"The Curse of Misty Wayfair" by Jaime Jo Wright

1908: Thea Reed, a postmortem photographer, travels to Pleasant Valley, Wisconsin in hopes of finding her mother who abandoned her, fearing that the key to finding her is in the local mental asylum. However, she never expected her quest would reawaken the legend of Misty Wayfair, a murdered woman who allegedly haunts the area and whose appearance portends death. A century later, Heidi Lane receives a troubling letter from her mother--who is battling dementia--compelling her to travel to Pleasant Valley for answers to her own questions of identity. When she catches sight of a ghostly woman who haunts the asylum ruins in the woods, the long-standing story of Misty Wayfair returns--and with it, Heidi's fear for her own life. As two women across time seek answers about their identities and heritage, can they overcome the threat of the mysterious curse that has them inextricably intertwined?

Jaime Jo Wright's book just keep getting better and better all the time (and they started out as pretty impressive). Right from the first page the story grabbed me, both Thea's and Heidi's. Part of it is the creepy, dark tone that is so prevalent in Wright's stories, something thrillingly different from most anything else I typically read. And the other part is that Wright is just one good writer. I cannot say which heroine I liked more--both are compelling, sympathetic, misunderstood, searching . . . but both are strong in their own way, even amongst their myriad of weaknesses.

It boggles my mind how the author can write such a complex book, where threads from the past and present intertwine, where every scene, every page is important because the details all matter. It isn't as cut and dried as a typical mystery/suspense, where the subconscious goal of the reader is to figure out the villain or the mystery. Here I can read with such enjoyment that my thoughts aren't subtly distracting me by trying to figure everything out. I'm just along for the ride. And it's a dark, spooky, heart-breaking, yet hopeful and satisfying ride.

Depression and mental disorders are something that doesn't come up much in Christian fiction, at least certainly not to the degree that Wright has in this story (and she does a wonderful job of it, based on my minimal knowledge). What is apparent on the surface is not always indicative of the turmoil beneath, and there are a lot of characters who aren't all that they seem, like Heidi and her cheery, hopeful outward appearance that disguises her constant fear and threat of panic attacks. But some, like Rhett and his mom, are wonderfully what-you-see-is-what-you-get, in all the best ways, sharing the love of Christ with the lost.

It is spectacular. For anyone who enjoys a spooky ghost story, I highly recommend it.