All The Missing Girls

Title: All The Missing Girls
Author: Megan Miranda
Genre: Thriller
Source: Paperback
Rating: 4 out of 5 paws


Nic hasn't been home in ten years.  Ten years since she left everything behind.  Ten years since her best friend Corrine disappeared.  But when Nic returns home to help with family ties, the past is dug up and another girl has gone missing.  The past comes back to life as a town relives the ordeal from ten years ago to find a connection.  Nic and her family struggle to stay out of the investigation, but every turn leads them right back into it.  Right back to where they were ten years ago.  All eyes are pointed at Nic and her high school boyfriend. Can they figure out what happened to Corinne and Annaleise.  Too many things are a coincidence, too much familiarity.  Will it all end?

The cover is gorgeous and is what originally grew me to the story.  I couldn't take my eyes off it whenever I seen it in the book stores.  Everything about the story hinges on one night ten years at a local fair.  Nic is encouraged by her best friend to climb over a Ferris Wheel and jump down to her boyfriend.  Once on solid ground her brother hits her and everything else spreads into chaos.  Corinne disappears and everyone becomes a suspect.  Afterwards Nic leaves town only to return to help with her ailing father.  The night she arrives, everything is opened all over again.  Another girl has gone missing and no one knows what happened to her.  The last person to talk to her, and the prime suspect is her boyfriend, who happens to be Nic's high school sweetheart.  And everyone's alibi from ten years ago. How crazy is that!!

It took me a few chapters to get into the story, and when I did, it took a few more to get used to the backwards telling of the story.  It starts the night Nic arrives then jumps to 2 weeks since Annaleise goes missing.  At this point it begins to backtrack back to the beginning filling in small details at a time until we get to that fateful night and find out exactly what had happened to the girl.  I found it an interesting way to tell the story, and it is explained a little bit as to why it was done this way.  But it is confusing and difficult to get used to.  It may even turn a few people away from the story.  Hopefully it doesn't because it is a good story.

The characters were interesting enough, and seemed typical of your small town people, where everyone knows everyone's business.  Nothing is private and rumors fly faster than Superman.  At times I found Nic to be reckless in running through the woods at night following shadows, not knowing what was out there. I liked that everyone seemed to have a little something to hide, past and present.  Something they didn't tell others, something that made up the skeletons in the closet. I loved the mystery of the monster in the woods and allows the reader to come up with their own ideas of what the monster in the woods could represent.  The looming past, teenagers having a good time, neighbors spying on each other, one's own fears. It could have been anything and I loved that feel added into the book.

I also like the mystery of the caverns.  They loomed in the background, a dangerous place to be, yet so innocent in being barred.  I kind of wish more was done with the caverns, they seemed to be the perfect thing to add a little more mystery, such as the police finding the lock broken or like signs that someone lived there (maybe a homeless person or something) or was camping leading suspicion to one of the girls hiding in the caves.  I just feels like more could have been done with the caverns, or else why mention them other than to say it was a place some one died or things get lost (perfect to add a different twist to the ending).

I did get lost in it and finished it in about 6 hours or so, I feel I may have even ignored the boyfriend a little bit because I was so lost in the story.  I couldn't go to bed until I found out what happened next.  Miranda flawlessly executed her story-telling skills in this novel, and makes me want to read more from her.  I happily recommend this book to people who like thrillers and suspense novels, but be ware, there storytelling is unique and out of the norm: Beginning, end, middle, beginning, end of sorts.

The Cat Who Dropped A Bombshell

 Title:  The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell

AUthor: Lilian Jackson Braun

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Source: Paperback

Rating: 3 out of 5 paws

The mystery solving cat; Koko is at it again.  While the city of Pickax is getting ready to celebrate it's 150th anniversary, Koko has decided to drop from balconies and hide in very odd places, even for a cat.  Qwill realizes something is amiss when a couple has mysteriously gone missing.  What does this crazy cat know now and how can Qwill solve the mystery without disrupting the festivities?

 

I grew up reading this books, and loved every bit of them.  I still do.  I am a book lover, mystery lover and a cat lover so what's not to love about these books.  Koko and Yumyum are Siamese cats which our very own honorary literary cats Luna and Artemis is part Siamese so I can easily picture the two of them acting the same ways that Koko and YumYum do.  Heck there might even be an interesting book revolving around the antics of these two adorable kitties.  I mean look at Artemis' face, you can just see the mischief in his eyes, and I imagine that's what Qwilleran sees when he looks at Koko.  From my experiences with the two Siamese I can easily imagine the fun and surprising actions of the two cats within this series especially Koko as I imagine him looking much like Artemis here.


The story is a cute one with Koko dropping off of balconies and hiding in odd and strange places, but what cat doesn't like to hide in really odd places.  And believe me cats loooove to hide in strange places.  While it is a cute story, it is not one of my top favorites within the series.  It starts out slow and begins to drag on a little bit.  Some sentences are repeated throughout chapters and Qwill seemed a little out of character.  Some characters popped into the story, but didn't really add anything to the story other than the sheer mention of their names.  Like they were a part of the series before so naturally they needed to at least be mentioned in this book.


Normally Braun excels at descriptive prose, but that talent doesn't completely come through with this novel.  But with 30 books in the series, there are bound to be a few books that do not hit the mark, especially when they get closer to the end of the series.  Some of the earlier books like "The Cat Who Read Backwards" and "The Cat Who Saw Red" really held my attention, but sadly this one didn't.  I was hoping it would begin to tie things up for the characters, but it doesn't.  Except one randomly dying in a car accident which felt very out of place compared to her other books when the deaths were always connected in one way or another.  We don't see that here. 


While the book wasn't outright completely disappointing, it wasn't completely thrilling like the rest of the series was.  I do plan on reading more until I have read the whole series, but I may get them from the library rather than purchasing them.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber Book Review

Title: Caraval
Author: Stephanie Garber
Genre:Fantasy
Source: Hardback - library
Rating: 4 out of 5 paws


Scarlet and her sister have never seen the world beyond their island.  Their father comes up with cruel punishments for their misdoings.  When her father arranges for Scarlet to marry a count, she believes she will be free from his tyranny, but also that her dreams of seeing the magical performers of the famed Caraval is over.  But her hopes arise when she receives 3 tickets to this year's performance, but her plans are challenged when Scarlet and her sister are whisked away to the Caraval's island by an unknown sailor.  Once they arrive Tella is kidnapped and made a part of the game.  The players must find here before the end of the week if someone wins, they win a wish.  Scarlet becomes engrossed in not only the game of magic, but one of love, and heartbreak.  She must decide who to trust and who to keep at arms lengths.  Sometimes getting swept up in the magic can have a dangerous result.  What will Scarlet find at the end of the game?

I decided to pick up this book because it came recommended through book clubs, goodreads, the book stores I went to.  Everywhere I went, the book was in my face, well not literally, but enough that I picked it up.  I have seen it compared to Erin Morgenstern's Night Circus, which has been one of the best books I have read in a while.  I can say I was happy I read the book and that there were some magic elements that I haven't seen in other books, but it didn't seem to mystify me as I had hoped it would and I would NOT compare it to Night Circus in any way..  Granted, I will be reading the next book in the series because it is an interesting story.


Garber gives readers a story that is both suspenseful and magical.  I found myself anxious to find out what will happen next and if Scarlet will be able to figure out the clues, although, I don't think there was specifically a right or wrong answer to the clues, but rather the questions the performers asked such as what is your greatest desire or who do you fear the most.  It was a story that asked the main character to look deep into herself to find her true self, not the self she believes she is.  I found that to be rather engrossing and interesting thought that we may not be who think of ourselves.  But I kept waiting for the magic to happen and it didn't seem to really happen aside for a few spells or potions here and there, but nothing that really blew me away the way Night Circus did.


I liked Scarlet to a point, I think she could have been smarter, more resourceful, but she gets this way by the end of the book.  She whined alot, was too concerned with her reputation rather than saving her sister, lies but then gets offended when she's lied too and more. I found her to be afraid too often in the book, which I guess was the point.  She was afraid to take the leap of faith so to speak not to find her sister, but to find herself.  I wanted so much more from Scarlet that we don't really get to see yet, and I hope we see her evolve into a stronger female, more independent if she appears in the next novel.  We get a lot of information about Legend, but we are never actually introduced to him which felt like a let down.  I almost pictured his watching from the balconies or somewhere in a Jareth in Laberynth kinda of way and him throwing obstacles in her way but nope.  Not once do we see Legend.


There were something that got mentioned but never explained such as what happened to Dante's sister, we know she went missing but never find out what happened to her.  Small things like that are what kept this novel from getting a higher rating from me.  I love how each section was broken into nights, so readers knew that everything that happened in one section is what happened in that particular night, it helped with keeping a time line straight. Although in that same respect, it seemed like no one actually slept at Caraval.  There is a lot that happens in Caraval, but at the same it almost feels like nothing happens other than a few lucky breaks.  I hope to see more in Legendary and hope we actually meet Legend and see what kind of person he is.


If you like YA and fantasy novels check it out.


Get it now by clicking the link


Check out some of these other reviews:
The Book of Meghan
The Book Monsters

The Glass Magician by Charlie Holmberg Book Review

Title: The Glass Magician
Author: Charlie N. Holmberg
Genre: Fantasy
Source: Library paperback
Rating: 2 out of 5 paws


Ceony has just turned 20, and it has been a few weeks or months since she saved Mg Thane from the blood magician who stole his heart, literally.  She had hoped things would go back to normal.  But then an explosion at a paper mill sparks a series of events that place Ceony in the center.  Other blood mages are looking for her to find answers to the power she holds.  A power she doesn't fully understand herself.  A particularly evil magician believes Ceony holds secrets about bonding to different elements and vows to extract that information no matter the costs.  Ceony has to test her limits in order to save herself and those she loves while keeping her secrets from falling into the wrong hands.

For those of you who have read my review of The Paper Magician know that I did not particularly care for the book, but found the concept interesting.  Despite not enjoying the first book as much as I had hoped I would, I decided to give the second book a try and see if I would like it any better.  But I am sad to say that while I enjoyed it slightly more, I still felt disappointed and let down with this novel.  This is an idea, a concept that has much potential and promise, but it was not executed in the way it should have.  There are different directions I had hoped this story would go, while it went one way I was surprised with and enjoyed, it still felt predictable.  There are so many things that did not sit well with me while reading that I do not know where to start. The sentences are simplistic and many are repeated throughout the novel.  Sometimes the same thing is repeated but with different wording.  There were a few times I thought to myself "but you already stated this."


Lets begin with the antagonists.  There was no depth to them, we don't get the feel of urgency with them.  It was interesting enough the Grath wanted to unbind from glass then bind to blood, there not motivation or explanation as to why.  The story makes it seem like the only element powerful enough to be consider deadly is blood, but as we see later in the novel some of the other elements are just as powerful.  I wish Holmberg showed more of how powerful paper can be, to show that people are wrong for thinking it is a lesser element.  I felt no reason to fear him as you should a villain.  Saraj felt like he didn't need to be in the story at all his part was so anti-climactic that it could have been another character to have done the things he did.


The romance aspect was something else I had issue with.  This story could have done without the romance; maybe show an unrequited interest as Ceony is still young, a crush not full on falling in love wishing he would kiss her or touch her shoulder.  We already know Mg Thane is at least 10 years her senior and her teacher which makes his interest in her even more inappropriate (not that he's older but that he's her teacher).  But despite the student teacher aspect there is no depth to the supposed romance, nothing that indicates these two are kindred spirits beyond Ceony consistently reflecting on a fortune she seen towards the end of the last book.  Why should readers care whether or not these two end up together?  Why shouldn't Ceony be transferred to another magician?  These are things readers need to feel, answer, but the book does not do that.


One thing that didn't fit with the rest of the story was Ceony having a gun.  When I read that I wondered "where the hell did that come from?"  It doesn't fit with the world Holmberg is attempting to create.  And the ending GAH it felt so elementary that it didn't make sense that these experienced magicians never thought to try it before.  It throws everything we have learned about this world out the window, nothing matters anymore.  Everything we learned about bonding to magic doesn't matter anymore because to reverse it is completely easy. 


There are things I enjoyed such as the different magic and I would love to have seen more.  I would have loved to have seen Ceony use more paper folding beyond what we already seen her use in the first book aside from the paper doll which I think could have been used in a bigger way.  But the good does not outweigh the bad.  If you like young adult that is very simplistic and your fantasy filled with romance attempt this series.  I don't think I will continue with it.


For some other reviews, check out these blogs:


Kaona's Corner
The Fictional Reader

Then Sings My Soul by Robert J. Morgan Book Review

Title: Then Sings My Soul
Author Robert J. Morgan
Genre: Non-Fiction, Religiou
Source: Paperback
Rating: 3 out of 5 paws


Hymns are sung throughout many churches, hymns that date back to a time we cannot remember.  Each song was written with deep emotion and conviction.  As we sing these songs, sometimes we forget the origins of which they were written, the feelings the authors felt while writing these songs.  This book provides a deep look into what provoked each writer to compose these hymns and share them with the world.

I found this book in my church library and thought it would be interesting to find out the history and deeper meaning behind some of the hymns that I grew up with.  Out of the 150 songs included in this book, I knew maybe 5 the rest I haven't heard of and couldn't really find myself relating too.  I was sad when I realized the song "Then Sings My Soul" actually was not included in this book and I wondered why.

I did like that one page had the hymn and the next gave the history behind it.  When reading the history it was almost like reading a devotion with it.  We see how some of the composers struggled and were affected by life around them that they NEEDED to get it into song format.  Many of these songs were their prayers to God, pleading and crying out to him.  That gave me a deeper meaning and understanding to these songs. I loved seeing some songs that are geared more towards Christmastime included, but also thought that could have been a book of it's own. It was cool to get to read on the origins of some of my favorite songs like "Amazing Grace," and I got the chance to learn about some other songs that aren't normally sung within my church so it was kind of special to see what motivated songwriters to write these songs.

It did get a little frustrating when the same line was used a lot "it was during this time he(she) penned this hymn." It felt generic, repetitive, and cheap.  There was a biographic portion about the author to try and tie in the time and feeling into the song.  While for some hymns this worked, but for others I wondered "what did that have to do with the song."  But regardless of those  minor issues this is still a great book to read for those who love music and hymns.  I recommend it if you want a good devotional to read or give as a gift.

Literary Quotes

From time to time I tend to wonder and think what I would be like if literature was not a big part of my life.  Who would I be if I wasn't influenced by the words of authors like Maya Angelou and Chinua Achebe?  Would my imagination be as great if I hadn't read The Hobbit or Alice in Wonderland?  For me reading is a window to another world, a different way of thinking and has made me into the person that I am; it has shaped how I think and respond to different situations.  Reading helps me shut my brain off for a few hours so my body can relax and distress from the day or the week.  Reading is who I am.  Reading is a part of my soul and without it...life would be hell as the quote states.


How has reading impacted you?  In what ways has reading shaped who you are?

The Girl In Between by Laekan Zea Kemp Book Review

Title: The Girl In Between
Author: Laekan Zea Kemp
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy
Source: Ebook
Rating: 2 out of 5 paws


All Bryn wants is a normal life, a life where she doesn't fall asleep for weeks on end.  It seems her Klein-Levin Syndrome is getting worse as her episodes are happening more frequently.  But that isn't what scares Bryn the most.  WHile she sleeps she spends her time on a beach reliving her memories, alone, that is until a boy washes up on the shore.  Even while awake she is plagued with hallucinations of shadows creeping around her, shadows that feel like they are watching, waiting to hurt her.  It seems like her only hope is Dr. Banz who has created an experimental trial, but he knows more about her situation than he lets on.  Bryn must figure out what the boy in her dreams mean, could he be real?  What are the shadows and what do they want?  Bryn must find out who the boy is before it is too late.  For both of them.

I had this book on my kindle to read list for a while now and never got around to reading it.  I fell in love with the cover and the concept of the book.  Only, I didn't fall in love with the book.  It was a struggle to even finish the book.  First of all there is a lot of fluff in the story, fluff that doesn't help push the story along and felt more life slice of life things rather than something important to the story.  I get she wanted a normal life with her friends and to go to school, but there was so much in it that didn't make me want to continue with the story, and actually bored me.  The premise has a lot of potential.  A lot that could have been done with it, but for some reason...wasn't.


The ending, was just....unsatisfying.  It just stopped as if the story was unfinished and the author decided to publish it anyway.  I  understand the novel is a part of a series, but it just leaves the reader wondering, what the heck.  We barely learn anything about Bryn other than she has KLS and has 2 friends and a boyfriend who from I gathered is borderline abusive, but she keeps going back to him.  There wasn't any depth to Bryn, we don't get her inner turmoil, her fears, worries etc aside from the general things of being a teenage girl.  The book is told from two viewpoints, Bryn and Roman, but the voices are the same.  There is nothing to indicate which one is speaking other than their names at the beginning of the chapters.  She consistently judged her cousin for her choices which made me not like her at all.  There were times when Dani needed her and she just "wasn't in the mood of Dani's drama."  How is that supposed to make me like her when Dani stood by her all the years with this disorder?  That's not how you treat friends.


The paced of the story was just dragging, but then again when you have a story revolving around teen angst, drinking, sex rather than the actual story, it will drag on.  It doesn't really get into the plot of the story until almost the end, about the last 30% of the novel.  I don't want to spend 70% of a novel with slow build up.  I want to be excited to see what happens, suspicious of Dr. Banz early on not towards the end.  There were numerous sentence fragments, run on sentences, almost like an editor didn't read through it.


I haven't decided if I will attempt the next book in the series, but I do not think I would recommend The Girl In Between.

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell Book Review

Title: Then She Was Gone

Author: Lisa Jewell

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense

Source: Ebook - Netgalley

Rating 4.5 out of 5 paws

Ellie Mack's life was perfect, she had a loving family, the cutest boyfriend in school and she was on the fast track to passing her school exams.  As a 15 year old girl, she was looking forward to the summer after all her hard work. Then she was gone.  Just gone.  No one seen what happened to her.  Now 10 years later her mother Laurel Mack is trying to piece together her own life.  Only months after finding final clues to close Ellie's case, Laurel meets a charming man in a café.  The flirtation takes right off and quickly develops into something much more serious.  Before she can turn away, she meets his daughters.  Poppy is his youngest, and she stops Laurel in her tracks.  Poppy is the spitting image of Ellie.  This sparks new unanswered questions within Laurel and she becomes determined to find out who Floyd really is and who is the mother of his daughter.

I have seen this book numerous times through social media like goodreads and book clubs so when I seen it on Netgalley I decided I needed to give Then She Was Gone  a chance.  The plot synopsis makes it sounds beyond interesting, and after the first few pages I was hooked.  I was spellbound and captivated throughout the rest of the story.  It took everything in me to be able to put the book down and sleep or go to work.  There was nothing that I did not like about this book, or about Lisa Jewell's writing.  Lisa has the ability to pull her readers away from reality into a new world.  With her words she provides thrill and suspense many readers are searching for, a sense of suspense we may not find in the movies.  There is not one way that this book does not meet my expectations, it exceeded everything I was hoping to find in this story.


This the first Lisa Jewell novel I have read and I have to say I am wildly impressed.  She had me on the edge of me seat all the way through.  I enjoyed the different perspectives and the way she did was not confusing or hard to follow.  By the end of the novel (epilogue included) the story ties together well, there are no loose ends, not lingering questions..everything is solved and provided for the reader in a satisfactory way that leaves everyone happy. I loved the bits about Noelle and how she meet Floyd and what drove her to do what she did.   Jewell masterfully drags her audiences into the story whether it is this one or one of her other books.  It felt like everything was set on hold while I read this book and could not focus on anything else.


It was easy to understand where Jewell was headed with this novel, but she gives the readers the information.  I think having the readers realize where she was going was intentional, but we didn't know how she would get to that point.  I felt that while it was genuinely suspenseful and thrilling, it was also a look into how different people respond to grief, how they heal and learn to move one.  Most of the family was able to after some time, but still 10 years later and Laurel is still struggling to which she calls Poppy Ellie.  I love that Jewell gives readers a compelling plot with a little bit of romance and inner dialogue to reveal the emotional and psychological depth of her characters I have very few authors who have been able to accomplish this. Every one of the characters in Then She Was Gone were interesting.  I wanted to see more of Hanna and Jake even Blue.  I was intrigued with Blue seeing auras and could tell something wasn't right.  I had hoped she would push a little more on it, but at the same time understand why she didn't.  We still get that thought implanted into Laurel's mind.


If you enjoy suspenseful thrillers then this would be a great book for you to pick up from amazon, or your local bookstore or library. Definitely pick up this book and give it a go, you won't be disappointed.  This was my first novel by Lisa Jewell, and I am looking forward to reading more novels by Lisa Jewell.  May have found a new favorite.


Get it now: http://amzn.to/2Gaj2RA

Never Let You Go

Title: Never Let You Go
Author: Chevy Stevens
Genre: Thriller, Suspense
Source: Hardback - Library
Rating: 4 out of 5


Lindsey had managed to escape the a life of abuse and horror her husband inflicted on her.  She spent months moving herself and her daughter from place to place trying to hide from, even though he was in jail.  When she finally has settled down, began a new relationship and new business, her ex-husband Andrew is released from jail.  Now he is living in her town and Lindsey believes he has found her to cause more torment and upend their new lives.  Her daughter believes Andrew has changed and tries for a relationship with him, but the more Sophie gets closer to him, thing escalate and the two run away again.  Can an abusive alcoholic change their ways?  Is the person causing her stress and playing mind games Andrew or someone else?  Someone closer to Lindsey than she thought?

I am a member of a book club on Facebook which is amazing because we share all kinds of new books and share our thoughts on similar books.  Chevy Stevens books kept coming up as a fantastic read, so when I seen her name in the library I grabbed the first book off the shelf which happened to be this one.  Once I started it, I couldn't put it down.  When I did put it down, I could not stop thinking about it.  I wanted to read every minute of the day just to find out what happened, even in the car while on a road trip.  You barely were able to talk to me when I had this book open it was that good.

It is an interesting book right from the beginning with Lindsey describing certain events from the past.  Then we get into the present which is 11 years or so later.  This gives the readers a background on the characters without having to do flashbacks or somehow have the main character relive their past.  I feel like it had a little bit of everything:  Thrill, suspense, a bit of romance and some mystery, and it was all blended so well together that one didn't overpower the other.  The romance was done so well that it didn't feel like it was just thrown into the story as a sort of fan-service as many novels feel like.  I loved how the reader is left guessing at who is leaving notes, cds, calling etc.  Stevens does a fantastic job at creating the anxiety and stress of being stalked and not knowing who is actually doing it.

The end of my gosh I will not spoil it but I was not expecting it.  I had my own theories about different things and how things were going to play out, but I was so wrong and I am happy about that.  I honestly wanted to cry out "NO" when I read that part, but I was at my boyfriend's parents and they were sleeping so that would have been a bad first impression. But if I was alone, you can imagine the words that would come out, the literary cats would have hidden.  I love that the story was told from both Lindsey and Sophie's point of views.  It really added to the creepy chilling factor especially when he begins to "run into Sophie."  You get two different viewpoints of the same situation, and yet get the same outcome.  Fantastically done.  Not many authors can take two view points and blend them together so well.

I am very much impressed with this author and plan on reading more of her novels.  I would compare this novel to B.A Paris' Behind Closed Doors,  or I guess it should be the other way around because I believe this came out first.  I would recommend this to anyone and everyone who enjoys a good thriller/suspense novel.  This needs to be on your summer read list, or yearly read list, or whatever reading list you have.  Pick it up and get dragged in, you won't regret it.

Check out other reviews of Never Let You Go

Crime By The Book

The Book Review Café
Debbish

The Broken Girls

Title: The Broken Girls
Author: Simone St. James
Genre: Thriller
Source: Ebook - Netgalley
Rating: 3 out of 5 paws




The body of a young woman was found dead at a placed called Idlewild Hall, a boarding school for troubled young women.  Rumors are that the school is haunted.  Twenty years later Fiona cannot stop thinking about the events that surround her sister's death at Idlewild Hall.  Her sister's boyfriend was convicted of murdering her, but Fiona has the feeling that something isn't right about the situation and something else had happened.  During renovations to the old school, secrets arise that may shed some light on the rumors that surround the school.  Secrets that someone meant to keep hidden.  What lies behind the walls of Idlewild Hall.

When I picked up this book, I was excited to read it.  I have never read Simone St. James' work before and this one sounded so interesting, so I dove right it.  I admit I struggled to get into the story at first, it seemed to take a while to lead up to the climactic portion of the story. I wanted to give up on the book, but am glad I didn't.

The ghost story aspect of it felt weak and didn't live up to what I was expecting from it.  I wanted more than what we were provided, and there was potential for more, but I don't think it was explored enough.  The beginning is slow going but it does pick up the pace and gets a little more interesting.  There are parts of the book where the story gets rather dark, but St. James handles this in a professional manner and makes it interesting rather than cringe-worthy.   It jumped back in time and back to the present a bit and sometimes I had a hard time following along, even though it does tell you the time frame prior to beginning that sequence.  Breaking up of these sections gave the book a sort of broken feeling.  It might have been better accomplished with Fiona finding journals or letters from each of the girls rather than flashing back to them.

There seems to be a lot of different storylines with the four girls who lived at Idlewild Hall, but there were times when I wished it would have focused on Fiona or her sister's story more and told the rest of the girls' stories through them.  Sometimes too many characters tend to take away from the story and I almost feel like that happened here with this novel as well.

I love the supernatural and ghost stories and I felt like the idea was there, the pull/lure to bring readers into it, but I wasn't all that impressed with the writing style.  I would recommend it for those who enjoy a ghost story, thriller, even mystery.  Others have enjoyed the story immensely, it just wasn't the book for me.



Eversong

Title: Eversong

Author: A.C. Salter

Genre: Fantasy

Source: Kindle Ebook

Rating: 2 out of 5 paws

Elora's past is filled with half-truths and mysteries.  SHe's been an  orphan her whole life, raised by her uncle.  Then one day she finds out she isn't even from Earth, but another realm called Thea.  Her lineage is a mystery but the general consensus is that if her existence was discovered many people would be out to kill her.  As she begins to spiral into a world of chaos and monsters, she begins a journey of self discovery and is determined to prove herself worthy of life rather than being judged to die.  Will she be able to convince those around her of her worth and ability to help bring down the greatest evil to threaten humanity?

I started out really enjoying the story, it was moving fast and was very interesting idea, but then it hit a brick wall and started to get, meh.  At about the half way point I started to get a little bored with the story, I feel as though the revelation of Elora's paternity happened too early and there wasn't any other, suspenseful event to look forward to other than the big battle.  The mythos created in the story happened slow, and felt like it was being borrowed from other stories rather than being uniquely created.  There were a few things that I had a hard time accepting such as a leviathan having the ability to disrupt electricity and electronics including a pace-maker.  I feel like there could have been a different creature to do this.

The romance between Bray and Elora felt like it was thrown into the story to add a little bit of "difficulty".  They just meet and instantly it is love and Bray risks losing all the training he has done thus far to become the Shodjak.  When Elora's paternity is revealed I expected  more of a reaction, more emotion to be displayed aside from her convincing Diagus to keep her alive.  There was just too much in the novel that felt wrong or out of place for this reader to be able to really enjoy it.  While the premise of the story itself is rather interesting, I found it to be anti-climatic especially the ending.

There were so many different grammar and spelling errors that also took away from the enjoyment of this book.  There were many times when one sentence would be a paragraph long with no commas or other punctuation to break it up.  The writing other was fine enough, but just struggled to hold my attention or make me feel connected or empathize with any of the characters.  I would not recommend this book.