The Screaming Staircase, which was published by Disney in 2013, is the first novel in Jonathan Stroud's Lockwood and Co. series. The Screaming Staircase is set in present-day London during "the Problems," or an event that led to the emergence of ghosts around the city.
To combat the ghosts, agencies that claim to have the ability to vanquish the ghosts start to pop up. One of those agencies is Lockwood and Co., which is run by two kids—Lucy Carlyle and Anthony Lockwood. Together, the two (along with one of their employees) fight ghosts across London for money. In many ways, they are a family. They work together, live together, and do almost anything together.
The Screaming Staircase was an overnight bestseller and received very positive audience reviews. Kirkus Reviews said that the novel is "A heartily satisfying string of entertaining near-catastrophes, replete with narrow squeaks and spectral howls." The Guardian called the book "fun" and "enjoyable" and called it a great start to the Lockwood and Co. series.
