Publication: August 1, 2015, by Merit Press
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 224
Format: Hardcover
Source: Publisher
Rating:
Granted, Arielle has a vast, excitable imagination. But she's not imagining how strange and out of control her life becomes after the death by drowning of her older sister's best friend, Perdita. Not only does this death echo the death of Arielle's own older brother, ten years before, it leads to dreams and visions in which Perdita seems to be reaching out to Arielle, asking for her help. The only other explanation—that Arielle's high-strung emotions have finally caused her to break with reality—is even more terrifying. A story that builds to greater and greater heights of suspicion and fear, Perdita is also a multi-layered literary achievement that leaves no emotion untouched.
My Thoughts:
This book is life, honestly. I seriously could not believe that I loved it so much! You know when your expectations blow you away and you discover that a book was just so freaking amazing when your initial reaction was down the toilet? Yeah, that is what happened with Faith Gardner's Perdita. It's mesmerizing, but not full of fantasy as I expected it to be. Sure, our main character, Arielle, sees ghosts, but it is not the main point or theme of the novel. In fact, it is just a small itsy-bitsy plot addition that made readers and myself want to continue reading. It was full of racing, heart-pounding moments where I, myself, wanted to solve the mystery and help the characters deal with the grief that they have been going through, in multiple layers—like a top-tiered cake.
This was a story that had many layers, when you think about it. No, seriously. There was romance (a gorgeous one, in fact), a paranormal mystery and loss. Everything that is the worst possible situation in your life was switched and crumbled into this beautiful story. I adore this cover, the water lily making the book seem so dark with a few rays of light making me feel better. This is a special book, no doubt about it.
Arielle was the absolute highlight of Faith Gardner's tale. Her attitude was contrasting, different than every other protagonist's personality with a whip of her own thing going on. She was naïve, but in that interesting way that did not give the answer and solution of the issues in the book out to all readers from the fiftieth page or so. It is a quick, juicy read that made me tremble, need a blanket, and a cup of good ole hot chocolate to warm me up because MAN, that was overwhelmingly scary. I find that I am being shocked quite a bit lately with these new thrillers coming into my face. Egh.
This mystery made absolute sense. When Gardner flashed the answer to readers' eyes and when Arielle herself solved it like a good Nancy Drew, I understood why. I find that authors sometimes are not the best at keeping a secret for a long time, and hints are given out throughout the whole story. This? Nada, nothing. And I loved it. I was not here reading it so I could find the answer myself and then rant for the whole review, saying that it was given away. No sir-ee. The answers were put out, we discovered a little more insight on the side characters who seemed too suspicious for this story to go on without them, and the story moved on, sadly.
I'm not looking for a sequel, but for more by Faith Gardner. Her writing instantly flows with the mood and themes of the book. The clip at the cover of the novel, "Is a dead girl trying to reach her?" has nothing to do with the story, and although that was a horrible mistake, it did shock me to see how much I actually enjoyed the story. The romance was there, I fell in love with the characters and the way the events progressed as I flipped through the pages. More contemporary novels should be like Perdita, it is a guideline, in fact, for enjoyment.
It is so realistic, as you could see from the quote above. It is absolutely difficult to mix a contemporary with paranormal and hope for the best... but Faith did it. And I seriously recommend this book to all, wishing for everyone to give it a chance (GIVE IT LOVE) and adore it as much as I did. It was truly magical. Wooo!
*Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a finished copy to review!*
This was a story that had many layers, when you think about it. No, seriously. There was romance (a gorgeous one, in fact), a paranormal mystery and loss. Everything that is the worst possible situation in your life was switched and crumbled into this beautiful story. I adore this cover, the water lily making the book seem so dark with a few rays of light making me feel better. This is a special book, no doubt about it.
"It's not easy having a shrink for a mom—she's rarely home, and when she is, she's got all sorts of theories about my behaviour. Most if not every one of those theories often leads back to what I "could do better" and ways I "could improve." Fun stuff. Anyway, I could definitely improve my being a teenage scaredy-cat, apparently." (20)
Arielle was the absolute highlight of Faith Gardner's tale. Her attitude was contrasting, different than every other protagonist's personality with a whip of her own thing going on. She was naïve, but in that interesting way that did not give the answer and solution of the issues in the book out to all readers from the fiftieth page or so. It is a quick, juicy read that made me tremble, need a blanket, and a cup of good ole hot chocolate to warm me up because MAN, that was overwhelmingly scary. I find that I am being shocked quite a bit lately with these new thrillers coming into my face. Egh.
This mystery made absolute sense. When Gardner flashed the answer to readers' eyes and when Arielle herself solved it like a good Nancy Drew, I understood why. I find that authors sometimes are not the best at keeping a secret for a long time, and hints are given out throughout the whole story. This? Nada, nothing. And I loved it. I was not here reading it so I could find the answer myself and then rant for the whole review, saying that it was given away. No sir-ee. The answers were put out, we discovered a little more insight on the side characters who seemed too suspicious for this story to go on without them, and the story moved on, sadly.
I'm not looking for a sequel, but for more by Faith Gardner. Her writing instantly flows with the mood and themes of the book. The clip at the cover of the novel, "Is a dead girl trying to reach her?" has nothing to do with the story, and although that was a horrible mistake, it did shock me to see how much I actually enjoyed the story. The romance was there, I fell in love with the characters and the way the events progressed as I flipped through the pages. More contemporary novels should be like Perdita, it is a guideline, in fact, for enjoyment.
"I could go. I can imagine it. I could hop on the back of his motorcycle and we could ride to another state. Somewhere snowy in the winter, somewhere nestled in pine trees, some small town where no one knows who the Delaneys or the Dells are. We could get jobs, GEDs. We could start a life together. We could be so happy." (219)
It is so realistic, as you could see from the quote above. It is absolutely difficult to mix a contemporary with paranormal and hope for the best... but Faith did it. And I seriously recommend this book to all, wishing for everyone to give it a chance (GIVE IT LOVE) and adore it as much as I did. It was truly magical. Wooo!
*Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a finished copy to review!*
Has a book ever tricked you into thinking that it was actually revolved around a different genre? Would you read a book that went from ghosts to reality and contemporary?
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