Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe

by Alyson Noel

Stranger Things meets Sideways Stories from Wayside School in this quirky supernatural middle grade novel about a boy on an unlikely quest to uncover an enchanted book to defeat an unearthly nemesis—from New York Times bestselling author Alyson Noël.When he first started seeing ghosts, Max mistakenly assumed everyone else could see them, too. Now, after years of being blamed for the pranks of mischievous spirits, Max is determined to do whatever it takes to make himself normal. But when he’s sent to spend the summer with his eccentric grandfather, Ramhart, being normal becomes impossible.Here in Glimmerville, bakeries sell enchanted pies, the lake is infested with mermaids, the town’s beloved ghosts roam free, and Ramhart himself is celebrated as the world’s most famous monster hunter. At first, all Max wants is to survive the summer, but the more time he spends in Glimmerville, the more he starts to wonder if he’s finally found a place where he can truly be himself.But when a supernatural attack steals Ramhart’s soul, Max—with the help of a few new friends—must go on a quest to find his grandfather’s renowned Field Guide, an enchanted book that contains all the knowledge Ramhart has gathered about defeating unearthly nemeses. And if they don’t find the book fast, Glimmerville will crumble into chaos, and Max will lose the only person who’s ever made him feel at home.

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Paranormal, Audiobook, Supernatural, Ghosts, Childrens

349 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2022

About the author

*Note to readers: I'm slowly adding to the long list of books I've read, books I'm reading, and books I want to read. I only add books I loved, hence all my ratings are 5 stars.


Alyson Noël is the #1 NYT best-selling author of many award-winning and critically acclaimed novels for readers of all ages.

With 9 NYT bestsellers and millions of copies in print, her books have been translated into 36 languages, and have topped the NYT, USA Today, LA Times, Publisher’s Weekly, Wall Street Journal, NCIBA, and Walmart Bestsellers lists, as well as several international bestsellers lists.

She is best known for THE IMMORTALS series, THE RILEY BLOOM series, and SAVING ZOË, which was adapted into a movie now available on Amazon.

Upcoming works include:

RULING DESTINY- book 2, in the STEALING INFINITY series

STEALING INFINITY- Optioned for TV by Valhalla Entertainment - available now!

FIELD GUIDE TO THE SUPERNATURAL UNIVERSE - Optioned for TV by producers Charles Matthau and Michael Zoumas with Andrew Orenstein and Matt Hastings attached as show runners

Born and raised in Orange County, California, she’s lived in both Mykonos and Manhattan and is now settled in Southern California. Learn more at www.alysonnoel.com.

Instagram:
http://instagram.com/alyson_noel

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/AlysonNoel/

Facebook:
Official me: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Alyson...

Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/alysonnoel/

Reviews

[Georgann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun story about finding your people and where you belong, along with a bunch of supernatural discoveries and battles.

[Sasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was pretty slow for me and I wished that the plot or the mission was clearer. I wasn't sure if the quest to find the mom was the point, to find closure for her leaving, to free some ghosts, or whatever was the point of the story. I'm still not sure things were resolved in a manner that was satisfying. It seemed like a lot of the plot points were closed, but not in a meaningful manner that the story builds up to the reveal.
Max being so fickle and not communicating well or knowing his own motivation was not a plot point, but an irritating character trait that slowed down the pace of the story as a whole. Often, when the story was getting good, there would be some introduction of Max having to reason with himself about his identity (embrace or hide) either that or him clearly not listening to instructions with no good readon.
Friendships were nice.

[Annalise Nakoneczny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the idea, but I felt like this book was trying to do too much while not developing the characters or the plot enough. Max changed his mind about himself at the drop of a hat with really no rhyme or reason, so many supernatural entities were combined, and so few relationships were developed to the point of emotional attachment. I also felt like the reveal of what happened to Max's mom came too late-- if that had happened earlier I think I would've added some very needed depth.

[Heather Kirchhoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe is amazing! I couldn't stop reading it. I highly recommend this book!

[Angie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish at about 25%. Too much going on and not enough story.

[Jodi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dieses Buch lässt mich irgendwie zwiegespalten zurück. Es hat einige Szenen, die durchaus Potential haben, und auch das Ende ist mir sehr zu Herzen gegangen, aber die Umsetzung der Idee lässt leider zu wünschen übrig.

Das Grundproblem des Buches ist, dass Alyson Noel einfach zu viel in die Geschichte reinpacken will. Es werden viele verschiedene Dinge angesprochen und aufgegriffen, aber nichts davon vertieft. Dadurch leidet die aufzubauende Welt, die Charaktere und der Handlungsaufbau. Alles wirkt chaotisch und undurchdacht.

Max macht zwar eine gute Entwicklung durch, aber aufgrund der oben genannten Punkte wirkt es zu erzwungen. Da auch die Tiefe fehlt, konnte ich mich am Schluss zwar für den Jungen freuen, aber es fehlte mir zu viel, um das Buch wirklich geniessen zu können.

Atmosphäre kommt leider auch kaum welche auf, sodass Lesende, welche sich eine gruselige Halloween-Lektüre suchen, sich lieber nach einem anderen Titel umsehen sollten.

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lot of fun! There are ghosts, 'boogies', zombies, and a prophecy and poor Max is just trying to survive the summer.

I enjoyed Max learning about his ability to see ghosts and meeting a group of friends who like him for who he is. There's plenty of action and excitement to keep the plot moving and it has a sweet ending. I would totally read a sequel to this!

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adventurous fun with lots of magical creatures and realms. Great characters and a great mix of real-life problems with the fantastical. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for a digital ARC.

[Thompson McLeod · Rating 5 out of 5]

Max has been seeing ghosts for years, and he's blamed for all kinds of ghostly quirky pranks. Because others can't see Max's ghosts, poor Max takes the blame. When his father (who doesn't believe in ghosts) sends him to live with his grandfather for the summer, Max meets his eccentric grandfather, Ramhart Woodbead, world's greatest monster hunter and collector of extraordinary knowledge. The town of Glimmerville itself is enchanted: ghosts appear everywhere and none of them hide, werewolves, magic pies; it's a veritable Charlie and the Chocolate Factory full of supernatural. At first Max is scared and wary, but Wodehouse Manor begins to grow on him.

When Ramhart's soul is stolen, Max must go on a hero's journey to find his grandfather's Guide To the Supernatural Universe to put his grandfather right. Glimmerville depends on Max to exist. Max has a habit of listing his top five terrifying things at the beginning of most chapters. It will keep middle grade readers turning the pages with anticipation of more magical discoveries like mutant glowworms, time slips, werewolves, zombies and supernatural storms.

Time is ticking away and Max better hurry before Ramhart is doomed forever. Max must save the day in order to stay in the first place he feels at home.

Alyson Noel's imagination truly knows no bounds. This is an enchanting tale is full of whimsy that rollicks and celebrates. I loved Field Guide To the Supernatural Universe and MG readers of all ages will love it, too! Bound to be awarded this year as one of the best books for middle grade, and you heard it here first!

Highly, highly recommended for anyone who enjoys fantasy and fantastical beings.

[Chanel Henry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Omg this middle grade book was ridiculously obnoxious. I really wanted to like it because the premise seemed interesting and I usually enjoy reading middle grade books. but this one right here is a solid NOPE for me!! First of all, the main character is unlikeable. Period. That's the end of my rant. But no seriously, he's standoffish and rude and uninteresting, I gave up. I will say that first chapter was good. I was like 'yes I've finally found a book for me to get into'. I was dead wrong. Why do authors make their main characters so unlikeable? Is it because they want them to redeem themselves later? Probably, but how do you expect the reader to root for an extremely unlikeable person long enough for their attitudes to improve? I'm not build for it, on to the next one I guess.

[Laura Mauro · Rating 3 out of 5]

* I got this book for review from the publisher*
This book was very cute. I am always hunting for books with a male lead. I also loved the ghosts elements to this story. I also think this would be a great fall read. I also really liked how this book was a quick read. I also loved the small town and it almost remidned me of halloween town or even starshallow but with magic. I really enjoyed this read. I am hoping we get a sequel!!

[Kate · Rating 1 out of 5]

I kept reading this hoping to get to the good part and felt like Charlie Brown kicking the football--it never happened. This needs at least 50 pages cut for the majority of middle school kids to even pick up to try to read. Will not waste my precious budget on this.
So much wasted time for a book that I won't buy because it will be a shelf-sitter.

[April Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start by saying… PLEASE TELL ME THERE WILL BE MORE IN THIS SERIES! This book was amazing! I went into it a bit skeptical if I would enjoy this but BOY WAS I WRONG! The world building, the characters, the plot! I recommend this book to anyone who likes the paranormal! This book also reminded me a lot of Victoria Schwabs City Of Ghosts series!

[MagicSoakedPages · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! It was super cute. It was nice to watch Max understand that him seeing ghosts wasn't a bad thing. I love middle-age books because they always have such interesting concepts!

[Ms. Nigeria Nigeria Parker · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was all over the place. I mean literally

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - I tried to push through but couldn't.

[Sara Wise · Rating 5 out of 5]

** “You were never truly in danger. You just thought you were, and there’s a very big difference. In my experience, the terrors we meet in our heads are much scarier than the ones we meet in real life.” **

Alyson Noel delivers a fun book filled with ghosts and bogeys geared for “kids” of all ages with “Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe.”

Even though he doesn’t like it, Max (Woodbead) Smith has learned to live with his special gift — the ability to see ghosts. And when his father sends him to live with his grandfather, renowned ghost hunter Ramhart Woodbead, for the summer, he realizes his family has quite a unique past.

When things go terribly wrong, Max must join forces with his new friends Bex, Jools and Krish to save his grandfather and the family home and town Max has grown to love — all while learning to step into the role for which he is destined.

Filled with ghosts, a chupacabra, Yetis, glowworms, Reptilians and other assorted creatures, “Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe” will delight readers of all ages. Noel does a great job of created intriguing and plucky characters, and filling her plot with tons of twists, turns and suspense.

She also includes some great themes in her book, like your entire life is a lesson; sometimes the only way out is through; live each day to the fullest; believing is seeing; and accepting who we are.

“Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe” is due out March 22.

Five stars out of five.

Margaret K. McElderry Books provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

[July · Rating 2 out of 5]

(SPOILERS) Maxen sees ghosts & other 'monsters.' He's friendless & considered a troublemaker in school & by his unbelieving dad, so after fighting off a hoard of menaces that are invisible to everyone else & getting in trouble for 'acting up' on the last day of school, his dad sends him to live with his kooky supernatural-obsessed estranged grandfather for the summer. It takes 1/2 the book for a kid who sees ghosts to believe the other supernatural things his grandpa shows him are real, really? Finally he begins to accept his fate as the heir to his family legacy, making friends with a group of local supernatural-obsessed kids & the local favorite ghost, while cycling from one dangerous encounter to another. The whole while he's seeking the MacGuffin-like Field Guide to the Supernatural Universe, a dangerous book scribed by the grandfather that Max believes will show him how to be normal, a big logical stretch indeed. When he finds it - after a whole bunch of stupid choices - it sets off the big climax, which gets resolved after more adventures. Then the dad shows up & says he acts entirely his son there to get a grip on the ghost thing bc apparently he did bellhop all along and was just gaslighting him & destroying his self esteem his entire life bc he was trying to be a g[d dad. Yeeaaaah. It's a set up for a series, & it did move along and was entertai, but I hate it when an author insults their young readers' intelligence with absurd leaps of logic & poor character development, so this one isn't my fave.

[Eule Luftschloss · Rating 3 out of 5]

trigger warning
grief, trauma, memory loss

Max can see ghosts. This could be fun, were it not that everything the ghosts do gets blamed on Max, and school is a struggle of will-I-be-suspended-today?
Then it gets even worse, when his father tells him he has to travel, alone, and Max will be dumped with the dreaded grandfahter he never really met.

Max's father thinks grandpa is mad, bad and dangerous to know - at least that's what he always says, so it's a big surprise for Max when he hears he is to spend the summer with this guy he doesn't know. Quickly, it turns out that grandpa Ramhart is everything Max's father says: He believes. In ghosts, aliens, you name it. He has rituals that need to be carried out to prevent bad things from happening. And now he's here, Max is expected to join, so one day he might inherit.

It was a fun adventure, quick paced. Ridiculous but in a fun way. For example, my favourite character is Shadow, a chupacabra stray who decided this is home - but don't scare him, or he'll jump out of his skin. Literally.

I would read on, and I would recommend it for people, younger and older readers, who are looking for a supernatural adventure with a reluctant hero.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

[Amelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gets a round up to 4 stars for including the VERY REAL town of Normal, Illinois!! Look it up. Shout out to central IL!

Ok, now that that’s out of the way- this was a fun middle school standalone fantasy novel about fitting in and finding your place. I like the inclusion and descriptions of fun mythological beasts. Do I like the constant foot dragging of the MC to believe in what he sees with his own eyes? No. And yes, I know he’s been told his whole life they aren’t there- but finally a grown up confirming what he sees!! Trauma runs deep tho- so who am I to judge 🤷‍♀️

There is a smidge of “I think she’s pretty” but she’s a ghost- so that’s a no go. And also a smidge of “oh you’re a real girl and also pretty” but that’s in the last few pages.

A fun overly complicated plot that had a great narrator for the audio book. Recommend to fans of supernatural and fantasy/horror. Also recommend The Screaming Staircase by Stroud for younger fans (fourth or fifth grade and up) and the City of Ghosts by Schwab for older fans (probably more like 6th grade and up)

This could be a fun family listen in the car as well. For all the “scary beasts” there’s not a lot of death or loss.

[Tracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

All Max Woodbead Smith wants is to be normal—but he’s inherited his grandfather’s supernatural gifts and can see ghosts. The summer after 6th grade finds Max caught in a supernatural storm—complete with bogeys, zombies, mutant glowworms, a monkey king, and more—while searching for his grandfather’s Field Guide, an enchanted book that holds the key to defeating unearthly enemies. Could the book also teach Max how to suppress his gifts and live a normal life?

Zaniness balances the nonstop action and tempers the wide range of horrific creatures you'll meet here. While I enjoyed the world-building and supernatural creativity (Shadow, the dog-like chupacabra who is constantly "scared out of his skin" and collapsing into a pile of bones, is a personal favorite), I didn't love the narrator's voice and I'm not sure why. Usually first-person narration draws me right into the story, but I had trouble connecting with Max here. I found him to be a little annoying, but the story was redeemingly fun.

[Katherine Pogatshnik · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I can't make you 'normal,' Max. All I can do is help you understand that there's absolutely nothing wrong with you. But I also don't want to make light of any of this. A supernatural gift comes with its own risks. And to this day, those lost years remain the single greatest regret of my life."

"The person you ultimately become is always the result of your choices - the ones you make on a day-to-day, minute-by-minute basis. You carry a great power within you, Max. And it's how you decide to use that power that'll determine whether the light or dark side of you wins."

The second half of this book is good. It has action, adventure, ghosts, and a random assortment of mythical creatures thrown in. The hard part is getting to the second half of the book where it actually gets interesting. I feel like a good 100 pages or so could be cut out of the first half to not only make the book move faster, but also give a higher chance of my 4th-5th grade students to making it to the exciting part where they will be hooked.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good premise, but I couldn't get past Ch. 8-9. It was sooooo repetitive and fairly boring, despite peril after peril. Max can literally see ghosts, but spends multiple chapters stating over and over ad nauseum that he doesn't believe in each one of a list of supernatural creatures his estranged grandpa shows him. And each are presented to the reader like an encyclopedia entry. Look at this thing, it's from here and has these powers. What? Does he expect me to believe this? He's crazy. Repeat times 20. Boring and unbelievable. Too bad bc the dad is a compelling and sympathetic character, but he's apparently not in it foe thr majority. And Max's divorced and lost/dead mom and his ensuing denial and issues adjusting is a compelling theme. I would have been more interested in the author going that route than in this drawn out Spiderwick rehash with less likable characters and narration that is trying sooooo hard to be funny.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started off so strong for me. It reminded me a lot at first of The Last Kids on Earth in the best ways - It has supernatural elements, humor, and a relatable main character, and I was 100% on board and already thinking of the students I would want to share this book with. But then, about halfway through, it really lost me. There were SO many creatures and mysteries introduced that they all started to run together. This book spends so much time creating zany adventures that it ends up really missing the mark on any character development or storyline. Characters change their desires and behavior at the drop of a hat with no explanation only for the reader to be distracted by yet another crazy kind of ghost/monster/zombie/demon to show up. The narration was good, but it wasn’t enough to hold my attention for the duration of the story, and quite frankly, I was glad when it was over. It definitely sets up for a sequel, but I won’t be reading it.

[Teena Bee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute middle age book about a budding ghost seer.

I've been listening to a variety of supernatural type middle age books lately, and this one was one of my favorites so far (though I don't know if that is because I basically adore anything narrated by Michael Crouch).

There was more involved in the plot then I originally anticipated. I expected the normal run of the mill "fumbling youth who seconds guesses self turns out to be the chosen one and finds their strength through unlikely friendships and newly discovered self confidence". And though that was pretty much the book, it took me to places I wasn't expecting with dimensional travel, demons, selki, chupacabra, soul exchange and more. I was expecting mostly haunted house/ghosts, so the added folklore and cryptids were a fun twist.

Would definitely recumbent for children in the targeted age range.

[Clarissa Blakely · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay. The summary likens it to Stranger Things, but that is most definitely a stretch. My problem was that nothing really made sense to me. For some reason a bunch of ghosts just decided that the kid that can see them they should be beat up on. I guess we could blame it on the mean girl in his school who was actually a demon/lizard posing as a girl, but it still doesn't make sense. There were so many terms in this book to learn about with little explanation. The dad had been mean to his kid for seeing ghosts, but knew he was seeing ghosts just gaslit the kid by saying they weren't there for apparently no purpose at all. Also the field guide felt very useless to the story. I don't know why the main character wanted this field guide so bad as though his grandpa who loves the supernatural universe would write a book on how to not see ghosts anymore. I just didn't get it, but maybe kids would like the whimsy it has.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maxen just wants to escape the town of Boring because his life is anything but boring. You see, Max can see ghosts and the ghosts he sees are always causing trouble like stealing cars and trying to hurt classmates. When Max rushes to the rescue, his classmates, teachers, and principal just see him pulling pranks. When Max’s dad announces he’ll be leaving town to find a new job and new place to live, he sends Max to stay with his eccentric grandfather who is rumored to have his own supernatural abilities. Max just wants to get his hands on his grandfather’s Field Guide to learn how to stop seeing ghosts. With the help of a ghost and new human friends, Max must combat monsters to rescue his grandfather.

[Emily Cottle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted so badly to give up on this book, but I kept plugging along, and it did not get better. There was just so little characterization that I couldn't relate to or sympathize with anyone. Max is whiney and illogical. He has spent his whole life getting bullied because he sees ghosts, and then when he moves in with his grandfather, who claims to see all kinds of monsters, he's like, "That's just farfetched. I don't believe you." What the heck? And the grandfather, whom you'd think would be grandfatherly, is just mean. SPOILER AHEAD.............To cap it all off, when the dad comes back at the end, he reveals that he knew Max was telling the truth about seeing ghosts the whole time and was just gaslighting him?? What an unfit parent.

[Eileen Winfrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Max sees supernatural beings, many with evil intent, when no one else does. As a result, he looks like a lunatic as he fights these creatures away from their mischief. This causes trouble at school, at home, and in his social life (no friends). His father decides to leave him with his previously estranged grandfather while he looks for a new job and home. Finally, Max discovers someone else like him: his grandfather has the same abilities and with a purpose. Bizarrely, instead of feeling relieved that there is an explanation for all this, Max acts standoffish. Supernatural events escalate. New friends are made. Old enemies resurface. Decent story; very long.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A fun, action packed paranormal story about Max and the fact that he can see ghosts and they are ruining his life. After he goes viral for a monster attack, his dad drops him off with his grandfather, who is like the Indiana Jones of paranormal things. He spends the summer with him, makes some friends, both human and not, and has to save the world. Lots of action with some suspenseful and scary things in it, but nothing super scary. Some violence and death, no swears, and some great butt jokes. 5th grade and up.