Ghost Circus

by Adrienne Kress, Jade Zhang (illustrator)

For fans of Kelly Barnhill and Sheets, here is a middle-grade graphic novel tale of mystery, supernatural action, and friendships that cross the line between life and death.
 
Casey is a young boy wandering the world as a spirit . . . but he's not dead, or so all the ghosts tell him. He stumbles upon the Ghost Circus, a bizarre traveling show filled with phantoms. Here, Casey meets Creepy Girl, a ghost who cannot move on, and the sprightly Polterghost. Sensing a common cause, the three misfit spirits agree to work together to find out why Casey has not crossed over. But as they investigate, they discover that the Ghost Circus itself is not all that it seems, and a bigger mystery is at hand. Will the spectral trio be able to free the souls trapped in the circus, or will what they discover trap them forever?

Genres: Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Childrens, Comics, Ghosts

Kindle Edition

First published August 19, 2025

About the author

Adrienne Kress is a Toronto born actor and author who loves to play make-believe. She also loves hot chocolate. And cheese. Not necessarily together.

2016 saw the release of HATTER MADIGAN: Ghost in the H.A.T.B.O.X., an exciting collaboration with NY Times bestselling author Frank Beddor (set in the same world as his Looking Glass Wars YA books). And April 2017 she releases the first book in her new Middle Grade series: THE EXPLORERS - The Door in the Alley (Delacorte, Random House).

October 2016 her essay appeared alongside work by the likes of Margaret Atwood and Mariko Tamaki in the non-fiction anthology THE SECRET LOVES OF GEEK GIRLS (Dark Horse).

She is also the author of two other children's novels: ALEX AND THE IRONIC GENTLEMAN and TIMOTHY AND THE DRAGON'S GATE (Scholastic). And also the YA novels, THE FRIDAY SOCIETY (Steampunk Adventure from Dial Penguin, 2012) and OUTCAST (a quirky YA paranormal romance from Diversion Books, 2013).


Some more info about Adrienne: she is a theatre graduate of the Univeristy of Toronto and London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in the UK. Published around the world, ALEX was featured in the New York Post as a "Post Potter Pick," as well as on the CBS early show. It won the Heart of Hawick Children's Book Award in the UK and was nominated for the Red Cedar. The sequel, TIMOTHY, was nominated for the Audie, Red Cedar and Manitoba Young Readers Choice Awards, and was recently optioned for film. THE FRIDAY SOCIETY was nominated for a Quill Award, and has been optioned for television.

Oh, and the German title for ALEX is:
DIE HALSUBERKOPFUNDKRAGENDRAMATISCHABENTEUERLICHE KATASTROPHENEXPEDITION DER ALEX MORNINGSIDE.

No.

Seriously.

Find her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdrienneKress

On Instagram:
https://instagram.com/AdrienneKress

And on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Adrien...

Reviews

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun debut middle grade graphic novel about friendship and learning to question the status quo. I loved the relationship between Casey, a young boy who gets caught between life and death and 'The Creepy Girl' - a member of a magical circus of ghost performers who can't remember her past.

Together, with help from polterghost, the Headless horseman and others, they get to the bottom of the mystery of the circus and help Casey find his way home. Unfortunately things don't end so happily for Creepy Girl but I'm hoping she'll get her HEA in another book! A unique but heartfelt choice for #SpookySeason!

Bonus disability rep: amputated limb

[Sloane · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars; weird pacing

[Brittany Lutz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you so much to Goodreads for providing me with a copy of this book to review. I adore cute little graphic novels like this one and it certainly did not disappoint. I absolutely loved the message and the art style of this book and it was an easy read. Perfect for spooky season!

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up for Polterghost my new BFF

[LL Garland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Casey arrives at the Ghost Circus with no idea where he is or how he got there. All he knows for certain is that he is not dead. With the help of Creepy Girl, a ghost stuck in the circus, and the adorable Polterghost, Casey discovers why he is a living soul stuck in the between. But that knowledge leads to other questions about the nature of the circus and what happens to its nightly audience. Casey, Creepy Girl and Polterghost must work together to solve the mystery of the Ghost Circus before it’s too late and Casey becomes a ghost. Permanently.
While Ghost Circus tackles some spooky and serious topics, everything is handled with a light touch appropriate for middle grade readers. Adrienne Kress deftly weaves the various threads of this tale, leaving plenty of room for the reader’s imagination to take over. And the central message of acting in defense of others, even despite your own comfort, is necessary and well delivered. Other than some early petulance from Casey, the characters are appealing, and I was rooting for them to succeed.
Jade Zhang’s illustrations are brimming with clever surprises and visual plays on words. I especially appreciate the differing color palettes to denote the normal world and the between.
Thank you to Union Square Kids and Edelweiss Plus for providing the e-arc for my honest review.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Casey realizes that no one at school or home can see him, so he goes to the ghost circus to try to figure out what is going on. There, he meets Creepy Girl, and asks for her help, and a silent ghost, Polterghost, comes along as well. They figure out that Casey has been in a car accident, and is in the hospital in a coma. The Headless Horseman shows up frequently, and Casey and his new supernatural friends need to figure out how to return Casey to his body and to free the spirits trapped in the circus.

It's interesting that a fair number of ghost graphic novels are not as scary as middle grade ghost novels, especially since there's the opportunity to create a spookier atmosphere with pictures. This felt a bit like other paranormal graphic novels that treat ghosts more sympathetically, like Lai's Ghost Book, Cooke and Costa's Paranorthern and the Chaos Bunny A-HopCalypse, Escabasse's Taxi Ghost and Colossal's Ghost Town: A Graphic Novel.

[Kay S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel is an ideal cross between spooky vibes, cool mystery and the power of friendship. The characters foil each other so well! From Creepy Girl who is hollow and unfeeling and Casey who is full of young person emotions and scared of everything and is without his emotional support kidney! To Polterghost (who is my new favourite book character ever) as a simple, caring creature who is the epitome of innocence to the Headless Horseman who's very dialogue portrays him as the mature, mythical figure he is.

The art is a great mix between adorable characters with fun backgrounds and close-ups of terrifying creatures and people (dude with the hole in him is actually good people!). The artist does a spectacular job of forcing the reader to not judge characters by their appearance - Horseman being a caring psychopomp, the car being adorable but evil, Polterghost being the best thing to ever happen to kids graphic novels....

I adore this book!

[Sirah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A boy shows up at the ghost circus not truly alive but not truly dead. He agrees to team up with Creepy Girl and Polterghost to try to figure out her special destiny and the mystery of why he's there. Instead, the three of them end up clashing with the Headless Horseman and discovering a dark secret about the circus.

Adrienne Kress, my heart. Thank you for writing this book. The narration is quirky and fun (though not quite as sassy as Alex's narrator), and the characters are absolutely charming (even the one who has a stolen "comfort kidney"). The ending brought me to tears (Inconvenient, as I was in a yoga class at the time), but there were also many wonderful moments of warmth and humor. This is exactly the kind of circus book I've been looking for, and I hope there's more where that came from.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an interesting take on purgatory, the afterlife, and what happens when you die. I loved the references to classic ghost stories written in a middle grade mindset. This story wasn’t scary by any means, which was enjoyable as well. Overall, I found the art style stunning (and the action sequences were visually impressive) and the story follows a classic structure. I wish there was more page space dedicated to Creepy Girl and what/who she is. This graphic novel is set up to have a sequel.

*I work as a bookseller and received this book in an ARC package!

[Dolores · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Casey feels drawn to the lights of the circus after a particularly bad day. He has suddenly become invisible to everyone at home and school and he doesn't understand what is happening. But at the circus, he is seen. That is perhaps a bit troubling because it is a ghost circus. But a ghost named Creepy Girl assures him that he is not dead and offers to help him figure out just what is going on. The two are joined on their quest by an adorable Polterghost and helped out by the cast of the circus. There is a ton of kid appeal here and the art is great.

[Katie (BooksRUs) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was able to receive an ARC of this through my job. This was a very cute story of friendships beating the bad guy in the end. Of course, there's more to that. Casey is alive. The girl he meets is not. When Casey starts asking questions the girl hadn't thought of before, things at the circus the girl calls home starts to change. It's a very charming story with an ending that wraps up the story but leaves you wanting more. I cannot wait to read more of this author!

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was alright. It's about a kid who wakes up in a circus but not just any circus, it's a circus of ghosts. He can't remember what happened to him but it's pretty obvious to anyone that has consumed media before. One of the ghosts helps him and it's all well and good. The second half of the story gets weird though when he decides to help the ghost girl and ultimately the whole circus. It feels like two unrelated stories smushed together.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Middle grade graphic novel. I like the concept of the ghost circus and the way Kress used the headless horseman. But the pacing felt off. It feels meandering and bloated at times. And the dialog frequently feels unnatural. It does eventually get where it needs to be, and I really liked the art. Not sure if this will do better with middle grade readers, however.

[Eden Silverfox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Casey stumbles upon the ghost circus and learns he is between life and death. With the help of his new ghost friends, solve the mystery of the circus and how to get Casey home.


I like how the relationship between Casey and Creepy Girl developed. Polterghost is adorable. A great story with a lot of heart about friendship, grief, compassion, and death. The artwork is quite nice as well.

[J.M. Frey · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite is Polterghost! All the delightful visual gags of the book are wonderful, this is definitely the kind of story that could only be a graphic novel, which makes it the best kind of graphic novel. what a beautiful lesson the book explores about the validity of ALL feelings, and the importance of every individual soul.

[Ellie G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this ARC! The story is so sweet, so touching, and recalls "Over the Garden Wall" vibes. I am very excited for "Ghost Circus" to come out in August of this year--it will be loved, I'm sure, by people of any age group!

P.S. Very much hoping for a sequel from this duo! 🥹🙏

[Jen Nishi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 🌟 it was a good read with good art. It left things open for a sequel so I hope they do one. Otherwise it’d have to say there as a lack of character development. But I will hold off judgement until I see if a sequel happens .

[Sera · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was intrigued by the circus and headless horseman elements and enjoyed the illustration style, but the dialogue was too simplistic. One of the side stories was more interesting to me than the main story.

[Julie Czerneda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this to share with my entire family, because I know Adrienne Kress writes wonderful, imaginative, heartfelt stories.
A graphic novel? Even better! The art is gorgeous and the story is everything I've come to love about this author's work. Highly recommended.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. The art was nice, but wasn't a huge fan of the story (it was a little odd) and it felt unfinished, what with not figuring out Creepy Girl's story. Or maybe there's going to be a sequel? I liked the first half more than the last.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Language: G ()
Romance/Sex: G ()
Violence: G ()
Appropriate Age: 6+
Triggers/Warnings: ghosts, death

I appreciate a clean graphic novel but the writing felt like nothing but bickering and the explanation at the end was too weird to be enjoyable for me.

[Mackenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slightly spooky in all the best ways! If you were a fan of “scary stories to tell in the dark” or “In a dark, dark room” then this is a must read!

[Emily Cait · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given access to an ARC from the pubs thru work

[Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.5 stars, rounded up
I love Polterghost

[Zoya Petrovna · Rating 3 out of 5]

i really enjoyed this book

[Rummanah (Books in the Spotlight) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quirky new spin on the headless horseman story with themes of friendship, compassion, grief, and death. While I liked the concept of a ghost circus, the ending felt unfinished.

[truthinprose · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the stars for my favourite character of all time: Polterghost.

[Raven Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

Both classical and modern elements make this thriller, little horror, mystery, ghost story fun, clever and both familiar and unique.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like 3.5 stars.

[Kaytlyn Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

sad and creepy kids story with some really beautiful art. i teared up a couple of times!