In a quiet Long Island town, three women of a certain age discover that they have more power than they ever thought possible. Jo, a former hotel executive, owns a women-only gym, and has hot flashes that can literally set things on fire. Nessa is a retired nurse who can hear the dead calling to her and see their unsettled shades. And Harriet? Well, Harriet hasn’t left her house in months, her garden has turned into a wild place full of unsettling plants, and there are rumors that she’s a witch. The trio of women, guided by Nessa, discover the body of a young woman dumped by a remote beach. The police rule the death an overdose, and quickly close the case. But the dead girl’s shade is still hanging around, and Nessa and her friends know that there is far more to the story than the police are letting on. As they try to figure out who this girl was, and how she wound up dead, they discover that their idyllic community is hiding some very dark secrets.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The POV alternates between Jo, Nessa, and Harriet as you both follow along with their investigation and learn how they came to be the women they are. I appreciate that there’s no real explanation for their incredible abilities – it is accepted that they just are. And while the interludes of other women’s stories are haunting and horrifying, they work together to truly emphasize the horrors inflicted by men that too many women have to deal with. It’s a real case of “Maybe not all men, but yes all women.” The revenge that our trio are able to achieve on behalf of the victims is pure satisfaction, and the ending leaves you hoping for a continuation of their story. Not that the story isn’t complete, you just want to spend more time with Nessa, Jo, and Harriet!
If you’re in the mood for a revenge story, this is it. It’s not for the faint of heart – see the above-mentioned horrors – but it is compelling.