In the town of Smith’s Hollow, bodies of girls are discovered mutilated in the woods, yet the local police and residents choose to ignore the recurring violence. Fourteen-year-old Lauren starts seeing visions of a tall man in a green coat and a monstrous, clawed entity linked to the town’s founding history. As she and her friend Miranda investigate the disappearance of Lauren’s father and the strange behavior of their neighbors, they uncover a generational curse involving blood sacrifices and a sentient, predatory tree that demands a specific price for the town’s continued existence.
Fans of small-town folk horror and dark coming-of-age stories find this narrative useful for its examination of how communities maintain comfort through willful ignorance and the suppression of female agency. Readers walk away with a grim understanding of how historical complicity allows systemic violence to persist. The book serves those interested in the bridge between supernatural terror and the reality of suburban indifference, providing a concrete example of how inherited tradition can mask parasitic evil.
Escapist; an easy read.
Best for readers like The Curious Generalist. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2020
- Language
- EN
