In the faux-documentary style of The Blair Witch Project comes the campfire story of a missing girl, a vengeful ghost, and the girl who is determined to find her sister–at all costs.

     Once a year, a road appears in the forest. And at the end of it, the ghost of Lucy Gallows beckons. Lucy’s game isn’t for the faint of heart. If you win, you escape with your life. But if you lose…. 

     Sara’s sister disappeared one year ago–and only Sara knows where she is. Becca went to find the ghost of Lucy Gallows and is trapped on the road that leads to her. In the sleepy town of Briar Glen, Lucy’s road is nothing more than local lore. But Sara knows it’s real, and she’s going to find it. 

     When Sara and her skeptical friends meet in the forest to search for Becca, the mysterious road unfurls before them. All they have to do is walk down it. But the path to Lucy is not of this world, and it has its own rules. Every mistake summons new horrors. Vengeful spirits and broken, angry creatures are waiting for them to slip, and no one is guaranteed safe passage. The only certainty is this: the road has a toll and it will be paid.

     Sara knows that if she steps onto the road, she might not come back. But Becca needs her.

     And Lucy is waiting.

 

 

 

 

This is the most seasonally-appropriate book I’ve ever read and I couldn’t be happier to have had the pleasure of getting ridiculously freaked out by its ghostly shenanigans.

 

 

 

 

 

I absolutely loved the unique formatting of the novel. It’s told in texts, testimonies, interviews, “video evidence”, etc. Ever wonder where you can find yourself more  ILLUMINAE-ish structured books? Well, ILLUMINAE but with more scary folklore, unsettling mysteries, and missing people. I respect it for conveying a comprehensible story through this ambitious, undoubtedly difficult medium.

 

 

 

 

 

What also sticks out is the character dynamics among the rather large cast that sets to follow the road and uncover the mystery. This was also creepier than I expected, so major kudos to this book for being scarier than, say, THE DEVOURING GRAY (which is a worthy comparable book, and yet). I, of course, absolutely love the horror angle AND the mystery angle, and it’s so easy to keep the reader invested throughout that it turns a not-small book into something that you can honestly finish in one setting.

 

 

 

I won’t go too much in depth for fear of spoilers, but: know that this. is very. addicting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have not read Marshall’s debut, I AM STILL ALIVE, yet, but it sounds totally up my alley. Survivalist murder mystery book is EXACTLY the kind of thing you say to me to get me to throw money at you and snatch your book up.

 

 

 

 

Thanks so much to PenguinTeen for sending me an ARC box (which I unbox here!).

 

 

 

 

 

Kate Alice Marshall

 

 

Kate Alice Marshall started writing before she could hold a pen properly, and never stopped. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with a chaotic menagerie of pets and family members, and ventures out in the summer to kayak and camp along Puget Sound. I Am Still Alive was her YA debut, followed by Rules for Vanishing. Visit her online at katemarshallbooks.com and follow her on Twitter @kmarshallarts.

 

 

 

 

 

Week One

September 16 – Kculver88 – Review + Creative Instagram Picture

September 17 – Falling Down The Book Hole – Dreamcast

September 18 – YA Books Central – Review

September 19 – Confessions of a YA Reader – Inspired by the Book: Scary Ghost Legends

September 20 – Just Add a Word – Moodboard + Review

September 21 – Pop The Butterfly Reads – Creative Instagram Picture

September 22 – Scared Straight Reads – Creative Instagram Picture

Week Two

September 23 – Beauty and the Book – Review + Creative Instagram Picture

September 24 – Keep Holding On To Books – Inspired by the Book

September 25 – The Midnight Society – Author Guest Post

September 26 – Fear your Ex – Review + Creative Instagram Picture

September 27 – The Book Deviant – Horror-Themed Quiz

September 28 – It Starts At Midnight – Listicle: Things you should be Afraid Of