*Book source ~ Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Aurora Grimeon’s parents died from eating poisonous mushrooms in their homemade spaghetti sauce and though she was also poisoned from the sauce she didn’t eat the mushrooms. Drinking some milk thistle had her recovering and being sent to her only relative, her grandfather Silver, to live on Ossuary Isle in the swamps of the Deep South. Aurora is the only child on the island and is having a bit of a hard time adjusting to the creepy place she now calls home. She’s beginning to like her grandfather and the other inhabitants, but something evil is stirring in the swamp and Aurora might be a target. Instead of cowering though Aurora starts digging to discover what the evil is and how to get rid of it. Will she figure it out in time?
I really enjoyed Aurora’s story and all the strange characters on the Isle. It’s a creepy place, but Aurora takes it in stride and tries to learn all about her new home. She’s not exactly sure she wants to stay in a creepy place with no other children to play with, but her grandfather is her only relative, so she makes the best of it. Along the way she finds she enjoys working with her grandfather and his pet raccoon Missy as well as spending time with the local Hoodoo mistress. The mystery of the blue light is interesting and creepy keeping my attention as I tried to figure out what it is right along with Aurora as she investigates it.
The illustrations are perfect for this tale. They have a very gothic feel, an almost Nightmare Before Christmas look, but not as ghoulish. All-in-all a very enjoyable read.
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