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A Gift of Ghosts

Sarah Wynde

7.3 (3 Ratings) Rate It

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Akira has secrets. But so does the town of Tassamara. Akira Malone believes in the scientific...

fantasy ghosts Halloween Eureka psychics ghost whisperer

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Dead Girls are Easy ( Nicki Styx book 1) in Books

Jan 15, 2022

8 of 230
Kindle
Dead Girls are Easy ( Nicki Styx book 1)
By Terri Garey

There's something about almost dying that makes a girl rethink her priorities. Take Nicki Styx—she was strictly goth and vintage, until a brush with the afterlife leaves her with the ability to see dead people.

Before you can say boo, Atlanta's ghosts are knocking at Nicki's door. Now her days consist of reluctantly cleaning up messes left by the dearly departed, leading ghouls to the Light . . . and one-on-one anatomy lessons with Dr. Joe Bascombe, the dreamy surgeon who saved her life. All this catering to the deceased is a real drag, especially for a girl who'd rather be playing hanky-panky with her hunky new boyfriend . . . who's beginning to think she's totally nuts.

But things get even more complicated when a friend foolishly sells her soul to the devil, and Nicki's new gift lands her in some deep voodoo.

As it turns out for Nicki Styx, death was just the beginning.

I really enjoyed this book it had some ghost whisperer vibes! I’ve not read this sort of storyline before and really glad I picked it up. I love her name Nicki Styx and her whole character was refreshing! Definitely a good read and recommended!

Kudos

Naomi Forrest (42 KP) rated City of Ghosts in Books

Dec 31, 2018 (Updated Dec 31, 2018)

City of Ghosts

V.E. Schwab | 2018 | Paranormal

7.9

(8 Ratings)

Book Rating

Not too creepy, just right (0 more)

Having to wait for the next book (0 more)

I haven't read any Victoria Schwab before though I do have another of her books to read and I know that she is extremely popular, particularly for fans of the young adult genre. This book piqued my interest as a middle grade ghost story so when I found it at a gorgeous second hand book store in Alnwick, Northumberland (you trade your old books in for new ones, it is amazing!), I snapped it up. Cass is a brilliant protagonist....she's weird, she knows she's weird and she embraces her weird. We live in a world of fashion rules and being told that being different is wrong, even now in 2018. To be the generic carbon copy makes you popular. As Cass says: 'I know you're supposed to want to be one of the popular kids....It just seems like it would be exhausting...Smile, but not too wide. Laugh, but not too loud.' From this quote alone, you just know that Schwab understands pre-teens and teens. She has been there. Cass is a brilliant character to empower the intended audience and show them it's good to be different. The other big character in the book is Cass's best friend, Jacob, who often has amusing little retorts to Cass and adds humour throughout the book. Oh yes, and he's dead! Apart from this interesting fact and also that he saved Cass's life, the bond between the two is like any other friendship and I get the feeling we will see more of these characters. It is hinted at in the story that Jacob remaining in the world of the living may create problems so it raises a lot of questions about what is coming. I was constantly questioning throughout the book, where did Jacob come from? Did he die saving Cass? Why has he not crossed over? How can he come through the veil? The writing just flows so easily and is told through Cass's eyes. I'm not always the biggest fan of present tense writing in novel's but the use of first person really put me into Cass's world and I had to know about the veil! (I was also a big Ghost Whisperer fan). This book also has one of my favourite things, a cute little map at the start. However, unlike the often fiction maps that enhance the story, this is Cassidy's map of Edinburgh, which is pretty awesome, especially as I know the places on it, living just an hour's train ride from the city. It shows the main places you would expect, as well as Blackwell's book shop (it is a good Blackwell's too, bigger than Newcastle!). I just love maps in books, I spend ages pouring over them and it really adds to the pictures in your mind. Of course, being a ghost story, this novel is quite edgy for middle grade but absolutely age appropriate and Schwab is so skillful at pushing the tension right up before diffusing it at just the right point. I get scared even by some young adult ghost stories (no lie) and this one was borderline comfortable for me. The description perfectly set the scene and I truly felt like I was in a foggy graveyard in the dark, or underground in Mary King's Close. I love how Schwab drew on Scottish history and Scotland's love of ghost stories and seamlessly weaves them with the fiction of this ghost hunting American family. I think a lot of children who I come across and potentially across the country may have been to Edinburgh so it makes the story a little bit more accessible while the fantasy creates a boundary from it being too scary. Cass is also a big fan of Harry Potter and the frequent references throughout will really resonate with contemporary children who also love the series. I loved this book and can't wait for what follows on. It is definitely an exciting addition to a class bookshelf for the ghost story lover but would be a gripping book to share with your class just for pleasure. Brimming with tension, spine tingling atmosphere and completely relevant to the modern day pre-teen, I recommend whole heartedly.