Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco // Book review

Stalking Jack the Ripper (Stalking Jack the Ripper #1) by Kerri Maniscalco

Published: September 20th 2016 by Jimmy Patterson

Genres: YA, historical, mystery

Number of pages: 326

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord's daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life.

Against her stern father's wishes and society's expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle's laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world.

REVIEW

It's always complicated to read hyped books months after their release day. I've been excited for Stalking Jack the Ripper since it was announced, because I'm obsessed with Victorian era and I find the mystery behind Jack the Ripper completely fascinating. So, I tried not to listen to the hype – almost impossible – and to finally read it. 

From the beginning, we discover the world of forensics in Victorian era and I found it so interesting. Before I realized I wasn't really into science, that's what I actually wanted to do with my life, so of course I loved that part. The atmosphere Kerri Maniscalco created with her novel, which is definitely in the vein of gothic novels, was so fitting to the time period, I felt like I was actually there. She definitely captured the essence of the time period and while I wasn't scared, I felt the darkness and the tension involved while the characters were trying to find Jack the Ripper. 

However, I found that the pacing of the novel was a bit off. Indeed, while I was very excited in the beginning, I lost interest a few times, which is a bit sad, considering this book was only 326 pages long. I'd say that the first two thirds of the novel are good, but not mind-blowing, while the last hundred pages are truly stellar and makes the whole book worth it. Well, I had guessed the identity of Jack the Ripper because of one small detail the author probably didn't think of, haha. But despite guessing it, it was so well done! 

Now, I'll tell you about what actually bothered me in this book. Like most of us, I'm always happy to see a character that challenges social constructions of her time and that doesn't want to live according to them. Obviously, when I saw that Audrey Rose wanted to have her own career and to be an independent woman, I was there for it. Then, I realized something was bothering me and it took me awhile to discover what it was. In the whole novel, when Audrey Rose talks to other women, it's always about men or parties. There is one exception when she sees another woman because she's here to see her father, but that's about it. I'm sorry, but to me, it means it's failing the Bechdel Test. Not completely, but at 90%. 

Moreover, during the whole novel, Audrey Rose feels superior to the rest of women. I don't mean that she feels superior to prostitutes because of her social class, no, but to her peers. She's judging them and saying that they're shallow and uninteresting, because they accept what society want them to be. Every time she's with them, she's complaining. There is only one time a woman finds grace in her eyes and is deemed interesting, but it's at the end of the novel. I consider myself a feminist but I don't think that judging women – who have no choice and rebel in other ways – is the way to go when you're a feminist.

Audrey Rose does think society has it wrong, regarding women (and she's right), but she doesn't get to feel superior because of that, and to judge other women in the process. It feels like the author was trying to make Audrey Rose better than all these women to make me like her, but it only angered me. I know some people won't agree with me, but it's a trope we see a lot in young adult but almost never discuss, and it's making me sick. (I'm done with my rant part I guess.)

Despite being mad at the main character, I really enjoyed the whole cast of characters. Indeed, they were multidimensional and I liked to see how the author showed that you can never know someone completely, because we all have secrets. I also loved Thomas Creswell's sassiness when he was interacting with Audrey Rose, I laughed quite a few times. 

Overall, Stalking Jack the Ripper was a good enough book and I can see why people loved it so much, because of the atmosphere, the mystery and the sass. But, I thought the pacing was a little off, and there was this huge business with Audrey Rose that made me mad. Nevertheless, I'm pretty sure I'll read the sequel, to see if Audrey Rose changes for the better, but also because it involves Dracula and discovering a country I've never been to.

That awkard moment when you don't care about the characters anymore... | Ghostly Echoes

Ghostly Echoes (Jackaby #3) by William Ritter

Published: August 30th 2016 by Algonquin Young Readers

Genres: young adult, fantasy, mystery, historical

Summary: Jenny Cavanaugh, the ghostly lady of 926 Augur Lane, has enlisted the investigative services of her fellow residents to solve a decade-old murder—her own. Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer, Detective R. F. Jackaby, dive into the cold case, starting with a search for Jenny’s fiancé, who went missing the night she died. But when a new, gruesome murder closely mirrors the events of ten years prior, Abigail and Jackaby realize that Jenny’s case isn’t so cold after all, and her killer may be far more dangerous than they suspected.

Fantasy and folklore mix with mad science as Abigail’s race to unravel the mystery leads her across the cold cobblestones of nineteenth-century New England, down to the mythical underworld, and deep into her colleagues’ grim histories to battle the most deadly foe she has ever faced.

REVIEW

I remember really enjoying the first book in the series, last year, because it was original and I was digging the Sherlock and Doctor Who vibes. Nevertheless, when I picked up the sequel, I remember having a hard time getting through it and thought it was because I wasn’t the mood. But, it seems like it happened again with Ghostly Echoes, which makes me so sad.

I really liked the world Ritter created: it’s rich and has endless possibilities, which he showed at the end of this third book. However, I sometimes find it very confusing, because supernatural creatures are everywhere and they’re all so different. I can’t process all of the information most of the time, which leads me to forget some important parts of the stories.

Moreover – and I had this impression in the second book – I think that because of the endless possibilities, the resolution of the mystery comes out of nowhere, because you can’t really see it coming. What I want, with mystery novels, is to be kept guessing, not to be left in the dark 90% of the novel, which leads me to understand… Nothing.

I was very excited about the plot of this third novel, because we were about to resolve Jenny Cavanaugh’s murder, Jackaby’s local resident ghost and I wasn’t disappointed on that point, because it was part of a much bigger plot, which will be resolved in the fourth book. Thanks to this plot, we dived more into Jenny’s past and to get to know her. In this novel, because of the foes encountered, we also learnt more about Jackaby’s past, which helped me to understand him even more.

However, I’m sorry to say that I didn’t care much for the characters in general. I had the feeling that Abigail was slowly fading, because we had so much backstory about other characters, but not about her in this one. The mystery aspect was very important but because of that, she was lacking a little character development, even if she was essential to the story at some point. However, for a few chapters, I felt like she was only a spectator and telling other stories. When finally, she had way more action, I thought it didn’t last long enough.

I felt exactly the same towards the ending. The revelation didn’t come as a shock, because I had been bored and confused for some time. In fact, the action I was interested didn’t happen until the last few chapters, which left me with a bittersweet taste in my mouth, as I was disappointed.

Overall, I don’t know if, I, as a person that reads so many books, is the problem, or if the book is. It’s just that in the middle of all the books I read this year, I don’t think I’ll remember a lot from this book – which is already the case with Beastly Bones. I still think the concept of the series was original though, so I don’t regret reading three books about Jackaby and Abigail, but I’m not sure I’m attracted to this series anymore.

Other:

• My review of Jackaby
• My review of Beastly Bones

Have you read any books in this series? If so, what did you think? Do you have recommendations for fantasy novels set in a historical setting?

Meet new Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson | A Study in Charlotte

A Study in Charlotte (Charlotte Holmes #1) by Brittany Cavallaro

Published: March 1st by Katherine Tegen Books

Genre: yound adult, contemporary, mystery

Goodreads summary: The last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.

From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.

A Study in Charlotte is the first in a trilogy.

REVIEW

I have to admit that the first chapter is completely different from the rest of the novel. I had started it, then dropped it, then started it again. In short, it took me a week to finally get through the first chapter, because I didn’t find it very exciting. The story actually starts in the second chapter, and it got much more interesting after that. Nevertheless, I found the chapters to be way too long. This novel is 336 pages long, with only 12 chapters, which made me feel bored sometimes. I like shorter chapters than that, but that’s just my opinion as a reader.

It was the first modern day Sherlock retelling I read and I quite liked it. The plot was interesting to follow but yet a little repetitive when they tried to find out who the suspect was. I liked that the murderer was imitating Sherlock Holmes’ stories for his murders; it made a lot of Easter eggs to find… But also info-dump because the author had to explain these stories. I still really like the Sherlock Holmes aspect of this story, but it could have been more subtle.

Moreover, I liked that it tackled down some serious topics, like rape and drug addiction: it wasn’t just about the crime, but also about the characters’ lives in a boarding school. If I couldn’t quite imagine the characters leaving in the middle of the night –seriously, this trope again- I liked that the author didn’t forget parts like homework, because it’s often forgotten.

The story was told in first person from the point of view of James Watson. It was quite a change for me, because I’m not used to a boy perspective in YA… Sometimes dual perspective with the girl, but almost never with just the boy (the only one I can think about right now it The Maze Runner… But that’s it). 

 I liked hearing the story from his point of view, but I wanted more than a rugby player with anger management issues who was very similar Dr. Watson. Typically, he wanted to be a writer and had a lot of success with girls. It’s not because your forefathers did something that you have to do it again and again. It was even worse with the Holmes. While I liked the premise of the book, with descendants from Sherlock Holmes, Watson but also Moriarty, I didn’t like that they just felt the same, but from a different century. Charlotte felt exactly like Sherlock, and how was I supposed to believe she started taking drugs at twelve? I felt like the only reason she had this addiction was because Sherlock had one. I still liked the characters, but they were too similar to the original ones for my tastes.

I really liked the dynamics between Charlotte and Jamie, they were brought together because they were framed for murder, and it was original. However, I didn’t like that after a few days, Jamie was already saying she was her best friend. I’m sorry, but I can’t believe that, no matter how peculiar the situation was. Doctor Watson didn’t start calling Sherlock Holmes is best friend the first few days he moved to his flat. Then, later on, Jamie said he wasn’t sure Charlotte considered him her friend. It was so irritating, considering what he had said… I still liked how their relationship progressed though.

I have to admit that if I had unravelled a small part of the mystery, I hadn’t guessed all of it, which pleased me immensely. I would have liked to do without the villain explaining his plan at the end –what Charlotte was doing was obvious- because it’s such a trope. Still, the ending contained some good plot twists and the author got rid of the Sherlock similarities to make her own twist. It was hard to figure out the whole plan of the culprit, which made sense and was unique. The last chapter was written by Charlotte, which made me laugh a lot, because she was trying to “correct” things Jamie said about her, since she wanted us to think it wasn’t true. It felt so much like a Sherlockian view. I think I’ll read the next one, out of curiosity, especially if they’re in England.

Overall, I found it pretty average, but it kept me entertained. I felt like the author really wanted to show us she was a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes. So yes, it had a lot of similarities to it, but I wished the characters had been more different. Nevertheless, she still managed to write a really good ending, where everything made sense and was more different from the original novels.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it? Do you know other Sherlock Holmes retellings I should read?

Have you met the god of Death? | Grave Mercy

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers

Published: April 3rd 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Genre: young adult, historical, fantasy

Goodreads summary: Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

REVIEW

I've been hesitant for such a long time to read this series, you have no idea. I first heard about it in 2013, when I started watching BookTube and joined Goodreads. I was pretty excited about it, then saw a couple of negative reviews and gave up on it. Finally, after seeing people reading the series in my Goodreads feed in March, I decided to finally pick the first book up, which was a good decision, except from my sleeping time.

I didn't know a lot about this book, except it was about assassins nuns, serving a god of death, Mortain. I had no idea it was set in Brittany in the late 15th century, which meant centring around the future duchess Anne of Brittany. I was surprised at how accurate the history part was - I studied it two years ago - which I immensely enjoyed. I loved the concept of Saint Mortain's convent, that he was an ancient god of Brittany, it was pretty interesting. Even though Ismae had been raised to follow the convent, I enjoyed that during the novel, she questioned her assignments and chose her own paths.

I have to admit the pacing was pretty slow, but I didn't mind that much because it meant fully immersing myself into the story. It focused a lot on court politics and it's true that I would have liked more action, since Ismae was an assassin. It was also a mystery, because Ismae was looking for a traitor at Anne's side. 

Ismae was a great character, I liked having her backstory at the beginning of the book, because I could fully understand her and her evolution during the first chapters. Moreover, when she was in the convent, she worked a lot on poisons, which I found weirdly fascinating. The secondary characters didn't get a lot of screen time, but I found them realistic and relevant to the story, because Ismae and Duval couldn't do everything just together. The romance was built-up nicely, it was a total game of cat and mouse since the whole court believed Ismae was Duval's mistress. The author managed to write a believable tension and I was just waiting for the characters to finally do something about it.

The ending was pretty fast-paced, I couldn't stop reading and got to bed pretty late. However, when Ismae thought she had figured out the traitor, it was still early in the book, in my opinion, no one believed her and I was so sure there would be a final plot twist… But sadly no, so the revelation wasn't as shocking, since the main character suspected it but had no clues. This series will be centred around a different girl each time, the author introduced the two others during Grave Mercy and we got enough glimpses on their lives to make me interested in reading their stories. 

Overall, this book had a compelling and accurate setting which I'm craving, I'll definitely read Dark Triumph next month. The premise was so interesting, I liked the idea of the convent. The characters were enjoyable to read about and I was so excited for the main ones to get together. Yes, the plot was a bit slow-paced and I wanted more murders, but I loved the investigation and the politics in this book. The ending got me reading way too late into the night, but I didn't regret it at all.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it? If you've read the whole series, which girl was your favourite? Which book?

An emotional rollercoaster that felt like home | Lady Midnight

Lady Midnight (The Dark Artifices #1) by Cassandra Clare

Published: March 8th 2016 by Margaret K. McElderry Books

Genre: young adult, urban fantasy

Goodreads: The Shadowhunters of Los Angeles star in the first novel in Cassandra Clare’s newest series, The Dark Artifices, a sequel to the internationally bestselling Mortal Instruments series. Lady Midnight is a Shadowhunters novel.

It’s been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Fire that brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses.

Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn’t lead her in treacherous directions…

Making things even more complicated, Julian’s brother Mark—who was captured by the faeries five years ago—has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind—and they need the Shadowhunters’ help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn’t recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?

Glitz, glamours, and Shadowhunters abound in this heartrending opening to Cassandra Clare’s Dark Artifices series.

REVIEW

I'm feeling very emotional about this book, and I'm typing this three days later. I wasn't completely sure I would love it as much as I did, because it's been three years since we got a Shadowhunter novel. I was thinking that maybe I had grew out of it, but fortunately, I didn't, which made me so happy, since it's because of those books I started reading in English.

First off, Cassandra Clare grew so much as a writer since City of Bones. I'm planning on re-reading it this year, but from what I remember, I don't think I'll enjoy it as much as I did this one. I remember that it took me a whole month to get through City of Lost Souls, because it was painfully slow... I was so done with that series because it was really long, but City of Heavenly Fire was truly amazing, so it made up for it! Anyways, I've been excited for this book for years and I just checked... I added it to my 'tbr' on Goodreads the day I joined the website. So yeah, I was dying for it and it was really worth it. It made me laugh, it made me cry and more importantly, it felt like home. 

Because I already read nine books in this world, it was really easy to get into it. Nevertheless, Cassandra Clare still managed to add new elements into her world, like the Scholomance or the Shadow Market. I also really enjoyed that there was this "kind of a secret society", it was really mysterious and made me eager. I also really enjoyed that we saw a little more faeries than in the other books, but I still crave more of them.

The strongest part of this novel were its characters. I remember that in The Mortal Instruments, the characters were annoying and made to be perfect... But here, it wasn't the case at all! If Clary and Jace were made to be amazing Shadowhunters in TMI, Emma and Julian worked so hard to be great Shadowhunters... Emma was actually so careless... It's a good thing she had Julian to watch her back! Emma was sassy and tough, I really enjoyed reading about her and she's blonde, it's the plus size for me, lmao. I thought that Julian changed a lot from usual male leads Clare wrote, he was so much more gentle and had a strong sense of family... But at the same time he could be ruthless. And he paints so yay! I had totally figured it out about his studio though, but it was still really cute.

I really enjoyed reading about the Blackthorn's siblings, because since I got all excited three years ago, I knew their main characteristics and they felt so realistic. Especially Ty. I'm really emotional about him because... My little brother is a lot like him, so I could relate so much and I just wanted to cry. It was so funny that they all loved crime mystery and just wanted to solve it. And their dynamics were great! Cristina was a mystery I was trying to solve and I really liked her, she was another character to balance Emma's fire. I feel like Clare took a lot of time to craft realistic and important secondary characters, which I really appreciated.

Moreover, we got some cameos into this book, which made my little fangirl heart happy (because Jem <3). At the beginning, someone mentioned Simon's ex-band, TMI which of course stood for the Mortal Instruments and oh the feels. We didn't see every main character of the previous series, but we still learnt what was going on in their lives, that's all I wanted, I don't really want them to take too much screen time.

I found the plot to be very strong, I was hooked from cover to cover (even if technically I read it as an e-book... I'm waiting for my copy to arrive) and I didn't find that it dragged a lot, which had scared me because of the length of this novel. This plot was about solving murders and I liked that the Shadowhunters actually used mundane technology, it felt so much more realistic! I also really appreciated all the subplots, because I was interested in all of them. It was full of twists and turns and some of them left me gasping, because I wasn't expecting it. At all.

The romance was amazingly written, like usual and I was rooting for the characters so much. Of course, we're only in the first book so it can't actually last right now but it was painful, because Clare makes us hope. *sobs* These characters are so made for each other and I'm not buying this b******t. Nope. But I'm excited to understand more about it. Nevertheless: why Emma? why??

It also contained a LGBT romance and I wasn't expecting it for this character because I thought it would be between Helen and Aline, but obviously they're not here. Please I need Helen and a happy Blackthorn reunion *cries*

Basically, the ending was really painful to read about and now I just want the second book. I found the epilogue a little predictable, but that's just my opinion. It was just enough to make me eager for the rest of the story, even though I totally wanted to read the next book just because of the romance, because I need these characters together. At least there won't be a love triangle, right?

Overall, I think Cassandra Clare grew a lot as a writer and if you weren't a big fan of the Mortal Instruments, you could actually really enjoy this one. Did I love it as much as the Infernal Devices? I cannot say until I've read the whole trilogy sadly. Still, it balanced suspense, romance and action perfectly and it was so gripping! I just need the next book NOW.

Have you read my whole review (if you did, you deserve a cookie!)? Have you read this book yet? Your thoughts? Do you love the Shadow world? Do you want to read this series?

Beastly Bones | Book review

Title: Beastly Bones (Jackaby #2)

Author: William Ritter

Published: September 22nd 2015 by Algonquin Young Readers

Goodreads summary: “I’ve found very little about private detective R. F. Jackaby to be standard in the time I’ve known him. Working as his assistant tends to call for a somewhat flexible relationship with reality.”

In 1892, New Fiddleham, New England, things are never quite what they seem, especially when Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer R. F. Jackaby are called upon to investigate the supernatural.

First, a vicious species of shape-shifters disguise themselves as a litter of kittens, and a day later, their owner is found murdered with a single mysterious puncture wound. Then in nearby Gad’s Valley, now home to the exiled New Fiddleham police detective Charlie Cane, dinosaur bones from a recent dig mysteriously go missing, and an unidentifiable beast starts attacking animals and people, leaving their mangled bodies behind. Charlie calls on Abigail for help, and soon Abigail and Jackaby are on the hunt for a thief, a monster, and a murderer.

REVIEW

I really enjoyed the first book that I found whimsical and peculiar, because of the characters, but also because it was a reimagined Sherlock Holmes’ novel, with paranormal creatures. The second book went to the same way than Jackaby, which was really enjoyable.

The plot focuses on weird shapeshifters that take the form of the creature they are eating.

(and is in fact frowned upon in most societies)

Then, Jackaby and Abigail Rook are investigating missing fossils and a farmer wife’s death in the countryside, where Charlie now lives. The plot was fun to read about and the resolution was amazing, even if I had figured it out at some point *sighs* However, this plot had a hard time grabbing my attention, it was slower toward the middle but it picked right before the end.

New characters were introduced; a trapper and a journalist. The journalist was a very bold women, I was impressed by her character because she wanted to do everything by herself, even if social rules wanted to stop her. Meeting her had a great impact on Abigail, who aspires to be more like her and have control over her life. We didn’t see a lot of character development for the other characters – mainly because Jackaby is so peculiar – I regretted it a little.

There was more romance than in the previous book, but it was still really light, because Abigail didn’t want to need a man, like Nellie said. She took the relationship in her hands and I really enjoyed that about her, even if I don’t know if it’s realistic for that period.

Jenny’s storyline intrigued me and I’m looking forward to learn more about it in the next book. Moreover, the villain Abigail and Jackaby will have to fight against was introduced – I mean we know he exists – which makes me looking forward to read the next book. 

Have you read this book? Are you interested by this series?

The Accident Season | Book review

Title: The Accident Season

Author: Moira Fowley-Doyle

Published: August 18th 2015 by Corgi Children

Goodreads summary: It's the accident season, the same time every year. Bones break, skin tears, bruises bloom.

The accident season has been part of seventeen-year-old Cara's life for as long as she can remember. Towards the end of October, foreshadowed by the deaths of many relatives before them, Cara's family becomes inexplicably accident-prone. They banish knives to locked drawers, cover sharp table edges with padding, switch off electrical items - but injuries follow wherever they go, and the accident season becomes an ever-growing obsession and fear.

But why are they so cursed? And how can they break free?

REVIEW

So let’s raise our glass to the accident season,
To the river beneath us where we sink our souls,
To the bruises and secrets, to the ghosts in the ceiling,

One more drink for the watery road.

This book was really addictive and I read it in one sitting, because once you're sucked into the mystery, you just want to keep reading to know what the ending will be. The writing was beautiful, blurred the lines between reality and magic, so that you kept asking yourself if what was going on was real or not.  

I really enjoyed the plot of this book, because who doesn't love a good mystery? It was gripping and scary because of the scenery. This book is set in Ireland, with bridges that crumbled under your feet and a frozen river beneath it, but also a creepy abandoned house. I was on the edge of my sit, because I was expecting anything: the thing is, with this accident season, anything can happen, people even DIE. The twists blew my mind tbh, I know it's not everyone case, but just WOW. 

Mrs. McCarthys turns to Bea. "Miss Kivlan," she says. "We are not in Hogwarts, we are in fifth-year French. So you can now lead the class in a chant about irregular verbs."

The characters didn't really stand out to me, but it didn't bother me that much, because they made me laugh so much. I liked that Bea was the kind of girls who read cards and all that jazz. Actually, the best thing about the characters wastheir dynamics, because three of them leaves in the same house, they're all like siblings. I enjoyed the romance, but I don't think it added anything to the story (even if I had feels).

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and was teary-eyed toward the end, because it was so moving when everything was revealed. At the same time, it was really cute. If you enjoy books about family, this one is definitely for you!

Have you read this book or are you interested? What did you think about it?

Library of Souls | Book review

Title: Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar's Children #3)

Author: Ransom Riggs

Published: September 22th 2015 by Quirk Books

Goodreads summary: The adventures that began with Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and continued with Hollow City comes to a thrilling conclusion with Library of Souls.

As the story opens, sixteen-year-old Jacob discovers a powerful new ability, and soon he’s diving through history to rescue his peculiar companions from a heavily guarded fortress. Accompanying Jacob on his journey are Emma Bloom, a girl with fire at her fingertips, and Addison MacHenry, a dog with a nose for sniffing out lost children.

They’ll travel from modern-day London to the labyrinthine alleys of Devil’s Acre, the most wretched slum in all of Victorian England. It’s a place where the fate of peculiar children everywhere will be decided once and for all. 

Like its predecessors, Library of Souls blends thrilling fantasy with never-before-published vintage photography.

REVIEW

First of all, guys don’t read these books on an e–reader, because it’s REALLY awful (I tried, once), the pictures are much better quality and creepy in physical copies. I read Hollow City more than a year ago and I couldn’t remember the details very well, when Library of Souls picked right after it. The glossary was helpful, but not enough.

I was glad to be back in this creepy world, I really enjoyed the setting in Devil’s acre (I think it was Victorian era? Even better!). Riggs added a lot to his world, for example tales about peculiardom, it was scary but essential in this story. We got to know the truths behind hollowgasts and wights or meet characters we had heard about. We also learned why Abe was powerless against hollows when he dies or why he left the peculiar’s children.

However, this book had a big flaw, like the others: the chapters were way too long. Despite the pictures that took a lot of place, some of them were 60 pages long; I didn’t have THAT much time to read. Riggs’ writing is very dense, I always have a hard time to concentrate because of it, and it would really help if the chapters were shorter. For example, here, it was a 458 pages long book for eleven chapters.

The plot was fantastic; there wasn’t a moment to be bored. The book focused a lot on the dynamics between Jacob and Emma; I came to enjoy them more together. Addison is my fave, I don’t remember what he looked like so I picture him as Dough from Up!

The ending was simplistic in my opinion, like “boom” everything is resolved.

Have you read this trilogy? What did you think of it?

Jackaby | Book review

Title: Jackaby (Jackaby #1)

Author: William Ritter

Published: September 16th 2014 by Algonquin Young Readers

Goodreads summary: “Miss Rook, I am not an occultist,” Jackaby said. “I have a gift that allows me to see truth where others see the illusion--and there are many illusions. All the world’s a stage, as they say, and I seem to have the only seat in the house with a view behind the curtain.”

Newly arrived in New Fiddleham, New England, 1892, and in need of a job, Abigail Rook meets R. F. Jackaby, an investigator of the unexplained with a keen eye for the extraordinary--including the ability to see supernatural beings. Abigail has a gift for noticing ordinary but important details, which makes her perfect for the position of Jackaby’s assistant. On her first day, Abigail finds herself in the midst of a thrilling case: A serial killer is on the loose. The police are convinced it’s an ordinary villain, but Jackaby is certain it’s a nonhuman creature, whose existence the police--with the exception of a handsome young detective named Charlie Cane--deny.

Doctor Who meets Sherlock in William Ritter’s debut novel, which features a detective of the paranormal as seen through the eyes of his adventurous and intelligent assistant in a tale brimming with cheeky humor and a dose of the macabre.

REVIEW

I was interested in this book because it's 19th century, mystery, and paranormal. To sum up, everything that could please me. I didn't know if the book would live up to its pitch, Sherlock Holmes meets Doctor Who, but it did. I had a few issues with the pacing, because it was a rather short book, but some times I was a little bored and didn't know where I was exactly.

First, the writing was very evocative, I felt I was with Abigail on the docks when she arrived in New Fiddleham, so I was hooked in this story from the beginning. The research on the 19th century was satisfying, for example some women disapproved that Abigail was Jackaby's assistant, when she should be married. This book confronted some of the issues of that time period, I was happy about that.

Jackaby was really a mix between Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes, I often pictured the Doctor and Clara in Victorian London in this book because Jackaby was similar to the Doctor. He was so socially awkward and dry, he made me laugh multiple times because of the way he interacted with people, like when he said at Mona "Um, you're just a woman, not interesting", and then she yells at him. I'm looking forward to more backstory about him.

Abigail was an interesting character, because she was raised to be a proper lady but dreamt of adventure her whole life and then ran away from England. I liked that she was freshly arrived in town, because there was no better way for us to discover this town and its mysteries, like Jackaby. She was trying to be strong and independant, when everyone didn't believe she could do it, which is a reality of that time period, even if it goes slowly to women's independency.

There were interesting secondary characters, but I don't want to mention their names because spoilers. I really enjoyed that the beginning of a romance was with a secondary character, it changed a little.

The paranormal was well added to the plot, because it was the reason for crimes, even if the rest of the world turned a blind eye to that truth, it made it so much more realistic! This book has all type of paranormal creatures, from ghost to shape-shifters, it was just "all the stories are true" (virtual cookie for you if you know what that came from ;) ). The fact that there wasn't a chapter thirteen was funny, because of the number. Everything was made for the paranormal to make sense.

The ending was so Doctor Who, with the Doctor and his companion going on a new adventure, it was nice to read, because the book could end like that and be a standalone, but at the same time, there is room for so many things (I can't wait to read the second book!).

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?