TEEN WINTERS
I love anything that has to do with ghosts, especially when the story is set near the turn of the last century. The spiritualism movement of the 1900′s is one that always fascinates me, and In the Shadow of Blackbirds sets the perfect backdrop for its story. Not only is it World War I, but the Spanish influenza is in full swing and death is abundant.
The area of spiritualism that the book focuses on is that of spirit photography. People would wait for hours to get their picture taken with the spirit of a deceased loved one.
Now, pretty much all those photos were fake. Photographers would use a technique called double exposure, where they would take a plate with the image of the “ghost” and use it again, creating the transparent figure. You can obviously tell that I find the subject to be fascinating.I loved that the author chose this particular time frame to set it all in. With the war and the flu, people were growing desperate for any kind of comfort that the ones they lost still lived on. And I haven’t really seen many young adult novels tackle this subject before, let alone be set during World War I.
I was surprised at how easily I fell into the pages of the story. Unlike some other historical novels I’ve read, this one didn’t feel too far removed for me to sink into. It also helps that I loved the main character. Mary Shelley was a complex and eclectic character, from her name to her goggles that could “show her the future.” She doesn’t believe in spirits at the beginning, and of course doesn’t believe that spirit photography is a real thing. She’s based in science. But then she falls into circumstances that require her to question if spirits are real, and what can she do to help those who need her to. That’s all I’ll say though. Spoilers!
Cat Winters does an excellent job of capturing that creeping eerie-ness of the spirit realm, and the fear and desperation of those willing to push through to it. There were many scenes that sent chills down my spine, which is high praise coming from someone who reads books like these all the time. And the story had elements of mystery to it that I really enjoyed trying to solve. I just can’t get over how wonderfully creepy and thought-provoking In the Shadow of Blackbirds was. I definitely can’t wait to see what else Cat Winters will write.
- Caroline
Originally posted on The Attic blog
