A sleepy town with a dark secret—and the three kids brave enough to uncover it. Twelve-year-old Eleanor has just moved to Eden Eld to live with her aunt and uncle after her mother was killed in a fire. Her birthday, which falls on Halloween, is just around the corner, and she hopes that this year will be a fresh start at a new life. But then one morning, an ancient grandfather clock counting down thirteen hours appears outside of her bedroom. And then she spots a large black dog with glowing red eyes prowling the grounds of her school. A book of fairytales she's never heard of almost willingly drops in front of her, as if asking to be read. Something is wrong in the town of Eden Eld. Eleanor and her new classmates, Pip and Otto, are the only ones who see these "wrong things," and they also all happen to share a Halloween birthday. Bonded by these odd similarities, the trio uncovers a centuries-old pact the town has with a mysterious figure known as Mr. January: every thirteen years, three thirteen-year-olds disappear, sacrificed in exchange for the town's unending good fortune. This Halloween, Mr. January is back to collect his payment and Eleanor, Pip, and Otto are to be his next offering...unless they can break the curse before the clock strikes thirteen.

Last Halloween, Eleanor, Pip, and Otto narrowly escaped the clutches of the evil January Society and their leader. But life in the too-quiet Eden Eld isn't safe just yet: according to the bargain they made with Mr. January, it's now his sister's turn to hunt the three of them. And her methods are a bit more...treacherous. When their friends and neighbors begin disappearing, abducted by strange, mud-drenched monsters, Eleanor and her two best friends must race to uncover their enemy's secrets. If they fail, their families will be next. Stalked by the relentless mud beasts, they have to find a way to escape using their trusty book of twisted fairytales, their wits, and their friendship. But they quickly learn that the power of the stories they've turned to for help has a stronger hold on them—and their futures—than they realized. Even if Eleanor and her friends survive, they won't end this journey the same people.

The terrifying conclusion to Thirteens and Brackenbeast, for fans of Neil Gaiman's Coraline and Stranger Things. First they defeated Mr. January. Next they trapped his sister, Mrs. Prosper. Now Eleanor and her best friends, Pip and Otto, have one last chance to escape the People Who Look Away. The last of the evil siblings is their most formidable opponent yet, with two vicious hounds at her side and the ability to open roads across time and worlds. When Eleanor and her friends flee into another world to escape her clutches, they accidentally disrupt the flow of time itself, plunging Eden Eld into chaos. Worse, the trio has a second curse to contend with: they've been infected by the Prime Stories, malicious fairy tales that take people over and erase their memories. But the power of these Stories may also hold the key to defeating the People Who Look Away, and Eleanor and her friends must decide what they're willing to sacrifice to stop the wicked siblings. Eleanor has already lost so much. She's not sure if she can stand more heartache. So as the Stories continue to take over, she wonders if forgetting might be better after all. Or can she find a way to be a hero—and still stay Eleanor?