The Vanishing by Wendy Webb

The Vanishing by Wendy Webb
Series: N/A (Sadly)
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Hyperion
Publication Date: January 21, 2014

Recently widowed and rendered penniless by her Ponzi-scheming husband, Julia Bishop is eager to start anew. So when a stranger appears on her doorstep with a job offer, she finds herself accepting the mysterious yet unique position: caretaker to his mother, Amaris Sinclair, the famous and rather eccentric horror novelist whom Julia has always admired…and who the world believes is dead.

When she arrives at the Sinclairs' enormous estate on Lake Superior, Julia begins to suspect that there may be sinister undercurrents to her "too-good-to-be-true" position. As Julia delves into the reasons of why Amaris chose to abandon her successful writing career and withdraw from the public eye, her search leads to unsettling connections to her own family tree, making her wonder why she really was invited to Havenwood in the first place, and what monstrous secrets are still held prisoner within its walls.

  "No, today the sky is too blue and bright for a tale as dark as that one."
Fun fact about me: if I read a book that scares me, I will run past the windows in my house. It's been like that ever since I was super young - if I watch a scary movie, I run past the windows. It goes both ways - and let me tell you, The Vanishing definitely incurred some window-running. Which in my mind, is always a good thing!

I picked this one up on a whim, and I'm glad I did! Because it turned out to be a fantastic read, with a wonderful atmosphere! It reads like a modern gothic novel, taking place in an old old house. The writing alone was enough to give me chills. (And it did, repeatedly.) I found myself constantly questioning each decision made, and each and every character. I felt like I couldn't trust any of them, so I just... didn't.

The premise intrigued me - a woman who's supposed to be dead, living out in a haunted house, and her son who arranges for a caretaker - who doesn't really appear to be needed. I found Julia to be a rather likable character. She just... aside from seeing things and hearing things, she seems like a fairly normal person. When the house is empty and something talks to her... she runs. Like any sane person in her situation would do! I just nearly clapped when that happened - I was afraid that she might try to go all paranormally and talk to it - but no. She did good.

I also liked the "love interest", Andrew McCullough. He was super adorable, and really very sweet. He was all Scottish and manly and just adorable - I have such a weakness for the Scottish.

I enjoyed Mrs. Sinclair - she was eccentric as all get out, but she had a good heart, even if it was hidden in a delightfully weird packaging. I hope I'm a cool old lady like her - when I get that old, of course. ;)

Serious chills happened with the ghosties, though. Serious chills. There was a moment in the beginning - a little girl, floating, singing. "Sing a song of sixpence / A pocketful of rye". That's pretty much imprinted in my mind. There were several moments that made me freak out - in a good way.

I loved the fact that the whole novel was focused on the build-up, but I feel like the end scene was a little rushed. The epilogue completely made up for it, though. It left me with a sense of not everything adding up - and it was good. It made me wonder how crazy our main character was; and I just didn't want it to end.

All in all, I definitely recommend The Vanishing. I want you all to read it, because I loved it. I tweeted this when I finished, and it definitely still applies.

I am literally terrified right now. @wendykwebb 's The Vanishing is genius you guys, genius. That ending was fantastically creepy. O.o
— Megan@The Book Babe (@MVTheBookBabe) December 10, 2013

Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer by Katie Alender

Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer by Katie Alender
Series: N/A
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: September 24, 2013

Colette Iselin is excited to go to Paris on a class trip. She’ll get to soak up the beauty and culture, and maybe even learn something about her family’s French roots.

But a series of gruesome murders are taking place across the city, putting everyone on edge. And as she tours museums and palaces, Colette keeps seeing a strange vision: a pale woman in a ball gown and powdered wig, who looks suspiciously like Marie Antoinette.

Colette knows her popular, status-obsessed friends won’t believe her, so she seeks out the help of a charming French boy. Together, they uncover a shocking secret involving a dark, hidden history. When Colette realizes she herself may hold the key to the mystery, her own life is suddenly in danger . . .

Acclaimed author Katie Alender brings heart-stopping suspense to this story of revenge, betrayal, intrigue — and one killer queen.

I dreamed of small, curving streets paved with rough stones; and the perfume of flowers and sweet pastries in the air; and of beautiful buildings rising up on every side of me; and of a feeling of magic and history beneath my feet. And my dreams felt as real as a memory.

Before you read this review, I want you to read the synopsis. Breathe it in, think about the awesome premise and the possibilities of Marie Antoinette as a ghostly killer. Then imagine all of those hopes dashed. These are the feelings that I had coming out of Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer.

Colette didn't really have any personality to speak of. She upset me with her constant snobbiness, and her apparent lack of kindness. Shallow doesn't even begin to describe her. At one point in the book, she becomes "friends" with someone, only to tell them that they aren't good enough for her unless she needs something. What a friendship that was - but I can understand where she gets it from. Because her best friends, Hannah and Pilar? They irk me. They're terrible friends too.

I have to say, as much as I disliked her for most of the book, she does grow a bit towards the end. She becomes a better friend, and she does show some bravery; but it doesn't make up for the fact that she annoyed me through most of Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer.

The only truly bright part in this novel was Jules and his family. They brought light and happiness into this novel, which is why I don't get Jules. As a character, I truly liked him. He's not around very much, but when he is, he seems like a nice guy. So...why is he falling for Colette?

But lets move on to what you've all been waiting for. Marie Antoinette and the murders! Writing wise, I feel like the murders were done fairly well, if a little weak. But the ghost of Marie just didn't impress me; I felt like her character was shone too briefly, and that she just wasn't menacing enough. The mystery behind "why" she was murdering them was easily solved, and it was just lacking in the drama department.

So, if you're looking for a chilling book about Marie Antoinette, this isn't for you. If you're looking for a story about a girl in Paris trying to solve a mystery, though, this might be for you. It just depends on what you're looking for.

Life After Theft by Aprilynne Pike

Life After Theft by Aprilynne Pike
Series: Life After Theft, #1
Source: Bought
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: April 30, 2013

Moving to a new high school sucks. Especially a rich-kid private school. With uniforms. But nothing is worse than finding out the first girl you meet is dead. And a klepto.

No one can see or hear Kimberlee except Jeff, so--in hopes of bringing an end to the snarkiest haunting in history--he agrees to help her complete her "unfinished business." But when the enmity between Kimberlee and Jeff's new crush, Sera, manages to continue posthumously, Jeff wonders if he's made the right choice.

Clash meets sass in this uproarious modern-day retelling of Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel.

Life After Theft was something new for me. I've never read The Scarlet Pimpernel, nor have I ever read anything by Aprilynne Pike. But so far, I can say that she's impressed me as an author. I really liked this one, even if there were a few moments that I was like "haha that would never happen."

Jeff seemed to be a really laid back kind of guy. He had his jerky moments, but most of the time I think that he was just being forced into doing whatever Kimberlee wanted, because he's just a nice guy. On that note, I wasn't expecting a guy narrator-- the cover confused me! But even though it was a guy narrator, I liked him. Guy narrators are so much fun, don't you think? Especially Jeff.

But let's move onto Kimberlee. I'm not sure, but Kimberlee might just be crazy. I know for sure that she really wasn't all that nice, and that she stole a lot, but we really don't get anything more on her. I would've liked to have seen a chapter through her point of view or something-- it would have helped with her development, I think. And then I would have been able to die happy. She made a really good impression on me with her "confession".

But let's move onto the story-- I thought that the storyline was really good! I liked that Jeff was helping Kimberlee return the stuff, and how funny it was that he has an entire inner monologue over it. That was great! My only problem was that Jeff got caught multiple times, and nothing ever comes of it? Something always happens that gets him off. I mean, all power to him, but that was kind of....it would never happen, you know?

The ending was amazing, though. I thought that everything was wrapped up well, and that it left it open enough that it'll be easy to continue. All in all, Life After Theft was a good read.

Keep Me Ghosted by Karen Cantwell

Keep Me Ghosted by Karen Cantwell
Series: Sophie Rhodes Ghostly Romance, #1
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Boundless
Publication Date: March 15, 2013

Ghosts. Do you Believe?

Sophie Rhodes doesn't have a choice. She's surrounded by them.

Desperate to pay the bills, 29-year-old Sophie ignores the advice of her stuffy spirit-friend, Marmaduke Dodsworth, and takes a job with the handsome Dr. Callahan, an optometrist with a desperate situation of his own. The good doctor's problem? He has a spirit-friend as well: one with a fiery crush and a vicious jealous streak. When chemistry starts to brew between Sophie and Dr. Callahan, his green-eyed ghost wreaks some bad-tempered havoc, scaring away his patients and putting Sophie on edge. Will Sophie give up the ghost and quit the new job, or buck up and find a way to rid Dr. Callahan of his pesky specter, freeing their romance to find a life of its own?

I was expecting Keep Me Ghosted to be a fun romp of a read...I was disappointed by that. It was fun sometimes, but it was mostly bogged down by a weirdly paced plot. Some parts were really slow...the first 73%, I wasn't sure if anything was ever going to really happen. But after that point, it seemed like everything just dropped out of the sky-- the pacing went from really slow to extremely fast all at once.

Just do me a favor-- read the description. I was led to believe that Sophie was absolutely surrounded by ghosts, and that her and Dr. Callahan were going to have fab chemistry. Both were extreme exaggerations. Sophie only has one ghost around-- her friend Marmaduke. And while he was great, I was expecting more. I did like him as a character, though. He added a certain level of sarcasticness. I laughed at several of his one-liners. But on to the chemistry-- I really wasn't feeling it.

Sophie of herself didn't really inspire me. She wasn't a bad character, but she wasn't fantastic or anything. I think that the author tried too hard to make her characters quirky. Sophie has a pet flying squirrel and a one-eyed cat, and Cal is one of the only doctor's in his chosen field: vision therapy. I wasn't emotionally invested in them at all, I'm sad to say.

The whole story seemed rushed, to tell you the truth. Not well planned out or executed. Keep Me Ghosted just didn't turn out the way that I hoped it would.