“She has no idea who or where she is. Or why she’s dead. The only clue to her identity hangs around her neck: a single rusted key. This is how she and the others receive their names―from whatever belongings they had when they fell out of their graves. Under is a place of dirt and secrets, and Key is determined to discover the truth of her past in order to escape it.

She needs help, but who can she trust? Ribbon seems content in Under, uninterested in finding answers. Doll’s silence hints at deep sorrow, which could be why she doesn’t utter a word. There’s Smoke, the boy with a fierceness that rivals even the living. And Journal, who stays apart from everyone else. Key’s instincts tell her there is something remarkable about each of them, even if she can’t remember why.

Then the murders start. Bodies that are burned to a crisp. And after being burned, the dead stay dead. Key is running out of time to discover who she was―and what secret someone is willing to kill to keep hidden―before she loses her life for good…”

I have really enjoyed a lot of Sutton’s books, she has a unique storytelling style that is different from other YA authors and her ideas are very unique. This ended up being an interesting read. It’s a weird combination of historical and paranormal elements, curses and undead. I ended up enjoying it but it was different from what I thought it was going to be based on the synopsis.

Key falls through her grave into a grey world and meets others in this grey world. As Key struggles to figure out who she is, she begins to recognize some of the people in this dead grey place and starts to remember disturbing things. Then the dead of the grey world start showing up well…completely dead. Can Key figure out secrets behind this grey world before the dead wandering through it are completely destroyed soul and all?

I enjoyed this but at times it felt a bit distant to me. I love the idea of curses making the dead fall into an alternate world. I also enjoyed some of the characters. However the whole writing style seemed to keep me at a distances and the whole story felt kind of blurred.

There is a love triangle of sorts in here which I wasn’t crazy about. I did enjoy the quirky characters of this grey world though.

Overall this was a decent read. In the end I had kind of mixed feelings about it. It was interesting and had some neat ideas in it and I liked a lot of the characters. The way the mystery tied up was a bit strange and I never felt fully engaged in the story. I would recommend if you’ve enjoyed Sutton’s previous books, but I don’t think this will be a book everyone likes.

Early Review – Smoke and Key by Kelsey Sutton (3.5/5 stars)

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