Cryer's Cross

If this book was an episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark, it would have been called The Tale of the Haunted Desk. The story in this book is a fairly simple concept with an interesting execution: a sleepy town with little to say for itself ends up with some big news when multiple teenagers go missing, upsetting everyone but most notably Kendall, a teenage girl with fairly disruptive OCD. After Kendall's boyfriend goes missing and Kendall starts noticing strange messages show up on the desk where he sat at school, she starts to realise that there's far more going on than meets the eye.

Breaking up the chapters that are mostly from Kendalls point of view are short page-long snippets by a frantic and obsessive voice. It quickly becomes show more obvious that the voices are connected to the disappearing teens, though what they say is vague enough that how and why they're connected isn't entirely clear, which is a definite point in McMann's favour. Keeping the reader interested and somewhat in the dark is essential for a good mystery, driving them onward to discover what ties all the clues together.

As the story progresses, Kendall herself starts getting influenced by the voices, possessed by the intent behind them. As we discover later, intent is, by and large, what the voice are, at least to an extent. The desk isn't possessed by a particular ghost but rather the pain that was felt as disturbed boys were made to bent over it while being whipper, sometimes to death, by a sadistic teacher at the school where the desk was first used. In an attempt to find solace, the pain infected those who sat at the desk, eventually forcing them to bury themselves alive as the sentient pain tried to find a release. it's a fascinating concept, and I think McMann did a wonderful job of conveying the brutality and just what can come of abuse even after the abused and abusers are long gone from the world.

I was particularly impressed by McMann's handling of OCD, though upon finding out that her own daughter has the condition, that isn't too surprising. Given that I took have more than just a slight touch of it myself, I could relate to Kendall very well, could see the logic in her illogical compulsions (when you're forced to stop walking and tap your feet in a certain rhythm until a sense of balance and rightness returns to your body, or when you can't eat a sandwich without first tearing into specific sections, you'll understand exactly what I mean when I say that). Particularly interesting was that in the end, it was Kendalls OCD that played a part in saving her life, her compulsions overriding the strength to which she was possessed by the voices of pain. I liked how OCD wasn't protrayed as some freaky thing that did nothing but ostracize people and turn them into freaks, but rather as a legitimate condition that needed handling, needed dealing with, and occasionally can be useful.

This is defininitely a book worth picking up. The distant tone it's written it can sometimes be a detriment to really getting into the story, but the pace is quick and smooth enough to mostly make up for that, and the characters are interesting and complete. Very good for fans of YA paranormal novels, for those looking for a good haunting that can be both simple and complex. show less

Nothing ever happens in the small town of Cryer’s Cross, Montana, population 212—until an unassuming freshman disappears without a trace. The girl’s disappearance wracks the whole town, but especially affects Kendall, who has OCD. When Kendall’s best friend Nico disappears next, she is beside herself, yet determined to find out what happened to him.

Jacian, the new boy in town, raises her suspicions, but things change the day Kendall hears voices coming from Nico’s former desk. What secrets does that desk hide about their town? Kendall may find out, but it may cost her her life.

CRYER’S CROSS is a fantastically creepy paranormal horror story from the incredible storyteller Lisa McMann. Whether or not you like horror stories, show more this is a really engaging quick read that may even be better than her Wake series.

Lisa McMann’s third-person present-tense writing style brings a simultaneous immediacy and calculated distance to the story. Everything that is happening to Kendall feels like it’s happening to her right this very moment, which makes it really easy to get caught up in what’s going on with her. At the same time, the distance makes it easy for us to enjoy CRYER’S CROSS as simply an exhilarating and fast-paced horror novel.

CRYER’S CROSS’ creepiness factor comes less from the actual physical object of horror and more on the way individuals’ suspicions slowly insinuates themselves into the townspeople’s minds. It’s what made Jacian and Kendall’s budding relationship so dear to me: that it could still build in this slow, tortured, believable, and utterly sexy way despite the unusual happenings in town. Yes, I have a tiny crush on Jacian. I have a soft spot for dark, broody, tortured, protective minority sweethearts.

Kendall’s OCD, which purports to have a significant contribution to her fascination with her town’s mystery, felt rather undeveloped for its supposed significance. I’ve read other books featuring OCD characters before, and Kendall’s OCD just never felt completely realized. Despite that, though, I really liked Kendall. She is a star soccer player without the jockish trappings, has a good relationship with her parents, and is good about making friends. Some of her interactions with people felt a little simplistic, like they were simply for the convenience of revealing something about the story. However, it did not detract from my enjoyment of the story.

I don’t like to be scared, but CRYER’S CROSS was a psychological thriller with an appreciable amount of interesting characters to keep me invested. Lisa McMann proves that she is the master of writing horror stories for those who don’t like horror. show less

Cryer's Cross can be summed up in two words: deliciously creepy. On the surface, it is a missing-persons story, focusing on the damage done on the family members and loved ones left behind when someone goes missing. This in and of itself is tragic, and Ms. McMann handles the struggles to maintain a semblance of normalcy with aplomb. Yet, as one begins to make sense of certain sections, told as asides, a growing sense of horror emerges, and the reader quickly realizes that there is more happening in Cryer's Cross than initially realized.

While the story revolves around Kendall and her reaction to her missing friends, it is really Kendall's OCD that becomes a major player in its own right. Much has been made in the media of those with show more obsessive-compulsive disorder. Often, they are ridiculed for their compulsions, with the insinuation that a person with OCD chooses to act like that. Ms. McMann does none of those things. Kendall is neither embarrassed or apologetic for her compulsions but has learned to fight them when possible and accept them when not. She has seen doctors about her disorder, and her parents and friends know it is something she struggles to control. For those of us with OCD, either undiagnosed or diagnosed, Kendall's struggles will strike home, making her an incredibly sympathetic character. We can relate to the need to straighten a room, a brain that never shuts off, and the desire to find something to make it shut off for a bit. In addition to showing just what it is like to have this disorder, her compulsions become vitally important for the plot, marking a major leap in how OCD is portrayed.

Cryer's Cross has a little bit of everything to entice the reader: romance, horror, action, suspense, and Gothic elements. At 242 pages, it is a very quick read, but it unfolds in such a way that it demands to be read in one sitting. Ms. McMann draws on the reader's sympathy, or even empathy, for Kendall to keep the reader engrossed, and this is in no way a hardship. Cryer's Cross is an engaging stand-alone novel, a rarity these days in the world of young adult fiction, that highlights Ms. McMann's ability to weave a story. It is definitely not one to be missed! show less

Surprisingly good spooky writing for such a strange premise, but the notion that objects can become haunted or "evil" is ancient, after all. Kendall has OCD, which goes absolutely nuts when her best friend disappears in the small remote town of Cryer's Creek, MT -- the second high school student to go missing in the space of a few months. What is happening to these students, and why can Kendall "hear" voices in her classroom? Set against a story of growing romantic interest, this is a small town mystery with a sickly twist.

“Haunting, and just plain scary, McMann gives you chills as her story unfolds.”

I am a fan of Lisa McMann’s previous series and I was wondering how Cryer’s Cross would compare. Holy Ass-kicking Batman! Lisa’s story of Cryer’s Cross is creepy, it’s haunting, and most of all it is superbly addicting. The tension builds with every page and only in the last quarter of the book does McMann begin to even give you a hint of what is going down in this sleepy little town. It’s a race to the finish, a disturbing race haunting you to continue, to find out what is going on, what is going to happen next. The book haunts you to be read the way the desk haunts Kendell to do unthinkable, and unspeakable things.

Kendall has OCD (obsessive show more compulsive disorder). She counts, she checks things six times, she makes deals with herself, I will count to 100 and then I will stop if I see a red bird kind of deals, she gets to school early every morning to make sure the curtains are right, the desks are arranged and the dent in the trashcan is just so. I could relate to Kendall so much, having to hide her OCD from the others in the small town because I had to go through the same thing growing up. No one could ever know I touched my pencil to the page four times before I could begin to write, or I unfolded and then refolded my lunch bag six times before I could eat. If I started a book I had to finish it even if I disliked it. Kendall hides these same compulsions and it is these compulsions that makes her the one to see that the grafitti on the desk is changing. That something sinister is going on, that Nico and Tiffany are missing and she can only hear numbers in her heard. 35, 100, 35, 100…

I had Lisa sign an ARC for me at ALA and now I understand the “Help Me” she wrote inside. Another cool thing is :drumroll: cue Angelic voices singing Hallelujah: this book is a stand alone!
Why Teens Will Love It:

A different kind of hero. It was so super refreshing to see a girl who wasn’t accomplished in everything, who didn’t care about Prada or play the Violin at competition level. Someone with real life problems and disorders and it is those flaws guiding her through the novel. Plus it is down right creepy!
Why Adults Will Love It:

This is a mystery for any age. Small clues are dropped through-out the novel and adults will love the subtlety that McMann uses to weave her story web. The plot is tight, the social issues are relate-able and this is one you will enjoy talking with others about. show less

An elegant, chilling little ghost story, CRYER'S CROSS wrapped me up in Kendall's small town. McMann's decision to write a heroine with OCD was not an affectation, but rather the metronome by which a reader is hypnotized into Kendall's emotions. Who would be more terrified by the supernatural than someone who battles for normalcy everyday? A wonderful story, very well done.

Full review to follow.

An excellent, excellent thriller. Something you want to read with the covers pulled tight around you and a few candles flickering nearby. It's one of those books where you know something creepy and not-OK is going on, but you can't figure out what EXACTLY it is.

Did I have a guess as to what was going to be the outcome of the mystery? Yes. But I was still pretty shocked by the, as I saw it, rather bold turn of events at the end. I didn't expect McMann to go that far, but I'm glad she did - it made the novel worthy of the creepy cover and creepy vibe that was building throughout the book.

I loved Kendall. I loved her attitude towards managing her OCD, her love for Nico and her love for both theatre and soccer (two of my personal faves as show more well). This is def. one to check out if you're in the mood for a bit of a thrill. show less