Prith’s YA debut is set in a world where the dead have lived alongside the living for nearly 20 years. Persephone Green is 17 years old, and her whole life people have been talking about the mysterious Ghost Wars. She and her mother, Chloe, move every few years, always suddenly, making Persephone the weird new kid at school over and over again. Chloe spends all her time in a locked laboratory with strange equipment and warning systems and refuses to discuss her work, even when alarms start going off. When Persephone meets Sebastian, something pulls her to him, and they recognize that they share one very unusual trait: neither has a heartbeat. When ghost swarms begin to grow and threaten to overtake their high school, the two decide it is time to find out who, and what, they are. The teens light out for the secret and now deserted facility that may hold the truth, pursued by Chloe, the military, and ghosts, as well as Sebastian’s friend Cain, who seems to know a lot more about Persephone than she does. This genre blender will appeal to teens who share feelings of alienation, distrust of adults, and love a good conspiracy tale—with spirits!—Dodie Ownes
