In the tiny mountain town of Quartz Creek, North Carolina, three little girls disappeared. One girl returned weeks later, but the other two were never seen again. All that could be found in their places were three applehead dolls. Ten years later, private investigator Annie Gore is hired to dig into the past and uncover the truth, hidden beneath layers of secrets and folklore. The small Appalachian town may have forgotten about the case, but Annie’s arrival stirs up old feelings and forgotten tension.
I am often skeptical of mystery novels — I find them predictable, and they rarely have me on the edge of my seat — but I was optimistic as I opened up Archer Sullivan’s “The Witch’s Orchard.” I was curious if folklore, witches and crows could be incorporated into a story and still leave readers with a reasonable explanation, or if Sullivan planned to write off the mystery as a mere supernatural incident.
As a ninth-generation Appalachian, author Archer Sullivan brings liveliness to the town of Quartz Creek while addressing the stereotypes surrounding residents. Like Sullivan, Annie is originally from Appalachia, a part of her identity that forms her passion for the case and the people involved. Some of the townspeople led lives similar to Annie’s before she got away from the mountains — particularly Mandy Hoyle, the mother of one of the missing children. Mandy is treated the same way that her mother had been, strengthening her personal ties to the case as Annie skillfully moves through the town, slowly unwinding the mysteries it holds…