West Rutland has been known for one thing only: marble. Marble houses, marble art, marble people.
In the years since its foundation, the town of West Rutland has been known for one thing only: marble. Marble houses, marble art, marble people. They were first and foremost a marble town, historically mining from deep, hundred feet quarries scattered in the woods. Production was stopped long ago, though, when thirteen workers were killed in an accident in the 1900s, a taint of death lingering over the heart and soul of the town. Today, it becomes known for something else, something darker.
Four disappearances in the past month, all high school boys yet to be found. That’s all Alex knows when her boss ships her from New York City to Vermont to get the story. That, and the only family member she has left is waiting there, unaware of her existence. But instead of answers, she only finds more questions in the form of Luna, who, despite working at the local sculpture garden, avoids the topic of marble quarries like the plague, mourning a ghost that no one in town will speak a word about.
The last thing Alex wants is a distraction, but that’s all Luna needs, and together they unravel each other’s secrets one by one, searching for ways in which they might be intertwined. And through it all the quarries wait, where Alex finds Luna on more than one occasion, crumpled on her knees at the edge, staring down into fifty feet of haunted water.
I haven’t enjoyed a book this much in a long time. Tanen grapples with lots of different issues and story tropes in a cohesive and deft manner—very surprising as it looks like this is Tanen’s first book. There’s hints of coming-of-age, parental issues, grief recovery, and more, all wrapped up in what’s ostensibly a mystery surrounding some disappearances of teens in a small town. From reading the blurb, I wasn’t sure if this would turn super dark or paranormal, but was pleased that Tanen kept everything relatively light and grounded in the real world. Honestly, this is just really solid writing. I absolutely love it when the main character’s personal arc and relationships actually propel the story forward, versus books where the story just sort of happens. Would absolutely recommend, particularly for fans of J. M. Redmann, Cari Hunter, or Virginia Hale.
Amazon review