Book Review for The Haunting of Meredith by Sandy Hiss

The Haunting of Meredith, by Sandy Hiss, is a beautifully tragic story about remembering your loved ones.

Meredith is a young woman who, in order to stave off her loneliness, watches people from afar. One day, she meets a strange old woman named Helen. At first, Meredith refuses to have anything to do with her. But as time passes, she slowly begins to realize that Helen is more than who she seems and finally realizes just how important Helen is to her. However, there is something more sinister lurking in the shadows, a monster that was born from the depths of abandonment.

I fell in love with Meredith the moment Hiss first introduced her. Initially, she seemed pitiful, as if she was nothing more than shadow, watching people go by on their business. Then she sees Helen, and suddenly she becomes human. I was wary of Helen, as well as the strange occurrences around her. I was also more than a little cautious of Helen whenever the two met. Still, I enjoyed the relationship between the two, the bittersweet tone carefully interwoven with the plot.

The concept of remembering loved ones was also well done. The woman who had a stroller with only a baby doll inside; Helen’s granddaughter forgetting her, and even Meredith’s loneliness; each aspect of the book contributes to the importance of caring for your friends and family, even when they’re far away. Granted, scaring them into submission may not be the best way to go about it, but it’s necessary nonetheless.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. Hiss effectively conveyed the dark elegance of the memories of the dead, as well as the bittersweet reminder of the thoughts of the forgotten. The dead, after all, have nothing left to lose. As such, I would give this book a rating of a 4.3 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to fans of The Rosegiver, by Sandy Benitez, Autumn Chills, and Love, Death, and Other Lies, by Jerome Sparks.