The Burial Tide

A remote Irish island with an insular community of crusty locals provides the perfect backdrop for this riveting splice of suspense and folklore from Sharpson (Knock Knock, Open Wide). Inishbannock is just recovering from a deadly “outbreak” (though an outbreak of what goes unspecified) when one of its victims, Mara Fitch, claws her way out of her grave, having been mistakenly buried alive. At least that’s what her caretakers tell her, since Mara has no memory of the life she lived before. But as Mara tries to rebuild her identity from the stories fed to her by locals, she uncovers inconsistencies that lead her to suspect she’s being gaslighted about both her life and her death. Even more mysterious, she chances upon a series of photos spanning nearly a century of a person who closely resembles her. While Mara tries to make sense of these discoveries, something slaughters the island’s sheep, prompting residents—who seem to know more than they tell—to take up arms. Sharpson marshals a large cast of distinctive characters and weaves the subplots spun from their individual motivations for hiding the truth into a dark history leavened with Irish myth and legend. The result is sure to enchant readers with a taste for folk horror. (Sept.)