The Cherished

When 16-year-old Jo Lavoie learns that she has inherited her estranged paternal grandmother’s estate, Jo’s mother and stepfather try persuading her to sell it, especially since the acquisition comes with a bizarre roster of demands (“Don’t you dare take this responsibility lightly. Don’t think you can sell and walk away.... This house has to stay in the family”). Though Jo decides to keep the property and move in, she quickly realizes that the current tenants Gammy mentioned in her letter seem to be hiding something, and that there’s a sinister aura surrounding the backyard shed. As otherworldly and horrifying happenings start occurring at the house, Jo discovers hidden truths that could explain the goings-on of her late father, who experienced schizophrenic hallucinations of the residence before his death. Outmoded descriptions of mental illness—the narrative implies that Gammy being “crazy as a sack of cats” caused Jo’s father’s schizophrenia—draw attention away from an otherwise solid, eerie premise. Still, Ward (Skinner Luce, for adults) wastes little time getting to the meat of this pulse-pounding thriller, pairing brisk pacing with frenetic plotting that adds a layer of unease to Jo’s harrowing situation. Most characters cue as white; Jo’s father is of Syrian and Italian descent. Ages 13–up. Agent: Matt Bialer, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc. (Apr.)