Scholastic Announces Interactive Mystery Series The Last Resort — See the Cover! (Exclusive)

Scholastic is bringing young readers "the next evolution of storytelling" — with a little help from some ghoulish friends!

The publishing company will be launching The Last Resort series in September, offering an innovative and interactive twist for middle-grade mystery lovers. And now, PEOPLE can exclusively reveal the cover of the first book in the series, from Newbery Medal-winning author Erin Entrada Kelly, with cover art designed by Alex Eckman-Lawn.

The Last Resort, which is set to offer three books from three different acclaimed authors, gives kids the chance to see "ghosts" rise from the pages of their books and ask them questions that give key details to the mysteries at hand — all with the use of a QR code or web link.

The process is relatively simple: readers just scan the pages to see "ghosts" appear via their phones or mobile devices, offering the chance for them to "crack puzzles" and "solve the mystery," as well as a chance for some out-of-book conversation, the publisher explains.

The first book in the series will arrive on Sept. 2 from Kelly, a New York Times bestseller and two-time Newbery Medal winner.

Its follow-up from Newbery Honor author Jasmine Warga arrives in Spring 2026, with a third book set for fall 2026 from an author yet to be announced.

Kelly's book — intended for kids between the ages of 8 and 12 — follows the story of a 12-year-old named Lila who has to spend her summer in Ohio at her late grandfather's "creepy Victorian Inn," where "strange things keep happening," per a synopsis from Scholastic.

After Lila runs into her Grandpa Clem at his own funeral, he tells her he was murdered and that his inn is actually a "portal between the land of the living and the realm of the dead." Now, she must stop "evil spirits desperate to make their way back into the human world" with the help of some friends — a fitting twist to a series where kids get a chance to see the ghouls for themselves.

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"It was such a rewarding experience to approach storytelling in this way," Kelly tells PEOPLE of the series. "Young readers are constantly evolving. Cross-platform literacy offers so much for modern readers — it allows them the joy of traditional prose, the excitement of interacting with their devices in an active — rather than passive — way, and it honors readers whose attention spans are constantly pulled in different directions. Stories can be told in many ways; this series proves that."

Warga, who authored the second book in the series, adds that working on her own book "has been wildly fun" and gave her the opportunity to "write in a completely new genre."

"The cross-platform nature of the project gives the storytelling such an immersive and rich feel, and it’s creatively inspiring to think about how the book characters are going to be brought to life in other ways for our readers. It’s challenged me as a writer to think about storytelling in a more expansive and interactive way," she says. "Also, I’m a huge fan of Erin’s, and so it was also such an honor and thrill to get to expand on her interpretation of the characters and collaborate with her."

"The whole project has felt like such a team effort, from Erin to the brilliant editorial team at Scholastic to the awesome game development team — I’m really delighted to get to be a part of it," Warga adds.

Kelly's The Last Resort arrives on Sept. 2 via Scholastic and is available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.