Review: Licorice by Kara LaReau (Illustrated by Kelly Murphy)

Rating: 9.8/10

Synopsis

A feral tabby cat is finally adopted by a loving family at 5 Manderley Road, only to realize that her new home might be haunted by the cat who lived in the house before her. Spine-chilling and heartwarming, funny and charming, Licorice is a purrfect retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca for young readers, by award winning author Kara LaReau.

A young and frightened kitten is brought into a new household.

A boy named Max is trying desperately to get over the loss of his former beloved pet.

But ghosts don’t always enjoy being forgotten.

Sometimes they have to make their presence known.

In her cage at the Mount Charles Animal Shelter, Kitty has no other choice but to be the captive audience of the opinionated Bunny Van Hopper. But it’s better than the woods. Kitty can still remember the rain that came and swept everything… everyone… away. Here, at least she has food and company, even if Bunny’s words scare her.

And then Max appears at the shelter. Max has adopted all sorts of pets over the years. Rumor has it that he treats all of his pets with care and kindness. And of all the animals at the shelter, he actually chooses her―a scrawny and scared kitten. Kitty is going to be home at last. But she can’t seem to get Bunny’s words out of her head as Max takes her away in her carrier…

“You’re going to regret this! I just know it!” Bunny Van Hopper cries. And perhaps Bunny is right…

There is a scent lingering in the house on 5 Manderley Road. The scent rises from every chair leg, every carpet fiber, every throw pillow, even inside the bathtub. Everything smells like Licorice. It is the strongest upstairs in Max’s room, almost overpowering. If the smell isn’t enough, Duchess, the family’s old parrot, won’t let Kitty forget that she is a replacement. And soon, Kitty finds herself trapped in the long shadow of the cat that came before her. But is it just a shadow? Or is there something really there on the other side of it…haunting her…

Licorice is a fantastically kid-friendly book full of mystery and suspense, for fans of Kate DiCamillo, Katherine Applegate, and Aaron Reynolds.

Review

Thanks to Scholastic for the physical ARC! Love the cover and interior illustrations. 

A lonely kitten, a cold crate at the animal shelter. A grieving boy, with a home too recently empty. Together, they share something of an understanding about loss and loneliness, so the boy’s mother allows him to bring her home. Kitty’s fine-tuned senses make for a rather uncomfortable start to her new living situation, as the smell of Licorice pervades everything in reach. She wants to bond with Max, but the smells, sounds, and environment are so much to take in. And worse, the family’s old parrot was a great friend of Licorice, won’t let Kitty forget her, and worst of all, makes her feel lesser. While I haven’t personally read Rebecca by Maurier, I can absolutely picture how this middle grade would play out as a gothic tale with humans. 

I really liked how the two characters, Max and Kitty, played off each other. Max is stubbornly holding on to the cat he recently lost, and Kitty, in a way, is holding on to the feral life she just lost, especially as it represented a life where she still had her mother and siblings. They both experience overstimulation from the newness, and their different reactions felt like a good display of grief. As an ex-pet owner myself, I understand the desire for a companion but also the shocking guilt at the idea that you’re moving on. It was so nice to see portrayed on the page, and I think it’s a healthy thing for a young reader to understand. It really can be a learning process on how to coexist with something again, and I loved the fact that Kitty gets her own journey with it too. 

As this comes from a Gothic tale, there is certainly some spookiness going on! I’m glad for it, as I usually only read middle grade if it’s horror or touching on an important topic (ie., grief), and thankfully this has a bit of both! I can’t exactly pinpoint what, but the air of the story just seems to perfectly lend itself to being told through a cat? Does that make sense? I don’t know, but like, also I do? The new environment mixed with a cat’s senses fit perfectly into a creepy atmospheric piece, and I want more. Also, it’s always enjoyable to read a story where the humans are flabbergasted in a “tHeRe’S nO wAy ThE pArRoT dId ThIs” way when the reader knows the parrot totally was letting itself out of the cage. I think that’s one of the reasons why the story works so well. 

I enjoyed the mystery and thriller aspects too. As I said, I haven’t read the source material, so there was a point with the cardboard box that I feared things were about to go full Pet Sematary, but they didn’t. I had some sneaking suspicions after that that turned out to be true, thankfully. More than anything, I liked the ending and the reconciliation. It felt like part of a healing journey I needed to be a part of having lost my friend, too. 

Perfect for fans of Rebecca (I’d imagine), middle grade, horror, and cats! All ages can find something to enjoy here.