by Garth Stein
First published 2014
Trevor Ridley arrives at Riddell House with his bankrupt father, knowing almost nothing about his family's past. The fourteen-year-old understands only that his parents have separated and that convincing his grandfather to sell the decaying mansion might reunite them. The spectacular house on Puget Sound holds more than Trevor expected. Hidden rooms conceal family secrets spanning generations. Something or someone inside the mansion works against his father's plans. Trevor uncovers the truth about the Riddell family's collective guilt and discovers that generations need redemption. The oppressive cycle that has trapped his family for decades threatens to claim him too. Trevor realizes he may be the only person capable of breaking free from this burden and saving both his family and himself.
Genres: family-life, historical-fiction, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, redemption
Setting: Puget Sound, Riddell House
Period: 21st Century
416 pages · Hardcover · Simon & Schuster