Cryer's Cross

By: Lisa McMann

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

Length: 5 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

The small town of Cryers Cross is rocked by tragedy when an unassuming freshman disappears without a trace. Kendall Fletcher wasnt that friendly with the missing girl, but the angst wreaks havoc on her OCD-addled brain.

When a second student goes missingsomeone close to Kendalls heartthe community is in an uproar. Caught in a downward spiral of fear and anxiety, Kendalls not sure she can hold it together. When she starts hearing the voices of the missing, calling out to her and pleading for help, she fears shes losing her grip on reality. But when she finds messages scratched in a desk at schoolmessages that could only be from the missing student who used to sit thereKendall decides that crazy or not, shed never forgive herself if she didnt act on her suspicions.

Something's not right in Cryers Cross and Kendall's about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried.

©2011 Lisa McMann (P)2011 Simon & Schuster

Critic reviews

"A brilliant, engaging, scary piece of fiction. Every word had me sliding closer to the edge of my seat and gripping the cover tighter and tighter. There are books in the world that make you question your reality and the things that go bump in the night--this is one of them." (Heather Brewer, New York Times best-selling author of The Chronicles of Vladmir Tod)

" Cryer's Cross is an eerie, gripping, totally addictive, breathtaking whirl of a book with an ending that left me haunted for days. Lisa McMann has done it again--this book is unputdownable!" (Alyson Noel, #1 New York Times best-selling Author of The Immortals series)

Great book

Great book for some light reading. Would highly recommend to others, Especially for new readers

more voice actors

The story was good but it could have used more actors for the different voices

its a good book.

i loved it very interesting book, i liked the twist in the story. would definitely read it again.

An Expected Thriller

The anticipation reading this book was definitely worth it. Although, there is no twist in the end. To me, the "twist" that people have mentioned prior was expected as I continued to read the book. A good, quick young adult thriller read for the masses. Anyone interested in a mystery, ghosts, evil spirits would be interested in this read.

Good mystery, but quite simple

I loved the Dreamcatcher series by Lisa McMann and that’s why I decided to buy “Cryer’s Cross”. This book, however, is quite different: it tells the story of Kandell, a teenager who has OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) and lives in a small town called Cryer’s Cross. She has a boyfriend, Nico, a boy who knows since she was little, but she doesn’t like to call him that because it seems to mean some kind of obligation. Everything changes when Nico disappears. He is the second teenager disappeared in Cryer’s Cross this year, and people are afraid. At the same time, Kandell knows better Jacian, a newcomer…

If you had read any other McMann’s books, you’ll know she has a simple narration, with short descriptions that let everything to reader’s imagination. I like her writing, but my problem with her this time is the plot: I found it too simple. It has some mystery and I like the way she captures OCD’s influence in daily life; however, I think she could have chosen a better ending. I had a good time with the listening (if I can call a “good time” a mystery-horror story), but it’s easy to forget. I still prefer the Dreamcatcher trilogy.

Finally, the narrator does a good job and she really scared me with “We” fragments.

Short and ... not sweet, but pretty darn good!

I can hardly believe how much Lisa McMann managed to squeeze into 5 hours and 27 minutes! Kendall is an interesting character who struggles with the events unfolding in her life. Her OCD is dealt with in an interesting way, though I thought at times that it was a little too “easy” for her. Much more conflict was produced by her developing feelings for the cold and brooding Jacian. She has to struggle with how he makes her feel and fight the temptations aroused by these feelings while she’s still unsure of what has happened to her more fraternal boyfriend, Nico. I thought McMann dealt with this powerfully. I don’t think I’ve ever wished a good guy would end up dead so that the love between two other characters could blossom! I felt bad for wishing it and Kendall, the protagonist, felt bad too! This created a lot of empathy which held me firmly gripped.

The antagonist of the text, “We”, was an unusual choice which I was dubious about, at first. I won’t give too much away but I shall say that by the end of the story, I had suspended my disbelief and allowed the idea to sit well with me. I allowed myself to think that some stains just don’t scrub out, so maybe I could believe what McMann wanted me to about the antagonist.

Overall, I thought Cryer’s Cross was a great book which really lived up to that old adage about quality being more important than quantity. The quality of the writing and the rounded characters made this an entertaining read which is just perfect for those of you looking for something short to take to the beach with you this summer. I took mine to the gym which was a lot more hard work!

Haunting

This took a little while to get into as its present tense, third person narrative takes some getting used to, but as the story takes hold, the writing style soon feels natural. Part supernatural thriller, part realistic portrayal of a known mental disorder, this is a cleverly written story, haunting and emotionally gripping, with well drawn characters. The author captures life in a small town really well and her descriptions of the heroines battle with OCD is handled with care. The story is at times, chilling, and as the sinister atmosphere builds, the story becomes impossible to tear away from. My only regret is that it appears to be a stand alone.