Blood Family

In Winter’s smartly written, if overly long, debut, Alex Whitfield’s mundane life is turned upside down when a quest to find his missing half-sister, April, sends him deep into the paranormal and uncovers dark family secrets. On the first anniversary of his father’s suicide, Alex is visited by a haunting vision of his sister in his bathtub with her wrists slashed. Alex initially fears he’s succumbing to the same insanity that saw his father committed to a psychiatric hospital. April’s increasingly horrifying appearances push Alex to enlist the aid of narcissistic necromancer Clyde Braveboy, who has disturbing motives of his own. But before he can save his sister, Alex is forced to confront the secret source of his family’s troubles. Winter adds gravitas to the emotional scenes by interweaving genuine humor throughout, and readers will connect with Alex as he deals with the improbable changes in his life. However, the novel consistently overstays its welcome. Multiple points feel like natural conclusions with plot threads tied up and characters in good places, but Winter continues putting Alex in escalating situations. Despite the prose being consistently witty (“You think you can do this without me?” “Yeah, I can almost get killed without you. And for a lot less money, too”), by the end, the events have built to a point where the conclusion isn’t satisfying. (BookLife)