I’ve just read a young-adult paranormal novel called Fractured, written by Majanka Verstraete, a young author from Belgium. The book is scheduled for publication by InkSpell Publishing in September, 2013. The protagonist is sixteen-year-old Piper, who lives with her mother in a spooky old house that her mother is refurbishing. When Piper discovers an antique mirror in the attic, she falls in love with it and moves it into her bedroom. Strange things immediately follow, and she’s scared and uncertain what is happening.

Piper conveys her fears to her best friend, Allison, who urges her to get rid of the mirror, saying she has unlocked something evil. Piper resists, at first, thinking that her friend has seen too many horror movies and is letting her imagination take control. It’s crazy, Piper thinks. Then, submerged memories of her deceased father’s mental instabilities resurface, and she fears she may have inherited his problems—maybe all of it is in her imagination.

When the mirror becomes more threatening and Piper decides she must destroy it, she discovers that there is more to its power than she’d realized—either that, or she’s really gone off the deep-end. She decides she must get to the bottom of the mystery.

One of the first things she figures out is that the mirror preys on the guilty, and she certainly has her share of guilt feelings. What I find interesting is that the story weaves psychology and the paranormal in such a way that it keeps you guessing until the end. I can’t tell you more without ruining the mystery. The characters are engaging, the plot is fast-paced, and the story, with its many twists and turns, will keep you turning the pages.