Reviewed by Gina
Date Read: April 22nd, 2012
Date Published: August 30th, 2011
Publishers: Tor Teen
Format: Hardback
Pages: 316
Blurb: Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.
Review:
This was such a kick-ass book!! I guess that sentence expresses exactly how I felt once I’d finished this book. I love it when the POV is from a guy because they don’t moan or whine like some girl POVs do in books. Cas just got on with things and he rocked. I’ve been waiting to read this book for a while now and I am even more excited for Girl of Nightmares to come out.
Cas kills the dead, as did his father and his father. He’s made it his job to kill everything that goes bump in the night after his dad was killed by one. But this next job is different because the things that happen around this ghost are awful. He has to kill Anna Dressed in Blood. But when a prank goes wrong Anna kills one of the kids at school but spares Cas. He has no idea why because it’s never happened. Anyone who goes into her house never comes out again. But he’s different and so is she.
I love spooky horror stories and I haven’t really read a YA book that’s scary or gruesome and I loved this because it was right up my alley. The Synopsis caught my attention right away. ‘Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...’ Who wouldn’t want to read this? I didn’t know what to expect when I began reading this book but what I got was a spooky story, a guy who kicks butt and a girl who is just misunderstood.
Cas is a great character and I have to say that I love him. It’s different reading from a guys point of view and we get a taste of what it’s like to be in a guy’s head. He was funny at time but serious the next and I have to admit that I enjoyed the swearing coming from him because it made him real. He was so strong and courageous and I really cannot wait to read more about him because his voice is great.
Anna....she was just wow. Wow because she was so scary, sending-shivers-up-your-spine kind of scary, but also wow because she was sweet and didn’t want to be a monster. I liked her and Cas together and I hope everything turns out okay because that ending was just wow! Her story of how she died was so sad and I felt for her because I would hate it if it had been me. Even the secondary characters were great. Thomas was funny and I thought his crush on Carmel was adorable. Carmel turned out to not be a ‘typical’ popular girl in a book and she was brave towards the end of the novel.
This book was fast paced and I enjoyed all of it. There were twists and turns, freaky scenes that made me shiver and there was heaps of action. I love a book that has some good fight scenes. I think that everyone should have a go at reading this book because it really is amazing and I hope this review tempts you to get it.
Cas kills the dead, as did his father and his father. He’s made it his job to kill everything that goes bump in the night after his dad was killed by one. But this next job is different because the things that happen around this ghost are awful. He has to kill Anna Dressed in Blood. But when a prank goes wrong Anna kills one of the kids at school but spares Cas. He has no idea why because it’s never happened. Anyone who goes into her house never comes out again. But he’s different and so is she.
I love spooky horror stories and I haven’t really read a YA book that’s scary or gruesome and I loved this because it was right up my alley. The Synopsis caught my attention right away. ‘Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...’ Who wouldn’t want to read this? I didn’t know what to expect when I began reading this book but what I got was a spooky story, a guy who kicks butt and a girl who is just misunderstood.
Cas is a great character and I have to say that I love him. It’s different reading from a guys point of view and we get a taste of what it’s like to be in a guy’s head. He was funny at time but serious the next and I have to admit that I enjoyed the swearing coming from him because it made him real. He was so strong and courageous and I really cannot wait to read more about him because his voice is great.
Anna....she was just wow. Wow because she was so scary, sending-shivers-up-your-spine kind of scary, but also wow because she was sweet and didn’t want to be a monster. I liked her and Cas together and I hope everything turns out okay because that ending was just wow! Her story of how she died was so sad and I felt for her because I would hate it if it had been me. Even the secondary characters were great. Thomas was funny and I thought his crush on Carmel was adorable. Carmel turned out to not be a ‘typical’ popular girl in a book and she was brave towards the end of the novel.
This book was fast paced and I enjoyed all of it. There were twists and turns, freaky scenes that made me shiver and there was heaps of action. I love a book that has some good fight scenes. I think that everyone should have a go at reading this book because it really is amazing and I hope this review tempts you to get it.
Awesome review!! This is one of my favorite books. I love Cas - he reminds me a bit of Dean from Supernatural! I can hardly wait for the next book in this series! ;D
ReplyDeleteGreat review! I really liked Anna Dressed in Blood. I loved Cas because I don't often read books from a male perspective. He was a very strong character, which I enjoyed a lot. Anna is awesome too. Definitely can't wait for Girl of Nightmares! I have my own review for Anna Dressed in Blood here: http://janaebooks.wordpress.com/2012/06/23/anna-dressed-in-blood-by-kendare-blake/
ReplyDeleteFeel free to drop by if you have time! :D