Early Reader Review: The Cherished by Patricia Ward

Source: From the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This in no way alters my opinion or review. 

The Cherished by Patricia Ward  

Publisher: HarperCollins US
Publication Date:  April 18, 2023

 

Format: Ebook


Rating:


Goodreads Synopsis: 

For fans of Claire Legrand, Rory Power, and Danielle Vega comes a visceral horror thriller in the vein of Midsommar, as one girl inherits a mysterious house from her estranged grandmother—and a letter with sinister instructions.

Jo never expected to be placed in her absent grandmother’s will—let alone be left her house, her land, and a letter with mysterious demands.

Upon arriving at the inherited property, things are even more strange.

The tenants mentioned in the letter are odd, just slightly…off. Jo feels something dark and decrepit in the old shack behind the house. And the things that her father used to talk about, his delusions… Why is Jo starting to believe they might be real?

But what Jo fears most is the letter from her grandmother. Because if it’s true, then Jo belongs here, in this strange place. And she has no choice but to stay.

With a deadly enemy that cannot be seen, a world that may only be unlocked by a chosen few, and a chilling past that must be unearthed at any cost, The Cherished is an original, hypnotizing contemporary horror—one that will thrill readers of White Smoke, Wilder Girls, and The Hazel Wood.

Review: 

I don't read reviews before I start a book, I never want to sway my opinion before reading, especially for review books. I received an email about The Cherished and thought that the premise sounded interesting and spooky, albeit there were also a lot of comparisons in it so I was a little skeptical. I started the book and was not initially feeling it but knew that I should press on. 

The book follows Jo, a teen who is just trying to get by. Her mother is with a new man, her stepdad, who is controlling and her mom is pregnant and moody. One day she gets a note from her dad's mother that she is leaving her the house in Vermont, and it is her duty to take care of it. The note seemed weird and ominous, but Jo and her mom decide to go look at the house and see what needs to be done to sell it. 

From the start, we hate Jo's mom, she is moody and rages a lot and takes it out on Jo mentally and emotionally, and Jo has been through a lot. Jo was kidnapped by her dad when she was young and he was having what seemed to be a mental break. So there is a lot of this story that is about mental illness and trying to heal, but none of it is done particularly well, and oftentimes even horribly to be honest. I hated the mother, she was not supportive of her daughter at all, in any ways, not even in her healing process... the stepdad was controlling and their relationship was weird too. It all felt forced. Once the plot really got going, I expected more creepiness and horror, and while the ending was a little scary, I didn't find myself too freaked out. I knew what was coming, the creatures were expected, and their reasons didn't feel fully fleshed out. There were a lot of ways the story could have gone, that the village could have been more proactive about to help the situation but they were all so passive and sad.

Overall, I just didn't like the book all that much. It had some ok elements and I finished it versus just putting it aside, but it as only Ok and I am not sure I would recommend it. If you are looking for something odd, and mental health doesn't bother you, i.e. you can put aside how horribly it is discussed, you might enjoy this book. If you are into cute fairies - also not for you.