Throwback Review: Anna Dressed in Blood

Throwback Review from 2011!

Anna Dressed in Blood is a YA paranormal ghost story by author Kendare Blake.

Cas is a teenage ghost killer. He has inherited his father's powerful athame, the knife he uses to send deadly ghosts out of this dimension, after he died. And with each kill he is training himself to hunt down the one that brought down his Dad...

His Mom is a kitchen witch, selling mystical stuff on the go, and helping to keep the two of them safe. She's along for the ride somewhat reluctantly, but she knows that just like with her husband - this is Cas's choice, and he's good at it. They move from place to place following legends and leads - and the latest brings them to a town harboring a ghost that is more dangerous than ever - Anna Dressed in Blood.

She's unlike any other ghost he's encountered before. She's fascinating, extraordinary and wears the same dress she was wearing in 1958 when she was brutally murdered. And it drips, neverendingly, with blood. Cas witnesses what she's able to do - how she kills mercilessly with rage.

No one who sees her ever lives to speak about it.

But yet... she lets Cas live.

And there begins Cas's toughest mission yet.

Anna Dressed in Blood has a fantastic, creepy, sad, yet fun opener that gives you a hint at how awesome the book is going to be. The best part? The book follows through!

Cas is an excellent protagonist - he's witty, intelligent, and savvy - fun and interesting to follow. He's like a mix of the hot guys from Supernatural and something entirely new.

Twisty, freaky, and legitimately scary - if Anna Dressed in Blood were a movie, the gore would make it R-rated. Yet Cas's sarcasm and unflappability keep it from becoming too much. The writing maintains a fun and entertaining tone, but allows a deliciously dark edge.

Anna, our title character, is a ghost unlike any other and she astounds both me AND Cas. We are presented with our hero's dilemma and mystery - all of which is very, very intriguing. There's an addictive, but intensely spooky, feel as Cas's obsession with Anna washes over to the reader. It's hard to say too much without giving anything away...

Anna Dressed in Blood is obstinately original, wonderfully bizarre, refreshing, and extremely well-done. It's deeper than you'd initially expect, but does provide you with depth and gravitas to make it even more enjoyable. The end was a little rushed for such an amazing buildup, but it was still great.

This is the kind of story that YA paranormal lovers will fall for - and adult fans as well! Everybody else? Well, you should still give it a shot because there's always a chance you'll be surprised and find that a genre that you didn't think you were a fan of convinces you otherwise!

And me? Well, I am just hoping there's going to be a sequel!!!

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The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts

The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts is a YA paranormal contemporary novel and the first in The Unbelievables series by K. C. Tansley.

As a child, ghosts were normal to Kat. They were around often, taught her about ghosts and how they came to be – and they were her friends.

But when a frightening series of events made ghosts a greater threat to Kat, she had to consciously decide to no longer believe in them. If you don’t believe in ghosts you cannot be hurt by them.

Now in her junior year at McTernan Academy, Kat has been kept safe by her strident disbelief – making sure to surround herself with other unbelievers to stay strong.

However, a research project she is assigned to threatens to ruin all of the protections she has put in place for years. Once she is sent to a private island off the coast of Connecticut to investigate the details of the shocking murder of newlyweds in 1886, and the rumored resultant ancestral curse, Kat is in a poor position to continue to ignore her connection with ghosts.

This magnifies when it becomes clear that Castle Creighton is definitely haunted, as most old buildings are, and there are beings that want Kat to learn everything about that fateful day in 1886…

Believe it or not, I still managed to give less detail of the plot of The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts than the back cover did. I am a strong believer in not knowing everything before you jump in. Makes it way more fun!

Anywho, The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts was a good read! Kat is a likable, normal girl as a heroine. I admit I am not sure how you cannot believe in something you know exists. That whole aspect seemed odd to me – since Kat is constantly aware that ghosts ARE real. Sort of confusing. But whatevs!

Happily, the characters and plot itself was page-turning to move beyond that little kerfuffle of mine. There’s a general creepiness to the island and the details of the mysterious, bloody murder. There’s a sense of suspense, as well, that kept me interested.

It was a decent, involving mystery with just a little bit of romantic tension and lots of ghostly apparitions – good and bad. I enjoyed it!

By the end of The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts, I was sure I would give book two a read if/when I get the chance! I am intrigued to see where the story goes from here as not ALL of the threads were tied, we’ve still got some danglers.

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The Madness Underneath

The Madness Underneath is the second book in the urban supernatural YA series Shades of London by Maureen Johnson.

I strong recommend reading the books in order – so if you haven’t read The Name of the Star yet, check out my review of that first book here.

Final warning to look away if you haven’t read the first book yet…

Rory’s move from the American South to a London boarding school didn’t turn out the way she expected it to.

Suddenly gaining the ability to see ghosts was startling enough – to then also be nearly killed by a Jack the Ripper copycat was the icing on the horror cake.

Yet Rory doesn’t feel like she’s as psychologically damaged as she should be – and when she’s given the opportunity to return to Wexford, she does.

But there’s evidence of a new potentially ghost-like string of murders and Rory’s powers have morphed into something stronger since she was nearly murdered…

Is she as ready as she thinks she is to take on another dark force?

First off, I love Maureen Johnson. Her heroines are just so darn hilarious – I mean, I laugh out loud when I read their narration and dialogue – yet also believably vulnerable. Awesomeness.

Where The Name of the Star had a very specific plot, The Madness Underneath feels a little bit more all over the place. Much of it is seeing the psychological aftermath of what happened to Rory – which I actually find refreshing as that feels more realistic. Then we also get some new mysterious characters and some murders that may or may not be related to the rest of everything.

You see what I mean?

I know there’s been some discussion that The Madness Underneath is not as good as The Name of the Star – and I could almost agree with that. However, I think it was actually a lovely, creepy, page-turner extension of the story and I believe that all these seemingly unconnected pieces are clear to the author.

Plus – the end? WOWZA.

Like I said, I love Maureen Johnson.

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The Dresden Files: Grave Peril

The Dresden Files: Grave Peril is the third book in the adult urban fantasy series by Jim Butcher.

To get the maximum reading enjoyment, I suggest reading these books in order – therefore reading Storm Front first and then Fool Moon.

I wouldn’t say that this review will really spoil anything from the first two books, but you can never be too careful!!!

Ghosts are going haywire lately.

Becoming more menacing, more violent and more… more… Harry has his work cut out for him lately.

Unfortunately it’s not the paying kind – it’s the moral wizard responsibility kind.

But when Harry and Michael – a knight, literally – attempt to rid yet another location of an unruly ghost, it becomes clear that someone is causing this.

Someone is stirring up trouble purposely.

And the fact that many of the victims have ties to Harry cannot be ignored…

As I’ve said before, I loved the TV show The Dresden Files – based on this book series.

I’m still not feeling as much love for the book series… yet.

I’m still hopeful that it will just come with more installments, since there are a ton of books in The Dresden Files.

I will say that I felt Grave Peril was much better than Fool Moon – Fool Moon, for me, was just TOO hectic and non-stop to ever just stop and enjoy the story.

Grave Peril is still more frenetic than I’d prefer, and very action-packed, but it started to grow on me. The fact that the story is full of likable characters helps!

I liked the inclusion of Michael, the knight, and more involvement of the vampires – which are WAY worse than the TV show ever had them be.

I don’t always like the male perspective in narration – for example, their seemingly natural inclination to notice the female form of nearly every woman they come in contact with. Harry is, overall, a gentleman and honorable – yet I would like less descriptions of the feminine body peppered throughout the story thankyouverymuch.

From some other reviews I’ve perused, I’ve seen this is a general area of annoyance from most of the female readers. Hopefully it lessens as the series continues.

Grave Peril, however, has some great fantasy detail and where the non-stop plot had me feeling distanced from the novel for quite some time, once I saw all the pieces come together it won me over.

In the end, I liked it more than I was starting to fear I would and I am looking forward to book four.

I would just like more of Bob, Murphy and other character staples!

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