Book Review: Ghost Huntress: The Awakening by Marley Gibson

Psychic Kids, Paranormal State, Haunting Evidence—these and countless other television shows are making believers out of millions of people: Ghosts exist, and they’re living right beside us. For centuries, individuals have been trying to prove the existence of ghosts. But without hard evidence, it’s been difficult to make the case. But now as science and technology have progressed, ghost hunters have been able to use scientific means, along with more traditional psychic tools, to make their case. Photographs, video recordings, and sound recordings are all producing some amazing results. In this new series, Ghost Huntress, meet Kendall Moorehead, a seemingly typical teen. When her family moves from Chicago to the small historical town of Radisson, Georgia, her psychic abilities awaken. She’s hearing, feeling, and seeing things that seem unbelievable at first, but with the help of the town psychic, Kendall is able to come to terms with her newly emerging gift. So, together with her new BFF, Celia, Kendall forms a ghost hunting team. They’ve got all the latest technology. They’ve got Kendall for their psychic. Now they’re going to clean up Radisson of its less savory spirits. The story is fiction. The science is real. Welcome to a new reality.

It took me a while to get into this book. In fact, at first I was worried that I wasn't going to like it at all. Generally, I'm a fan of paranormal lit, as well as TV shows (I secretly love watching Ghost Hunters). So, that meant I understood most of the technical terms that were thrown around. Since the first half of the book was spent introducing characters, and ghost hunting tech, that could be a reason why it wasn't holding my interest. The first half also chronicles Kendall's discovery of her new found abilities, and trying to cope with the fact that she can see and talk to spirits.

I think my main issue was the language used by the teens. Seeing "BRB" as part of a conversation, or extended vowels (i.e "yeeeeeeah") really pulled me out of the story. While I'm sure some teens talk like that, I've personally never heard it. There were also a lot of brand names mentioned in the descriptions. While I appreciate what the author was trying to do (hey, who doesn't love a little more description in books), I personally would rather read more description of the surroundings as opposed to the clothes. It feels awkward, because I never think to myself "I'm wearing _________ brand jeans and a cute top from _____". In the second half it had toned down, possibly because that was when the action began. So, I was able to concentrate more on the story.

Overall the book was okay. It's the start to a series, and I'm looking forward to book two, Ghost Huntress: The Guidance. Now that the author doesn't have to introduce the characters and tech, I think that the story will flow more. Definitely an interesting read if you want to learn a little bit more about ghost hunting, or feel like getting creeped out right before bed.

Ghost Huntress: The Awakening
By Marley Gibson
Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
352 Pages
Rating: C+/B- (First half/second half respectively)