The Creeping by Alexandra Sirowy

The Creeping by Alexandra Sirowy
Pub: 8/18/2015
Pgs: 400
ARC Received from Edelweiss

"I'm the lucky one; or at least that's what they say.  I'm here to squint up at Independence Day fireworks under an orangehued moon; to fidget in the violet organza of my junior prom dress; to toast under the Midwestern sun while sipping peach fizzies lakeside.  But sometimes the luck is harder to see."

17 year old Stella cannot remember what happened on the day that Jeanie was abducted. Stella was only 5, but it has been the most significant thing that has happened to her, because she was with Jeanie and she was the only one that made it home that day. Since then everything has changed, Stella is a popular girl in her high school, the guys fawn over her, and she has a great group of friends. On the anniversary of Jeanie's disappearance another little girl, with red hair like Jeanie, is found dead and mutilated at the cemetery. Is this a coincidence or a link to Jeanie's disappearance? With the discovery of a new body, people begin to come back to Stella's town, people that were there and were connected to Jeanie and Stella before Jeanie disappeared. And there is a haunting past to Jeanie's town, one that could also explain what happened, because people have been disappearing throughout history in this sleepy town in Minnesota.

Stella decides she needs to find out what happened to Jeanie, she needs to find out what happened or else she will forever be living in this volatile existence of the survivor. With the help of her uber-controlling and uber-popular best friend, and an old and pretty cute best friend Stella goes in search for answers that seem to have been buried for a reason. Will she be able to figure out who took Jeanie? Will the myth of The Creeping be proven to be truth? How far will these teens go to find the answers no one is willing to seek?

I really liked how this book started out with inclinations of the supernatural or some otherness, but in the end monsters are explained much differently. The elements of suspicion and treachery are a big component to what made this novel so enticing. I wanted to tell Stella to stop looking (actually I wanted Stella to stop being a jerk most of the time, but hey people come in all different manners, cannot judge this book on just her character because there are so many redeeming characters within the book), I wanted Sam to stop encouraging the investigation, and I definitely wanted Shane to be told more from the beginning. The ending really did not disappoint and I kind of didn't really think it a possible ending because the supernatural was so prominent and I don't think most people's minds go right to that anyway (I don't want to say too much on what was so shocking in the end.)

4 out of 5 stars. Thanks Edelweiss.