Alexander Robert Hamilton MacBuff, laird of Carra, of Errenrig and Sethsay is a twelve-year-old boy who lives in a castle in Scotland. He is an orphan who has his great-aunt Geraldine living with him. His castle is in need of repairs and there is no longer money to keep it up. He is faced with the decision to sell it. Who will buy an old castle.

Luck has it that American millionaire Hiram C. Hopgood is in the market to buy one to make his daughter, Helen, happy! He visits the castle and makes an offer. He plans to dismantle it and ship it to Texas and have it reassembled! Every stone and gargoyle. The only thing is that he doesn't want any ghosts to come with it.

In order to make the sale, Alex agrees. Then Alex has to tell the resident ghosts that they will have to move. Krok, a Viking warrior; Miss Spinks, a governess of the damp and spooky side; Flossie, a 5-year-old poltergeist; Stanislaus, an ancient vampire sans fangs; and Cyril, the hellhound of unusual length have all been with Alex since he was born. It is a difficult thing to do, but the ghosts understand that it is for the best for Alex and his aunt to sell the castle.

The castle is dismantled and shipped and is being reassembled in Texas. Hiram C. Hopgood invites Alex to come stay with him and his daughter and help supervise the reconstruction.

Alex accepts, and over time, he and Helen become good friends. Meanwhile the ghosts have moved to another castle and have no idea that Alex is in Texas. They are not welcomed by the ghosts that live at their new castle and so the ghosts decide to go to America and see how the castle is doing there. It turns out that they and Alex are there at the same time but don't know it!

There is a trio of characters that are up to no good in Scotland and follow the castle to Texas. They have come up with a plan to steal something from Hiram C. Hopgood and hold it for ransom.

I've read other books by Ibbotson and this is just as enjoyable. Even though each character is different, they also share common values. ( )

An entertaining tale of Alex the Laird of Castle Carra in Scotland (which has been relocated to Granite Falls, TX), the Castle's ghosts, and the soon to be kidnapped millionaire's daughter Helen... Bad guys, good guys, ghosts, a severed hand seeking revenge...a fun tale. ( )

So clever and charming. Amazing way she has of making all her characters gruesome but not terrifying. Everything she writes is great, but this one in particular, along I think with "Dial a Ghost", has a really tight plot where everything fits together and works out beautifully. ( )

This is the first US edition of the tale originally published in Britain (London, McMillan Children's Books, 1987) under a different title, "The Haunting of Hiram." Whatever you want to call it, it's delightful. ( )