BOOK, BEAST, AND CROW

Anna Kellogg and her best friend, Olivia Tiffin, live in Hartwood, New Jersey, known for the Wall, which encloses the Great Swamp, the abode of the legendary Hartwood Beast.

For their birthday ritual, Anna and Olivia leave good-luck offerings to the Ladies of Hartwood, a carving in the Wall. After Olivia convinces Anna to follow her through a hole she finds in the Wall, they meet an ancient woman who offers to answer questions. When the girls ask about their futures, she responds, “Some friends ye’ll have to let go, or perish trying to save them.” Anna, feeling uneasy, drags Olivia away. Later, as they’re returning from a field trip, the school bus narrowly misses a long-tailed creature running across the road, instead swerving into a tree, injuring students. In the ensuing chaos, Olivia is dragged into the forest and mauled by the mysterious animal. Weeks later, she’s recovering—doing Latin homework but unresponsive, “like someone else is in her skin.” Spectral women warn the girls that “those who have seen the Otherworld can never truly leave it”: Olivia’s time is running out, leaving Anna to save her. As the story rapidly evolves, the characters jump from one dilemma to the next. But the series of climactic moments makes it difficult to get a sense of the characters’ personalities and motivations, leaving them feeling one-dimensional and hard to become invested in. Main characters are cued white.

Offers continual creative thrills but is lacking in robust characterization.