GAME OF THE DEAD

A teen who can speak with ghosts helps a spirit finish what she started a half-century ago in Herwig’s YA novella.

It’s the summer of 1960, and Army brat Vivien Brewer and her dad are hiking in the woods in Texas’ blistering heat. When she stumbles onto a grave marker, she anticipates a ghost, but she certainly isn’t looking forward to it; while Vivien’s inherited ability allows her to converse with and assist spirits, not every experience has been entirely positive. (“Another ghost. She didn’t want to know. Why couldn’t they leave her alone?”) Nevertheless, she researches the name on the marker. Florence Macartan joined a chess tournament in 1910, much to the chagrin of the other (exclusively male) contestants, and made it past the semi-final before inexplicably disappearing. When the late 15-year-old shows herself to Vivien, it’s clear she wants that final game against Wilbur Foxe, who was the most insistent about opposing a girl’s inclusion in the tournament. Vivien looks for Foxe’s descendants, unsure if Florence will play chess with one of Foxe’s living relatives or have an otherworldly game with his ghost. This is Herwig’s fourth installment in her series exploring mid-20th-century society’s expectations of women. In this outing, a school counselor suggests that Vivien doesn’t need a college education—just a husband, and the teenage protagonist sometimes feels helpless to make changes, as in the case of her neighbor, who’s a battered woman. Vivien is a resourceful girl facing such 1960s challenges as needing her strict father’s permission to use the family phone and having to scour newspaper archives by herself. She’s largely concerned with making sure the final game happens; as such, Vivien doesn’t delve too deeply into Florence’s death, though the mystery still unravels on its own.

This breezy supernatural yarn features an irresistible series hero and a timely message.