Painted Girl: The Spirit Key

Title: Painted Girl: The Spirit Key
Author:RA Winter
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Source: Ebook
Rating: 4 out of 5 paws








All Painted Girl wants is to find her purpose in life, who she is and where does she belong.  She struggles to accept the will of her ancestors as she finds herself in a world of spirits.  Along the way she rekindles love and learns to accept her heritage for what it is and learns to become Painted Girl rather than just Sara.

My description was vague I know, I didn't want to give too much away about this novel.  If you have been with me for a while you know I have reviewed a book with the same title and same author before, Why review the same book?  The author has rewrote it and changed a few things and added a few things making it a completely different novel.  While some things are the same between the books, she did not simply copy and paste and add in new stuff, she made sure to make everything flow well together and happen naturally.


The novel opens with a heartbreaking scene that will set the stage for the events that follow in the rest of the book. It pulls the reader into the story to find out what will happen to Sara and how the spirits will effect her life.  While the book is primarily paranormal,  urban fantasy there are some romantic elements to the story which makes sense as it is about the life of Painted Girl as she discovers her place and purpose in life.  R.A. Winter paints a beautiful picture of her setting, everything is described in a way that allows the reader to envision what is happening including sounds and smells.  She creates a setting that is realistic and makes me want to be a part of it.


One of my favorite things about anything R.A writes is that she incorporates a lot of the Native American culture into her work such as everyone calling Grandfather, Grandfather even if they aren't blood related because it is a sign of respect.  It always adds a certain quality to the stories and gives Grandfather the air of reverence. Because of these elements she adds to the stories, you will walk away feeling like you learned something different even if the book is fiction/urban fantasy.  I love how Grandfather gets some things incorrect like Vizio Games instead of video games.  Makes me love him even more. I also love all the spirit elements and Sara or Grandfather speaking to the Great Spirits for one reason or another.  It goes back to my stating that R.A adds in a bit of the culture into the story, but it helps move the story along.


I am excited to see what R.A has in store for this series.  I am honored to call her a friend and look forward to what the future holds for her writing.  I will highly recommend this book to anyone regardless of your preferred genre.

Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

As a young girl, Nell was abandoned on a ship destined for Australia and was taken to the dock master once the ship docked. whom takes her in and raises her as his own.  Nell arrived with nothing but a suitcase and a book of fairy tales.  When she turned 21 the dock master and his wife revealed the truth to Nell.  She then travels to England to find out the truth about her past, and who she really is.  Nell's journey leads her to Blackhurst Manor.  After she passes away Nell's granddaughter Cassandra picks up the quest and begins to unlock the secrets of the forgotten garden and the book of fairy tales.

I instantly fell in love with this novel.  This is one of the reasons why I do not limit myself to a genre, if I had I would have miss out on a gem of a book.  I read this as a part of a book club, and as I said, I fell in love with Kate Morton.  Her writing is beautifully elegant.  The story she weaves has mystery, romance, and intrigue, everything I love in a good book.  It was difficult to put it down, and I lent it to my best friend to read.  It is a lengthy read, but you wouldn't know it is a couple hundred pages long until you have finished the book. 

Her characters a finely drawn and reveal elements of sophistication and grace.  The male characters ad whimsy and don't overshadow the female characters as you might find in many novels.  Readers watch as the story intermingles love, life, anger, and betrayal into the women's lives.  The book does which perspective between the years, but the focus is on the years 1913, 1975, 2005.  That can get difficult, but after a while you get used to it.  I think that the changes in perspective gives the story and in depth quality.  It adds to the understanding of how characters get to the points in their lives that they are.  We learn of where Nell has been and how she grew up to be the woman Cassandra loves and bonds with and why the quest becomes so important.

Forgotten Garden is a wonderful book and got me to purchase another on of Kate Morton's books Secret Keeper which is sitting on my to read list.  I would give this novel a 3.5 out of 5 because the changes in perspective does make it a little difficult to get wrapped up into the story.