"Dead Things are Closer than They Appear" by Robin Wasley
Llwellyn is a town with a lot to offer. The small-town charm combined with its history and ghosts make it a popular tourist destination. That's right. Ghosts.
The town of Llwellyn, or "Wellsie", as it is referred to by the locals, rests on a fault line. It's not a fault line like California that produces sometimes devastating earthquakes. If it was, the Wellsie's residents would take that in a heartbeat.
Magic Under the Fault Line
Wellsie's fault line protects locals and tourists from magic, a powerful, dangerous type of magic. Sid Spencer is a guardian, one of the people who is responsible for keeping the magic at bay so the unsuspecting tourists can visit quaint Wellsie and be none the wiser about the dangers that lie beneath the charming surface. The problem is Sid doesn't know she's a guardian. She is an awkward teenager who works at Lulu's, the local coffee shop. Sid's job involves serving coffee to annoying tourists who would like a side of local lore with their orders.
This quaint, fictitious city is the setting of Robin Wasley's "Dead Things are Closer than They Appear". The story is told through Sid's perspective as she works with friends and family to protect their town from the "shells", zombies who are under the command of a mysterious man named Ford. The town is unknowingly protected by guardians These are seemingly normal young adults who are tasked with protecting the town, its inhabitants, and the sometimes annoying tourists from Ford and his minions. Ford wants the keys that will unlock the fault line and give him the power to control the magic released from the fault line.
The magic is released when one of the guardians is killed, and the town of Llwellyn is swarmed with magic, shells, and Ford. Ford has no problem disposing of the motley assortment of teenagers who are charged with using their powers to hold off the army. Sid is prepared to protect the town alongside the other guardians. She just needs to put aside a long, embarrassing note to her crush that has stayed with her since the middle school days.
Protecting the City
Guardians protect the city from Ford and his shells. Sid is with them despite not having a power of her own. Not finding her power just adds to the embarrassment of the teenage years.
The surviving residents of Wellsie take shelter at an elementary school where surviving residents have access to medical attention and food. There is everything Sid could want or need at the school, except for her brother, Matty, who is missing and may not even be alive.
The guardians work to repel the shells with the use of machetes, magic, and painting doors walls that will lead them to other parts of town. The shells are one thing. Protecting the keys that lock the fault line and protect Wellsie from Ford's desire to fully unlock the magic is another. Sid and the other guardians, including Brian, must figure out how to defeat the powerful enemy and bring their town back to normal. Sid is figuring out how she can start over with (her crush) Brian in a way that won't be so embarrassing. She just needs to survive the battle with Ford and the shells first.
Being a Teenager is Awkward
"Dead Things" tells the reader what everyone else already knows. Being a teenager is an awkward time between childhood and adulthood. Everyone else has it together except for the observer. No one in middle school, or anywhere else, has it figured out. After days of fighting zombies, broken bones, and trying to stay alive in a town ravaged by a fight with supernatural enemies, maybe trying to survive high school isn't all that bad.
As you progress through the book, you learn that Sid realizes her power and is able to use it in the fight to save the town and her friends. Just as you go through the book witnessing the growth and attrition experienced by the characters, the readers, especially those in school, will learn that everyone is trying to make it through life. The individual incidents people live through make up the experience you rely on to get through the next challenge. The friends you make along the way will help you. Sometimes you'll be helping them. Sometimes you're helping your friends and you don't even know it.
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