I just finished "It Waits in the Forest" by Sarah Dass. I received an eARC from Netgalley.

Selina DeSilva doesn't fit in with the rest of the island population of St. Virgil, mostly because they think she's a witch whose parents made a deal with the Devil. Things seem to be going okay for her, until a body is discovered at The Amber hotel and the accused murderer shows up to her friend's shop hoping Selina can give him magical advice. Whether she wants to or not, Selina is forced to deal the past, trying to solve the current muders while also figuring out what happened to her parents.

This is a pretty good YA supernatural thriller. Selina is a relatable protaganist as she tries to navigate being othered while wanting so badly to be accepted by her peers. The mystery plays into Selina's inability to accept the reality of the supernatural, as the book keeps you guessing the entire time. At times it felt like the book missed the forest for the trees, and the tension never really got too high. The twist at the ending, while heartbreaking, was not entirely surprising.

With that said, I could see a lot of my tween patrons loving this book, and being fascinated by Carribean mythology. It feels like a good setup book for an ongoing series as we've met a lot of interesting characters that could pop back up and be more than we expect. I would read more in this series, and I think that 10-15 crowd would too.

Wow...these last couple Rick Riordan Presents YA books have been much darker stories than I expected - definitely YA and not MG. This one was described as a supernatural thriller, and it was definitely that! Kept me up reading way too late because I couldn't stop reading. It was scary without being full on horror. I enjoyed it a lot, but also can't wait until I can get the creepiness out of my head.

Sarah Dass takes the Rick Riordan universe in entertaining new directions in this weaving of youthful/middle grades voice, supernatural storytelling, and mythology. Another strong entry in this series.