The Companion is the conclusion of my October Spoopy Reads. It starts with a car accident that kills Margot’s parents and sisters. While she was fighting for her life in the hospital, all of her parents’ assets were sold and he possessions were donated. Margot is sent to an orphanage to while away her time until she turns 18, but her fortune changes when a friend of her father’s sends for her. Her father once saved his life, and the Suttons plan to return for the favor by providing for the tragic orphan.
The deal isn’t one-sided, however. Mrs. Sutton intends for Margot to serve as a companion for their daughter Agatha. Agatha used to be a normal teenage girl, but grew sick with a mysterious illness. Now she is in a catatonic state, unable to talk or communicate. Margot soon grows close with Agatha and Mrs. Sutton, which makes it all the stranger when she finds writing on her bedroom wall telling her to get out. It’s hard to tell who left the warning, one of the Suttons, Agatha, or even Margot herself.
The seemingly idyllic home is host to many secrets: a closed-off wing containing hidden diaries and secret rooms, a secret garden, and a secret sister who died of a mysterious illness. It all adds up to the sort of patriarchal BS that you expect, but there’s a good deal of suspense along the way.
