Creepy Cryer's Cross An Entertaining Spine-Tingler

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

When a high school freshman from Cryer's Cross, Montana, disappears, it rocks the tiny town to its core. Despite days of searching the area, no one can find a trace of the missing girl. It could be she just ran away, but, to 17-year-old Kendall Fletcher, the whole thing feels sinister. Kendall knows she won't rest easy until she finds out what happened to her classmate - not because she was particularly close to the girl, more because her OCD makes coping with ambiguity difficult. To say the least.

The town's still reeling from the first disappearance when another local teen vanishes. This time, it's someone much closer to Kendall's heart. This time, she knows it's foul play, because 17-year-old Nico Cruz - her boyfriend - would never leave without telling Kendall. Even with the rumor mill suggesting Nico ran off with the missing girl, Kendall's resolute: Something terrible happened to Nico. It's only when Kendall realizes the two missing teens both used the same school desk that she starts to connect some dots. When she notices messages scratched into the desk's wooden surface, messages that plead for help, she knows she's found a vital clue in the mystery of the lost kids. It's when she starts hearing their voices seeping out of the desk, though, that she begins wondering if she's completely crazy. Because if she isn't, then she's dealing with something old, something evil, something not of this world. It's all tied to a dark Cryer's Cross secret - one that no one wants to acknowledge, let alone let out. The closer Kendall comes to figuring it out, the closer she comes to becoming the next victim ...

Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann is a creepy little tale, with some original touches that make it memorable (I don't know about you, but I've never read a story about a haunted desk before). It moves quickly, keeping the reader interested, if not surprised. Kendall's a sympathetic character, whose OCD makes her unique, while giving her personality added depth. Predictability and a rather anticlimatic ending did sour this one a little for me - overall, though, I found the book entertaining, albeit in a Halloween-ish, nightmare-inducing sort of way. Which is why I read it during the day. With the lights on. While hiding under my bed. Ahem. You know you're a wimp when ...

(Readalikes: Um, I should be able to think of lots, but nothing's really coming to mind. Ideas?)

Grade: B-

If this were a movie, it would be rated: R for language (a few F-bombs plus milder invectives) and violence

To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find