Eventide

August 24, 2020
Abandonments, rural secrets, and revenge web Goodman’s earnest but overstuffed historical fantasy debut. In June 1907, impoverished 17-year-old Verity Pruitt and her dreamy sister, Lilah, 11, leave New York on an Arkansas-bound orphan train. But Verity’s determination to earn them passage back to New York and study medicine derails when a robber baron and his ethereal schoolteacher niece, Maeve, are approved to adopt only Lilah. To stay close, Verity indentures herself to a kindly farm couple nearby and their charming nephew, Abel. But the secrets of the town’s haunted woods connect the siblings’ institutionalized father, Maeve, and the disappearance of a preacher’s spurned, pregnant daughter; Verity must unravel the connections them to save her sister and herself. Though a warm, grounded romance delights, a sprawl of overfamiliar plot elements undermine their own suspense, and outdated ones—a notably unattractive antagonist, Verity’s gendered fate—may alienate modern readers. A sincere small-town ghost story that never quite coheres. Ages 13–up. Agent: Mary C. Moore, Kimberley Cameron & Assoc.

March 1, 2021

Gr 6-10-Verity Pruitt is no stranger to tragedy. During her short 17 years she has lost a sibling, her mother, and now she and her little sister Lilah are taken as orphans to be adopted in Arkansas after her father is committed due to mental incapacity. Verity is determined to keep her sister with her, but Lilah is adopted almost immediately upon their arrival in small town Wheeler, AK, by the beloved town school teacher, Miss Maeve. Fearing separation, Verity offers herself to a couple looking for a farmhand. As Lilah immediately finds herself at home in her new placement, Verity can't shake the feeling there is something amiss in their new town. As she learns more about its dark history, she starts seeing things that she knows shouldn't be there, and learns that her family has deep secrets connected to the town. Verity seeks to find answers to these strange coincidences, and finds herself in more danger than she anticipated. A historical thriller that is more spooky than it is scary, this audiobook, read by Lauren Fortgang, really brings to life the paranormal activity and suspense. The listener gets instantly transported to the early 1900s and every character is well represented through the narration. VERDICT A fast and entertaining story that will entice readers who are fans of historical fiction with paranormal elements, this is a good addition to audiobook collections looking to add a spooky, historical tale appropriate for middle grade audiences.-Erica Coonelly, Monroe Township M.S., NJ

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