The Mystery Box by Eva Pohler

Yvette comes home to a box sitting on the stoop, having been delivered by UPS.  When she opened the box she discovers baby clothing and a card addresses to a woman named Mona and a different address.  When she calls UPS the inform her that there was no mistake, that the box was to be delivered to her.  She decides to take the book to Mona, and discovers she is the neighbor who has been giving her a lot of troubles.  Mona tells Yvette that she has a story she needs to tell her and spend the next several days asking Yvette to come over in the afternoon to listen to her sordid tale of love, abuse, and kidnapping.  Throughout these visits Yvette believes someone else is in the house despite Mona claiming the sounds she hears is the cat.  Through her tale, Yvette learns of a shocking secret Mona has been carrying for several years.  Now Yvette needs to decide if Mona is truly friend or is she foe.


I was honestly blown away by this book.  I seriously could not put it down, and when I did it was ll I could think about.  Eva Pohler is truly a talented wordsmith and creates a story that will chill you to the core, but at the same time evoke sympathy and concern for the characters.  There are points when the reader isn't sure if they should feel bad for Mona or feel like she silly for getting involved with her professor, but regardless of poor decisions she makes, no deserves the things the professor puts her through.  Pohler describes everything in fine detail that makes the reader feels as if they are a part of the story listening beside Yvette.


I was almost able to predict what Mona's deep secret was, but at the same time there are things that were unpredictable and surprising.  The ending came up fast and seemed to wrap up faster than the rest of the story.  Pohler takes time to build up the climax so the ending came quickly for me and I wanted more from the story even though I know the characters found their appropriate ends.  Eva does a fantastic job with this book and I have added some of her other books like the Gatekeeper's Saga, and The Mystery Tomb to my to read lists.  I am excited to pick them up!  I give this book a resounding 5 out of 5 because it was truly a work of art.