The revelry by Katherine Webber

Ember Grove has that  ‘sleepy hollow’ vibe, with a history of unexplained events; whose inhabitants sometimes revert to quaint rituals and natural remedies. One such rite of passage is Revelry – a night for graduating students to dance and party in the woods without adult supervision. The townsfolk, when quizzed, don’t have much recollection of their respective Revelries, except the sense it marked a significant change in the trajectory of their lives.

The narrator, Bitsy Clark, is not a senior but she is persuaded by her best friend, Amy, to sneak into the Revelry, after Amy learns of the secret location. Bitsy is nervous and wants to pull out – it is forbidden to attend any revelry except your own.

Predictably, neither girl can remember what happened the next day. Bitsy senses it wasn’t good given the hems of their costumes are singed and both are soaking wet. She becomes increasingly focussed on finding out because of a run of very bad luck. Her misadventures are in direct contrast to Amy’s experiences. When Amy scores the lead in the school musical,  Bitsy is not selected for the swim meet due to an unexpected panic attack. Their contrasting fortunes become more than she can bear.

Skylar, the strange girl at the Revelry who lives in the woods, entices Bitsy back to the woods, sometimes all night. Bitsy researches past events to learn that the bargains struck at Revalry have changed the lives of some of the townsfolk down through the years. Bitsy knows Skylar has something to do with the strange disappearances following certain Revelries but Amy accuses Bitsy of jealousy and tensions rise. Will Amy come round and help Bitsy solve the age old mystery? 

A contemporary thriller with classic twists, text messages, dialogue and the dynamics of friendships today, make this simply told tale a modern page turner for fans of ghost stories.

Themes: Supernatural Thriller/Mystery.

Deborah Robins