Review- The Sleepwalkers

Title: The Sleepwalkers
Author: J. Gabriel Gates
Publisher: HCI Teens
Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads
Source: ARC compliments of Netgalley and HCI Teens

Privileged and popular Caleb Mason is celebrating his high school graduation when he receives a mysterious, disturbing letter from his long-lost childhood playmate, Christine.  Caleb and his jokester friend Bean decide to travel to his tiny hometown of Hudsonville, Florida, to find her.  Upon arrival, they discover the town has taken a horrifying turn for the worse.  Caleb's childhood home is abandoned and his father has disappeared.  Children are going missing.  The old insane asylum has reopened, and Christine is locked inside.  Her mother, a witch, is consumed with madness, and Christine's long-dead twin sister whispers clues to Caleb through the static of an a.m. radio.  The terrifying prophesies of the spirits are coming to pass.  Sixteen clocks are ticking; sixty-six murdered souls will bring about the end of the world.  As Caleb peels back layer after layer of mystery, he uncovers a truth more horrible than anything he had imagined, a truth that could only be uttered by the lips of the dead.  

My thoughts: 

The Sleepwalkers is the first scary book that I have read this fall and it is really super scary! It has all the perfect elements to make a book truly horrifying: a podunk, middle of nowhere town, a old, reopened mental institution, missing children, a ten year old mystery, a man who sold his soul to the devil and children that kill people in their sleep!  Le me tell you, I had trouble sleeping at night while reading this book.

The whole book is pretty much centered around a man who has made some deal with the devil to collect a certain amount of murdered souls and Christine's twin sister who disappeared into this abandoned mental institution about ten years ago.  Anna, the twin, seems to be the first child to go missing which lead to many other people disappearing.

I immediately fell in love with the character Bean.  He's so smart and funny and he seemed to be the perfect sidekick to Caleb.  He is also a loyal best friend and followed Caleb into this really scary situation.  He had it right every time he said it was time to leave and go back home! So image my dismay when, not half way through the book, Bean gets caught by one of the sleepwalkers and turns into one himself! I was so sad.  Now Caleb is left on his own to figure out the mystery behind the mental institution and these creep sleepwalking people who kill in their sleep!   I could literally hear the creepy music from old horror movies in my head while reading.

In the synopsis when it says that Christine's mother is a witch, I don't think it was meant for her to be someone who does witchcraft.  In the book, she was drunk all the time and always mistook Christine for her twin sister Anna after all those years.  My most favorite creepy parts were the little glimpses into Christine's counseling sessions with the "therapist" at the mental institution. They really made me second guess the character's state of mind.

The ending really threw me for a loop and left me pretty much speechless and stunned. The Sleepwalkers really got me into the mood of fall and Halloween and made me want to pick up other scary books!  It's a great horror book that I would recommend to other hard-core horror fans!

Waiting on Wednesday (35)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we are eagerly anticipating. This is one of my favorite memes because not only is my TBR pile so much bigger at the end of the night but also the covers are always amazing!

Title: Unleashed
Authors: Nancy Holder & Debbie Voguie
Hitting the Shelves: November 22, 2011

When Katelyn starts her new school, the only person she knows is the handsome and intriguing Trick Sokolov, an acquaintance of her grandfather.  She's surprised when the popular Cordelia Fenner invites her home and when she meets Cordelia's hot brother, she begins to things her new life might be okay after all.  But as she spends time with the family, she realizes that the Fenners are harboring a deep, dark secret.  Every bone in Katelyn's body tells her that the Fenners are mad, bad and dangerous to know--but how can she give up her only friend, and how can she ignore the way Justin set her blood on fire with a single look?  Katelyn finds herself caught between three major werewolf clans who have been at war with each other for centuries--a war, it seems, that Katelyn is destined to end. 

What are you waiting for? 

Review- Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Title: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Author: Ransom Riggs
Publisher: Quirk Publishing
Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads
Source: Purchased

A mysterious island.

An abandoned orphanage.

A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all awaits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience.  As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.  As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar.  They may have been dangerous.  they may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason.  And somehow--impossible though it seems--they may still be alive. 

My thoughts: 

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is such a unique and beautifully written book.  Unique in not only the pictures but the story line as well and beautiful in the writing style and the photographs that were chosen.  Even though many of the photographs are very creepy and could easily keep me up at night, they were used wisely and fit very well with the story.

When I first heard about this book, I wanted to read it right away! But then I went to a Ransom Riggs event where he signed books and told about how he came up with the story, I wanted to start reading it the next day.  One of the main reasons I love going to author events is because I always gain a deeper appreciation for the stories and the characters they have written.  Authors always speak about them with such passion and conviction.

I learned from Ransom Riggs that he was originally just collecting old photographs when he realized that he could put them together and create a story.  I especially love how he talked about a particular photo of a girl with her back turned to the camera.  Since it was an old photo, it seems strange that they would pay all that money for her picture to be taken and then just have her back turned.  Instances like that make the photos even creepier!

Even the story itself was creepy and I kept wondering if the peculiar children were real or if Jacob's grandfather was just crazy.  I was so happy when he figured out they were real which meant the creature that was hunting them was most likely real and Jacob was not crazy either for seeing it.  I could just go on and on and on about all the elements that are so unique in this book like the time loop, how there are other loops all throughout time hiding other children, the whole aspect of World War II (I'm a history geek!), the keepers of the loops turning into birds and the fact that the children only age mentally and not physically! This book was so crazy; I loved it!  I love books with old houses that creep me out!

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is one of the most unique books that I have ever read with some of the creepiest photographs that I have ever seen! I completely recommend that you read it as soon as you can!

Frightful Fall Read-a-Thon!

I'm so excited to be participating in the Frightful Fall Read-a-Thon! I love fall, the cool weather, Halloween and all things horror so I'm super ready to get a bunch of books read this week! It technically started yesterday but I forgot to post but I didn't forget to read! This read-a-thon is hosted at Castle Macabre.

Yesterday I read:

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Today I'm reading:

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Hoping to read this week:

The Evil Within by Nancy Holder
Envy by Gregg Olsen
Possess by Gretchen McNeil
Ninth Grade Slays by Heather Brewer
Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

I'm trying to cover all the basis of basic horror: demon possession, murder, vampires and zombies.  Since I don't have any horror vampire books I'm throwing Ninth Grade Slays in there so that I'll get at least some sleep at night! Hopefully I will have a very frightful week!

Review- Matched

Title: Matched
Author: Ally Condie
Series: Matched #1
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads
Source: R.A.K.

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe.  So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate...until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunctions, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander.  But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.  

My thoughts:

Matched is an excellent read.  It's a dystopian novel where the Society controls the citizens down to the closes that they wear and the food that they eat.  They are not allowed to farm, grocery shop or cook their own food.  Every one of their actions is analyzed to the extreme: are their showers too long, are they running too much on the treadmill, do they read too much or if they're spending enough time outside or not.  According to the society, everything has to be done in moderation in order for one to live a happy life.

As much as I loved this book, I could not live in this type of society.  There are cameras in everyone's house so that the Society can watch them.  They're not allowed to have any kind of item that make them unique or stand out.  It's a crazy world! I love Cassia and Ky and even though Xander is her best friend and it broke my heart for her to fall in love with someone else, I was rooting for Ky the entire time.  I just didn't think it was fair for Ky to be punished for the actions of his father.  His punishment was that he could never have a distinguished job or ever be matched.  I always like to root for the underdog.

One of my favorite characters in the book was Cassia's grandfather.  He was her encouragement throughout the whole book and was the one who really got her to start questioning her life and her environment.  He did not want to her go gentle into the night.

Matched really made me appreciate how much control I have over my own life and that I'm able to do the things I love to do.  I'm glad that I have the freedom to read what I want to read, wear what I want, go outside when I want and eat as much junk food and chocolate when I want.  I loved this book and I can't wait to read Crossed and lean more about the Society and just how much they control.

In My Mailbox (27)

In My Mailbox is an awesome way to connect with our blogger and reader friends and share which amazing books we received, bought or borrowed during the week! This weekly meme is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.


 

Review- White Cat

Title: White Cat
Author: Holly Black
Series: Curse Workers #1
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Find it here: Amazon, Goodreads
Source: Purchased

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers--people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands.  And since curse work is illegal, they're all mobsters, or con artists.  Except for Cassel.  He hasn't got the magic touch, so he's an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family.  You just have to ignore one small detail--he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.

Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a facade of normalcy, blending into a crowd.  But his facade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something.  He's noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers.  They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot.  As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila.  Could she still be alive?  To find that out, Casses will have to out-con the con men.  

My thoughts: 

When I first heard bloggers raving about this book, I was excited to get it and experience it for myself. But then I heard that the author is Holly Black and I had some major second thoughts.  I read about half of her book Tithe and it freaked me out so bad that I literally wanted to put it in the freezer like Joey from Friends.  But I put my fears aside to read White Cat and I ended up loving it!

I love the uniqueness of this book.  It's unlike any other paranormal book that I've read before.  The closest things that I can relate it to is witchcraft or the glamour of vampires.  Whereas the glamour of vampires is all the same from one to another, the curse workers are born with different talents.  I would also classify White Cat as a sort of dystopian because the curse workers have significantly changed the world and the way people live their lives.   Because curse working occurs through the touch of the hand, everyone wears gloves.  Curse workers are mobsters and their work is illegal.

The story was so intricate and involved that I was constantly guessing and had no idea what was going to happen next.  And those are my favorite kind of stories because I want to always be surprised!  I also enjoyed the moral behind the story; every action has it's consequence.  Even with curse workers.  If the worker can erase memory, they every time he works someone, he looses pieces of his own memory.  This book blew me out of the water.  Holly Black is an excellent writer and storyteller!