Review: White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson

White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson

Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books

Publication Date: September 14, 2021

Library: I listened to it on my library audio app! We've already got it!

Synopsis

Marigold is running from ghosts. The phantoms of her old life keep haunting her, but a move with her newly blended family from their small California beach town to the embattled Midwestern city of Cedarville might be the fresh start she needs. Her mom has accepted a new job with the Sterling Foundation that comes with a free house, one that Mari now has to share with her bratty ten-year-old stepsister, Piper.

The renovated picture-perfect home on Maple Street, sitting between dilapidated houses, surrounded by wary neighbors has its . . . secrets. That’s only half the problem: household items vanish, doors open on their own, lights turn off, shadows walk past rooms, voices can be heard in the walls, and there’s a foul smell seeping through the vents only Mari seems to notice. Worse: Piper keeps talking about a friend who wants Mari gone.

But “running from ghosts” is just a metaphor, right?

As the house closes in, Mari learns that the danger isn’t limited to Maple Street. Cedarville has its secrets, too. And secrets always find their way through the cracks.

Review

I feel so honored to be able to say that I was able to speak with Tiffany Jackson for a virtual library event I organized and she is a lovely human being. During the talk and Q&A at some point the chat was on fire talking about White Smoke which I hadn't read. Clearly I was in the minority and foolish so I'm really excited to say that White Smoke was my first read of the year and I listened to the audiobook in one day.

As far as I'm concerned Tiffany never misses. White Smoke was such a good book and often compared to The Haunting of Hill House and Get Out. That comparison is perfect. 

Marigold is on the struggle bus. She's a part of a blended family with a little step sister who is working her nerves, they're moving to some random city that's practically falling down around her. And we learn pretty quickly that she's desperate for weed. Like, shockingly desperate. As the story progresses we get Mari's full story, and in all honesty, sometimes when a book is dragging out a personal reveal I can get really irritated. I want the book to keep my attention, the plot, not some character secret. Tiffany Jackson released just enough information that we didn't feel forced to keep reading, we chose to. 

I wish we could have seen more of Mari's relationship with her mom from before she was remarried. Because of Mari's past, it seemed that her relationship with her mother had really declined, but I could sense that they had once been close and at one point Mari's mother was the OG mama bear for her kids. I think my favorite relationship was with Mari and her little brother Sammy especially toward the end of the book when they really teamed up against the mystery of the house. I love a well written sibling relationship!

If I had to compare this book to another one, it's like a YA version of When No one is Watching by Alyssa Cole. They're the perfect companion novels.

Challenges

Library Love Challenge

2024 Audio Book Challenge