In the Hour of Crows: A GMA Buzz Pick!

Dana Elmendorf

Jun 2024 · Sold by Harlequin

About this ebook

“This murder mystery steeped in magic is the perfect summer read.”
—GMA Buzz Pick

"In the Hour of Crows enthralls like a delicious dark spell.”
—Glendy Vanderah, bestselling author of Where the Forest Meets the Stars

In a small town in Appalachia, people paint their doorways blue to keep spirits away. Black ferns grow where death will follow. And Weatherly Opal Wilder is a Death Talker.

When called upon, she can talk the death out of the dying and save their lives—only once, never twice. But this truly unique gift comes at a price, rooting Weatherly to people who only want her around when they need her and resent her unfamiliar ways when they don’t.

Weatherly’s cousin Adaire also has a gift: she’s a Scryer and can see the future reflected back in dark surfaces. Right before she is killed in an accident, Adaire saw something unnerving, and that’s why Weatherly believes she was murdered—never thinking for a moment that it was an accident. But when Weatherly, for the first time, is unable to talk the death out of the mayor’s son, the whole town suspects she is out for revenge, that she wouldn’t save him.

With the help of clues Adaire left behind and her family’s Granny Witch recipe box, Weatherly sets out to find the truth behind her cousin’s death, whatever it takes.

Imbued with magic, witchery, and suspense, Dana Elmendorf’s In the Hour of Crows is a thrilling tale of friendship, identity, and love.

Ratings and reviews

This was a different kind of read. It has the feel of Where the Crawdads Sing. I've grown up in Appalachia and the author really gives you the feeling of the south. As far as the things going on and the time, it's more like back in the 1930s. The gifts handed down to the opposite sex is a real thing. Not sure about the death talker but removing warts and other stuff and bible verses really work if you can find a person who does it. I loved this book. I was surprised about the touch of fantasy. T

Great dynamic characters, magic, a bit of evil, some mystery, lots of intrigue, the Appalachian mountains & more drew me to complete immersion into this fantasy story, I loved it! The gifts received in life frequently bring burdens that could never have been imagined by the recipient. Time has a way of educating & revealing those burdens. This was a fun read! Well written, however, being a YA (young adult) novel, I was surprised by some coarse unnecessary language mostly early on in the book. This is my unbiased, honest review. Thank you to NetGalley & Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC.

About the author

Dana Elmendorf is a YA author making her adult debut. A native Tennessean, she lives in Southern California with her family.