Review of Ezrah’s Plateau: Legend of the Cemetery Witch by Jacqueline Mahan
AuthorHouse, Bloomington IN, 2011
Although the plot of Ezrah’s Plateau is centered on a spooky cemetery where a witch is buried, it’s really about the secrets, corruption, and injustice of men. It’s sure to appeal to readers who admire heroic women.
Angela Horne has displayed inquisitiveness and inspiring strength of will since a young age. After high school, she left town and went to college. This ordinary rite of passage was viewed as an act of defiance against the town’s peculiar church doctrine, The Path, and transformed her into a pariah, shunned by all but a few.
A confrontation is coming when she returns at her grandmother’s request for the annual town festival which honors her ancestor for ridding the town of evil by hanging a witch. That act solidified the power held by the church in Ezrah’s Plateau; power that is maintained at all costs.
There’s paranormal activity coupled with conspiracy and crime, and a touch of romance. The book’s scares are more from human violence and crime than from the spectral witch, so I wouldn’t call it a horror story. That was a little disappointing to an avid horror fan like myself, but it’s still a good mystery and a satisfying escape.
Cat's Game 