IMMORTAL
Author: Gillian Shields

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books; 1 edition (August 4, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061375802
• ISBN-13: 978-0061375804

SUMMARY:

Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, housed in a Gothic mansion on the bleak northern moors, is elite, expensive, and unwelcoming. When Evie Johnson is torn away from her home by the sea to become the newest scholarship student, she is more isolated than she could have dreamed. Strict teachers, snobbish students, and the oppressive atmosphere of Wyldcliffe leave Evie drowning in loneliness. 

Evie’s only lifeline is Sebastian, a rebellious, mocking, dangerously attractive young man she meets by chance. As Evie’s feelings for Sebastian grow with each secret meeting, she starts to fear that he is hiding something about his past. And she is haunted by glimpses of a strange, ghostly girl—a girl who is so eerily like Evie, she could be a sister. Evie is slowly drawn into a tangled web of past and present that she cannot control. And as the extraordinary, elemental forces of Wyldcliffe rise up like the mighty sea, Evie is faced with an astounding truth about Sebastian, and her own incredible fate. 

MY THOUGHTS:

Evie has been shipped off to the elite and mysterious Wyldcliffe boarding school after her Grandmother, who has raised her since her Mother’s death, falls ill.  Her Father is being deployed and signs her up at the Gothic style boarding school.  Upon arrival to the town where the school is located, she comes face to face with Sebastian.  They form a secret relationship and meet at night.  She thinks she has found the perfect romance to take her mind off of the bullies and strict rules of the school.  As you read further into the book, you start to realize that Sebastian is hiding many secrets, ones he is not proud of, and the book explodes with suspense, mystery and supernatural experiences.

At first, I was a little confused with the book.  It kept switching from present time to a past life of the owners of the Wyldcliffe Mansion.  It was a bit predictable, yet it captured my interest.  As I kept reading, more of the mystery started to unravel and make sense.  It’s a bit of a stretch of a story, but the author does well weaving it together into a whole. Even though the ending felt abrupt and left much to be desired, the characters give you the chill factor of creepy and mysterious.  Not too bad if you are looking for a quick and spooky read around this time of year.

MY RATING:

NOCTURNE
Author: L.D. Harkrader

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Mirrorstone (June 8, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786955023
• ISBN-13: 978-0786955022

SUMMARY:


Flanders Lane is tired of being protected by her Uncle Anatole. After years of studying magic in the back of his bookshop, she’s ready for an adventure of her own. Then one day, strange things start happening. A burglar breaks into the butcher’s shop, stealing nothing, but leaving the floors sparkling clean. Soon the seamstress’s apprentice vanishes on her way home, leaving behind only a shoe still laced at the top. And then worst of all, Uncle Anatole disappears. That night, a young vampire hunter named Pascoe knocks urgently on the bookshop door. Pascoe insists there is a vampire lurking in nearby Blakely Hall. Flanders looks deep into Pascoe’s gorgeous eyes and finds herself agreeing to help him. As Flanders tracks the vampire, her feelings for Pascoe grow until she stumbles upon a secret that turns everything she thought she knew about Pascoe–and herself–upside down. 

MY THOUGHTS:

Flannery Lane was left as a baby on the doorstep of Anatole. Not only does he take her in a raise her, but he is also a wizard.  Flannery grows up with the wizard even though he tells her time and again not to use the magic.  Since Anatole is reluctant to teach her, she sneaks behind his back and learns the craft herself.  When her “uncle” Anatole falls ill, she decides to use the magic to help him.  Then Flannery meets a tall, dark and handsome man named Pascoe, who also hunts vampires.

While the plot sounded intriguing and whimsical, I just couldn’t enjoy this book.  I understand it is focused for more of the younger teens, but the older teens might not enjoy it as much.  The plot is predictable, and at times it dragged.  Even though it has the mysterious plot and supernatural elements that readers are enjoying at the moment,  I fell the book could have been so much more.  The ending didn’t feel as complete as it should have either.

Overall, not a book I would read again.  I also would recommend it for the tween scene more than the younger adults for the paranormal fix.

MY RATING: