The Year of Shadows by Claire Legrand (review)

Nine months after her mother took off for parts unknown, Olivia Stellatella is forced to move into the back of a rundown music hall so her broody, cash-strapped father—whom Olivia refers to as Maestro—can continue to conduct the orchestra and make what little money the family has stretch further. Having already alienated most of her friends and family, Olivia, clad always in black and constantly drawing creepy pictures in her sketch pad, isn't looking for any new pals, but the four ghosts that haunt the hall seek out her company anyway. They're willing to help her save the hall from a particularly menacing shade that has also recently taken up residence there, and she's willing in turn to help them move on to the next spiritual realm—but she has to find the ghosts' various anchors to this world in time. Although this lacks the campy humor of Legrand's last outing, The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls (BCCB 12/12), the blend of spooky but mostly harmless thrills, and family drama makes for a compelling storyline, and Olivia's grief over her mother's departure and her subsequent anger at her father are both realistic and relatable. Olivia is likable even at her snarkiest, and the ways in which she comes to care for the ghosts and even a few living people are sometimes touching. The secret behind the shade's existence adds a bit of complexity to the missing mother story, and the happy ending feels well deserved for a central character who has had her fair share of sadness.