Dust & Grim

by Chuck Wendig

Now available in paperback, Miss Peregrine meets The Graveyard Book in this middle grade adventure about rival siblings running a monster mortuary.
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Thirteen-year-old Molly doesn't know how she got the short end of the stick—being raised by her neglectful father—while Dustin, the older brother she's never met, got their mother and the keys to the family estate. But now the siblings are both orphaned, she's come home for her inheritance, and if Dustin won't welcome her into the family business, then she'll happily take her half in cash.

There's just one problem: the family business is a mortuary for monsters, and Molly's not sure she's ready to deal with mysterious doors, talking wolves, a rogue devourer of magic, and a secret cemetery. It's going to take all of Dustin's stuffy supernatural knowledge and Molly's most heroic cosplay (plus a little help from non-human friends) for the siblings to figure it out and save the day...if only they can get along for five minutes.

Bestselling author Chuck Wendig's middle grade debut is equal parts spooky, funny, and heartfelt—perfect for Halloween and year-round reading!

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Horror, Fiction, Paranormal, Childrens, Young Adult

368 pages, Paperback

First published October 5, 2021

About the author

Chuck Wendig is a novelist, a screenwriter, and a freelance penmonkey.
He has contributed over two million words to the roleplaying game industry, and was the developer of the popular Hunter: The Vigil game line (White Wolf Game Studios / CCP).

He, along with writing partner Lance Weiler, is a fellow of the Sundance Film Festival Screenwriter's Lab (2010). Their short film, Pandemic, will show at the Sundance Film Festival 2011, and their feature film HiM is in development with producer Ted Hope.

Chuck's novel Double Dead will be out in November, 2011.

He's written too much. He should probably stop. Give him a wide berth, as he might be drunk and untrustworthy. He currently lives in the wilds of Pennsyltucky with a wonderful wife and two very stupid dogs. He is represented by Stacia Decker of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.

You can find him at his website, terribleminds.com.

Reviews

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is probably just my imagination. But sometimes when I read a middle grade novel written by someone who usually writes for older readers, I detect a bit of a sneer. Not toward the readers, but toward other writers, writers who make it their business to write for children. I detect an attitude like, 'children can handle a lot more than most people think,' which, sure, is true for the most part. I detect an obstinate refusal to simplify the vocabulary - ok fine I GUESS - and a defiant insistence that because kids are more open to, I don't know, I guess magical thinking? they don't care about things like 'closure,' 'redemption,' or 'realistic motivation.'

All of which is to say - sure, Chuck Wendig. You do you. You want to round out your book about siblings separated for no decent reason, raised by different parents, one parent a selfish idiot and both recently deceased, with a hug and a happily ever after and you think your kid readers will respect this because fairy tale logic? Go ahead. But the balance is off. You can blow past trauma like this if you hit it super lightly - a lawyer shows up on the beach and tells you your parents are dead - or if you circle back to it in the end and find out WHY your parents chopped off your head - but you can't use it as the motivation for both characters acting like dicks throughout the book and then in the end shrug and go, "eh, doesn't matter!"

Kids will roll through this book without a second thought, enjoying the magical forest and slightly baffled by the farm to table food references, which is perfectly fine, I am always in the market for a book I can pitch into the gaping maw of voracious adventure fantasy readers... but those same readers are going to spot unresolved trauma a mile away.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was rough. I felt kinda confused the whole time? I had difficulty placing myself in the scene and following the action. Wasn’t sure why we were doing anything we were doing. Some of the character motivations felt flimsy. And I wanted more worldbuilding!

I felt like things didn’t really begin to get explanations until too late in the book. I wanted to know more about the funeral home and the supernatural denizens of the night. I’d classify this more as dark fantasy than horror.

I also think this is too long. I don’t know what the heck happened to Middle Grade (le sigh, I’m guessing it was HP) but when I was a kid, middle grade books were primarily 200 pages or less (at least the ones I read). This one is 368 pages long! That was too many pages.

That said, I did like the characters. They had personality and were pretty well fleshed out. I adore Wendig as an author and will continue to read his stuff. His newest MG Monster Movie looks fun so I would give that a try.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Molly has never had much. Abandoned by her mother to the care of her deadbeat father, life has always been a struggle, while her brother Dustin seemed to have it all. When her father dies, Molly shows up to claim her inheritance...but things are not as they seem and the funeral home now run by her brother is full of secrets.

Fans of Jessica Townsend's The Tales of Morrigan Crow and perhaps even the Harry Potter series will love this book. It's a spooky adventure story for younger readers filled with all sorts of monsters and magical beings.

[Abigail McKenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

chuck wendig it's been 4 years. i want a sequel. i need more of florg and their cheez-its. thank you.

[Ellis (whatellisreadnext) · Rating 5 out of 5]

"𝘈 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬," 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦.
"𝘔𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘭𝘺," 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥. "𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘪𝘳𝘥. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵!"
"𝘚𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘳𝘺," 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥.
𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦.

When Molly's neglectful father passes, she ends up on the doorstep of Dustin, the brother she's never met. She wants half of what's hers; the house and the family business. But her brother is secretive, and the house is strange, not to mention the mortuary, this could be a lot more than she bargained for.

Let me start this review by saying, never have I ever laughed so much reading a book in my entire life. It could be down to the fact I like my books more on the morbid side, but this had plenty of that too, it's literally set in a mortuary.

Chuck just knocks it out of the park again and again, he is definitely an auto buy author for me, his books are just so fun and readable. I loved all the characters so much, but Molly and Florg, were definitely my favourites, Wendig writes loveable characters like no one else.

I recently realised that I love the inheritance trope, when a protagonist's life changes massively because of the passing of a relative. I love this sudden shift in their life, especially when a big old house full of secrets is involved, and Dust & Grim is just the perfect example of this.

If you're looking for some funny, weird, dark, and wholesome middlegrade reads to add to your autumn/winter reading list, I couldn't recommend this enough 😊

[Leah Swingler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought Dust and Grim is a really decent middle-grade spooky story, perfect for the scary Halloween season!

I really enjoyed both the plot and character development within this story as I found them both to be really compelling in how they were written which really added to the enjoyment of reading this story. Furthermore, the language used in this story felt very realistic to the ages of everyone in it, especially for Molly and Dustin who are both young. I feel like their language used would make this story very relatable to young kids which is what its target audience as being a middle-grade novel.

Overall, a very enjoyable story that I would recommend to anyone wanting to read something spooky but wholesome.

[Carol Youssif · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really want to like this book... but honestly can't.
I feel like the author tried to do multiple things and it *sort* of worked. The imagined "paranormal" cemetery was interesting, but I just couldn't quite enjoy it. There were a couple of loose ends that made it hard for me to truly get invested.
Two stars, in Goodreads speak "it was ok," is a fair rating.

[Ashton Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5 stars

Such a quick, quirky read to kick off spooky season!

Goodreads synopsis:
Thirteen-year-old Molly doesn't know how she got the short end of the stick—being raised by her neglectful father—while Dustin, the older brother she's never met, got their mother and the keys to the family estate. But now the siblings are both orphaned, she's come home for her inheritance, and if Dustin won't welcome her into the family business, then she'll happily take her half in cash.

There's just one problem: the family business is a mortuary for monsters, and Molly's not sure she's ready to deal with mysterious doors, talking wolves, a rogue devourer of magic, and a secret cemetery. It's going to take all of Dustin's stuffy supernatural knowledge and Molly's most heroic cosplay (plus a little help from non-human friends) for the siblings to figure it out and save the day... if only they can get along for five minutes.

Bestselling author Chuck Wendig's middle grade debut is equal parts spooky, funny, and heartfelt—perfect for Halloween and year-round reading!

This book was such a fun read!! I love reading eerie, Halloween-ish stories in October - atmospheric but not too creepy - and this middle-grade was the perfect start! With its fair share of monsters and spooky scenes, this novel has all the ingredients of a quick but enjoyable Halloween read. I related a lot to Molly and her internal dialogue; she’s stubborn and ambitious, but she stands up to her foes and wants to find a place to belong. She doesn’t think she’ll find that with her newfound brother after their first few encounters, but their development from tense rivals to found family (though they are actually family) is incredibly heart-warming.

Plot-wise, this novel is interesting enough; it’s got plenty of intriguing elements (especially the intertwining of monsters, existing folklore, and creative liberties on the author’s part) that kept me reading, ready to see what other aspects of the world would be explored. But as a middle-grade, the climax is *slightly* underwhelming, at least compared to what I was expecting? It may be a me-thing, but I felt the climactic moments could have been slightly more interesting. However, there are so many great things about this story, and I really enjoyed dipping my toes into spooky season with this one!

*I posted this review on TBR and Beyond tours over on Instagram - click this link to enter the giveaway and see the rest of the tour schedule!*






If you enjoyed this review, you can friend/follow me here on Goodreads or on Instagram and Pinterest @ashton_reads for more bookish content (@ashton.reads on Tiktok)!! If you want, you can give this review a like or a comment with your thoughts so I know you've read my review; your support means a lot to me! Happy reading!

[Alex | | findingmontauk1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seeing there was a middle grade horror novel out there for Chuck Wendig had me running to the bookstore as fast as I could! I have read and loved a few of his books for adults and I am always clamoring to get into to some middle grade horror for fun spooks and nostalgic vibes. DUST & GRIM checks off a lot of the MG boxes of tropes that make these books connect with young readers: sibling rivalry, absent/dead parents, younger kids doing older things (in this case, living alone and running a business, essentially), etc. The paranormal aspect of this was good and I loved the gist of the plot. One character stands out the most for me reading this and he was a ton of fun every time (little ghost boy in the wallpaper!). And I really enjoyed the writing. Wendig knows how to write engaging sentences!

Some cons? I felt that the book took too long to get to the reveal/main plot of the story. There was a lot of buildup to get to "Hey, sis, we run a funeral home for monsters!" which we already know as that is the summary of the book. The ending felt a little rushed or anti-climactic (?) for lack of a better term, too, especially when you put it in context with the size of the story. Sure, the chapters are short, font big, line spacing larger than normal, etc. But it still feels like a longer read. I enjoyed this but wanted to love it. And I definitely hope we get some more MG horror from Chuck Wendig as I can see him taking us to even more creative places with fun storylines in the future.

[Hannah | Reading Under Covers · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book and there were certain elements I did love (the monster mortuary business, the interactions between Dustin and Molly), but it ultimately missed the mark.

I was bored through a lot of this one and felt like a lot of the story was pretty surface-level. Trauma is also brought up in regards to why the two kids were separated as children, and even that is kind of written off as “it is what it is” and then everything is just fine?!

I’m sure there are readers that will eat up this story, but it just didn’t stand out in any memorable way for me.

[Mandy (Bookishlove85) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This middle grade novel is full of quirky characters, daring adventures, brother/sister bonding, and monsters! What’s not to love? It was a quick, fun read that I really enjoyed. I recommend this one especially in the fall and if possible on audio. The narrator added so much more to the story.

October YR POTM

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, I have to be honest, if this was not a middle grade book, I would have DNF’d it after the first few chapters. Why? Because of how awful Molly was to Dustin in the beginning.

Molly and her lawyer uncle show up on Dustin’s doorstep at who’s what hour (Dustin was still in his pajamas) and tell him that their father is dead and Molly is his sister. Then, without giving him any time for that to sink in, Molly is demanding that he give her half of what the property is worth or they’re gonna force him to sell it (the house and business his mother left to him) so she can get the money from that. They also demand that Molly stays in the house until an agreement is reached. After all that Molly can’t figure out why Dustin isn’t excited that he has a little sister. Really, Molly?

If this had been a young adult book, I would have stopped after that. But, knowing this is a middle grade book and most middle grade books have their protagonist learn a lesson, I decided to keep reading.

The story was pretty interesting. I liked following Molly as she discovered little things about the mortuary that hinted at it being more that a human mortuary. But once Gordo got into the cemetery, the story kinda stalled.

As the characters searched for a way into the cemetery, the story seemed stuck. Days passed without anything seeming to get done. It didn’t help that Molly wasn’t apart of the research because she was basically just sitting around so the reader the stuck sitting around, too.

This book also feels like it should be the start to a series instead of a standalone. There was so much information being dumped about the world that when Molly asked for something to be clarified, other characters would be like “not important right now, we’ll explain later.” Or things would be explained as quickly as possible without detail or at weird moments. For example, Molly had seen the celestial symbols a lot in the book but they aren’t explained until she asks Dustin when they’re about to let out the vampires. And it’s a quick thing like “oh yeah, this and this are connected but we really need to focus on this instead right now.”

I feel like this type of world building would’ve benefited a series instead of a standalone. A lot things felt unexplained. And not in the “it’s magic!” unexplained but in the “there’s more to this come back for the next book” unexplained way.

On the subject of this being a series, if that were to happen, I would love a volume following Dustin in Hawaii. There’s a ghost stowed away in his bag, shenanigans are sure to happen!

In the end, the character development was decent, the world building was intriguing, and I would like to see these characters again. I did like this book.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

I actually hate that I only gave this book 2 stars. Mostly because I like the idea of the setting of the story. A graveyard for monsters. And I really love monsters. Because it is indeed an interesting question: where do monsters go when they die? Unfortunately, it is not explored very deeply in the book. Although, a complete sort of 'city' or 'world' is described where the main characters go. And I know... it's a children's book, I shouldn't expect too much worldbuilding in a book like this. Personally, I think it was too much. Too many big ideas crammed into the book. A real shame, because there is a lot of potential in it in my opinion. The book is a quick and easy read and indeed an okay 'scary' story.

Below I write mostly my observations about the book. I know it's easy to slag off other people's work, but it's a lesson for me too. I love storytelling and I like to learn from things that catch my eye.

I was annoyed with Molly right from the start. Which is a good thing, because I knew right away that she was therefore going to develop through the story. Molly's relationship with her brother Dustin was terrible, they couldn't stand each other. Which is a good thing, because I knew right away they were going to have a really good relationship by the end of the story. See where I'm going with this? Bit predictable isn't it?

The enemy I didn't understand. His motivation was that he was jealous. Okay... And what are you going to do next? *Grrr angry villain noises!*

There was also some kind of super monster cheap version of The Avengers or something. This group had to help the main characters. That group felt a bit... useless. I didn't care about them at all. Big part of the story, I didn't know which name belonged to which character. Molly and Dustin really got to know you in the beginning of the book. This group was just quickly shoved in between.

Molly is a big fan of pop culture (hell yeah!). There were just so many references at one point to different things that I didn't know if they were real or made up.

Why is Molly so special when she and Dustin are actually of the same 'blood'? Molly sees and hears some things as the only one which makes no sense at all. It could make sense if there was an explanation, but there is none.

[Vicki · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this one. The whole monster cemetery funny horror thing is right up my alley. The problem is that this book was neither funny nor scary (in even a middle-grade kind of way). It was just trying way too hard. The whole thing got bogged down in unnecessary prose and pop culture references. It felt like Buffy the Vampire Slayer had just turned 13 and was throwing a temper tantrum. I usually kind of like snarky characters, but Molly was over the top. Actually, so was her brother, but in the other direction. Together, they actually made a rather boring pair in a rather mediocre story where the monster shows up halfway through and they all seem to twiddle their thumbs until the very end (granted, by the halfway point I was skimming it, so there might have been less twiddling than I thought). To top it off, nobody's emotions or reactions felt genuine. The character-building was hardly there, which is surprising for a story with so few main characters and a length of over 350 pages.

On the plus side, the wolves were cool. Can we have a story just about the cool wolves?

[v i v i n · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dust & Grim about rival siblings running a monster mortuary.
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🌟 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪
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This is first time I read author Chuck Wendig's book and I can say I enjoy reading Dustin and Molly' story. Such an adventurous story with amazing world building.
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I like Molly so much. She's so funny, quite sarcastic, and has some curiosity. Everytime I turned the page, I couldn't wait to read Dustin and Molly's interaction each other.
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We can find some of cosplays' explanation in this middle-grade debut book. Also, there's so many supernatural creatures that improve my glossary about them. I love how the author put the 'power of family' thing into this spooky book.
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Overall, this book perfect for paranormal book fans. If you're looking forward for spooky, hilarious story, and trust, you can try to read 𝘿𝙪𝙨𝙩 & 𝙂𝙧𝙞𝙢.
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Thank you @tbrbeyondtours and @netgalley for sending me a copy in return for an honest review.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! It's just creepy enough, just humorous enough, just magical enough, just everything enough to be just perfect! I loved the characters and the character growth (especially the siblings). The story is fast-paced and twisty and just plain fun. My only complaint is that I really, REALLY want more. I want to know more about the funerary rites. I want to know more about the trees (especially the Tree) and the wolves. I desperately want to know more about the Face. So, yes, I loved this book but I truly hope there will be MORE!!!!! Definitely recommended to....well, everyone, but especially to anyone who loves darkly humorous and magical stories!

[Chrystopher’s Archive · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perfect middle grade blend of silly, gross, and scary. It has the kind of snarky, witty humor that makes kids feel good when they get it.

There’s also a lot of heart and genuine feelings that are good lessons about love, responsibility, and trust.

A great adventure

[Kiraz ~ bookwithacherryontop · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Dust and Grim Molly discovers a brother, Dustin, she never knew she had when her dad passes away. Molly moves in with Dustin until they figure out inheritance details but she soon discovers there's a lot more to this funeral home than one would expect.

A great middle grade read for children and the young at heart, especially for the spooky season! It has lots of monsters, spookiness, silliness and humor while still being heartwarming and it teaches good lessons. I'd recommend it for people who like plot-driven books more than likeable characters.

The plot was fast paced and intriguing. The mystery was set up well and it made you wanna keep reading to figure out what was going on. I was hooked on the adventure they went on especially after the monsters were introduced.

I really enjoyed all the creatures that were in the book. They were cool, unique and fun to read. And I really enjoyed their characters, they truly were one of the biggest highlights for me. As you'll read below, I liked them a lot more than any human in the book

There are very clear lessons in here about family, responsibility, jealousy... I'd think that this part would be great for the younger reader but maybe a bit obvious for the older ones.

Overall, I enjoyed the plot a lot more than characters which is why I really struggled at the beginning of the book. I found the main characters highly unlikeable. Molly is very abrasive and hardened for her age, which, to be fair, makes sense with her background. But then Dustin and Vivacia who are old enough to know better, treat a 13 year old unnecessarily bad. At times it felt like those old movies/books where people would treat kids badly for no reason. Especially considering none of the conflict of the book would have happened if they were just slightly nicer to one another. I can't call it the miscommunication trope, since it was more like no commnunication.

Overall though, I'd think that this would make a great read for the younger audience. The author really created a fun and unique world in this book with some great messages and lessons.

[Leigh Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of this book sounded interesting, but the more I read the more I wondered why this was written for children. We had monsters and scary beings, witchcraft and mentions of different symbols, along with casual mentions of gender fluidity until it is thrown in your face at the end. This story was dark and twisty, while being adventurous although I feel it needs to be read through a perspective where you can shift through what is true vs. false which not all children are capable of doing.

I enjoyed the found family aspect and the sibling relationship that had developed by the end of the story. Overall it was interesting enough to keep my attention, but not enough for me to keep the copy on my shelf permanently.

[Hannah Belyea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Molly is determined to get half her inheritance, sneaking around her prim and proper brother to find anything to use against him - but when those secrets put the world in danger, she must make right a mistake that has drawn her into the realm of magic and monsters. Wendig throws various intriguing ideas and archetypes at his readers, though struggles to weave an engaging plot through all its quirks and quips. After being so sure of her dream, can Molly hold out long enough to find her place in the middle of a world she once thought mere fantasy?

[Emily Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun book! I will admit, by the end I thought a few more mysteries would be explained and the ending would be a bit more tied up…but this is a book for middle grade readers, so I feel it would be a bit harsh to nitpick. I have quite a few questions about events or characters that I would like to see fleshed out a bit more. Overall, I thought the concept was excellent and I really enjoyed reading from Molly’s point of view. She is a fun character.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute book for young readers. I would recommend this book for readers that feel too old for Goosebumps but too young for Stephen King. It has real stakes and a real threat, but no R rated content. The characters are all lovable and fun.

[Sam Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the idea and the storyline… the world built was fun… however, I felt certain plots fell through. Certain phrase redundant… “and with that,” the character development lacked a bit as well. I do think other characters were creative and unique. It became struggle to finish though.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it but the way Molly talks was distracting. I would have preferred it toned down just a little. I know she’s a kid but it’s still a tiny bit too much.

[Stephanie Flynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the quirky characters. Is fun imaginative delightful read.

[♥Sabulous ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

Not great but not bad.

[Candra Hodge · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book but I will be disappointed if this is not the start of a series. I feel the author could do so much more with this concept.

[Hardly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Molly got on my nerves this whole book. Also, I don't really understand the allure of cosplay so it kind of seemed unnecessary to me.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5✨

[Lau · Rating 1 out of 5]

Je n’ai pas particulièrement aimé ce livre car l’auteur donne des traumas trop gros à des enfants tout en fournissant un happy ending trop simple. Même le côté magique de l’histoire n’est pas particulièrement bien ficelé et trop de questions restent sans réponse.