Summary: Fifty years ago, Madeleine L’Engle introduced the world to A Wrinkle in Time and the wonderful and unforgettable characters Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, and their friend Calvin O’Keefe. When the children learn that Mr. Murry has been captured by the Dark Thing, they time travel to Camazotz, where they must face the leader IT in the ultimate battle between good and evil—a journey that threatens their lives and our universe.

A Newbery Award winner, A Wrinkle in Time is an iconic novel that continues to inspire millions of fans around the world. This special edition has been redesigned and includes an introduction by Katherine Paterson, an afterword by Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughter Charlotte Jones Voiklis that includes photographs and memorabilia, the author’s Newbery Medal acceptance speech, and other bonus materials. — FSG

What better way to introduce this Middle Grade Book Review Column, than with a classic on it’s 50th birthday?

“It was a dark and stormy night.”

I absolutely love the simplicity of the first sentence. It summarizes the entire book and foreshadows the characters’ journeys.

Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin are taken across the universe by the Three Mrs. W’s- Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit, and Mrs. Which, to save Meg’s and Charles Wallace’s father. Throw in quantum physics, Centaur-like creatures, mind control and possession, 2-dimensional planets, and strange beasts for an unforgettable experience.

I only recently discovered how special L’Engle’s character, Meg Murray, was at the time of publication. Never before had there been such a spunky, determined, witty girl in sic-fi (in the 1960s). She was strong and brave and made her own decisions. I found Meg to be a character who would resonate with girls today and in the future.

(SPOILER ALERT)

The best part of this book (other than the richly drawn characters) was the ending. I caught my children (7 yo boy and 10 yo girl) hugging each other (we listened to the audiobook) as Meg overcame evil with the love she had for her younger brother. Because L’Engle created such rich characters, namely Charles Wallace and Meg, this didn’t seem cliche. It felt warm and genuine.

This is indeed a timeless piece of art. I celebrate it’s 50th birthday and look forward to reading it with my grandchildren in another 50 years.

When Tish Everett forces open the ruby locket she finds at an estate sale, she has no idea that a deliciously rakish Bludman has cast a spell just for her. She wakes up in a surreal world, where Criminy Stain, the dashing proprietor of a magical traveling circus, curiously awaits. At Criminy’s electric touch, Tish glimpses a tantalizing future, but she also foresees her ultimate doom. Before she can decide whether to risk her fate with the charming daredevil, the locket disappears, and with it, her only chance to return home. Tish and Criminy battle roaring sea monsters and thundering bludmares, vengeful ghosts and crooked Coppers in a treacherous race to recover the necklace from the evil Blud-hating Magistrate. But if they succeed, will Tish forsake her fanged suitor and return to her normal life, or will she take a chance on an unpredictable but dangerous destiny with the Bludman she’s coming to love?

Pre-order now from Hicklebee’s.

I had no idea what to expect from that synopsis. I did know this- either Wicked as They Come was going to be a huge flop or bloody brilliant, or should I say bluddy? The world building in this novel was phenomenal. Wholly original the world that Dawson created for her prolific set of characters to live in was amazing. An alternate England where all wild animals are bludded (vampiric) and some of the humans too. Criminy is a bludman and the leader of a caravan that poses as a traveling circus.

When Tish’s home health care patient dies she goes to the estate sale. There she finds a locket and steals it. This isn’t something that TIsh normally does but she chalks it up to coming out of a very controlling relationship and learning to be free and on her own again. Getting back to being Tish. It didn’t have a price tag anyway. Later that night she opens the locket and red fluid sloshes out and burns her skin, inside the locket is a picture of an incredibly handsome man that looked to be taken in Victorian times. When Tish goes to sleep that night she is transported to Criminy’s realm and her life is changed forever.

He’s mysterious, he’s vampire, he’s totally freaking hot. But Tish has responsibilities in the real world, including her patients and her cat. She can’t stay in this alternate universe with an incredibly handsome but dangerous man. When she recognizes someone from her world in Criminy’s carnival Tish becomes confused on who she should love. But love is something she didn’t want to begin with after leaving her last relationship with Jeff.

Wicked as They Come is a breath of fresh air in a market that is over saturated with the same heroine and hero. You seriously want to pick this up. Criminy and Tish solve mysteries while the reader relaxes in the bludman’s alternate universe of Sang.

Everneath

From Hicklebee’s (buy now) Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath. Now she’s returned—to her old life, her family, her boyfriend—before she’s banished back to the underworld . . . this time forever. She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can’t find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.
Nikki longs to spend these precious months forgetting the Everneath and trying to reconnect with her boyfriend, Jack, the person most devastated by her disappearance—and the one person she loves more than anything. But there’s just one problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who enticed her to the Everneath in the first place, has followed Nikki home. Cole wants to take over the throne in the underworld and is convinced Nikki is the key to making it happen. And he’ll do whatever it takes to bring her back, this time as his queen.

As Nikki’s time on the Surface draws to a close and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she is forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole’s queen.

Everneath is a captivating story of love, loss, and immortality from debut author Brodi Ashton.

It is hard to put my love for Everneath into words. I am a lover of Greek Mythology and while I always thought I was a purist, Ashton has found a way to shake up the myth and keep me reading page after page with bated breath. The story of Persephone and Hades has long been one of my favorites, Ashton took that myth and gave it a 21st century feel without losing the tang of bittersweet attached to the orignal story.

The characters are beautiful and flawed and dangerous. The MC is strong and vulnerable and in love. I do hope there is a second novel.

Blurb: Persephone and Hades with a chic 21st century vibe. Everneath will delight any lover of myth. Strong debut from Brodie Ashton.

Girl Meets Boy: Because There Are Two Sides to Every Story

From Hicklebee’s (buy now) What do guys and girls really think? Twelve of the most dynamic and engaging YA authors writing today team up for this one-of-a-kind collection of he said/she said stories he tells it from the guy s point of view, she tells it from the girl s. These are stories of love and heartbreak. There s the good-looking jock who falls for a dangerous girl, and the flipside, the toxic girl who never learned to be loved; the basketball star and the artistic (and shorter) boy she never knew she wanted; the gay boy looking for love online and the girl who could help make it happen. Each story in this unforgettable collection teaches us that relationships are complicated because there are two sides to every story.

I generally love a collection of stories and this one was absolutely stellar. Male and female authors are pitted against one another to tell one story in two parts, one from the feminine side of things and the other from the male. I think James Howe and Ellen Wittlinger should write their story together in a full length novel *hint hint nudge nudge*.

The stories hint at how misconceptions are formed in relationships especially in the teen years. How one can say one thing and mean something completely different and the other can take it a completely different way than how it was intended. The stories are full of love, arguments and the torture that only first love can be.

Blurb: Fabulous collection from Chronicle Books. The stories while not always perfectly melding together gave an added bonus of miscommunication and misconception. A definite for any short story collector.

When the Sea is Rising Red

From Hicklebee’s (pre-order now) After seventeen-year-old Felicita’s dearest friend Ilven kills herself to escape an arranged marriage, Felicita chooses freedom over privilege. She fakes her own death and leaves her sheltered life as one of Pelimburg’s magical elite behind. Living in the slums, scrubbing dishes for a living, she falls for charismatic Dash while also becoming fascinated with vampire Jannik. Then something shocking washes up on the beach: Ilven’s death has called out of the sea a dangerous wild magic. Felicita must decide whether her loyalties lie with the family she abandoned . . . or with those who would twist this dark power to destroy Pelimburg’s caste system, and the whole city along with it.

I read this book on a five hour flight. I raced through it, there was no way that I was going to land and not have finished it. This is the absolute best story I have read about magic in many years. Not only was the story perfectly plotted, the language and phrases used were so beautiful I could feel my teeth getting cavities. The author’s words had me feeling things along with the characters and desperately wanting their stories to have a happily ever after. I have never felt such despair, or hope.

Weeks later I am still thinking about the characters and their plights. I am still thinking about the writing and the use of language and I am hoping and waiting for something else from this author. I am in instant fan.

Blurb: Set in a magical world on the brink of a new age Cat Hellisen guides the reader through the turmoil with expert hands. You do not want to miss this tantalizing debut.

Arcania: Trial by Fire

From Amazon (buy now on your Kindle eink device) Arcania Trial By Fire is an “Active Fiction” title, a new type of e-book from Coliloquy. In this Active Fiction series, your input influences future books from this author. Specifically, in Arcania Trial By Fire, your input influences what happens to Adia, a young sorceress. Born without arcania in her blood, Adia has lived in the shadow of her magical twin, until the day she inherits her sister’s spellcasting talents. As she leaves for the training academy, there are plenty of people to show her the ropes: Grey, the darkly passionate top shield, Seger, a swashbuckling rogue with a talent for daggers, and Finola, a clever and empathic healer. With a battle heating up, Adia must learn to master her magic and earn a spot on a fighting team before the ancient war between the forces of magic destroys her loved ones on Earth. The author sees the aggregate statistics on what option gets picked the most, so the more you read, the more you influence what she writes!

I really liked Arcania. I don’t have sisters but I can imagine what it is like being a twin and always living in the shadow of the ‘good’ twin. The parents are absent in this book but that seems to be the norm for the magical children in this universe. Arcania deals with magic, and alternate realities and the choose your own path style that Coliloquy provides makes the reading more enjoyable. It feels more high stakes, like what I choose effects the storyline and my reading experience.

There is a love story, a familial drama and a delightful catty relationship with another warrior. Our MC must find new friends, learn to control a power that doesn’t belong to her and solve the mystery of her sister’s death all at once. If you have a Kindle e-ink device you should read it.

Blurb: Arcania: Trial by Fire is a rapid story line with high stakes that will leave the reader breathless with their choices.

The first book in the new THE SPELLSPINNERS OF MELAS COUNTY series about a modern-day witch who must betray everything she knows to save her magic and her forbidden love.

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about one of my favorite contemporary authors going speculative. I also wasn’t sure how I would feel about a choose your own path serialized 10 part series. I went into this book with a hopeful heart and I loved every minute of the story. I even read it twice! So that I could choose all the choices and see the story from both ways.

One part Melissa de la Cruz with a heaping dose of L. J. Smith, Kling’s speculative debut delights the supernatural purist in me. It is obvious that painstaking amounts of research on witchcraft was done by Kling, unless she herself is a witch which is a possibility. I have seen her wear some crazy shoes.

The story follows witches who are constantly hyper aware of the fact that warlocks are out to get them and steal their powers to survive. A curse, a prophecy and a love story are unfolding as you read Witch’s Brew and with the choice function you hold power over the destiny of our protagonists. And yes, that is just as super cool as it sounds.

The story and the characters had a very contemporary feel and I liked that Kling was able to keep that aspect of her writing in this book as well. Kling has a talent for writing believable teens in up to date fashion and that really has a chance to shine through in a paranormal setting.

This book and others from the new digital publisher Coliloquy based in the Silicon Valley are available only on Kindle e-ink devices to provide the most enhanced technology to guide the reader through the book and the choices.

The next installment of Witch’s Brew cannot come fast enough for me. I am dying to see what happens to our ragtag group of witches next.

From Hicklebee’s: Since she’d been on the outside, she’d survived an Aether storm, she’d had a knife held to her throat, and she’d seen men murdered. This was worse.

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland—known as The Death Shop—are slim. If the cannibals don’t get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She’s been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He’s wild—a savage—and her only hope of staying alive.

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile—everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria’s help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

In her enthralling debut, Veronica Rossi sends readers on an unforgettable adventure set in a world brimming with harshness and beauty.

Order now from Hicklebee’s.

Veronica Rossi delights with her debut Under the Never Sky. I wouldn’t say it is a quick read, but every moment is exceptional.

Firstly Rossi creates immediate strife by introducing Aria in desperate need to contact her mother. In her need to find out if her mother is okay Aria makes some really bad decisions, but they are decisions I also would have made in her circumstances. In a disabled part of the bubble Aria lives in the boy she wants to use to get info on her mom starts a real fire, to see what it is like. Things burn up faster than anyone could have imagined and Aria is barely saved by a savage outsider.

What Rossi does well is pit two separate societies against each other. You have the pampered folk who live in the domes who spend most of their time utilizing virtual reality simulations to stave off boredom and opposed to that the people who live outside of the bones who are quite savage with their genetic enhancements from living with the aether and their sharp teeth. The outsiders live more like intelligent cavemen in tribes.

Another thing I absolutely adored is that we get to understand what happened before the apocalypse! YAY information! Aether storms tore through (the world?) America and the storms killed. Acid like rain and other weather anomalies drove people inside the domes and drove the outsiders to live in tribes with a strange leader system.

The characters were believable even when not likable and I enjoyed the fact that the secondary characters had a layer of personality that you rarely see in YA fiction. They were not completely flat and had motives, love, and quirks of their own. Aria and Peregrine are very well written and I enjoyed their conversations, quirks, decision making skills and their humor.

The plot moves at a good pace and enough information is given in tastes to keep you coming back for more delicious plot.

All in all I was impressed with this debut and the fact that it strays from the cookie cutter dystopia that I have been reading lately. I am anticipating learning more about Perry, Aria and their world.

If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, come to Veronica’s launch party at Rakestraw Books on Saturday January 7th at 4pm.

From Hicklebee’s: New soul

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

No soul

Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she’ll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

Heart

Sam believes Ana’s new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana’s enemies–human and creature alike–let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else’s life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

Ana has only lived one life. This makes her strange to the rest of the population who have lived countless lifetimes. Ana is a no soul. She lives with her mother outside of the city Heart. Her father left when she was born. Someone else was supposed to be born but Ana came in her place. They think she is a murderer and her life is incredibly tough living alone with a mother who hates the sight of her. Until she meets Sam…

Sam says she is a new soul, which is a far cry from being a no soul. He takes her to Heart and does everything in his power to help her find out why she was born. The more Ana digs the more questions she has.

Meadows delivers a unique take on reincarnation in Incarnate. Sam and Ana are both very likable characters. The evil guy was evil but had a pitiable quality that I genuinely enjoyed seeing. The plot was tight and there was many a surprise to be had.

The ending completely threw me for a loop and I wish book two would have been available for me to read right away. I loved all the mythological beasts and creatures and how they fit in to the day-to-day for the citizens of Heart.

My favorite part? The sexytimes at the masquerade ball!

I encourage you to take a look at Incarnate when it comes out next month.

From Hicklebee’s: As vampires from all over the world descend on the Drake farm for the Blood Moon gathering, security is ramped up. Lucy has been temporarily banned, for her own safety—and to allow Solange some time to adjust to her new existence. But their enemies realize how much Lucy means to the family, and plan to abduct her to use her for leverage against the new royal family. Instead, Lucy’s cousin Christabel is kidnapped by mistake—and Connor Drake immediately heads off in pursuit, but isn’t in time to prevent Christabel’s infection by the Hel Blar. He can’t save her human life, but he can still try to save her new vampire life, and is willing to put his own life on the line for the girl he has grown to care so much about. Can he save Christabel, the Blood Moon, and his mother’s newly forged Vampire Alliance?

Buy it now from Hicklebee’s.

I think I have reviewed every book Alyxandra Harvey has ever had published here on this blog. She has a style that I just adore to pieces and I can tear through one of her works in small time and be completely satisfied. Bleeding Hearts is classic Drake Chronicles through and through, I loved it to pieces.

Possibly the most fun part for me in this story was Cristabel. She is Lucy’s cousin and it was fun to read the stark differences between her and Lucy. While Lucy is full of pop culture and pizzaz, Christabel is more into dead poets and darkness. I loved her immediately.

Bleeding Hearts also gives us insight into a Drake brother we haven’t learned a whole lot about. Connor may not take the title of favorite Drake boy in my book but he is a close second. He’s techy and funny and completely loyal to his family and friends. All great traits.

The Drake’s lives haven’t calmed down at all, in fact their situation is probably more hectic than ever. There is a special vampire get together and Lucy is all but banned from being around the family. She’s training with Hunter and the Helios Ra and trying to hide all the crazy supernatural stuff from her cousin at the same time.

Solange in this book was strange. There wasn’t much on her but what we did see was her going through some major vamp-y crises and I am more than anxious to see what is up with her in the next book.

The romance between Connor and Christabel wasn’t the normal flowery Drake Bro kind. It developed in its own new way and I enjoyed watching them fall for each other quite a bit.

If you love The Drake Chronicles I urge you to pick this volume up and if you haven’t read any of the books start with Hearts at Stake which was an absolute riot.

From Goodreads: Two Spartan boys grow up together, and become inseparable friends. One is a prince of Sparta , destined to rule this ancient Greek state, the other a slave, or helot, who serves the young prince. In the harsh training camps, or agoges, where boys are groomed to become the great warriors of Spartan fame, their skills are honed and brutally tested. Only citizens may aspire to the warrior’s Red Cloak, and one of the tests is the annual crypteia, or hunting of the helots. A beautiful and mysterious young Sibyl speaks of an uprising of the slaves. The Oracles warn of a deadly conflict between two ruling factions. Evil forces will challenge the two boys and test their loyalties, as secret truths about their own identities are revealed.

Buy it now from Hicklebee’s.

Heidi From Ya Bibliophile sent me this book. I promised to read it fast and pass it on (which I have done) but I was nervous. I knew Heidi had loved it and I have this rule that I don’t read self published books, it keeps me from reading something bad quality right?

Song of the Red Cloak put a chink in my gatekeeper armor. This book was fabulous. It reads like you are watching Troy or Clash of the Titans (but its actually good) and I found it absolutely unputdownable. Acevedo touches on the most fascinating points of Spartan history and lore to accent her story.

We begin the book with two fathers pouring wine over their just born babies faces. One cries, one does not. A sibyl says that the princes will betray each other and cause upheaval in Sparta, it is decided that one of the two must die. As the father of the chosen child- the one who didn’t cry- stands over the crack in the earth ready to end his just born babies like, it is then he begins to cry. The father lost his nerve and brought shame to his family for not going through with killing the child.

Skip ahead a few years and you meet Galen. A helot slave to the agoge and best friends with one of the two princes. The other wishes him dead for sullying the royal line with his filthy helot friendship.

Sparta has been without a Sybil for twenty years, when one is found and kidnapped Galen swears to do everything in his power to keep her from being sent to the rock. THe new sybil sees that Sparta will be undone and Galen works with his friends to stop the prophecy from coming true.

Song of the Red Cloak is a story about friendship, betrayal and finding yourself in a world where everyone has mistreated you. The characterizations were interesting, well fleshed out and completely authentic to me. Much like the ballad of the 300 these Spartans have a bitter sweet story and the author did a fabulous job bringing it all together for one thrilling chariot ride through Sparta.

I loved Song of the Red Cloak and urge you to pick it up as well. Especially if you are a lover of fabulous characters, Greek Myth, prophecy, and love stories.

From Hicklebee’s: In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?

As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.

I feel very confident saying that Cassandra Clare is one of the most stunning fantasy authors in YA Literature. I have dutifully read each and every one of her books and I have found myself in love with each book for different reasons. Her Infernal Devices series is my favorite of her two. If you haven’t read Clockwork Angel this review will hold spoilers from that book. Also, if you haven’t read Clockwork Angel – get on that now. I promise you won’t regret it.

There are a great many things I loved about Clockwork Prince. The evolution of Jem from being pitiable and weak to a strong young man with a brilliant disposition on life. Jem was understanding, constantly there for Tessa and isn’t bitter with the lot he has been given. He is swiftly becoming my favorite character from Clare’s cannon.

Will on the other hand acted like an entitled ass through most of the novel. Yes, it is explained why he is an ass, and its sad tear-worthy even- especially when you learn the truth about him and Magnus Bane helps him solve his biggest life mystery. It was the last few pages of the book and his “Jem can take it” attitude that made me incredibly mad at him. I am in awe of Clare’s ability to elicit such strong emotions from me, especially related to the characters.

Tessa is still Tessa, smart, funny and well read. We are little closer to finding out what she really is at the end of the novel and the wait for book three where I hope we do find out is going to kill me. Tessa grows so much in this novel, she goes from proper American lady living in England to kick ass down and dirty I will do anything to save any of you and that was my favorite part of this novel.

The Lightwoods are introduced, Morty is still deliciously evil, there are still clockwork devices but they aren’t the main focus of the book. I did enjoy how the devices took a backseat here for plot and I have a feeling they will play a major part in book three.

The most important thing Henry is still awesome. Charlotte is going through a very hard time in Clockwork Prince and I hope everything works out and she and Henry become very happy together; they deserve it.

New characters, new hints and mysteries are introduced. The world building is superb and if I had the next book I would have dove into it immediately. If you haven’t had a chance to read Clare I highly suggest you drop everything and do that now.

For those who have read Clockwork Prince here is the balcony scene re-imagined by Vanya from VLC Photo:

From Hicklebee’s: Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered 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: track, 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, now stained red and dripping with 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.

But she, for whatever reason, spares Cas’s life.

There are not many things that truly freak me out. I’ve watched/read/ingested so much horror in entertainment form that I can pass a ‘how long will you survive a horror movie’ quiz with at least an 85% score. Still a few things remain that can freak me out. Anything to do with fingernails in horror movies, spiders, and now finally Kendare Blake.

Cas is a great character as is Anna. They have both been through very traumatic things in their lives and their subjective views of the situations they are in are great fodder for the reader. The story isn’t what I would call quick to read, you can submerge into the thrills for hours while reading.

The entire time I was reading I had a movie playing out in my mind. Anna Dressed in Blood is a very visual novel and its been a long time since I read something that gave my brain so much to wonder about while I was going along.

The story is full of creepy ghost myths with a side of contemporary ghost hunter lore thrown in for good measure. It was a monster mash of everything I love about ghost stories updated with the latest myths and legends. I adored the novel and cannot wait for the next book in the Anna series.