The Underwood Tapes

Six months after her mother’s death, 18-year-old Grace Crain spends the summer in her mother’s hometown of Hermitage, Fla. While working as an intern at the local historical society, she transcribes cassette tapes recorded in the ’90s by a boy her age, Jake Underwood. She soon realizes that if she records herself speaking on the other side of the tapes, Jake can hear her 30 years in the past. The two begin talking, and as they bond over their parallel experiences with grief, they also uncover a secret lying beneath the surface of Hermitage—one that spans five decades and involves some of the most important people in town, who may have played a part in the deaths of Jake’s father and uncle. Through Grace’s assuredly written voice, DeWitt (Wren Martin Ruins It All) deftly balances an examination of grief and healing with a gradually unfolding small-town mystery. Though Grace’s relationships with other major supporting characters—such as her cousin and a coworker—are somewhat threadbare, the story stands out in its depiction of emotional intellect; intriguing supernatural elements add texture. Grace cues as white; the secondary cast is intersectionally diverse. Ages 14–up. Agent: Cate Hart, Harvey Klinger Literary. (Feb.)