Book Review: THE ACCIDENT SEASON by Moïra Fowley-Doyle
Summary
It's the accident season, the same time every year. Bones break, skin tears, bruises bloom.
The accident season has been part of seventeen-year-old Cara's life for as long as she can remember. Towards the end of October, foreshadowed by the deaths of many relatives before them, Cara's family becomes inexplicably accident-prone. They banish knives to locked drawers, cover sharp table edges with padding, switch off electrical items - but injuries follow wherever they go, and the accident season becomes an ever-growing obsession and fear.
But why are they so cursed? And how can they break free?
Book Details
THE ACCIDENT SEASON
By Moïra Fowley-Doyle
Sale Date: August 18, 2015
Young Adult, Magical Realism
Kathy Dawson Books, 304
Source: Publishers
My Rating: 4 Stars
With The Accident Season debut, author Fowley-Doyle writes a story that breaths magical-realism, the kind that blurs the lines between the mundane and the magical, tantalizing readers with hauntingly gorgeous storytelling.
Filled with dark secrets, The Accident Season is layered with more than one twisty plot thread. Told through the protagonists Cara's point of view, and with the use of dream-like flashbacks, the story slowly unravels why every October, Cara and her family become inexplicably accident prone. Danger seems to find them as each cut, bruise, and broken bone becomes unavoidable. This year is going to be the worst as Cara, along with her sister Alice, and ex-stepbrother Sam, find out what lies behind the mystery of The Accident Season.
What makes The Accident Season such a fantastic read is the balance between the lush storytelling and a mystery that becomes more layered and twisty until at the end it leaps out at you. Fowley-Doyle lures the reader in with the mystery and vivid writing, but I was completely surprised, in the best of ways, as how she took plot threads that seemed unrelated and began to weave them together, giving the reader a complicated and emotional read. Family secrets, strange and eerie photos of a missing girl, an abandoned house, and, of course, the strange accidents that plague Cara and her family, makes for a compulsive read.
One of the book's strength is the strong sense of family and friendship. There is a bond that goes beyond just being family and best friends portrayed in The Accident Season. Cara, her sister Alice, and their stepbrother Sam are completely devoted to each other. Each accident brings them closer and strengthens their family ties. Then there's Cara's best friend Bea who reads tarot cards and has a witchy knack for sensing things magical, who is as much a part of the family as possibly. Despite everything happening they continue to feel grounded. Parties, school, relationships, and romance are all part of their lives and because of this, I had no problem connecting with them. There's sweet romance and tantalizing first kisses, heartache, and secrets.
What do tarot cards, red buttons, and masquerade parties have to do with the story? You'll just have to read it The Accident Season. It is best going in with little knowledge and I'm not saying any more to give it away. The story wraps up with an ending that left me satisfied, and my questions answered. I often worry with magical realism books that I'll be left with that open ending, vague feeling, but that did not happen here. Loved the ending - the entire story for the matter. The Accidental Season is magical, heartfelt and captivating and is sure to put a spell on its readers!
