Alex Bell

The much-anticipated prequel to the bestselling FROZEN CHARLOTTE, a Zoella Book Clubtitle in Autumn 2016. Following the death of her mother in a terrible fire, Jemima flees to the remote Isle of Skye, to take up a job at a school for girls. There she finds herself tormented by the mystery of what really happened that night. Then Jemima receives a box of Frozen Charlotte dolls from a mystery sender and she begins to remember - a s�ance with the dolls, a violent argument with her step-father and the inferno that destroyed their home. And when it seems that the dolls are triggering a series of accidents at the school, Jemima realizes she must stop the demonic spirits possessing the dolls - whatever it takes.

Charlotte Says

paris (taylor’s version)

Catarina Silva

4 stars
I really enjoyed this, good book for the spooky season

Kath Lau

Actual Rating : 4.5 out of 5

Charlotte Says is the prequel to Frozen Charlotte. I read this book right away after finishing Frozen Charlotte.

Set in the year 1910, seventeen-year old Jemima has decided to start a new life after the death of her mother and step-father by taking up a job as an assistant mistress at Dunvegan School for Girls located in a remote place called Isle of Skye. A surprise package with her name on it arrives and it seems like there's no way she can escape her past.

We have a wider cast of characters in this book compared to Frozen Charlotte. We have our main character, Jemima, who used to be her mother's assistant on conducting fake séances. She's a very interesting and complex character. She's not perfect but I loved how she cares about the girls and their safety which is quite ironic since she's the one who gave them the dolls without any knowledge of the harm they will bring. Then we have Miss Grayson, the head mistress, who reminded me so much of Miss Minchin (from A Little Princess) but way more evil. Henry, a very nice guy and Jemima's love interest. Estella, one of the schoolgirls and the outcast of the group. And of course, the little Frozen Charlotte dolls.

In this book we get to see how it all started. How these innocent little dolls became playfully evil and how they ended up in Isle of Skye. It answers all the questions I have in the first book which was really satisfying. The author and her writing are brilliant. She is very talented and versatile. I would love to read more of her books especially if they're historical fiction.

There's a scene where a character from Frozen Charlotte makes a very short appearance and I didn't really get what it means. Probably they can see the future? I don't know. Same with the first book, I didn't really care much about the romance in the story.

This book was less terrifying than the first one but it's definitely creepy and disturbing. I have to warn you that there are some horrific scenes that can be too graphic for some readers, animal cruelty, and physical abuse in the story.

You don't have to read Frozen Charlotte before reading this book but I highly recommend you do.

Sarah Cottam

So this book is actually the pre-quel to ‘Frozen Charlotte’, however I had read online that it doesn’t matter which book you choose to read first. I was seriously impressed with this book, this is the first YA horror I have read and has made me inquisitive to try more.

The Frozen Charlotte dolls originally were made to match the ‘Young/Fair Charlotte’ ballad, which is about a girl called Charlotte who refused to wear a blanket while on a sleigh date with a man called Charles. Thus, the cold eventually caused Charlotte to freeze to death. Creepy.

I really enjoyed this. The book itself was well written, cliffhangers at the end of chapters kept you interested and it was very difficult to put the book down. Alex Bell does a great job of making you squirm in your seat, which is exactly what you need from a horror. The school and head teacher, Mrs Grayson, reminded me of the film ‘Matilda’, with all the children working together, until Charlotte comes into the equation. Children and creepy dolls are the perfect mix for horror.

The romance elements are pretty well balanced for me. Henri was a nice, charming character, which was a contrast from all the miserable, evil characters that are everywhere within this school. The romantic relationship between Jemima and Henri is not very complex, which helps the plot be at the foreground of this book.

The ending of the book made me wonder what was going to happen to Jemima as she grows old. But you don’t actually get to find out. Which was disappointing, although I hate not knowing things, which is why cliffhangers bring me to read books til 4am. But I really liked Jemima, she stood up for what was right and wanted to protect those around her. The chapter transitions between her past/the present gave the perfect mix to understand her better, and the past is pretty brutal.

I normally really struggle to read books that are in the 20th century, so I was a little bit concerned to open the front page to exactly that. But I was pleasantly surprised. I haven’t read anymore books by Alex Bell, bar ‘Frozen Charlotte’. But reading her work has made me want to go out and collect every single book she has written.

Important note, if I had read ‘Frozen Charlotte’ first, I would have known what happens to the girls in the school, so I would actually recommend anybody to read the pre-quel first.

Gabriela Roxana 

** spoiler alert **
           I found this book to be very different from what I have originally expected in the beginning, but it doesnt mean it was any less great after all. Very different from Frozen Charlotte in my opinion, the story takes place 100 years ago in a boarding school for homeless girls where our main characters takes a job as an assistant in order to escape from her past.

The book turned out to be less thrilling and fascinating that the sequel, hence why it lost a star for me. However, I found the whole idea with siding with the villain to beat the actual Evil very appealing to my taste. The love story was truly amazing, I was rooting for Min and Henry so much. And the ending, while I may not be really a fan of open endings, truly haunting and everlasting.

Read this on a 9h 30min train trip, and it was enough to save me from the boredom and overwhelming heat, just as Frozen Charlotte did an year ago.

Charlotte Says

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