Depuis son plus jeune âge, Daniel Cunningham a vécu enfermé, avec pour seule compagnie les livres et sa mère - qui l'a gardé reclus, à l'écart du monde extérieur, et qui n'a cessé de lui répéter qu'il était malade. Un jour, des coups frappés à la porte vont tout changer. Des voisins ont découvert son existence, et résolu de libérer Daniel de l'emprise de sa mère. Pris en charge par le Dr Marlow et sa famille, il va découvrir peu à peu que tout ce qu'il tenait pour vrai jusque-là n'était qu'un tissu d'histoires racontées pour le protéger. Mais le protéger de quoi ? De sa vie d'avant, Daniel n'a gardé qu'une maison de poupée. Et pas n'importe quelle maison de poupée : c'est la réplique exacte de la maison natale de sa mère, une maison qui recèle de nombreux et sombres secrets. Jusqu'à quels vertiges ces secrets conduiront-ils Daniel ?

Romans dès 12 ans ( )

This is a scary book with the creepiest doll's house I've encountered.
It's set in Victorian times and Daniel is kept in a sick room, confined to bed by his Mother and that is all he's ever known. One day he is rescued by a local doctor and his mother is taken away to hospital.
It soon turns out that Daniel isn't sick at all but he has nothing but loving memories of his mother and so he is perplexed by what her motives could have been in hiding him away. All goes well, however, as Daniel is then taken in by the doctor's lovely family.
The only thing he takes with him to his new life is a doll's house and soon an undercurrent of menace enters his games with Sophie the daughter of the house.
Daniel's life is turned upside down again when he mentions he has an uncle and he is sent away to stay with him in a creepy old house. From then on Daniel is at the mercy of his strange uncle and the devil that walks at High Gates House.
This is a real page turner but it would have frightened me to death if I'd read it when I was twelve so maybe it's for slightly older and braver children. Also, there's something quite dreary about all the settings and characters and so I don't know if I really enjoyed reading it. ( )