Mirror Girls
BY Kelly McWilliams
As infants, twin sisters Charlie Yates and Magnolia Heathwood were secretly separated after the brutal lynching of their parents, who died for loving across the color line. Now, at the dawn of the Civil Rights Movement, Charlie is a young Black organizer in Harlem, while white-passing Magnolia is the heiress to a cotton plantation in rural Georgia.
Magnolia knows nothing of her racial heritage, but secrets are hard to keep in a town haunted by the ghosts of its slave-holding past. When Magnolia finally learns the truth, her reflection mysteriously disappears from mirrors—the sign of a terrible curse. Meanwhile, in Harlem, Charlie’s beloved grandmother falls ill. Her final wish is to be buried back home in Georgia—and, unbeknownst to Charlie, to see her long-lost granddaughter, Magnolia Heathwood, one last time. So Charlie travels into the Deep South, confronting the land of her worst nightmares—and Jim Crow segregation.
The sisters reunite as teenagers in the deeply haunted town of Eureka, Georgia, where ghosts linger centuries after their time and dangers lurk behind every mirror. They couldn’t be more different, but they will need each other to put the hauntings of the past to rest, to break the mirrors’ deadly curse—and to discover the meaning of sisterhood in a racially divided land.
About the Author
Kelly McWilliams is a mixed-race writer who has always gravitated towards stories about crossing boundaries and forging new identities. For this and so many other reasons, young adult literature will always be close to her heart. Her novel, Agnes at the End of the World, benefitted from a We Need Diverse Books Mentorship.
She has loved crafting stories all her life, and her very first novel, Doormat, was published when she was just fifteen-years-old. Kelly has also worked as a staff writer for Romper, covering issues important to women and families. She lives in Colorado with her partner and young daughter. Visit her website at KellyMcWilliamsAuthor.com.
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From NOVL Nation
“The writing is haunting and beautiful… I got lost in this story immediately. I devoured this book within a day or two. I honestly couldn’t put it down. I had to see how everything played out. If you’re looking for a book to get lost in, this is the one… it’s magnificent. It’s a masterpiece.”
– Larissa, @larissasbookshelf
“This was a really powerful and riveting read. McWilliams really has a way with words, and I absolutely devoured this book in an afternoon – it is unputdownable… The story hooks the reader from the start with a world of danger, history, and a touch of the otherworldly.”
– Olivia, @onemused
“McWilliams did not disappoint. This racially-charged gothic ghost story is quite the ride… In my opinion, this is an essential read.”
– Katie, @niftyreads
