The Hounds of Penhallow Hall: The Moonlight Statue by Holly Webb illustrated by Jason Cockcroft

Blurb: For Polly, moving to Penhallow Hall is the fresh start she’s been longing for since the death of her father. Her mum has got a job managing the stately home and once the last of the visitors leave for the day the place is all theirs! One night, Polly sleepwalks into the garden and wakes to find her hand on the head of one of the stone dogs that guard the steps down to the lawn. Then she feels him lick her cheek! The dog introduces himself as Rex, an Irish Wolfhound who lived at Penhallow many hundreds of years earlier. And he is not the only resident ghost – Polly has also glimpsed a strange boy around the place. With Rex’s help she finds herself unravelling the story of his beloved master, William Penhallow, who was killed in the First World War aged only 17.

I picked this book up at a recent charity book sale. It was published in 2017 and so it is now out of print but you might find this series in your local or school library. 

This is a simple story but it did hold my interest. It is easy to read with plenty of illustrations and so would be enjoyed by readers aged 9+. It is a ghost story but it is not scary at all. Readers who enjoy books that feature very special (huge) dogs are sure to enjoy meeting Rex. 

My only comment is I was a little confused towards the end as to why William returned a young boy and not the age as a young soldier when he died. I have now discovered this book is part of a series so perhaps my questions will be resolved in further installments. 

• Book 1: The Moonlight Statue (2017)
• Book 2: The Lost Treasure (2017)
• Book 3: The Hidden Staircase (2018)
• Book 4: The Secrets Tree (2018)

Holly Webb is the author of over 100 books. She almost needs a whole section of the library just to hold all her books. She writes such a variety of stories for a wide range of ages. I highly recommend you look for her books next time you visit a library. 

Here are some I have read:

The Princess and the Suffragette

Return to the Secret Garden

The Girl of Glass