I've loved Jennifer McMahon ever since I took Island of Lost Girls on vacation and didn't want to do anything else but find out what happened next. She has had some misses over the years (looking at you Burntown), but for the most part, I've enjoyed the books she's written. I've heard her called the modern-day Shirley Jackson -- her books are creepy and atmospheric and leave you wanting more.
The Drowning Kind might be her creepiest book yet. One day, Jax receives a slew of missed calls from her sister, Lexie. She is tired of Lexie's manic episodes, and so, doesn't answer the phone. The next day, she is devastated to find out that her sister has drowned in the pool at their late grandmother's house. Jax discovers that Lexie has been researching the history of the house, and that may have had something to do with her death.
But Jax is not the only one whose eyes readers see this story through. They also go back in time to 1929 to meet Ethel Monroe, who desperately wants a baby. Her husband takes her to a hotel in Vermont which has a natural spring on its grounds; this spring is said to grant wishes but it also takes something in return. The stories of Jax and Ethel run parallel to each other until the reader discovers how they are connected.
I've found that so often, a book like this is ruined by the ending, but that's definitely not the case here. I didn't see it coming. Read this one with the lights on!
MY RATING - 4
Available April 2021