“Penny had promised herself that tonight was going to be the night. But now that it was time, the woods were whispering, solemn with warning. Don’t go. Not yet. She heard it and she didn’t hear it. After the house went dark, she’d lain in bed, wide awake, vibrating. Waiting for the right time. She couldn’t stay here. Whatever was out there, even if the woods were alive with ghosts and monsters, witches and ghouls, screaming and wailing and chasing — it couldn’t be worse. Could it?”
Touchstone ($24.99).
I experienced something pleasantly heartbreaking while reading “Ink and Bone,” Lisa Unger’s latest mystery-thriller. This horrific, fast-paced novel succeeded in drawing me in by taking possession of my senses and controlling the emotions I thought were mine. Literally.
“Ink and Bone” peeks behind the natural world and everything the physical eyes can see, taking the reader into the small, peculiar town of The Hollows, New York. Here we are offered a glimpse of a spiritual world lurking among us. Ms. Unger combines supernatural suspense with the real life horror of families and children who go missing and the heartache, loss and suffering it engenders.
“Ink and Bone” is the story of tattooed 20-year-old Finley Montgomery, a woman who can see things others can’t — an ability she has possessed all of her life that is both a blessing and a curse. She is led down a path of twists and turns while she investigates the case of Abbey Gleason, the child of Merri and Wolf Gleason, who was taken during a hiking trip with her father and brother one sunny afternoon while on vacation in The Hollows. The incident left many holes in the heart of the family and unanswered questions in a case that seems to have no end.
This case is only one of many that have gone unsolved in the deep-rooted town with friendly people and families that are connected by blood and history. Ms. Unger creates suspense through the many secrets and unexplained incidents woven into the city’s essence. Something dark, twisted and spiritual lingers within the city and keeps the secrets alive.
Finley is an interesting character who treads the line between bad girl and saint. She moves to The Hollows to live with her grandmother Eloise and to understand herself. Together, Finley and Eloise embark on a journey of self-discovery. Finley also decides to help Det. Jones Cooper probe the case of Abbey, a little girl who has been missing for 10 months and whose mother is frustrated that authorities can’t find her. In The Hollows, pursuing knowledge, hope and answers to the mystery of missing persons drives the characters and keeps you turning the pages.
Ms. Unger is adept at foreshadowing events, maintaining a sense of mystery and springing a revelation when least expected. Readers may feel toyed with psychologically, but will be unable to put the book down long enough to feel frustrated. Ms. Unger’s ability to tell this story in third person while allowing the reader a first-person experience is well done. “Ink and Bone” is a true nail-biter.
Lacretia Wimbley: lwimbley@post-gazette.com.
First Published: August 7, 2016, 4:00 a.m.