Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Shady Grove is haunted by her father's death and his lost fiddle that could summon ghosts. When tragedy strikes her family again and her brother is arrested for murder, Shady sets out to find the fiddle and wrest answers from the dead.
This book is perfectly southern gothic and very creepy! I was immediately drawn in by the lyrical writing, descriptions of rural Florida, and the characters. This is probably the most country YA novel I've read and I loved it! I love the unique but relatable cast of characters and their bond as bluegrass musicians. Yes, these teens live and breathe bluegrass and it's amazing. There's LGBTQ+ rep (Shady is bi and at least two other characters are queer), some diversity in the characters (Cuban-American), and major differences in socio-economic status. There's also a murder mystery plot, generational trauma and secrets, romance, heartache, and reconciliation. And lots of scary ghosts, nightmares, and wasps!
I would recommend to fans of The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater, Dress Codes for Small Towns by Courtney Stevens, and Wonders of the Invisible World by Christopher Barzak.
This book is perfectly southern gothic and very creepy! I was immediately drawn in by the lyrical writing, descriptions of rural Florida, and the characters. This is probably the most country YA novel I've read and I loved it! I love the unique but relatable cast of characters and their bond as bluegrass musicians. Yes, these teens live and breathe bluegrass and it's amazing. There's LGBTQ+ rep (Shady is bi and at least two other characters are queer), some diversity in the characters (Cuban-American), and major differences in socio-economic status. There's also a murder mystery plot, generational trauma and secrets, romance, heartache, and reconciliation. And lots of scary ghosts, nightmares, and wasps!
I would recommend to fans of The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater, Dress Codes for Small Towns by Courtney Stevens, and Wonders of the Invisible World by Christopher Barzak.
4.5
Beautiful and haunting. Just the right amount of scary for me, and a great October read. Felt rushed at some parts though.
Beautiful and haunting. Just the right amount of scary for me, and a great October read. Felt rushed at some parts though.
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Easy 5 stars and the best book i read so far this year. This felt so vibe-y. Kinda evoked the same feeling I had when I played Night in the Woods so many years ago and I'm loving it. This is about grief and ghosts of the past who cant stop haunting you but also about friendships and what feels right for you in relationships. Oh and a lot of bluegrass and music in general. Absolutely loved this. Story 10/10. Characters so deeply flawed and real, they felt so alive and I rarely see characters so well explored!
Gosh this was such a good read.
Gosh this was such a good read.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not terrible, just not for me.
Like many bluegrass tunes, this story started slow but the tempo really picked up as it went along.
Now I want to go listen to some murder ballads on fiddle & mandolin.
Now I want to go listen to some murder ballads on fiddle & mandolin.
I really enjoyed this. It was sweet with an interesting creepy vibe. Loved the MC and the family relationships. It was a teeny bit predictable but I still liked it. A good read for October!
I expected this to be atmospheric and creepy and the perfect book to read during spooky season and it was all that and more. The characters in this were so well written that even some of the ones that turned out to be completely innocent came across as suspicious in parts. Even though I had a fairly good idea who was actually guilty of the murder Shady’s brother was arrested for, I still had second thoughts when another character said or did something. I loved the main character, Shady, shes instantly certain her brother isn’t guilty of the murder and even though as she digs deeper she begins to have some doubt, she’s determined to find out the truth, even if it does uncover things she doesn’t want to know about her brother.
I absolutely loved the whole concept of this fiddle being able to ‘summon’ ghosts when played. I don’t often see music as a main part of a storyline and I loved how it was incorporated into the main character’s life, even when she’s not playing her father’s fiddle to speak to the ghosts. The explanation of how the fiddle came to be in the family was haunting (yes I made a ghost joke) and the Shadow Man that is trying to get to Shady was creepy but not just that, it was just the right level of creepy for someone who’s not a huge fan of horror.
The themes in this book included; bi rep, death, grieving, family. What I loved most about the bi rep was that it was relatable; a lot of books with bi characters the love interest is almost always the same gender as the main character, but in this book there were two love interests, one the same gender and one different and I appreciated that because it helps to break the ridiculous idea that some people have that being bi is ‘just a gateway to being gay/lesbian’ (and I roll my eyes every time I hear someone say that). One thing that annoyed me, and it’s not with the book itself because it’s something that does happen quite a lot, is when they’re at the funeral and Shady’s mum makes her go and look at the body in the casket. I understand that for some people it’s closure, but I have never got why you would force someone else, especially a child, to go and look at that if they don’t want to.
I definitely recommend this book, especially if you like creepy books, but not actual horror, this is a brilliant in between and it’s definitely one I’ll reread.
I absolutely loved the whole concept of this fiddle being able to ‘summon’ ghosts when played. I don’t often see music as a main part of a storyline and I loved how it was incorporated into the main character’s life, even when she’s not playing her father’s fiddle to speak to the ghosts. The explanation of how the fiddle came to be in the family was haunting (yes I made a ghost joke) and the Shadow Man that is trying to get to Shady was creepy but not just that, it was just the right level of creepy for someone who’s not a huge fan of horror.
The themes in this book included; bi rep, death, grieving, family. What I loved most about the bi rep was that it was relatable; a lot of books with bi characters the love interest is almost always the same gender as the main character, but in this book there were two love interests, one the same gender and one different and I appreciated that because it helps to break the ridiculous idea that some people have that being bi is ‘just a gateway to being gay/lesbian’ (and I roll my eyes every time I hear someone say that). One thing that annoyed me, and it’s not with the book itself because it’s something that does happen quite a lot, is when they’re at the funeral and Shady’s mum makes her go and look at the body in the casket. I understand that for some people it’s closure, but I have never got why you would force someone else, especially a child, to go and look at that if they don’t want to.
I definitely recommend this book, especially if you like creepy books, but not actual horror, this is a brilliant in between and it’s definitely one I’ll reread.
This book is a great exploration of grief through ghosts and music but the end dragged a bit.