When thirteen-year-old Anne is sent to spend the summer with her dreadful relatives in a small Washington state town, she is left with little hope that anything intriguing will happen to her. However, when she learns of an abandoned town full of old Victorian homes hidden in the woods nearby, she embraces the lore and becomes bolstered by the idea that an adventure might await.

Her sadistic cousin Lexie feeds Anne’s curiosity and leads her to the mysterious town in the woods, where Anne is goaded by her cousin and friends to enter one of the abandoned homes, alone, and is locked inside.

While searching for a way out, Anne stumbles through a hole in the floor and unknowingly falls into an ominous, ghost-filled mystery. As she digs deeper into the secrets of this house, she discovers a weathered journal that reveals a magic-infused history hundreds of years old and a tragic secret: a curse has trapped the town and its inhabitants in a place not meant to be found by humans.

Treacherous fairies, dark worlds-within-our-world, dangerous creatures and a shocking truth all await Anne as page by page, she peels back the mysteries of this chilling town.

MY THOUGHTS:

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

I know this book came out in 2016, but I strongly believe that just because a book is a few years old, it shouldn’t be forgotten.  Some of the best books come out during a time when there’s a huge fad focus on a book or series that is so fantastic, that other books fall to the wayside forgotten or missed.

This is why I often request older books from publishers and review them here for you, the reader, to check out and decide for yourself if it’s something that you should have read sooner and/or paid closer attention to.

This middle-grade book, is one such forgotten gem.

This is the first book of an ongoing series.  The main character is strongly written, with a noticeable character development throughout the book.  She is independent and strong-willed, intelligent and forthright.  I enjoyed seeing her decision making and the ramifications of same.  Her behavior helped the plot, which was fast-paced and exciting move along with plenty of twists and turns to keep you vested in what was happening.  

The whole premise hooked me in right away and I couldn’t wait to see how the author handled the story.  It was creepy and intriguing.  The second book promises to be as equally thrilling and with the way this one ended, I’m hoping to learn more about the fairies and their world and why this town was cursed by them.  Adult readers must keep in mind that this IS for middle-grade readers, so it will read as such.  Don’t be disappointed if you expect the book to transition magically into an adult read and it doesn’t; knowing this–you’ll enjoy it immensely.  I also believe it will appeal to higher chapter book readers too.

I’m hoping the world-building continues to grow as the series moves along. A fun and fascinating read and I loved every moment of it!

I gave this book: