IN THE SHADOW OF SPINDRIFT HOUSE by Mira Grant (the pseudonym of Seanan McGuire) is a story that may not be that frightening, but it sure is interesting. The cover itself made me think this must be a Lovecraftian story and I was right - there is something wrong with Spindrift House. Something very, very wrong. And, that's what Harlowe Upton-Jones and her friends about to find out.
For years, Harlowe has been part of a teenage detective group with some close friends, but now they are leaving the teenage years behind and it's time to grow up. However, Harlowe isn't ready to quit and she finds them one last case, one that will bring them enough money to make them do anything they want in the future. They only need to stay a week in Spindrift House and locate the deeds to the house. To find out how the true owner is out of three families. The problem is to survive it all...
IN THE SHADOW OF SPINDRIFT HOUSE is very much Harlowe's story - she was orphaned as a child and always wondered what really happened to her parents. Could it be that Spindrift House holds the answers? Part of what interested me in this novel is that I found Harlowe to be such an interesting character, her past and what's happening to her at the house, how it affects her in a totally different way than her friends. I quite liked this story, it's dark, but not scary. I felt this could very much suit YA readers that are looking for something creepy and dark to read. At the same time, it works for an older audience as well. Reading this book made me wish that I had found books to read like this one when I was a teenager.
Nature abhors a straight line. The natural world is a place
of curves and softened edges, of gentle mists and welcoming
spirals. Nature remembers deviation; nature does not
forgive. For Harlowe Upton-Jones, life has never been a
straight line. Shipped off to live with her paternal
grandparents after a mysterious cult killed her mother and
father, she has grown up chasing the question behind the
curve, becoming part of a tight-knit teen detective agency.
But “teen” is a limited time offer, and when her friends
start looking for adult professions, it's up to Harlowe to
find them one last case so that they can go out in a blaze
of glory.
Welcome to Spindrift House.
The stories and legends surrounding the decrepit property
are countless and contradictory, but one thing is clear:
there are people willing to pay a great deal to determine
the legal ownership of the house. When Harlowe and her
friends agree to investigate the mystery behind the manor,
they do so on the assumption that they'll be going down in
history as the ones who determined who built Spindrift
House—and why. The house has secrets. They have the skills.
They have a plan. They have everything they need to solve
the mystery. Everything they need except for time. Because
Spindrift House keeps its secrets for a reason, and it has
no intention of letting them go. Nature abhors a straight
line. Here's where the story bends.