The Missing Season
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From the author of Edgar Award finalist Grit and The Lies They Tell comes a tense, atmospheric novel for fans of E. Lockhart and Marieke Nijkamp, about friendship, truth, and the creeping fears that can’t be outrun.
Whenever another kid goes missing in October, the kids in the old factory town of Pender know what is really behind it: a monster out in the marshes that they call the Mumbler.
That’s what Clara’s new crew tells her when she moves to town. Bree and Sage, who take her under their wing. Spirited Trace, who has taken the lead on this year’s Halloween prank war. And magnetic Kincaid, whose devil-may-care attitude and air of mystery are impossible for Clara to resist.
Clara doesn’t actually believe in the Mumbler—not like Kinkaid does. But as Halloween gets closer and tensions build in the town, it’s hard to shake the feeling that there really is something dark and dangerous in Pender. Lurking in the shadows. Waiting to bring the stories to life.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Delightful creepiness and teen shenanigans quickly give way to darkly introspective and suspenseful self-discovery in French's (The Lies They Tell) novel for teens. High school student Clara has moved five times since elementary school, thanks to her father's construction work, so she's used to being a loner. Now in small-town Maine, she once again attempts to establish herself and falls in with a so-called bad crowd kids who enjoy pranks, hanging out, and perpetuating the myth of the Mumbler, a madman who supposedly comes out of the marsh every October to kidnap and murder children and young adults. As she frequently winds through the wooded areas near her home, Clara encounters more questions than answers about such topics as who she wishes to become, where things might go with her crush, and the Mumbler's identity (especially after Ivy, one of her schoolmates, goes missing, and the Mumbler's involvement is suspected). Bowstring-taut tension builds gracefully through the novel, only to result in a rushed, vaguely anti-climactic ending. The book's strength, however, is offering readers plenty of authentically developed characters with whom they can identify, from teen pranksters to hardworking parents. Ages 13 up.
