The Cherished

What worked: Atmospheric, creepy fantasy where a teen finds out that maybe the nightmares of her childhood were in fact real. This story has a slow buildup when sixteen-year-old Jo finds she's inherited the farm of her deceased grandmother. The beginning chapters show Jo's life and the conflicts between her pregnant mother and stepfather. The family dynamics felt authentic though Jo at first comes across as entitled. But once she goes with her mother to check out the farm, things turn quickly. The small town is filled with secrets. Add to that the hostility of the town people especially when it gets out that Jo will sell the farm.

The whole vibe of this novel is layered with hints of a deadly secret that is within the farm. Jo's presence there opens up her nightmares. Once I got to the part in the novel where Jo and her mother are in the home with the equally creepy and disturbing tenants, I couldn't put this book down.

Jo learns that she is the new caretaker of a horror hidden on her grandmother's land. She also learns that she's linked to a long history that dates back over hundred years. What's even more frightening is that faeries do exist, but not as the cute ones portrayed in fairy tales.

There is mention of mental illness in the novel. I understood why some would have labeled Jo's father as having a mental illness. Those outside the community who didn't understand how linked he was to a paranormal experience would be quick to label him as having 'problems'. I also could see how one of the tenants, Hattie, appearance was part of the trauma she continued to experience long after she returned back to our world.

What I did want was more insight into the dark faeries. What their lives were like in their world? Also maybe less backstory at the beginning. Otherwise, a thoroughly engaging read!

WILDER GIRLS meets a town with a secret where faeries have a dark, vengeful purpose and the girl who learns her past is linked with theirs.