Orion O’Brien and the Phantoms of Wakarusa

Orion O’Brien and the Phantoms of Wakarusa

Orion and Ollie just want to have fun at their uncle’s farm before school starts, but annoying—and frightening—things keep happening. They can’t be accidents. Orion thinks the weird farmhand is picking on them, but Ollie just knows it’s a mean ghost. Then they hear about Quantrill’s raid, when the town of Lawrence and surrounding farmsteads were burned by a pro-slavery gang. Rumors say their uncle’s barn is haunted by two kids who were caught in a fire. With friends Sal and Sofi, a Ouija board and a drone, they start to unravel the mystery. Then one terrifying night as a tornado rages outside, they come face to face with the phantoms and the secret behind it all!

Noah Wheeler

“My family-Mama, Papa, my sister Katie and me-moved to Kansas Territory from Boston in 1857 to help make Kansas a free state. Our farm became a stop on the Underground Railroad, where enslaved people could stop for food and shelter on their way to freedom. I was proud of our work to bring an end to slavery, but I wanted to go back to Boston and study at Harvard. Papa wouldn’t let me, so I decided to sneak away on my own. But the day I was planning to leave, a pro-slavery gang came and took Papa away with them. And they set fire to the barn-with Katie and me trapped inside.”