SIX OF SORROW

Six former best friends whose birthdays fall on the Day of Sorrow must defeat the supernatural evil that’s hunting them.

Iz doesn’t really know why she and her five friends stopped being a tightknit group; they were “fated to be friends,” or so it seemed. But at least Reuel, her very closest friend, has never left her. The girls’ birthdays fall on May 3, the day the whole town honors Sorrow, the legendary witch said to have founded their small island community in Louisiana. While celebrating their 16th birthdays beneath Sorrow’s statue in the old cemetery, Iz and Reuel make a blood oath to remain best friends forever. Little do they know, but their blood unleashes something evil and inhuman that isn’t going to stop until it gets what it wants from all six of the girls—something it was promised when their mothers were their age. Reuel is the first to be taken—and she returns deathly ill. Next is queen bee Georgina. With no idea who’ll be next, the girls must put aside their differences and solve this supernatural mystery before it kills them. This formulaic horror novel does have some fun moments despite the often-stereotypical, one-dimensional characters, but predictable mystery beats and overused horror tropes unfortunately weigh down the paper-thin plot and unsatisfying ending. Iz and Reuel are cued white; there’s some diversity in race, ethnicity, and sexuality among the cast.

Creepy enough to induce shivers, but genre-savvy readers may be disappointed.