, however, wasn't quite what I was hoping it would be. Too much of it was focused on the "whaaaaat?? This can't POSSIBLY be real!" aspect of the story which then meant that the resolution was rushed and didn't quite round things out the way I was hoping it would.

It kind of reminded me of Supernatural 2x11, but less creepy. Which I guess makes sense for a middle grade book...

[Glenna Coleman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sixth grader Lucy has moved with her parents to rural Alaska for her mother's job. So far, she has known her classmates only through online learning. They seem very interested in her, which is a nice change from the bullies she left behind. However, when in room learning is scheduled to begin, Lucy discovers a mystery--the school seems to have burned down. Things get stranger and stranger as Lucy's classmates seem bent on playing horrible pranks on her. She meets a nice boy, though, Connor, who warns her about her classmates. Can Lucy figure out what her classmates really want, why her teacher doesn't intervene, and what is causing the electric grid to go haywire before she gets in serious trouble? This story has an interesting premise, but given Lucy's history with bullies, her parents seem strangely disengaged from her problems. There are some very creepy moments in the story, which should please horror fans.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most kids wouldn't be excited to move from San Francisco to rural Alaska, but after a year of bullying, Lucy is ready for any new set of classmates. Rural Alaska is cold and snowy, so from October to mid-April, the school does virtual learning. Tomorrow is the first day of in-person classes, and Lucy is excited to meet her classmates in real life. After learning that most kids use snowshoes to get themselves to school, Lucy convinces her mom to let her go on her own. Instead of a school, she finds an abandoned building and no one in sight. Did she get the address wrong? When she tries again, she finds a graveyard with 12 headstones and the names match her classmates. It's a good creepy story that didn't scare me at night, so another horror book I can recommend. I wish the ending wasn't so short, but it works well.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a scary story. Lucy and her family move to a cabin outside a small town in Alaska. Lucy is doing online classes due to the weather. She sees her new classmates only in the online classroom. Then one day the school email announces in person classes the next day. Lucy is excited to meet her new classmates in person. Will they be nice? Will they like her? The next morning , Lucy eagerly follows the directions to the school, having talked her parents into letting her snowshoe by herself to school. But when she get to the school, there is nothing but a burned out building. No signs of anyone else. Did she miss a turn? Where is the rest of the class?
Then strange things start happening.
An enjoyable read but for me ,one I had to read during the day! Good for upper elementary !