Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life. (From Goodreads)
Best Bits: I think this book had the perfect combination of horror, suspense, and mystery without the violence getting out of hand. To explain myself, since I added violence into the review...I don't think that there was a lot of gore in this book, but what showed up was necessary to the story. The reader sees Anna kill others, and it emphasizes the difference between that Anna, and the girl who was able to stop herself from killing Cas. There are also a number of scenes where Cas is attempting to kill ghosts, so take that as you will violence-wise. Anna could have very easily been an unsympathetic character (hello, she's killed a bazillion people), but I was interested in why she killed them, and what had happened to her. As for Cas, he's definitely an interesting character...but he really should pay more attention to his cat.
Nit Picks: So the one major issue I had was that the font was red. Now, I understand how it fit symbolically within the story...I'm just really averse to non-black font. I think it might be the purist in me, the person who has trouble reading ebooks and needs serif font. I have had this issue with previous YA books, and I find it's harder for me to get into them. I also think that the supporting characters could have been explored a bit more, although I suspect that will happen in the sequel.
Anna Dressed in Blood
By Kendare Blake
316 Pages
Published by Tor Teen
Rating: B
Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This weekly meme shares the upcoming books that I'm most excited about.
Chasing the Skip by Janci Patterson
Ricki’s dad has never been there for her. He’s a bounty hunter who spends his time chasing parole evaders—also known as “skips”—all over the country. But now since Ricki’s mom ran off, Ricki finds herself an unwilling passenger in a front-row seat to her father’s dangerous lifestyle.
Ricki’s feelings get even more confused when her dad starts chasing seventeen-year-old Ian Burnham. She finds herself unavoidably attracted to the dark-eyed felon who seems eager to get acquainted. But Ricki thinks she’s ever in control—the perfect manipulator. Little does she know that Ian isn’t playing their game by her rules.
Published by Henry Holt & Co
Release Date: October 2, 2012
When Desi Bascomb gets discovered by the elite Facade Agency–royalty surrogates extraordinaire–her life goes from glamour-starved to spectacular in a blink. As her new agent, Meredith, explains, Desi has a rare magical ability: when she applies the ancient Egyptian formula “Royal Rouge,” she can transform temporarily into the exact lookalike of any princess who needs her subbing services. Dream come true, right?
This one was a cute read, and great for the summer. It is definitely more middle grade than YA, but everyone looking for some warm fuzzies should grab this. It's got a great message! Desi helps princesses share who they are with the rest of the world, and her self-esteem grows as well. Heck yes, girl power. I would have liked a little more character exploration, but I'm planning on checking out the rest of the series.
Princess for Hire
By Lindsey Leavitt
Published by Disney Hyperion
240 Pages
Rating: C
In Emmy Laybourne’s action-packed debut novel, six high school kids (some popular, some not), two eighth graders (one a tech genius), and six little kids trapped together in a chain superstore build a refuge for themselves inside. While outside, a series of escalating disasters, beginning with a monster hailstorm and ending with a chemical weapons spill, seems to be tearing the world—as they know it—apart.
Action-packed for sure, and it starts with a bang! I'd say this one does have some more adult content, but that readers shouldn't shy away from it. There's some violence, and the chaos of children being trapped together in an enclosed space. The story was gripping, but at times I didn't particularly like the main character, Dean. I liked that the book was from a male POV, but at times he felt really self-centered. Of course, by the end he seems to have a handle on that.
Monument 14
By Emmy Laybourne
Published by Feiwel & Friends
294 Pages
Rating: B
When Jason Milwaukee’s best friend, Sunshine, disappears from the face of the earth, the whole town, including Jason, starts searching for her. But the insistent voices in Jason’s head won’t let him get to the heart of the mystery—he’s schizophrenic, and the voices make it hard to know what is real and what is not. As the chase becomes more panicked, Jason’s meds start wearing off, and he is looking more and more guilty. But of what, exactly?
Both brilliantly witty and intensely honest, this poignant novel draws upon the author’s many years as an adolescent psychologist, but it’s Vaught’s powerful voice and expertly crafted mystery that will keep the pages turning. (From Goodreads)
Best Bits: First off, I think I should just say that I appreciate the uniqueness of the characters in Freaks Like Us. Yes, Jason and his friends have mental disorders, but as Vaught said in my interview with her, this isn't a book about life with schizophrenia. It's a book about friendship, love, and trust. The thing is, I think readers will gain a greater understanding of what it means to be diagnosed with something like schizophrenia. I'm not saying that the exact symptoms Jason experiences over the course of the book should be generalized to all people with schizophrenia. What I'm saying is that I hope this can help combat the stigma, and allows teens to look at how they treat people who are classified by society as "different" (even though they aren't different at all). Ok, off of my soap box...the story kept me on the edge of my seat. I literally read this in a night because I had to find out what happened to Sunshine! Vaught did an excellent job making me care about her characters, and keeping my in suspense.
Nit Picks: Since this book is a fast read, it didn't always get as in-depth as I'd like. I really wanted to know more about the characters. The flashbacks from Jason's perspective did provide some insight into his friends and family, but I really wanted more. The ending, while shocking, is one that doesn't explain everything to the reader. I got just enough information to draw my own conclusions about what would happen to the characters. I know that's a pet peeve of some readers, so just be aware that it isn't going to spell it out.
Freaks Like Us
By Susan Vaught
Published by Bloomsbury USA
240 Pages
Purchased
Rating: B
Check out my interview with Susan Vaught here
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