The Haunting of Cedar Hill Plantation

Phoebe Sproule is back, but this time she and her grandmother have hit the road. In McMaster’s The Haunting of Cedar Hill Plantation, Phoebe is out of New York and enjoying a summer getaway with her relatives at their mansion in Nashville, Tennessee. There, Phoebe meets her cousins: Baxter, who is obsessed with finding the treasure buried during the American Civil War, and Rachel, whose main focus is boys—in particular, her newly ex-boyfriend. Phoebe also befriends next-door neighbours Mr. and Mrs. Carlyle who are full of information about the Civil War and the plantation homes, and she meets the mysterious Iris.

As with McMaster’s last novel, I occasionally found that there were too many plot lines within this story. For example, partway through the story, Phoebe receives word from her friend London back in New York that someone has come forward claiming to be the kidnapper of Peter Philby, the boy Phoebe helped finding in 8 Days in DUMBO. While it was an interesting development in that particular plot, it didn’t feel like it added much to the current story and, in fact, brought me out of the book I was currently reading. I would have instead preferred to see the ghost story element, or even the sibling rivalry plot, developed more; Rachel and Baxter have an interesting dynamic, and between Baxter’s obsessive treasure hunting and Rachel’s determination to get back at her ex, their individual stories were also engaging.

One of McMaster’s strengths is creating interesting characters, but I find myself wishing for more time with each of them. I would have liked to see more of Grandma Sylvie’s relationship with Jackson Chalmers, more of the next-door neighbours Mr. and Mrs. Carlyle, and much more of Iris. That said, with the addition of all these new, quirky characters, the focus on Phoebe, a character who was so engaging in the previous novel, seems to get lost in the shuffle.

Overall, The Haunting of Cedar Hill Plantation was an interesting story that gives some background on the American Civil War without being set in that time period. It has the potential to pique the interest of historical fiction and ghost story fans alike, and its fast pace and short chapters make for a novel that is neither heavy nor daunting.