Girl of Nightmares
Girl of Nightmares (Anna, #2)by Kendare Blake
It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on.His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live—not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor. (goodreads.com)
Welcome to Cat Reads Halloweeny Things month! I just named it that since all of my books are deliciously eerie so far.Since I was late to the game with Anna Dressed in Blood I thought why not treat myself to the sequel at Halloween time? So I did.True story.Unfortunately I didn't find Girl of Nightmares to be as edge-of-my-seat creepy as its predecessor. That isn't to say that I didn't enjoy it, because I did. But that awesome feeling of ghost story, suspense that I felt with Anna just didn't come across the pages this time around. Part of my problem was how Cas was obsessing over Anna on almost every page. Yes, I know they had a connection and he didn't know where he sent her, but I felt that element of the story leaned a little too much towards the mainstream, paranormal YA novels out there. I'm not reading this book for a love story (although I'm ok with a love story being woven into the entire story, just not the FOCUS), I'm reading this book for suspense and chills.I get that Anna was appearing to Cas for a reason - and not just because he was lovesick - but at times it came across as though it were because he was lovesick and still mourning her loss. I have been thinking a lot about how this could have been written to make it more suspenseful in my mind, but I can't figure it out. So maybe I'm just too jaded to realize that this WAS suspenseful and creepy and not just an attempt to lure those Twilighters over to the YA thriller side. ;)The other thing I didn't care for in this book was the addition of Jestine as a character. I didn't like her one bit. I didn't like her personality, her reason for being there, or anything about her. I sort of thought her character was an obvious plot point just for the sake of having that plot point. (Vague and unhelpful I know, but I'm trying not to spoil too much for those of you who haven't read this yet!) I would have been happier had Cas, Thomas and Carmel been alone in their quest.That being said, I LOVE the (other) characters in these novels. I love the dialogue and I often laugh out loud at times. The dialogue feels natural and real, as if these were just people you'd happen to be sitting next to at a restaurant or cafe (and be totally eavesdropping on their conversations because, hello!? ghosts and nightmares and magic daggers and stuff!).I do love the way Kendare Blake weaves a story. I love that I can be surprised by what's around the proverbial corner because I guess I read too much and can often guess what's going to happen in most books I read. If you want me to feel the suspense and the chills you have to be able to surprise me!I love that this is just a two-book series. That's ALMOST like a stand-alone! This also makes the series original and I applaud the author and publisher for this!I love the cover art yet AGAIN! And... RED TYPEFACE! AGAIN!
You have no idea how happy it makes me when the entire book is a full package. Or, maybe you do, if you have been following my blog for a while. You know how crazy-happy I get when there's special binding, or coloured text or pretty illustrations along the pages. I love when the ENTIRE book is an experience. Maybe it's the synesthesiast in me, I don't know. I just adore when books are more than just black and white pages. ;)So if you're looking for a good YA novel (or two) to read through the month of October, I'd suggest you look no further than Anna Dressed in Blood and Girl of Nightmares because they are truly amazing books. Great writing, great characters and they'll put you in the right kind of mood for Halloween.Anna series