Necromancer's Garden

by Shauna McGuiness

Rose of Sharon learned at an early age that she has a very strange talent – the ability to raise the dead. Shunned by the People's Land, an isolated community, she walks through life as a pariah.

Across the river is The Outside, and the forbidden things females aren’t supposed to experience: books, education, technology, freedom. Chrys and her mother Catherine, escapees from the People's Land, are Rose of Sharon's only true connection to her past. But time is running out - Catherine is quickly losing her battle against cancer.
As the two cousins forge an unlikely friendship through a series of letters, they learn about each other's lives and how much they can rely on one another. Rose of Sharon dreams of a place she can belong and Chrys is desperate to rescue her from the closely guarded property, where only men are allowed to exit ... and Outsiders are not allowed in.

225 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 15, 2021

Reviews

[Cassondra Windwalker · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Necromancer’s Garden, Shauna McGuiness takes the familiar trope of a teenager with an unwanted supernatural gift and treats it so delicately, you forget you’ve ever read it before. My favorite aspect of this book is how completely the voices of the characters overpower the writing. There must be storytelling and description in there somewhere, since I can picture it all so vividly in my mind, but I’m not sure where, exactly. It’s more like sitting at a patio table surrounded by all your favorite people in the world, who keep chiming in and talking over each other to tell you the marvelous adventure they’ve just been on. Only you never get confused or irritated or tired of them droning on about themselves – it’s fun and delightful and thrilling and nerve-wracking and just plain effervescent. That’s it – effervescent. The perfect word to describe this surprisingly believable magical tale that will suck you into its current and not let you go till you are all the way down to the river basin. And in spite of its delightfully happy ending, it’s a book of unexpected depth that you’ll be more than happy to recommend to young and young-at-heart readers of any age.

[Eileen Hammond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful Coming of Age Tale

A young girl (Rose of Sharon) has a spectacular power; she can bring things back from the dead. Unfortunately, she lives in a patriarchal, religious community where such things (and all differences) are shunned. Life might have been different for Shar’n had her mother lived, or had Shar’n been able to try and save her. Her father remarries and Shar’n is treated as an adjunct to the family at best. Things look up when she discovers a cousin on the “outside,” and begins to understand the freedoms available there.

This is a wonderful story told with such deftness that you feel every hurt the main character experiences. You hope for her as her challenges rise, and it seems like there will be no happy ending. But hang on. Great story for all ages that I highly recommend.

[Eli B · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gripping heartbreaking tale

Rose of Sharon’s special gift is what made me take a chance on a religious cult book. More than anything it is about overcoming abuse and neglect. The book also holds a lot of secrets I don’t want to spoil. If you like stories about overcoming adversity this is for you. Suitable for teenagers and adults, but I wouldn’t recommend it for younger children because of some dark themes.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun summer read

I put this one off for a while thinking I needed to be in the right mindset to read it after seeing the title. How wrong I was! It was an interesting study of a character who wasn’t like everyone else, living in a society that is very different than my own comfortable existence. I enjoyed the story and appreciated that it didn’t take some of the dark turns that I was afraid it might.

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 100 pgs: just didn’t hook me, not in the space for it, might pick it up later.

[Antonia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compelling and entertaining read! I was hooked from the start and loved the way the author allowed the story to unfold through the main characters' letter writing and discovery of each others' lives and history. I found it very easy to get pulled into their world and was rooting for them while eagerly reading to find out how their story would end. This was a page turner and I'd highly recommend to anyone who loves a good young adult/coming of age story, is fascinated by religious cults, and/or enjoys the mildly supernatural.

[Sami Danley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply magical

A curious and fast-paced read. You empathize with Shar'n and you root for her to find a place where she is accepted. Magical and heartfelt. Simply beautiful.