TITLE: Stay Buried
AUTHOR: Jennifer McMahon
PUBLISHER: Gallery Books
PUBLISHING DATE: August 11, 2026
PAGES: 400
SOURCE: ARC
FROM GOODREADS: Some towns stay isolated for a reason.
1919: Frankie O’Massey has always been the black sheep of isolated Boone’s Ferry, Vermont. Her uncle, Dr. Thomas Endicott, has been training her in the science of medicine, something the townspeople are wary of. When a mysterious illness strikes the town, and the community suspects supernatural forces, the two desperately search for a logical explanation. Patient zero seems to be the town’s knackerman—a recluse who collects dead and dying farm animals to make use of their parts.
2016: Siblings Ashley and Malcolm lost their mother two years ago. When their grandmother dies, they inherit a property in Boone’s Ferry—a place they’ve heard of, but their grandmother has always refused to talk about—and embark on a trip to their ancestral home. The idyllic town is full of autumnal décor, picturesque farmland, and small-town charm. But some of the townspeople aren’t very welcoming—and they have some unsettling traditions, like leaving offerings to a vengeful spirit four times a year.
This book is expertly told in dual timelines and I have to admit, I was thoroughly invested in both. In 1919, Frankie is living with her uncle and learning to practice medicine. Frankie has not been well accepted as she prefers wearing men's clothing and has a secret relationship with her childhood bestie, Pearl, but she fits in as her uncle's assistant and she and Pearl have dreams of one day sharing their lives together out in the open. In 2016, Ashley and Malcomb have just recently lost their grandmother following their mother's disappearance two years ago and after the passing, they have been left with more questions than answers.
Ashley and Malcomb learn they have inherited a home in Boone's Ferry, a place their grandmother claims she has never been. In addition, it was also the last known whereabouts of their mother, who was working on a genealogy project when last seen. The timelines overlap and little by little, the reader is told of the Knackerman. The Knackerman was an elusive man in Boone's Ferry who came and took away the dead animals in the town and turned them into useful items such a glue, leather and other materials. One day, most of horses turn up sick and Boone's Ferry and before the week is out, most have passed gruesome deaths, often mutilating and injuring each other in the process. Frankie and her uncle are trying to figure out what is going but before long, the illness has spread to humans and results in them dying and then "coming back to life" before succumbing to irreversible madness. Everyone blames the Knackerman as he was the Patient Zero and what transpires is an urban legend that continues to haunt Boone's Ferry into 2016. The danger grows the more Ashley and Malcomb learn more about this history and the evil that lurks in Boone's Ferry and can they uncover the truth and escape before it is too late.
I adore McMahon's writing and the moment I started enjoying one timeline more than the other, she pulled me right back in to choosing another favorite. The whole book is filled with suspense and an atmosphere filled with dread. I loved all the main characters and wanted to best for them all but ultimately knew that wouldn't happen. I also loved the way McMahon showed us several sides to the Knackerman and the lore surrounding him in Boone's Ferry.
I will warn you this was a difficult read in the beginning. The poor horse situations were graphic and hard to handle at times. However, they were not abusive and were not sensationalized at all. I can't rave about this book enough and when I finished it, even though it was 400 pages, I still wanted more. McMahon is becoming an auto-read author for me, and I can't wait to learn what she comes up with next.
MY RATING: 5 PAWS
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