I know Katherine as Katie Webber who writes MG fiction (brilliantly!) with her husband Kevin Tsang. I knew The Revelry would be very different to the tales of dragons and young boys who aren't afraid of things, and I knew the book would be good, but I wasn't prepared for how much it would get under my skin and grip me!
Ember Grove is a small town in America where everybody knows everyone else and where secrets and superstitions roam the streets. The Revelry is a huge event in the town but one shrouded in secrecy. It's a rite of passage for every high school senior and occurs at the end of summer in the woods on the edge of town ... and that's all anybody knows until it's their turn to attend. This year, Amy is determined to attend, even though she and Bitsy aren't seniors, and when she finds an invite, there is no stopping her. As they have been friends for 8 years (since Amy first arrived in town) Bitsy reluctantly goes with her to the woods at midnight (which is what the invite stated) but when she wakes the following morning, Bitsy can't remember anything. How will that evening change the girls and will they ever discover what actually happened?
Set in a small town, you immediately discover that Bitsy is determined to leave as soon as she is able, after all, her brother is already away at university. Everybody knows everyone and those who aren't born in the town are considered outsiders, no-matter how long they have been there. The woods on the edge of town hold the most mystery and aren't patrolled by the police; it's an area that feels wild and is easy to get lost in; you can't always find the same spot twice when you enter, and you definitely get the impression throughout the book that the woods are a living thing - it's almost as if the woods is a character in its own right. It give off an air of danger and darkness, and undoubtedly builds the tension that I could feel pulsing throughout the book.
Bitsy is drawn to the woods but is definitely reluctant to enter them the night of The Revelry; she's a good girl and is wary of breaking the rules. She and Amy have been close for so long but you get the impression that Bitsy lives in Amy's shadow a little, and this feeling grows as you progress through the book. Amy lives in a small apartment with her Aunt, and they don't have much money but things seem to go right for her and she's popular; Bitsy often feel on the edge of things. As the book unfolds, their friendship is tested to its limits.
There's a sense of peril that runs through the book; there's danger in the unknown and I constantly felt that there was something I didn't know lurking in the pages that I was yet to read. I was desperate to keep reading in an attempt to grasp hold of the unknown, to complete the puzzle, and I think that this was definitely linked to Bitsy's memory loss - as her life began to unravel, she was desperate to fill in the blanks, and I could feel that urgency and desperation she felt. The woods hold danger and secrets that draw you in and they draw Bitsy in too...
The Revelry is a book that will unsettle and grip you in equal measure. There's a feeling of something not being quite right/of something being just out of reach that compels you to read and read and read. It will occupy your mind, get under your skin and won't let you go, even once you've read the final page - it gave me a serious book hangover which delayed me starting my next book! The Revelry is a wonderful book and perfect for those who are just beginning to venture into YA.
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