To Break a Covenant

by Alison Ames

Overview

Debut voice Alison Ames delivers with a chilling, feminist thriller, perfect for fans of Wilder Girls and Sawkill Girls.

Moon Basin has been haunted for as long as anyone can remember. It started when an explosion in the mine killed sixteen people. The disaster made it impossible to live in town, with underground fires spewing ash into the sky. But life in New Basin is just as fraught. The ex-mining town relies on its haunted reputation to bring in tourists, but there’s more truth to the rumors than most are willing to admit, and the mine still has a hold on everyone who lives there.

Clem and Nina form a perfect loop—best friends forever, and perhaps something more. Their circle opens up for a strange girl named Lisey with a knack for training crows, and Piper, whose father is fascinated with the mine in a way that’s anything but ordinary. The people of New Basin start experiencing strange phenomena—sleepwalking, night terrors, voices that only they can hear. And no matter how many vans of ghost hunters roll through, nobody can get to the bottom of what’s really going on. Which is why the girls decide to enter the mine themselves.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781645672067
Publisher:	Page Street Publishing
Publication date:	09/21/2021
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	382,814
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Alison Ames lives in Colorado with a lot of animals and her almost-wife. She loves birds, comics, and the rule of three. THE HAUNTING OF MOON BASIN is her debut novel. Find her on social media @2furiosa, and if you know (or are) Harry Styles she insists you do so.

Editorial Reviews

09/01/2021

Gr 9 Up— No one ever leaves Moon Basin, where an ongoing coal mine fire keeps raining ash on Old Town. The mine affects residents and visitors, calling them in like a demented siren and generating strange events that draw in paranormal shows. Clem, Nina, and Lisey live in New Town, built right next to Old Town. The summer of their senior year, they meet Piper and her dad, who was hired to assess the coal mine for potential collapse. They join her and her dad on a trip into the mine, against their better judgement. They find themselves haunted by strange dreams and experiences afterwards. Circumstances require them to return to the mine where they realize something has entered their psyches. They can either flee or fight it. Clem tells their story, and is open about being a lesbian. Transcripts of tapes and interviews from various ghost hunting shows are interspersed throughout and provide more history and perspective on Moon Basin, its residents, and visitors. Nina is Latinx, Piper African American, and Lisey is described as pale and waiflike. The residents are described as white and working class. The community of Moon Basin is united in its fear of the mine; they are its hostages. VERDICT A good first purchase for fans of subtly paced horror or Shirley Jackson.—Tamara Saarinen, Pierce County Lib., WA

School Library Journal

2021-07-27
Some have tried, but in the end, no one leaves the Basin.

Clem and her best friend, Nina, live in the haunted town of Moon Basin, known for its accidents and murders that are linked to the now-abandoned coal mine—closed after a deadly explosion. From their friendship, which began in a graveyard following Clem’s father’s funeral, to Clem’s saying she liked girls, nothing has changed between them—until now. Nina is looking at colleges, but Clem, whose financial status has plummeted since her father’s death and her surgeon mother’s life-altering injuries, can’t afford it. Besides, she fears what happens to those who try to leave town, like Nina’s missing mother. Along with their friend Lisey, the group shows new girl Piper around town. Piper’s engineer father is inspecting the mine for stability, giving the girls access to a tour that any ghost hunter would envy. Soon after, however, things turn sour, as Piper’s father starts acting strangely, and Clem is plagued with nightmares. The story builds in atmosphere with its dark and well-written imagery that invites readers into the mysterious setting. The story’s exposition is cleverly supported through transcripts of unused footage from ghost-hunting shows. Most characters defaults to White; Piper is cued as Black.

A coming-of-age story wrapped in a spooky atmosphere. (Paranormal. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews