If you like teens fighting ghosts, with a little bit of interpersonal drama tossed in, it’s a fun romp. There’s a little of Stroud’s typical subtext about social class in there too.
Netflix had a show based on it a few years ago but of course they dropped it after one season, even though it was quite good IMHO.
I had a similar issue with books two and three and unfortunately stopped reading after them. They were well written but I read to relax; I can deal with a little darkness but those books were downright bleak.