Elatsoe (or Ellie) has inherited the gift of waking ghosts, that has been passed down for generations in her family. After her Cousins seemingly accidental death, his ghost visits Ellie in her dreams, telling her that his death was no accident. He had been murdered by one “Abraham Allerton” a well respected doctor in his community.
Ellie and her mother travel to her Cousins home town to help his grieving widow and their son, as well as to prepare his funeral. There she searches for clues on how to prove the doctors involvment in her Cousins death using every resource possible.
Another wonderful fantasy story by Darcie Little Badger. I am a huge fan of the simplicity of her writing. No unnecessary drama, no sighs as the characters run head first into danger. Every action and plot point is deliberate and well thought through by both characters and author. One of my favourite parts was how Elatsoes indigenous heritage affected the storyline and the magic around her. Without giving too much away, it lead to some pretty awesome and powerful moments.
The characters are so well written with their own quirks and talents: Ellie with her ghost waking ability, her friend Jay and his fae ancestry that allows him to produce a singular will o’ wisp, Jay’s sister Ronnie, a passionate basketball player that has fallen for a vampire, and said vampire who has a preference for spiderclimbing bridges and spray-painting marriage proposals.
Again, without giving anything away, the book has a refreshing take on revenge. The only advice for readers is, don’t read the book expecting action alll the way through and unforeseeable twists. The reveals are very well done, and the reader gets all the informations the characters have so that they can figure out the murder as they read, which I absolutely love. The plot is perfectly paced, ending on a high, with short calm parts that you can get completely lost in.
I cannot reccommend this book enough, immediatly became one of my favourites, adorning my bookshelf with it’s beautiful dust cover illustration by Rovina Cai.
