by Cheryl Isaacs
Release Date: September 3, 2024
2024 Heartdrum
Ebook ARC; 336 Pages
ISBN: 978-0063287389
ASIN: B0CSPJJY98
Audiobook: B0CSLJKKNZ
Genre: Fiction / YA / Horror
Source: Review copy from publisher
3.5 / 5 Stars
Summary
When
small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in
the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of
Crook’s Falls have long forgotten.
Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she’s never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs.
When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanyen’kehá:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back.
Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she’s never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs.
When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanyen’kehá:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back.
My Thoughts
The Unfinished is an interesting young adult horror story that weaves elements of the author’s indigenous culture with elements of her own imagination, focusing quite a bit on generational pain and one’s identity. It is full of tension and supernatural lore rather than gore, but I enjoy a good psychological horror as much as the other and I enjoyed the author’s exploration of trauma, regret, friendship, and self-growth. But while I enjoyed the overall story, the pace was somewhat slow or erratic, and the tension was simply not there.
Avery is the main character and her flaws and her choices drive the story. Full of angst about her future as well as her relationships with her friends and family, she makes some poor choices that affect the rest of the community. Because of a choice she makes, she awakens an ancient evil and begins seeing things around her. Her behaviour is drive through what she sees, but she offers little explanation to others and the visions simply vanish at some point so I am unsure as to why they were there to begin with. I did think the interactions with those around her made sense as she was unsure about her future, had pressure on her to get a good scholarship due to her family situation, so her reactions made sense. I did really like her thoughts with regards to her heritage and how disconnected she felt to her people; the growth in this area was very well written and I like the fact the author clearly shows how complicated and difficult the path will continue to be, but she has to make an effort as well.
The overall pacing of the book was somewhat erratic; I really enjoyed the first part of the book as it was a bit creepy and the supernatural aspects were quite fun. But honestly, when the action started picking up towards the middle, there were a couple of things that slowed down the narrative. First of all, Avery’s constant introspection really had no place in these sections of the story as it takes away from the tension. You have these creepy people coming after you, but you have time to reflect on life’s choices at that moment? And second of all, the ragged man and company could have been utilised in a way that made them scarier. Personally, in real life, I would be running as fast and as far as I could, not having a discussion with my friends at that moment. Make it scary by increasing the tension and the danger. The reader can understand Avery’s growth through her actions as well as her thoughts. There doesn’t need to be an explanation EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Verdict
The Unfinished definitely had a lot going for it, but I don’t feel it lived up to its promise. And while it was still enjoyable, I did wish for more suspense and tension as the pacing was slowed down quite a bit through too much inner monologue going on. Again, I think authors sometimes forget readers can pick up on clues of growth and other things through a character’s actions, we don’t need to read paragraphs of their thoughts as well. And while I enjoyed the subtle aspect of the pond and what it represented, some of the backstory was glossed over, something I think would have been interesting. I would recommend this book if you like a character who experienced significant growth which included learning more about her indigenous culture.
Avery is the main character and her flaws and her choices drive the story. Full of angst about her future as well as her relationships with her friends and family, she makes some poor choices that affect the rest of the community. Because of a choice she makes, she awakens an ancient evil and begins seeing things around her. Her behaviour is drive through what she sees, but she offers little explanation to others and the visions simply vanish at some point so I am unsure as to why they were there to begin with. I did think the interactions with those around her made sense as she was unsure about her future, had pressure on her to get a good scholarship due to her family situation, so her reactions made sense. I did really like her thoughts with regards to her heritage and how disconnected she felt to her people; the growth in this area was very well written and I like the fact the author clearly shows how complicated and difficult the path will continue to be, but she has to make an effort as well.
The overall pacing of the book was somewhat erratic; I really enjoyed the first part of the book as it was a bit creepy and the supernatural aspects were quite fun. But honestly, when the action started picking up towards the middle, there were a couple of things that slowed down the narrative. First of all, Avery’s constant introspection really had no place in these sections of the story as it takes away from the tension. You have these creepy people coming after you, but you have time to reflect on life’s choices at that moment? And second of all, the ragged man and company could have been utilised in a way that made them scarier. Personally, in real life, I would be running as fast and as far as I could, not having a discussion with my friends at that moment. Make it scary by increasing the tension and the danger. The reader can understand Avery’s growth through her actions as well as her thoughts. There doesn’t need to be an explanation EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Verdict
The Unfinished definitely had a lot going for it, but I don’t feel it lived up to its promise. And while it was still enjoyable, I did wish for more suspense and tension as the pacing was slowed down quite a bit through too much inner monologue going on. Again, I think authors sometimes forget readers can pick up on clues of growth and other things through a character’s actions, we don’t need to read paragraphs of their thoughts as well. And while I enjoyed the subtle aspect of the pond and what it represented, some of the backstory was glossed over, something I think would have been interesting. I would recommend this book if you like a character who experienced significant growth which included learning more about her indigenous culture.
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