Synopsis:
"More than a decade ago, Mira fled her small, segregated hometown in the south to forget. With every mile she traveled, she distanced herself from her past: from her best friend Celine, mocked by their town as the only white girl with black friends; from her old neighborhood; from the eerie Woodsman plantation rumored to be haunted by the spirits of slaves; from the terrifying memory of a ghost, she saw that terrible day when a dare-gone-wrong almost got Jesse—the boy she secretly loved—arrested for murder.
But now Mira is back in Kipsen to attend Celine’s wedding at the plantation, which has been transformed into a lush vacation resort. Mira hopes to reconnect with her friends, and especially, Jesse, to finally tell him the truth about her feelings and the events of that devastating long-ago day.
But for all its fancy renovations, the Woodsman remains a monument to its oppressive racist history. The bar serves antebellum drinks, entertainments include horrifying reenactments, and the service staff is nearly all black. Yet the darkest elements of the plantation’s past have been carefully erased rumors that slaves were tortured mercilessly and that ghosts roam the lands, seeking vengeance on the descendants of those who tormented them, which includes most of the wedding guests.
As the weekend unfolds, Mira, Jesse, and Celine are forced to acknowledge their history together, and to save themselves from what is to come." - Via Good Reads
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Review
Where do I begin with this book?! First, LaTanya McQueen is an amazing writer. I will read anything she writes in the future. I listened to this on audio, and the narrator was perfect for this story. If you are able, I highly recommend consuming this story via audiobook.
This is gothic horror at its finest. When the Reckoning Comes does a fantastic job of blending the present day with the horrifying acts of the past.
LaTanya does a great job setting up the present day and helping us get to know these characters quickly. This can be difficult to do when the characters have known each other all their lives, but it was done beautifully here. I spent this book very invested in the lives of Mira and Jesse. I loved Mira from the first page.
This book's important discussion is why we shouldn't have weddings and other celebrations at plantations. It also explores additional topics of race and privilege. I enjoyed the social commentary and how it was laced with supernatural elements. The real horrors in this story have nothing to do with ghosts.
This book had a great plot, and I could not stop listening. It consumed my thoughts and my life for several days.
There's a twist in this book that took me entirely by surprise.
It was absolutely brilliant.
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