Review Detail

Hughie Wolfe is excited to be part of Harvest House, his community's Halloween project until he finds out that the legend of the "Indian maiden" will be the highlight. There have been rumors in the town of a supernatural presence that seems attracted to mostly Indigenous women. Some of these women have gone missing without police or authorities investigating what happened. Then Hughie's friend Sam's sister posts online a video that is creepy and becomes viral. Is there a malevolent presence in town? Add to this his high school teacher, Ms. Fischer, seems insensitive to Hughie's concerns about keeping the offensive Indigenous stereotypes in the haunted house. He's conflicted on how to address if he should speak up in the face of racism in his town. His friends start to investigate the truth behind the legend and if the house is really haunted.

What worked: I love diverse stories that have strong protagonists. Hughie is proud of his Indigenous heritage and not afraid to take a stand on what he knows to be wrong. In this case, though he's at first surprised that Ms. Fischer would recommend certain things to be added to a haunted house. Things that are offensive, like using Hollywood-type stereotypes of vengeful Indigenous spirits on burial grounds.

Hughie stays with the production thinking his presence might help redo the myths and stereotypes. Only he finds that isn't the case. This part of the story felt so real to me. I could feel his frustration and even anger that some people in town and his school continued to brush off his concerns as him being too sensitive.

Then there's the POV of Celeste, a spirit who looks out for those Indigenous girls/women who are targeted. The mystery behind who she might be is one that Hughie and his friends search for.

This also has a sweet romance going on between Hughie and Marie. She helps the others by looking into who the identity of the Crossroads Ghost. I really liked the interactions all the friends had with each other.

There's more than social issues in this engaging story. There's a paranormal mystery that might in fact be based on some truth. Friends that investigate the mystery and stay true to not only each other but their own Indigenous heritage. Plus, there's mention of missing Indigenous girls and women who often are overlooked.

Gripping tale where contemporary fiction meets a ghostly mystery. Overall, this story is one that has a powerful punch with an urban legends backdrop. Perfect for those who love spooky tales!