Summer is the best part of the year in Winston, California, and the Fourth of July is the highlight of the season. But the perfect town Clare remembers has changed, and everyone is praying that this summer will be different from the last two—that this year’s Fourth of July festival won’t see one of their own vanish without a trace, leaving no leads and no suspects. The media are in a frenzy predicting a third disappearance, but the town depends on tourist dollars, so the residents of Winston are trying desperately to pretend nothing’s wrong.

And they’re not the only ones hiding something.

Clare, a seamstress who redesigns vintage clothing, has been blessed—or perhaps cursed—with a gift: she can see people’s pasts when she touches their clothes. When she stumbles across a denim jacket that once belonged to Amanda Stavros, last year’s Fourth of July victim, Clare sees her perfect town begin to come apart at the seams.

In a town where appearance means everything, how deep beneath the surface will Clare dig to uncover a murderer?

Hardcover, 288 pages

Expected publication: September 11th 2012 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

ISBN 0385741049 (ISBN13: 9780385741040)

Clare loves to design her own clothing, sometimes even sell her designs. Her main passion in life is shopping for vintage items at charity shops to redesign into an outfit of her own style and making.

Clare also happens to have visions. When she touches fabric she has visions from the lives of those that wore them. As she loves to design her own clothes and shop at used stores she has these visions often. But when she happens upon one particular girl’s jacket, visions pulls her into the mystery of what really happened that night the girl went missing a year ago. Clare is torn over how deeply she should get into investigating the visions that the jacket is causing. It scares her how vivid they have become. But when Clare’s friend receives a threat, the mystery of what the jacket is trying to tell her about the murders becomes a priority. It may just be a matter of life and death.

Clare is an eclectic character. She has a few but dedicated friends, she has a passion for clothing and designs and style. The family dynamics and relationship between herself, her mother and her grandmother was my favorite part of the story. They struggle to put together lost relationships and work through their past disagreements.

At first Clare, like a lot of others, suspects it is the boyfriend who caused the girl’s disappearance. But upon making friends with him, she can see that he would not have done it. She continues to ask questions and has several visions that pull her deeper into the mystery.

She is a very caring person and even though her visions are scary and most would not get involved, she reaches out and in the end we have a story of loss, mystery, family and friends. Through Clare’s investigations and visions we get to see how close the people in the town are to each other.

Seventeen-year-old Ellie Spencer hangs out with her best friend Kevin, she obsesses over Mark, a cute and mysterious bad boy, and her biggest worry is her paper deadline. But then everything changes.

The news headlines are all abuzz about a local string of serial killings that all share the same morbid trademark: the victims were discovered with their eyes missing. Then a beautiful yet eerie woman enters Ellie’s circle of friends and develops an unhealthy fascination with Kevin, and a crazed old man grabs Ellie in a public square and shoves a tattered Bible into her hands, exclaiming, “You need it. It will save your soul.”

Chance is a funny, funny thing. If I had never watched once particular book haul video a few years back, I would quite likely have never known of this novel’s existence. But now, having read both of Karen Healey’s YA titles, I can safely say that her writing has come to mean something quite definitive for me: originality. While her debut, Guardian of the Dead appears to contain many of the expected trappings of a paranormal romance – complete with a ‘typical’ heroine who has secret powers, a gorgeous yet mysterious love interest, and a high school backdrop – it actually manages to surprise you on many occasions.

Most notably, this novel is set in New Zealand and is adorned with varying elements of Maori mythology throughout – so much so that there is a (much-appreciated!) glossary of terms included. This lends some of the more traditional supernatural aspects, such as fae involvement and magic, an altogether different, exotic flavour, and I personally think it makes for a fantastic introduction to Maori culture, especially for international readers.

Plot-wise, the novel does seem to follow the much-trodden path of girl at school – sudden strange happenings – girl suspects boy of magic – all hell breaks loose. However, what truly sets these events apart is the atmosphere depicted and the characters involved.

The lush, dense wilderness of New Zealand’s north island is given ample attention despite much of the narrative’s action occurring in and around a high school. Healey describes the natural world with evocative flare, which certainly aids in the unsettling, unnatural events that occur within it.

The novel’s protagonist, Ellie Spencer is many, many things that your typical YA heroine is not: she has a black-belt in karate, she has an asexual male best friend, she is half-Maori, she is slightly overweight, and she is angry. Really, really angry. While her abrasive personality and tendency to whine is most likely a major deterrent for many readers, it was oddly one of the things I appreciated most about Guardian of the Dead. For all of her flaws, Ellie seemed to me always believable and still, a year on from reading the book, remains memorable.

I do wish that more people could encounter Karen Healey’s works, if only for a slight, refreshing change from the standard fare of YA paranormal. We really do need more works that embrace cultural and sexual diversity, innovative mythology and which also aren’t afraid to end things on a relatively sombre, bittersweet note. I am very thankful to have watched that book haul video back in 2010!

Guardian of the Dead – Karen Healey

Allen and Unwin Australiamore details…

ISBN – 031604430X

346 pages

April 1^st, 2010

“The Reckoning destroyed civilisation. Rising from the ashes, some people have developed unique abilities, and society is scared of them. Guided by the ancient spirits of the land, Ashala Wolf will do anything to keep them safe. When Ashala is captured, she realises she has been betrayed by someone she trusted. When her interrogator starts digging in her memories for information, she doubts she can protect her people forever. Will the Tribe survive the interrogation of Ashala Wolf?”

I’d gone against my own personal norm for this delightful book and watched at least one review on youtube before settling in to read it for myself. I don’t normally do that as I like to go into the book with little or no expectations and let the book speak for itself. However in this instance, I really wanted to see how a guy came at the book with a female main character. Braiden loved it and this gave me a big burst of hope for what was to come.

What I found was a heartfelt, gritty, story of survival, love and integrity with a dream-time aboriginal folk law adding another dimension. Ambelin’s characters are true to life insofar as their ambition and genuine struggle to belong.

Ashala is fierce in her loyalty and her desire to help others. Connor finds himself at the mercy of his heart when his mission makes unexpected detours. The other Tribe members are like a filigree masterpiece. They may be spun so intricately through the tale, but they all come together to balance out the final product.

Along with a couple of power-hungry mad scientists, there are reptiles and arachnids who guide the story along its winding path of discovery. They themselves are just as important to the flow as the main characters, as they aid Ashala and her Tribe to where they need to be, if not physically, then emotionally.

I loved the way the dystopian themes took a back seat to the adventure and the intrigue. Things are never as they seem in the First Wood and Ashala’s connection to the land made me want to stop and just listen.

If I were you, I’d give the vivid imagery Kwaymullina conjures up in this evocative tale a try. I promise, you won’t have read anything quite like this before.

http://www.facebook.com/AmbelinKwaymullina

http://www.thefirstwood.com.au/

Paperback, 397 pages

Published July 2012 by Walker Books Australia

ISBN139781921720086

Hello Fellow Bookworms!

I’m back, yet with another review, this time on The Peculiars by Maureen Doyle. Before I get started I wanted to say a huge thank you to Krista for sending me her extra ARC! Thank you! Truth be told, I read and finished this book at the beginning of the summer, and have pushed off writing the review until now (the end of summer). Not because I didn’t enjoy or like it, but more because I needed to give the story, the characters and the ending time to sink it.

The Peculiars follows the main character Lena Mattacascar on the journey to finding her father, and the reason behind her elongated fingers and toes (she’s always wondered if they were signs of Goblinism). Days before her eighteenth birthday, Lena receives a hand-written letter from her father, explaining why he left and where he’d gone. Deciding to set out to search for him, Lena leaves for Scree.

In the society Lena lives in, folktales and myths have been passed down from generation to generation about a race of people called Peculiars. The word itself means strange, odd, uncommon and unusual. Many people don’t (or at least try not to) believe in them. Peculiars are people with defects, and rumors say, if someone is accused of being a Peculiar, they are sent to Scree to work in the coal mines.

Throughout her adventure Lena learns a lot about herself, and her family. She meets a few interesting people such as Jimson (who sat with her on the train, when her bag with important papers and money was stolen), Mr. Quiggley (who she starts to work for), and Thomas Saltre (a marshall who’s father was murdered by Lena’s).

What attracted me to this book so much was the cover, not the one of the ARC I received, but the actual thing. The summary seemed pretty interesting as well, so I went in with a open mind, ready for anything. But within the first few chapters, I was already bored and uninterested. Getting to learn about Lena and her hands and feet was intriguing, but the beginning dragged on. The train ride was maybe four of five chapters long, and boring. Nothing interesting happened and when it did (when her bag with papers and her money was stolen), everyone acted like everything was okay.

But being who I am, I pushed through and continued reading. The middle of the book had a few good parts, but again nothing too exciting happened. At this point, I was constantly thinking, “Do something! Don’t just sit around!”. But man, did the ending slap me in the face! It was like no other! Even though Lena didn’t meet the person she was looking for, she did meet someone else…who is very close to her (well..biologically)!

In The Peculiars I loved the concept, the ending, the characters, and that the characters loved books! But on the other hand, I do the think the beginning and middle of the book can be a bit dry and drag on at times. The ending is what makes the book good! If you get the chance to read The Peculiars, I recommend being patient and pushing through, because the ending is amazing, and will leave you wanting more!

Happy Summer Day!! And welcome to another one of my reviews!

Today’s lucky book is The Last Echo, by Kimberly Derting! It’s the third book in The Body Finder series, and just recently hit the shelves in April. A little background knowledge on the series; the main character is a girl named Violet. No she can’t see the future, and she’s not dating vampires or werewolves (actually she’s dating her extremely sweet best friend named, Jay). Violet can sense the dead; she can look at anybody and sense if they have been murdered. Vi can also feel dead bodies who are unrested looking for peace.

“In the end, all that’s left is an Echo.

Before, Violet’s morbid ability to sense the dead led her to uncover dark murders and long-buried secrets in her small town. Now that she’s working with a special investigative team, Violet hopes she can help even more people—whether by saving a life or catching a killer.

Although she’s relieved to finally be honest about what she can do, her instant connection with her mysterious partner, Rafe, is both confusing and unsettling, and their unique bond creates tension with her boyfriend, Jay. When she discovers the body of a college student murdered by “the collector,” Violet refuses to give up on the case. With her own relationship on the line, Violet doesn’t realize that the serial killer is looking to add to his collection and that she may have caught his eye. Will the life Violet has to save be her own?”

In The Desires of The Dead, the story leaves off with Violet joining and becoming part of a “special” force in the police. Working on a new case with others who have powers just as special as hers, Violet gets herself in too deep, once again. After being kidnapped by the man, which the police and her task force have been looking for (who had not only taken, but also murdered various teenage girls, just like Vi) she’s all her own. Vi has no choice, but to save herself, and get out before things go too far!

I had very high expectations forThe Last Echo (which by the way, isn’t the last book in the series!). I enjoyed the first two books, it almost seemed impossible for the third book to be any better than them! But Kimberly Derting proved me wrong once again! If you haven’t started reading this series, you’re living under a rock, and need to pick up a copy for yourself…right now!