Better Limit Your Screen Time

 

TITLE: 13 Months Haunted

AUTHOR: Jimmy Juliano

PUBLISHER: Dutton

PUBLISHING DATE: August 12, 2025

PAGES: 384   

SOURCE: ARC 

FROM GOODREADS: Piper Lowery, a public library clerk in charge of liaising with the local middle school, can tell right away there’s something strange about the new girl in eighth grade. Avery Wallace won’t touch any kind of technology, not even the computers at the library, and her mother comes to school with her every day, refusing to leave her side—not even when Avery uses the restroom. 

And then there are the rumors, the whispers Piper hears from kids in the hallway and parents around Avery’s mother is a witch. Her sister and father were killed by something supernatural. A strange virus killed them. 

Seeing how isolated and lonely Avery is, Piper befriends her but quickly realizes it might just be the worst decision she’s ever made. Because there’s something dark inside Avery Wallace, and it’s spreading . . .

MY THOUGHTS: I have had this author's debut release sitting on my shelves since it was released.  I don't know why I chose to read this one first, but I have no regrets and now feel better about circling around and picking up the other.

When the book opens, a young man is attending a family even and discussing his upcoming thesis for college surrounding viral videos.  He learns of a relative he has no memory of who had some strange phenomenon occur to her and sets off to find her.  Enter Piper and her husband.  Piper starts telling the story of when she was a small-town librarian fresh off college graduation and meets a young 8th grader, Avery, and her mother at the local middle school.  Piper befriends them but she soon realizes there is more to Avery than meets the eye.  She is unable to be alone, and her mother follows her everywhere. Avery is picked on in school which makes Piper want to help her even more.  What the reader eventually learns involves possible witchcraft, a cursed computer program and lots of 80's references. This is a far as I will go in order to avoid spoilers.

I really enjoyed this book.  It was fast-paced and unlike many other horror book topics I usually gravitate towards. I liked Piper as a character and although you really have to suspend your disbelief the more the book progresses, it is horror so sometimes you just have to expect that.  I loved all the 80's references, especially regarding music and Napster, and was truly invested in what was happening to Avery.  I will say that while the ending was satisfying, afterwards there was kind of a second ending involving the young man and his thesis which I didn't feel was needed.  But that is just a personal preference and shouldn't impact anyone's overall enjoyment of the book.

Overall, if you enjoy horror and 80's nostalgia, I would highly recommend this book.  One spoiler (I guess I lied) - the dog lives.  And he is a very good boy!  And yes, I had to find the answer to this question about 40% into the arc before I could proceed.  Hey, I wonder if I could convince publishers to put a little tiny pawprint on the cover beneath the title to indicate pet friendly content.  They could "x" it out if the content contained animal abuse.  Just a thought.

MY RATING: 4 PAWS