Al Ana's Curse by Jerome McGinn depicts the supernatural adventures of a group of friends determined to solve an eerie mystery connected to their hometown. Aedan, Tim, Mary, and Lindsey reside in a quiet town called Cheboygan in Michigan. Their high school graduation is soon approaching, and they're excited to graduate and attend college. The friends make a solemn promise to investigate and unravel the mysteries lurking in Chook River. In the past, persons have gone missing under unusual circumstances in their small community. There is even talk about a malicious force, Al Ana, that resides in Chook River and steals the souls of innocent victims. The group's relentless investigation leads them straight into the clutches of this demon. Can they overcome the fears crippling their community and solve this thrilling case?

Al Ana's Curse is a sensational and engaging YA mystery. It is overflowing with action, adventure, horror, and suspense. The fast pacing and plot will immediately draw you in. The interaction between Aedan and his friends adds much-needed tension to the storyline. Their interaction also helps readers to get a better understanding of the setting, history, and culture of Cheboygan. Jerome McGinn does a fantastic job of building mystery and suspense around the legend of Al Ana and Chook River. The suspense gradually increases the closer the gang gets to solving the case. The writing style made this novel impossible to put down. Horror and thriller fans will enjoy the foreboding atmosphere the author created from beginning to end. All the plot twists will catch you off guard and keep you guessing how the story will unfold. You won't be able to predict what will happen next. Al Ana's Curse is the perfect novel for readers searching for a hair-raising ghost story filled with well-developed characters and an intriguing storyline.

Al Ana's Curse by Jerome McGinn follows Aedan, a high school senior, whose uncertainties about graduation are amplified in the uncovering of dark secrets about his town, Cheboygan. After a heart-pounding encounter with a banshee by the Chook River, Aedan learns about a demon named Al Ana, linked to mysterious disappearances, including that of two classmates. Driven by curiosity and a sense of duty, Aedan teams up with his friends, Tim and Lindsey, to investigate local legends and eerie occurrences in town. Their journey leads them to a variety of sites, including an abandoned cabin and a haunted theater, where they discover more about the chilling history tied to Al Ana. As they dig deeper, ghostly encounters and strange behaviors among townsfolk lead them to accept that they must confront the demon to save their community, with Aedan resolved to protect his town from Al Ana's malevolence once and for all.

Jerome McGinn does a great job of pulling readers into Al Ana's Curse immediately. McGinn's prose is atmospheric and immersive, breathing life into the haunted as we follow Aedan and his friends. McGinn’s characters are well developed and even ancillary characters are given the full treatment, the standout to me being the fortune teller, Elara Wildheart. The biggest issue I tend to come across in horror is its pacing, but McGinn wields the measured hand of a seasoned writer, building suspense through good, old-fashioned vivid writing and delivering a consistent sense of dread that carries throughout. I liked the hard-baked themes that are part of the story, which are primarily tied to courage and friendship. Overall, this fast-moving and thoughtfully disturbing read will appeal to fans of supernatural and horror fiction, leaving us with an eager anticipation of McGinn's next book in The Legends of Folklore series.