paranormal Archives - Page 7 of 9

Yzabel / November 17, 2012

Review: Reapers With Issues

My rating: [rating=5]

Summary:

Death and the other Reapers have a challenge. Earth’s population has made soul collection a big problem, and according to Death’s figures, it will only get worse. Death is a skilled but reluctant bureaucrat who tries to enlist help before Human souls start backing up.

But since no good deed goes unpunished, Death and the other Horsemen will have to put up with a whole new approach to management from Heaven.

What is an entity to do?

Review:

(Book provided by the author through ARR #610 in the Making Connections group, in exchange for an honest review.)

I’m always up for stories that poke fun about serious themes, and ‘death’ and ‘angels’ have always been such themes for me. Reapers With issues deals exactly with those: the heavy celestial bureaucracy, with all the defects the latter term entails, and how figures of terror, the Four Horsemen, must deal with very day-to-day, down-to-earth problems regarding death. Their main problem being that there are only the four of them to do the job, while humanity keeps on multiplying. ‘Grim’ and his fellow horsemen go to quite a few lengths to keep their heads up, from filing up reports to indulging in buying weed from Saint Peter’s offspring. I found it very funny to see familiar figures of heaven and hell depicted under various, different colours here, within what is a nice satire of the corporate and bureaucratic world. Lucifer is exactly the kind of smart, manipulative bastard I’d expect him to be. Grim tries to tackle problems as seriously as possible, but let’s just say that between War’s antics and the new management imposed by God, this is proving harder and harder as the story progresses.

The least I can say is that this novel made me smile and chuckle, a lot. Granted, there were a few times when the humour wasn’t very subtle; but I think the author also did a good job in not overdoing it, and when fun is being poked at sensitive themes, it is always done so in a good-natured way, not in a voluntarily offensive one. Also, I commend the editing work done on this book. I didn’t notice any of the usual typos and misprints that tend to spring, and the author’s writing style was fluid and pleasant, both in descriptions and in dialogues.

Really, I can’t find many faults with this book. It made me spend a very good time, it was a short and fun reading, its characters made me laugh, and all in all, it’s a novel I’d easily recommend to my friends.

Yzabel / November 5, 2012

Review: A Vision of Green

A Vision of Green by L.H. Cosway

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Since moving to Chesterport Flo has discovered new friends and a hidden world.

After spending seventeen years as an Empath, thinking she was either delusional or very, very different, she has found others who are different too. She helped battle a coven of dark witches and watched as their leader got sent to her judgement. All now seems peaceful in her new town, but it’s not going to last.

For one, Flo’s dad is back on the scene and has taken over her dead grandmother’s house with his new girlfriend. Dealing with him makes Flo think that maybe everyday people can be monsters too, as he blackmails her into giving up the one person she needs the most. Secondly, Flo hears a story about strange goings on in the nearby forest, and becomes obsessed with the magical things that might lie in its green depths.

A Vision of Green is the second instalment in the Florence Vaine trilogy, where Flo finds herself yet again immersed in mystery, romance and things that are just a little bit scary. She will come across new adversaries, supernatural and otherwise, discover more about her own identity and grow in ways she had never anticipated.

Review:

(Ebook version kindly sent to me by the author herself, in exchange for an honest review.)

A few months ago, I had read the first volume of L.H. Cosway’s Florence Vaine series, “A Strange Fire”, and had liked it a lot. This second installment doesn’t disappoint either.

We find here characters from the previous novel: Florence, the girl with the power to see and modify people’s auras; Frank, her boyfriend, and his family, most of which share the same particularity of being inhabited by a demon’s soul; Josh, the unpleasant school mate; but also Terry, Florence’s father, who is much more present in this book. All of their personae were enjoyable in their own rights, and I was glad to see more of them, and in a way that didn’t make them lose their appeal compared to the first novel (something that, I’ve noticed, sometimes happens in second volumes, as if everything had been said about those characters, and there’s nothing new left to expect). Flo is both strong and awkward, fighting with the predicaments she’s in, yet never giving up. Frank is adorable, always ready to help her, yet also respecting her wishes, even though this may go against his nature. Josh is also interesting, in that he’s clearly a negative mirror of Florence: what she could (have) become if she had let herself being completely crushed by her father… yet I could still sense a hope for redemption in him (his behaviour could have been much worse). Even Florence’s father is not made of so many shades of black, because for all his dark sides and awful behaviour, there are a few things that explain how he became this way.

In this novel, Florence also seems to take matters in her own hands more readily than in the first story, a sign that her character has been evolving; her decisions may seem unwise at times (why stay with her abusive father, of all things?), but understandable, for they show her will to fight by herself, and not simply run away and let other people protect her. This I find always enjoyable in a character, even though I know it often also brings more problems that it solves.

We also get to learn more about what dwells in the forest near Chesterport, and are offered an insight into another part of the supernatural world, as well as more information about how Florence acquired her powers… and a hint that, much like she learnt how to manipulate and not only see auras, those powers may not be done ‘growing’ (but is this for in her best interests?). The plot centering about the forest is wrapped up nicely at the end—no frustrating cliffhanger—yet it’s also clear that the bigger picture isn’t completed yet, and that there is more to come. I’m definitely eager to see how everything will resolve in the next book.

Yzabel / October 31, 2012

Review: Blood Warrior

Blood Warrior by H.D. Gordon

My rating: [rating=2]

Summary:

When her home is attacked by murderous vampires, 17-year-old Alexa is forced to leave her mother for dead in order to save her sister. She soon learns that she is the last known member of an elite race of supernatural Warriors, and is thrust into a world full of vampires and werewolves who all seem to regard her as some sort of savior. Meanwhile, Alexa battles a monster within herself that seeks to gain control; a monster that seeks blood.

The hidden city she finds herself in appears perfect, but Alexa’s instincts tell her that all is not right within its walls. When she is asked to attend a school of fighters, whose exams consist of gladiator-style competitions, she must decide who she can trust among the smiling faces. And, when she meets Kayden, a vampire she feels undeniably drawn to, she must decide if she can trust herself.

Review:

I picked this book because I had read another novel from the same author (“Joe”) and had absolutely loved it. This time, though, I unfortunately didn’t enjoy my read as much. (However, I’m also aware that this is the author’s debut novel, and you can really feel the difference between this one and her latest work, which is definitely a good point.)

The world developed in “Blood Warrior” is an interesting one, especially on the political level, where something’s definitely amiss and has a nice smell of utopian society on the outside, while being probably rotten to the core on the inside. But I’d have liked this world to be more developed–or rather, to know more about the supernatural creatures that people it, for while we’re told that there are werewolves and three species of vampires, I found it somewhat hard to distinguish some things from others. Sometimes I’d lose the ‘feeling’ of what exactly differenciate those species from each other.

The characters in general, while likeable enough, with their strong points and weaknesses, seemed a little bland to me. Alexa’s emotions were strong, too strong at times, yet I couldn’t feel close to her, and the way she went through them left me quite detached along the story. Also, I didn’t enjoy the love triangle between Alexa and the boys, because I felt as if it was kind of mandatory to have. I doubt the story would have been less interesting if those guys had been/remained friends, without all the banter and allusions about “she’s mine”, “no she’s my girlfriend”, and so on (maybe those lines were delivered as jokes, but it still was a little weird). As if a triangle wasn’t enough, we actually get a square with Tommy’s arrival, which made me wonder what was the point here. Or perhaps I’ve read too many YA novels in too little time, and am getting bored with love triangles, girls surrounded with handsome males, and special, unique heroines who gets everyone’s attention? I don’t know. It just seemed somewhat forced to me, and none of the love interests appeal to me nor make me care about who gets the girl in the end.

In terms of writing, I regularly found spelling and grammar mistakes in the text (their/they’re…), enough to annoy my eyes much too trained to spot typos and the likes. It wouldn’t prevent me from going on reading, but it was still annoying.

I think the biggest problem I had with this novel was that once I was done reading, I was under the impression that it was mostly a backdrop for the real plot to come, instead of a story in itself–the ‘cliffhanger’ at the end would have been good to close the first part of a book, but not a whole book, so to say. Now, as I mentioned before, the world developed here seems to be interesting, and probably will be much more once more is known about it. So maybe I’ll still check the next volume at some point to see where it leads me.

Yzabel / October 30, 2012

Review: Duplicity

Duplicity by Nikki Jefford

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

If Graylee Perez thought sharing a body with her twin sister was bad, dealing with a duplicate of herself is two times worse. Gray the second doesn’t seem to get that Lee’s boyfriend, Raj McKenna, is off limits. Then there’s the problem of Adrian Montez. He expects one of the Grays to be his.

Nearly a year later, the council is onto them for past misdeeds; Lee, along with the rest of the coven, has lost control of her powers; and Gray is being stalked by what looks like the Grim Reaper.

If they work together, they may stand a chance of setting things right and making it out alive.

Review:

I found this second installment as good as the first one, although in different ways, and due to different reasons. As is normal in second books in a series, there was no need to introduce the reader to the world and characters, so the whole story started fast. What was at stake felt more important this time, more serious, and better justified (I must admit that the reason to Gray’s death in the first book was kind of… cheesy in my opinion). And there was no Charlene. I’m not fond of Charlene, that is.

Seeing Lee and Gray interact and progress through the plot was interesting, because of both being basically the same person, yet with diverging personalities and conflicting interests; Gray’s situation was the more problematic from the start, arriving as she was in a world that had gone on spinning without her, and I could quite understand her feelings of being the extra wheel. Also, I really enjoyed seeing more of Adrian in this novel; I had already taken a liking to him in “Entangled”, and here I found his character fascinating. He’s got the markings of someone with a serious potential to do evil, yet it seems to me that there’s much more to him, and that he didn’t start being ‘the Avenger’ just for show; I seriously hope we get to learn about his past in the third book.

On the other hand, I found Gray’s behaviour somewhat odd at times; she was supposed to be the one who hadn’t changed, who came back just as she was one year ago, without having evolved in the meantime, but she all of a sudden seemed muchmore manipulative. Perhaps because she didn’t have much left to lose? I don’t know. The other character that somewhat annoyed me (or whom I felt sorry for) was Raj. He had such a diminished presence compared to what was his in “Entangled”–not in terms of ‘screen time’, but of charisma–and I couldn’t find back the Raj I had learnt to enjoy.

Despite those flaws, I’m still givine 4 stars to this book. It was a light, entertaining read, it made me spend a fairly good time, and this was precisely what I wanted out of it.

Yzabel / October 14, 2012

Review: Here Lies Death

Here Lies Death by Harlan Vaughn

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

On December 21, 2012, the processes of death and aging stop completely. Here Lies Death is the story of Kelsey and April, sisters who are forced to explore their own mortality because of unprecedented supernatural phenomena. As the world struggles to understand the psychological and sociological implications, Kelsey and April dive deeper into hopelessness and depravity. While the slow realization of life without death begins to burn itself into a new reality, the human race threatens to implode.

What happens when there is no more death?

Part fantasy, part science fiction, and part story of survival, read the acclaimed novel that sweeps across the human experience and digs into the darkest corners of the mind.

Review:

(Book provided by the author through Read It & Reap #100 in the Shut Up And Read group, in exchange for an honest review.)

I rated this book 3 stars, because I’m not exactly sure what to make of it, so I went for the middle ground.

It was a puzzling read, first for the questions and hypotheses it raised about human nature and how people may react if death didn’t exist anymore, if everyone was eternally stuck in the same body, a body that would regenerate almost instantly if hurt or killed. This theme was intriguing, and as I suspected (and probably would’ve written myself if I had been the author of such a story), the ‘answers’ weren’t pretty—while reading, I would tell myself “actually, I’m not surprised”. Some characters (Sean, Kes…) were quite the positive ones about it, enjoying the ‘gift’ as it was given to them; for others, it triggered terrible feelings, causing them to spiral downwards into darkness they might never have known nor suspected had they been able to go on just as they had always believed they would. In that, this novel was pretty interesting.

It was also a page-turner for me, in quite an odd way… Much like a train wreck in the making, in fact: somehow you feel that something’s horribly wrong, yet you can’t help but go on, because you have to see it brought to an end, no matter what kind. Let’s say it prompts you to wonder about many things, about your own reactions if you were in such situations as presented in the book, about whether you’d enjoy such eternal life or not. Because it’s probably easier to say “yes, I’d enjoy it” if you were stuck in your prime… but what if you were stuck eternally in the body of a kid, because you were only 6 when it happened, and then your mind would grow old in a clearly inadequate body? Or what about being 80 and wishing it had happened sooner, when you were still young and beautiful? I don’t think giving a definite answer is so evident.

That said, while the story was fascinating, albeit not the kind of read I’d recommend if you’re depressed yourself, I wasn’t so thrilled about the writing itself, which I found often too cold, too clinical. I couldn’t exactly relate with the characters, whose actions and emotions were relayed rather than shown. And thus I couldn’t really empathize either.

Also, we’re provided no clear explanation about why the Restoration occurred. In a way, I’d like to say that this is not what’s important about the story, that what matters is how the whole concept of immortality is explored; nonetheless, I’d still have wanted to know, especially given how it all concludes.

Yzabel / October 12, 2012

Review: Soul Screamers (volume 1)

Soul Screamers Vol. 1: My Soul to Lose • My Soul to Take • My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

It starts with a scream…

My Soul to Lose
—The prequel: never before in print!—
Kaylee is just your average girl shopping at the mall with friends—until a terrified scream bursts from her that cannot be stopped. Taken to a hospital ward, will she be able to save her mind—and her life?

My Soul to Take
She’s always felt different, but now Kaylee discovers why. The screams that cannot be denied mean that someone near her will die—and she can never save them. Because saving one life means taking another.

My Soul to Save
Going on dates with her boyfriend is still new to Kaylee. But when the singer of the band they’re seeing dies onstage and Kaylee doesn’t scream, she knows something crazy is going on. Soon she discovers souls can indeed be sold.

Review:

3 stars, but actually it’s more like a 3.5. That’s pretty much because I liked book #2 a little less than book #1.

Overall, I enjoyed discovering and reading this series’ beginning, first because bean sidhes aren’t so represented in YA books (not that I know of, at least), so it was quite a nice change from the usual vampires/werewolves I’ve read about so far. Besides, I really liked the world developed by the author here; it seems to be grounded in solid bases, with consistent rules, and it’s definitely the kind of world I want to read more about (especially the Netherworld and the reapers). Finally, contrary to many paranormal YA novels these days, the romance part isn’t the main focus of those stories, and that their plot doesn’t revolve around a love triangle (even though I can sense one coming); they stand for themselves, and the problems to solve aren’t related to those relationships. (Since I picked this series for the bean sidhes aspect and not for the romance one, I expected to read about bean sidhes and a paranormal world first and foremost; in that, I was rewarded.)

I was a little less thrilled about the characters, though. While I liked Nash in the first book, I found he lacked impact in the second one. I liked Tod better, especially because of his disjointed morality: his reactions and decisions were good reminders that he’s an ally… but one of those allies you’d better not trust *too much*. As for Kaylee, she’s OK in general, but I couldn’t really relate to her; also, I found that she was extremely naive regarding some things (which was normal, considering she was quite new to that world and revelations), but oddly not so regarding others (stuff she accepted too fast, or how she always has to right ideas, when those would rather be expected from the more experienced characters). I understand she’s the heroine; still, that was weird. Also, Addison and Regan in book #2 seemed a little too ‘weak’ for readers to understand why such a concern for them: it’d have been better, in my opinion, if Kaylee and Nash had known them beforehand (if Addy had been a girl from school, for instance), as it’d have made the connection deeper, and not only a case of “we’re doing that because it’s the right thing to do”.

That said, I still plan on reading the next omnibus once it’s out.

Yzabel / September 25, 2012

Review: Revamp

Revamp by Beck Sherman

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

FOR THREE DAYS, IT WAS DARK.

News reporters scrambled. This was the biggest story to come along in weeks.

They called it a blackout.

The last one was in New York City in 2003, but this one was different, special, because the grids in six major cities across the country had been fried, kaput, see-you-next-Sunday. Everyone with some jurisdiction blamed each other, and when there was no one left to blame, terrorism rode in on its gallant steed.

It was the media’s fault. They were so busy stuffing fanatical Muslims with a penchant for Allah and decapitations down the American citizen’s throat, that they never saw it coming. I guess I shouldn’t be too hard on them.

They were partially right.

It was terror after all, but a whole new kind. And when the lights came back on, things had changed.

The dark had brought us visitors.

Review:

(Book provided through Read It & Reap in the Shut Up & Read group, in exchange for an honest review.)

I found this book fairly enjoyable; I dont have a lot of time to read non-academic books these weeks, but if I had, I’d probably have read it in two or three sittings only (it’s a long novel).

The pace was fast enough, the events unfolding in a way that made me want what would happen next. Emma’s reactions regarding the existence of vampires seemed logical enough to me: she didn’t accept it too easily, trying to find more realistic explanations, but she also wasn’t too retentive about it, confronting the ‘revelation’ to her own experiences in order to check if this could be true or not.

There were highly tense scenes, made easy to picture oneself thanks to vivid descriptions. That’s usually the kind of thing I expect from my vampire novels—to show the gruesome nature of the beasts underneath, even though they still seem human on the surface. And yet, the book also tackles an interesting aspect of the duality of such creatures, for throughout the story and at the end, they were, all in all, still close enough to humanity to reproduce exactly the same old schemas (shortages, class divisions, the ‘rich’ hoarding all the good blood while the ‘poor’ had to stick to the vampiric equivalent of junk food…). I liked that the author decided to explore such aspects, because from the start, I thought that such a takeover by vampires couldn’t go smoothly, and that the mighty bloodsuckers were sooner or later run into the conundrum of “now that we’ve gotten rid of the humans… what do we eat?” In fact, I’d have been disappointed if it hadn’t happened.

I liked the flashbacks used to explain what had happened to some of the characters. I usually have no problems following those, and they were probably a better method to involve us readers than simply have said characters tell them in a dialogue or long-winded first-person explanation. And I liked that Emma’s ‘romance’ with Cooper was only a budding one, a few potential hooks here and there: it leaves room for more, while still being believable.

I have a couple of gripes with the story, though. First, I’d have liked to read more about the blackouts themselves: they seemed mysterious enough in the cover blurb, but reading about them after the events was a bit anticlimatic (considering the blurb, that is). Also, I’ve wondered a lot about Emma’s reaction regarding her family: she’d sometimes think about the boyfriend she had left on campus… but what about her mother who probably lived a few miles only from where her daughter now had to live? Why didn’t Emma try to discover what had happened to her mother—or, at least, why not show her thinking about it a little more often (even if only to conclude “she’s a vampire or dead, and I shouldn’t think about it anymore”). And I’m really not sure either about the last vampire the hunters off at the end: sure, it tied with something mentioned at the beginning of the novel, but… I don’t know, it just came as kind of “what the hell?…” to me.

But no matter those, I liked the story. I don’t know if there’s a second installment in the making. I think this one works well as a standalone, as the main issues are solved at the end; at the same time, there are still enough elements left to development for a second book to be welcome too. If there’s going to be one, I’ll definitely be interested in reading it.

Yzabel / August 24, 2012

Review: Taste

Taste by Kate Evangelista

My rating: [rating=3]

Summary:

At Barinkoff Academy, there’s only one rule: no students on campus after curfew. Phoenix McKay soon finds out why when she is left behind at sunset. A group calling themselves night students threaten to taste her flesh until she is saved by a mysterious, alluring boy. With his pale skin, dark eyes, and mesmerizing voice, Demitri is both irresistible and impenetrable. He warns her to stay away from his dangerous world of flesh eaters. Unfortunately, the gorgeous and playful Luka has other plans. When Phoenix is caught between her physical and her emotional attraction, she becomes the keeper of a deadly secret that will rock the foundations of an ancient civilization living beneath Barinkoff Academy. Phoenix doesn’t realize until it is too late that the closer she gets to both Demitri and Luka the more she is plunging them all into a centuries old feud.

Review:

(Book provided by the author through ARR #32 in the We ♥ YA Books! group, in exchange for an honest review.)

Alright, first, I appreciated that there weren’t any vampires in this book. This might not ring a bell to every reader, far from it, but the “prestigious academy with day students and night students” is something I had already read about in a manga (Vampire Knight); it would’ve been too bad if “Taste” had been about ‘mere’ vampires in that regard, and I much preferred the flesh-eating approach than the bloodsucking one. One good point for Kate Evangelista here.

This book was a nice read, compelling and well-paced enough for me to read it in a breeze. I especially liked its take on ‘zombies’: not undead, brain-eating monsters, but a civilisation of flesh-consuming human-looking beings, with thoughts and feelings of their own, but who had to turn away from their natural food sources due to specific reasons, and whose survival is quite the conundrum now. Their laws and way of living had a tight, enclosed feeling that mirrored the abstinence they had to inflict upon themselves, and of course it made sense that sooner or later, all of this would rot and fester, and lead to conflict. The scientific twist brought in all that was also a nice add-on: not too complex for a non-scientific to understand, but believable.

I liked the male cast overall. Demitri’s and Luka’s classical archetypes opposition worked well, and their hidden pains gave them depth; Dray was touching in his own ways, with his mad scientist antics walking hand in hand with deep love and caring for his people, and a genuine desire to help; and Darius’s personality seriously made me grin, especially after a certain description Phoenix made of him. What I appreciated less was the love triangle: the two boys seemed to have equal chances at getting the girl, but Luka’s interest felt somewhat forced—he gave more vibes of ‘naturally a good friend’ than ‘love interest’.

On the other hand, I really, really didn’t like Phoenix. At all. I found her tremendously annoying, whiny, bitchy, and not so clever for someone supposed to have a high IQ/study at a prestigious academy for talented youth. Granted, she was brave… although I often wondered if this was bravery or sheer stupidity on her part. Her childish reactions spelled ‘catastrophe in the making’ from beginning to end; it’s a wonder she managed to stay alive at all (poor Demitri and Luka, such a piece of hard work keeping her safe must have been for you two!). This is too bad, because if not for her character, I’d likely have rated this book higher (for now, it’s more of a 3.5/5 for me).

Yzabel / August 23, 2012

Review: Cold Kiss

Cold Kiss by Amy Garvey

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Be careful what you wish for. . .

When Wren’s boyfriend, Danny, died, Wren decided that what she wanted—what she had to do—was to bring Danny back. And so, in a heartbroken fury, armed with dark incantations and a secret power, she did.

But the Danny who returns isn’t the boy Wren fell in love with, and she must hide him away while her life unravels around her. Then Gabriel transfers to her school and somehow he knows what she has done—and he wants to help make things right.

But Wren alone must undo what she has wrought—even if it means breaking her heart all over again.

Review:

To be honest, this book surprised me, because it wasn’t what I expected when I picked it. I’m not actually sure what I expected; the usual ingredients in a YA paranormal romance novel, I suppose, some of which are present (witchcraft, zombies, a kind of ‘love triangle’…). Then I found out that what matters here isn’t the plot itself, which is quite pared down in itself. Reading and also writing stories that tend to be heavy plot-wise, sometimes I tend to forget that there are other, powerful elements that can carry a story to its end. Feelings are one of those. And “Cold Kiss” is definitely ripe with feelings.

The novel revolves around Wren, a young witch (although she’s only called that once, I think) who had to deal with finding her first real love, Danny, only to lose him barely a few months later. Heart-broken, grief-stricken, she didn’t think it through so much when she took the fateful decision of bringing Danny back from the dead; only what she brought back was only ‘mostly’ Danny. As a living boy, he used to be sweet; he used to love her with all his soul and give his all for her. As a dead one… no matter how Wren wants to convince herself that he’s still ‘her’ Danny, something’s wrong, definitely wrong. And the time is soon to come when she must face the consequences of what she’s done.

In any other story, I think Wren would have been a whiny, childish, self-centered protagonist, that I probably would have found annoying at best; however, Amy Garvey managed to made her all this, with the added bonus that we actually understand why she acts the way she does, and are driven to wonder, “wouldn’t I react just the same way?” I wanted to be angry at her for brushing Gabriel’s help away—but in truth, were I still 17, wouldn’t I also try to fix my mistakes by myself, and snap off in the process? Wouldn’t I be angry at my mother for never explaining me anything, thus unexpectedly leading me to commit a mistake I might have not considered if I had been warned about it before? If given the opportunity to bring back my beloved from the dead, wouldn’t I desperately want to do it, so broken that I just wouldn’t be able to think about the unwanted consequences? This is the kind of questions I want to ask myself when reading such a story, and the latter indeed hit home with those.

The story in itself was fairly simple: no convoluted plot, nothing that can’t be predicted easily enough from the start. This said, I wouldn’t have it any other way, for what makes the strength of this book is the way the author deals with her characters. Throughout the novel, they were all caught in their own web of conflicted feelings, often stemming from their sadness and frustration—and love. Wren’s love for Danny, and her sadness at knowing that everything was different. Wren’s friends, feeling betrayed, made either fretful or angered by their worry. Growing estrangement between Wren and her mother. Above all, the constant despair; the ticking clock; the certainty that the outcome cannot be a nice happily-ever-after ending; and Wren’s dread at knowing what she has to do, being determined to repair her mistake, trying to make amends, yet also fearing having her heart broken again…

Danny, the undead boyfriend, was frightening in his own way. So pale, so cold, so silent—so disturbing. No need for a gory, brain-eating zombie description to make him creepy. Yet at the same time, he was also a tragic figure (in that he was made tragic by someone else’s hubris and fault), a boy lost in a world he couldn’t understand anymore, because he couldn’t exist in it the way he used to. I tried to imagine what it must have been for such a character: locked in a room all day long, with no one to talk to, only his broken thoughts to keep him company, not even knowing that he was actually dead… And this was just dreadful.

The only think I was somewhat hesitant about was Gabriel’s presence. He seemed a little too intent to help with such a mess, when he indeed barely knew Wren—I was two inches of sighing “insta-love” (not something that I like a lot in books in general, I must say). The story may have worked just as well without him, although in that case, it would probably have been shorter, too. He’s not an unlikeable character, far from it; but he also didn’t feel indispensable to me.

Yzabel / August 22, 2012

Review: Hold Me Closer, Necromancer

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride

My rating: [rating=4]

Summary:

Sam leads a pretty normal life. He may not have the most exciting job in the world, but he’s doing all right—until a fast food prank brings him to the attention of Douglas, a creepy guy with an intense violent streak.

Turns out Douglas is a necromancer who raises the dead for cash and sees potential in Sam. Then Sam discovers he’s a necromancer too, but with strangely latent powers. And his worst nightmare wants to join forces… or else.

With only a week to figure things out, Sam needs all the help he can get. Luckily he lives in Seattle, which has nearly as many paranormal types as it does coffee places. But even with newfound friends, will Sam be able to save his skin?

Review:

This book was exactly the kind of humorous light urban fantasy read I tend to enjoy. Probably because it’s funny, full of snark and retorts, and deals with the supernatural world in a way that feels both adequate and over-the-top, if only because there are, indeed, just as many supernaturals in Seattle than there are coffee places. (At this point, I have to mention that I like over-the-top stories. I know some people dislike those, so if it’s the case for you, well, you’ve been warned.)

So, this book. What’s in it?

* Necromancers. It’s a form of magic I’ve always been fascinated with, especially these past two or three years. The way it was put to use here was freaky in some ways, yet actually hilarious *and* logical in others: I know few stories where a big bad Necromancer gets paid to reanimate a dead panda in a zoo in order to avoid a diplomatic incident with China. However, it does make sense.

* Sam. Inconspicuous, gentle, nice-boy Sam, who tries to do his best considering the crap he’s in, lost with his friends amidst so many paranormal types. I found him very human, balancing between his negative feelings and the awareness that he can’t just pile up reproaches on other people, because it would hurt them and not solve anything anyway. He’s just so adorable.

* Nice and funny group dynamics, especially when it comes to the four fast-food workers. I liked their way of dealing with all the crap that befall them, often by being snarky and taking things in an (apparently) not so serious way. It’s part of the humour permeating the story, and it works for me, perhaps because I have a similar take in my own, real life (not that I happen to meet Necromancers or get thrown in a cage every other day, but you get my drift). I suppose it might come as off-key, in that maybe the characters shouldn’t react in such a ‘light-hearted’ way. On the other hand, I also suppose that their reactions are understandable, if you consider that past a certain hefty dose of problems, either you throw a pity-party and collapse, or you just shut the brain off and go on snark mode in order to preserve the little sanity you’ve got left. And having a talking head land in your living-room is definitely part of the hefty dose of problems.

* Also, creepy Douglas is creepy. I could feel his real intentions coming from the start, and the way he acted, smiling but cold, hitting people without warning, befitted his persona. It makes it all the more funny when he has serious dialogue and attitude going on, but the situation and co-speakers are somewhat wacky, sidekicks included.

* Twisted song titles in lieu of chapter titles. This is a really biased opinion, and I’m not even going to be ashamed of saying it: I love such puns. Period.

* A mostly fast-paced plot, except for a few flashbacks, but those didn’t disrupt my reading, so they were alright. It was easy enough for me to follow, while not being too simplistic; things fell together nicely in the end; the final fight was definitely impressive; and the story was complete (thanks goodness, no cliffhanger), yet still with openings for a next book. It could just as well be a stand-alone novel… or be given a follow-up. Both would be alright in my opinion.

For what it’s worth, though, I would’ve liked to see more of Sam’s powers a little earlier in the story—and more of Brid actually, well, acting, because she’s got potential (granted, the situation she was in really didn’t help). And I’m not too satisfied about the shift in points-of-view. I can easily follow 5 or 6, that’s not a problem, but (and I’ve noticed this in several books already), why have one first-person narrator, while the others are all in third-person? Third-person all the way would’ve worked better here.

Those minor gripes set aside, I really enjoyed this book.