LITTLE MONSTERS

A supernatural twist on a beloved classic.

In this modern retelling of Little Women, the four March sisters, who present white, are not only girls but also shape-shifting monsters and orphans. After bouncing around the care system, they’ve recently found some stability with Marmee, their latest foster mom, in Salem, Massachusetts. At 13, Meg has spent her life parenting her younger sisters—Jo (who’s queer), Beth (who’s coded as neurodivergent), and Amy—and concealing their supernatural family secret. But this year, as Halloween draws near, Meg’s monstrous transformations grow increasingly uncontrollable just as a shadowy monster begins to terrorize the neighborhood, killing chickens and pet rabbits. Meg, who’s already contending with mean rich kids at school, doesn’t trust adults, is unable to afford Halloween costumes for her sisters, and has a budding crush on John Brooke, the boy next door, who presents Black. She also suddenly wonders if she’s the monster everyone wants dead. At heart, this is a delightful story exploring relatable adolescent themes, but the first half is slow and repetitive, and the pop-culture references and of-the-moment slang feel shoehorned in. Readers seeking a celebration of the March sisters’ enduring bond will be disappointed: This novel centers on Meg, and her sisters feel like props in her story. Nevertheless, Roche hits all the requisite plot points, delivers a final twist, and convincingly supplies several heartwarming lessons about self-acceptance, community, and letting people in.

A lovely, if uneven, coming-of-age story.