Heartwood Box by Ann Aguirre

Heartwood Box by Ann Aguirre is a YA Mystery Thriller where “the lost are never found.”

“A dark, romantic YA suspense novel with an SF edge and plenty of drama, layering the secrets we keep and how appearances can deceive, from the New York Times bestselling author.

In this tiny, terrifying town, the lost are never found. When Araceli Flores Harper is sent to live with her great-aunt Ottilie in her ramshackle Victorian home, the plan is simple. She’ll buckle down and get ready for college. Life won’t be exciting, but she’ll cope, right?

Wrong. From the start, things are very, very wrong. Her great-aunt still leaves food for the husband who went missing twenty years ago, and local businesses are plastered with MISSING posters. There are unexplained lights in the woods and a mysterious lab just beyond the city limits that the locals don’t talk about. Ever. When she starts receiving mysterious letters that seem to be coming from the past, she suspects someone of pranking her or trying to drive her out of her mind. To solve these riddles and bring the lost home again, Araceli must delve into a truly diabolical conspiracy, but some secrets fight to stay buried…”

If you are looking for a more historical, kinda creepy, mystery story, this YA book may be right up your alley.

We follow the main character who finds a box full of letters in a town where people are known to go missing. She attempts to write back, but doesn’t realize that she is going to get a response. Thinking it’s just a prank of some sort, she becomes invested in returning a reply and eventually finds out the truth.

The story then shifts into a back-and-forth correspondence between her and a WWI soldier who in turn thinks he’s communicating with an outside source.

I really enjoyed the unique dynamic and mystery behind each of the characters’ drive behind the letters. The ending was quite surprising and shocked me. It gives a paranormal/ghostly dynamic that I found to be a great read for the Fall weather.

I gave this one 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it to anyone who likes historical, paranormal-like thrillers.

Published: 9 July 2019

Publisher: Tor Teen

Genre: Young Adult Mystery / Thriller

Pages: 336

How I Read It: eBook from NetGalley

*Disclaimer: I requested a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All my reviews contain my honest opinions only and are not influenced in any way*

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