Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young
Spells for Forgetting (Delacorte Press) is not only a great read in and of itself, but it just so happens to be the perfect literary transition into the tail end of the calendar year. Everything about the novel exudes a bracing chill that’s, ironically, the coziest and warmest thing to read. Give the due credit to author Adrienne Young, who expertly creates a tiny bildungsroman of isolated island residents and conjures a specific, spooky and sophisticated atmosphere that the reader feels every time they pick up the multifaceted story. And in all honesty, it’s hard to put down again.
AN EXILED ISLANDER RETURNS AND BRINGS DARK SECRETS TO LIGHT
Saoirse Island is a world apart from mainland Washington State. The families there go way back, generations of residents who guard their heritage with a fierce, overprotective fury. They merely tolerate the tourists who dictate their economic survival while maintaining the same insulated — suffocating — practices that have bound the permanent residents together. Thus, when a horrific fire meant unprecedented destruction on the same night a beloved teenaged girl was murdered, it rocked their little world monumentally.
Now, Emery Blackwood lives in the grieving wake of her best friend’s death and manages her late mother’s quaint yet spectral tea shop. Though Lily’s death remains a cold case, the rest of the town has long since pegged her first love, August Salt, as the murderer. Emery refuses to believe it, even though August and his mother fled wordlessly in the dark of night some weeks after the life-altering event, appearing to reinforce that narrative while abandoning Emery to a life of pointed fingers and dirty looks … without the support of her best friend or the love of her life. 14 years later, she’s in a charged relationship with the other member of their teenaged quartet, a wounded man named Dutch, and has accepted a life of half-life of unanswered questions forever docked on Saoirse’s ruinous shores.
But August returns, his mother’s ashes in toe, to bury her on the island that condemned them both. He plans to stay as briefly as possible, a plan equally encouraged by the matriarchs and patriarchs of the town who eye him with seemingly justified hatred and vitriol. And maybe more than a little fear, but not simply thanks to his assumed criminal record. The minute August sets foot on Saoirse, secrets start oozing out of every crumbling corner, setting fire to the normalcy that each individual desperately clings to ever since his departure. Needless to say, no one’s to be trusted. Don’t trust the feeble lines Emery tells herself about being over him, either.
THE PERFECT AUTUMNAL READ
Each character is well-depicted with nice dimension and depth. The multiple, and ever-expanding, points of view both make the narrative wider and more oppressive, and mean that the secrets become too entangled to easily solve. Also, don’t overlook the word “Spells,” in the title. Without spoiling anything, the witchy vibes are strong with this one. Your spooky season needs more novels like Spells for Forgetting.
Adrienne Young has penned five young adult fantasy novels including the popular Fable, but this represents her audition for adult fiction. According to this casting director, she lands the role, hands down. Here’s to hoping she provides adults with more enchanting page-turners, whether eerie, energetic or ebullient. Her gift is apparent enough to justify picking up whatever next releases with her name on it.
About Adrienne Young:
Adrienne Young is the New York Times, USA Today and Indie Next list bestselling author of the Fable duology and the Sky in the Deep duology. She is a foodie with a deep love of history and travel and a shameless addiction to coffee. When she’s not writing, you can find her on her yoga mat, sipping wine over long dinners or disappearing into her favorite art museums. She lives with her documentary filmmaker husband and their four little wildlings in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
