She is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran

Abstract

Reviewed by: She is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran April Spisak Tran, Trang Thanh She is a Haunting. Bloomsbury, 2023 [352p] Trade ed. ISBN 9781547610815 $18.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9781547610822 $13.29 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 9-12 Jade regrets the deal she made with her estranged father before it even begins; she has to live with him in Vietnam for five weeks to restore a French colonial house and then he will help pay for her college expenses. Jade has three goals: make a website for the business, avoid fighting with her dad (or engaging with him at all if possible), and try not to fall for the cute niece of her dad’s business partner. It will quickly become clear to readers, though, that her real goal needs to be staying alive, as ominous chapters in third-person reveal the house to be more than just its grim history, but a direct and horrific threat, anticipating its new inhabitants’ “pliable meat and soft minds” and particularly pleased about the younger people who won’t die as quickly. Ghosts attack Jade in her dreams, and other strange events bring an increasing (absolutely correct) sense of danger—is not at all clear that her family will survive the summer. This is a multi-layered exemplar of the horror genre, as the terrifying supernatural aspects of this story combine with the equally horrific colonialist history of this home (a gruesome past, even if it wasn’t a devouring, sentient being). All of that is then topped off with a compelling exploration of the dynamics of estranged families and how culture, identity, and feelings of what is home can vary dramatically from generation to generation. The author clearly had a path they wanted the reader to travel on, and while it is one that requires a bit more patience and thoughtfulness than some horror titles, the end result is well worth the extra work. Copyright © 2022 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois