Release Date: February 15, 2011Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 218
Review Source: eARC from NetGalley for honest review
Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
It’s taken a long time for Charlotte Silver to feel like a normal teenager. But now that she’s settled in a new school, where she’s made friends who know about her parent’s infamous paranormal investigations, it feels like everything is falling into place. And what better way to be normal than to go on a date with the popular Harris Abbott? After all, it’s not as if Noah is anything more than a friend.
But Charlotte’s new life takes a disturbing detour when Harris takes her to a party where they play a game called One Hundred Candles. It all seems like harmless, ghostly fun. Until the spirits supposedly unleashed by the game start showing up at school. Now, Charlotte, her friends and her family are in very real danger, and the door that she’s opened into another realm may yield deadly consequences.
My Thoughts:
I thought this was a great book, and I enjoyed it as much as I did the first book in the series (read my review here). Mara Purnhagen does a perfect job of combining supernatural suspense with normal contemporary issues, like having crushes, dating, and dealing with fighting parents. I think I mostly like these books because Charlotte is such a lovely character. Considering her parents are paranormal/ghost debunkers, she is refreshingly normal. Her voice is the perfect mixture of strength and teenage insecurity, and she's smart without being a nerd cliche.
I really love the characters of Noah and Avery, so I wish they had been more three dimensional in this book as well. I still enjoyed the scenes with them, but they definitely felt more like background characters. Noah in particular is such a great guy, so I wish his personality had shone through a bit more. Nevertheless, Purnhagen has again written a great and spooky book that has encounters with spirits and things from beyond without making it too scary, which is great for those of us who are the type of people who don't like scary movies. The end of this book is action packed, and while most of the book's storyline gets wrapped up by the end, you're also left wanting more and wondering about one of the book's characters. This is a great second book in this new series, and I wish these books got more attention, because they definitely deserve it.
Rating:
Find One Hundred Candles by Mara Purnhagen on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.ca
It's so nice to hear when a book two lives up to a book one in a series. Great review, Ashley...I'm so glad this series is on my radar now :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great series, I need to give it a try. I love that despite her paranormal world, Charlotte is nice and normal and has normal problems, I always like a heroine like that:) Lovely review Ashley, I definitely need to move these books up my TBR list!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the first one in this series & recently got this one from NetGalley. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteCharlotte sounds like a great character. I had seen the first book in the series last year but it seemed a little young. Your review has made me want to look for the first one now. Do you know how many books will be in the series?
ReplyDeleteHmm, I'm actually not sure about the number of books. Something to look in to!
ReplyDeleteI came to pop by and say hello to a fellow Librarian! I know you don't have a job yet, but keep your chin up! I also have a passion for YA Literature and because a YA librarian because of it.
ReplyDeleteI also really love you blog and wanted to let you know that you won an award on my blog. Here is the link for more information- http://www.abookdork.com/2011/01/stylish-blogger-award.html
I hope that post didn't sound beyond cheesy... I just know how difficult it is to find a job these days.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read either in this series- thanks for the reveiw.
ReplyDeleteBrandi from Blkosiner’s Book Blog
Glad you liked it. Just added these two books to my to read list. :)
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