The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter, Gertie. Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister, Fawn. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that suddenly proves perilous when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished without a trace. Searching for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked deeper into the mystery of Sara's fate, she discovers that she's not the only person who's desperately looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

I want to say that it started slow, but it didn't really. It started with unlikable characters. However, they grew and became more likable. The action was fast paced and there was so much emotion to process! It was fabulous. Part history, part mystery, part horror, part literature. Great book!

This was all geared up to be a solid 4 star rating, until the author didn't stick the landing in my opinion. I found the first half or so of the book extremely engaging and creepy, and kept reading because I really wanted to know where this was all leading! I had several thoughts and expectations of who I thought the killer(s) would end up being, but none of them were fulfilled. Many of the plot devices brought up early on, the white apparition in the woods, the bone ring, even Sara's evident walking of the town at night, were only brought up once and didn't seem to tie in much with the actual ending.

I also wasn't expecting fully fleshed out, three dimensional characters in a quick horror/thriller read, but I found a lot of the characters, particularly in the modern day setting, unrealistic and flat. Ruthie, in particular, made me scream at the book, horror movie style, with her poor decisions and lack of reaction in some places. I still don't understand Ruthie's reluctance to call the cops when her mom went missing, apart from plot convenience. Katherine's entire inclusion in the story felt unnecessary, as she was just a vehicle for the bone ring in the present day, and to be the one to call the next Sleeper.

So I docked it a star for my dissatisfaction with where the plot ended up and the ending. At 3 stars it's still an okay book, but I doubt I'll be recommending it to friends.

[ i actually finished this back in september but forgot to update ]

picked this up in vermont when i was visiting, the bugs in the summertime are scarier than this book.

a good enough thriller/horror book to send a chill down your spine every now and then, but i did feel bored about 60% of the time. things weren't wrapped up in a neat little bow at the end, which i enjoy, but i still didn't feel satisfied by the answers/ending.