Now Entering Addamsville

by Francesca Zappia

"A darkly humorous, rapid-fire read." --Kirkus Reviews

Stranger Things meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this contemporary novel from Francesca Zappia, the acclaimed author of Eliza and Her Monsters.

When Zora Novak is framed for a crime she didn't commit, she must track down the true culprit and clear her name before it's too late. But in a small town obsessed with ghosts, getting people to believe the truth might prove to be impossible.

When someone burns down the home of the school janitor and he dies in the blaze, everyone in Addamsville, Indiana, points a finger at Zora. Never mind that Zora has been on the straight and narrow since her father was thrown in jail. With everyone looking for evidence against her, her only choice is to uncover the identity of the real killer.

There's one big problem--Zora has no leads. No one does. Addamsville has a history of tragedy, and thirty years ago a similar string of fires left several townspeople dead. The arsonist was never caught.

Now, Zora must team up with her cousin Artemis--an annoying self-proclaimed Addamsville historian--to clear her name. But with a popular ghost-hunting television show riling up the townspeople, almost no support from her family and friends, and rumors spinning out of control, things aren't looking good. Zora will have to read between the lines of Addamsville's ghost stories before she becomes one herself.

Acclaimed author Francesca Zappia has a perfectly pitched teen voice that shines in this inventive novel. Now Entering Addamvsille is perfect for fans of Brittany Cavallaro, Victoria Schwab, Riverdale, Truly Devious, and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

Includes interior spot illustrations from the author.

• ISBN10: 0062935275
• ISBN13: 9780062935274
• Publish Date: 17 October 2019 (first published 1 October 2019)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 6 December 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Greenwillow Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[Brianna]

2.5 :(

[leahrosereads]

I loved the town's history and all of these characters so freaking much! Zora is absolutely one of my favorite protagonists of the year. She's such a BAMF.

The writing was amazing. Francesca Zappia is officially an insta-buy author for me. Everything she writes in the future will be read by these eyeballs ASAP.

[Sam@WLABB]

Once upon a time, there were firestarters, demons, who were responsible for generations of deaths in Addamsville. Her mother hunted them and was passing on the family trade to Zora. That was until her mother disappeared. But, now the demons were back, and it was up to Zora and her cousin, Artemis, to rid their town of this scourge. Would Zora survive another showdown with the firestarters?

This book was nothing that I was expecting, and everything I never knew I wanted. It was creepy, a bit dark, and really fun. I have been seeing people dropping Buffy references, but all I kept feeling, as I read this book, were Supernatural vibes. I mean, Zora was a tough cookie, who drove a muscle car and had a demon for a friend. Sounds like she would fit right in with Sam and Dean.

So, Zora was a hunter, and the hunt for the firestarter was definitely a big part of this story, however there were also a lot of other things going on in Zora's life. You see, this was not her first tussle with the demons, and the last meeting left her missing two fingers and with an unearned reputation as an arsonist. The whole town had sort of turned against her, but Zora couldn't turn her back on Addamsville, and that's why she was willing to take up the hunt again. To protect her family and her town.

The story was fast-paced fun, which had me hooked from the very beginning, but what really made this story shine were the characters. I think you can already guess that Zora was fantastic, and though she considered herself a loner, when push came to shove, there were several people ready to stand by her side. Her ice cream crew, her cousin, her sister, and her sister's boyfriend were steadfast supporters of Zora, and I loved them all.

I had a great time as Zora and the gang met up with ghosts and searched for the demons, but I also appreciated the more emotional issues Zappia incorporated. You see, Zora's battle with demons were both literal and figurative. Zora was dealing with isolation, poverty, a father in prison, and a missing/dead mother. Her sister was forced to act as her parent, while her father was incarcerated, and they had to deal with the scorn of the whole town in the fallout of their father's Ponzi scheme. You would think that was enough to sour Zora on Addamsville, but she didn't let any of that get in the way of fulfilling her duty as a hunter.

This was a dark and humorous look at life in a small town, which I hope gets a sequel, because Grim's final line begged for this story to be continued.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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