From its creepy town mascot to the story of its cursed waterfall, Burden Falls is a small town dripping with superstition. Ava Thorn knows this well - since the horrific accident she witnessed a year ago, she's been plagued by nightmares.
But when her school nemesis is brutally murdered and Ava is the primary suspect, she starts to wonder if the legends surrounding the town are more fact than fiction.
Whatever secrets Burden Falls is hiding, there's a killer on the loose, and they have a vendetta against the Thorns...
Ava Thorn spends everyday in the shadow of her family's legacy. Around Burden Falls, the Thorns are known for their steely manner, untrustworthy and shunned by many. After the death of her parents in a horrific car accident, Ava must come to terms with losing her family home, as her family's enemies move in instead and she is forced to watch them thrive in what should have been her inheritance.
Ava is plagued by nightmares of the accident, she struggles with friendships at school and is haunted by Burden Falls' ghoul Dead Eyed Sadie. Locals say that the spirit has a vengeance to wreak and the figure of the girl with no eyes is a popular local tale. However, for Ava, these nightmares start to become a reality as she convinces herself she has seen the terrifying apparition on various occasions. So when a girl's body is found in the river, complete with eyes gouged out, whispers of Dead Eyed Sadie reach their peak. Talk at school turns to the superstitions of the town and the buzz around the paranormal increases, however even Ava doubts the reality of her existence. But when Ava is first to discover another body, killed in the same way, she is not prepared for the nightmare that unfolds. Placed under suspicion of murder, Ava is haunted by visions of the ghost and soon even the reader is unclear what is real and what is a never-ending nightmare.
Wicked Little Deeds is the first YA horror I've read, my preference being for thriller-type novels rather than grotesque horror, but I would say that this crosses the boundaries of both genres. Ellis crafts her mysterious atmosphere from the very beginning of the story, with well-timed flashbacks and dark, imposing buildings and landscapes creating a haunting backdrop for events. Ava is presented as a normal teenager dealing with trauma, so her conflicting opinions of the reality of Dead Eyed Sadie helped me really involve myself in the story, constantly questioning whether she was real because Ava believed so.
I definitely feel that the story picked up the pace in the latter half. Lots of the initial chapters were built on character development and backstory - all of which was needed, however, it wasn't until the second murder that I really felt invested in the story. The ending didn't disappoint either and I liked the fact that no loose ends were left. It was rational and believable, without that niggling part of the mystery being unsolved that many thrillers/horrors have.
Overall Wicked Little Deeds is a great horror/thriller and for my first YA horror I was impressed! Gruesome and gory but not enough to turn your stomach completely, Kat Ellis builds tension and atmosphere from the initial pages and provides enough intrigue and mystery to keep you guessing right to the very end.
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