Hello everyone!
For this week's Saturday Pages I have a book that I devoured in one night and stayed up till I finished it (it's a good thing I usually don't work morning shift!) and that I am very thankful to Faye from The Social Potato for insisting that I HAD to read it!!
This is the first book that will count for my 2015 Debut Author Challenge and as an ARC (thank you Mcmillan Children's!!) it counts towards one of my categories in the 105 Challenge!!
Shutter by Courtney Alameda
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
My first reaction on seeing this book's cover was to shudder and ignore it because it looked like a scary book, and I'm a total wuss!
But then I read the review that my friend Faye wrote at Xpresso Reads and boy, I got so damned excited about the book!! Then I read another equally good review for it from Maja and I knew I HAD to read this book! So once I saw it on NetGalley, I requested it, crossed my fingers and did a happy dance when I got approved!
I dived straight into it without refreshing myself on the summary, so when all the last names and the connections with the old families I was even more excited about the book's story!
Micheline is our main character and she's a hunter of paranormal entities, a Helsing and a tetrachromat, and her weapon of choice is an analog DSLR camera with special lenses to capture ghosts. Micheline was a fantastic character, she was strong and stubborn, with a lot of loss in her past that has changed who she is from who she was, but she still fights, she still cares for her friends and she goes head first into danger!
The book starts right into the action, and we're learning about everything as we go, so it's a wild ride indeed! The pace was great, no time to be bored at all, because when we aren't following Micheline and her team fighting ghosts, we're dealing with the aftermath and getting extra information and world building. I loved the dynamics in the team, Micheline and her boys: Oliver, Jude and Ryder. I love how the main 4 have a strong team feel and there are no love triangles, thank goodness!
There IS romance in this one but it's the not overwhelming, slow burn sort of romance, the one where they're friends first, have been team mates, supported each other through the tough times, and ready to jumpt to hell if need be! I shipped these two since the first hint at something else about them and I cannot wait to see the progression of them in the next book!
The plot of this one was very well done since I was kept wondering for a good half of the book, even if I had guessed (right) who the main villain was before Micheline did, which only irked me a bit, because I was too busy turning pages and waiting to see what will happen next! I was glued to the pages and finished it in one sitting!
I highly recommend this one, it's urban fantasy with a strong paranormal/supernatural element, with action that will keep you reading while biting your nails! Very well deserved 4 to 4.5 stars! I cannot wait for the sequel!!
View all my reviews
For this week's Saturday Pages I have a book that I devoured in one night and stayed up till I finished it (it's a good thing I usually don't work morning shift!) and that I am very thankful to Faye from The Social Potato for insisting that I HAD to read it!!
This is the first book that will count for my 2015 Debut Author Challenge and as an ARC (thank you Mcmillan Children's!!) it counts towards one of my categories in the 105 Challenge!!
Shutter by Courtney AlamedaMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
My first reaction on seeing this book's cover was to shudder and ignore it because it looked like a scary book, and I'm a total wuss!
But then I read the review that my friend Faye wrote at Xpresso Reads and boy, I got so damned excited about the book!! Then I read another equally good review for it from Maja and I knew I HAD to read this book! So once I saw it on NetGalley, I requested it, crossed my fingers and did a happy dance when I got approved!
I dived straight into it without refreshing myself on the summary, so when all the last names and the connections with the old families I was even more excited about the book's story!
Micheline is our main character and she's a hunter of paranormal entities, a Helsing and a tetrachromat, and her weapon of choice is an analog DSLR camera with special lenses to capture ghosts. Micheline was a fantastic character, she was strong and stubborn, with a lot of loss in her past that has changed who she is from who she was, but she still fights, she still cares for her friends and she goes head first into danger!
The book starts right into the action, and we're learning about everything as we go, so it's a wild ride indeed! The pace was great, no time to be bored at all, because when we aren't following Micheline and her team fighting ghosts, we're dealing with the aftermath and getting extra information and world building. I loved the dynamics in the team, Micheline and her boys: Oliver, Jude and Ryder. I love how the main 4 have a strong team feel and there are no love triangles, thank goodness!
There IS romance in this one but it's the not overwhelming, slow burn sort of romance, the one where they're friends first, have been team mates, supported each other through the tough times, and ready to jumpt to hell if need be! I shipped these two since the first hint at something else about them and I cannot wait to see the progression of them in the next book!
The plot of this one was very well done since I was kept wondering for a good half of the book, even if I had guessed (right) who the main villain was before Micheline did, which only irked me a bit, because I was too busy turning pages and waiting to see what will happen next! I was glued to the pages and finished it in one sitting!
I highly recommend this one, it's urban fantasy with a strong paranormal/supernatural element, with action that will keep you reading while biting your nails! Very well deserved 4 to 4.5 stars! I cannot wait for the sequel!!
View all my reviews
So glad you enjoyed this one Pili!! Isn't that cover terrifying O.O
ReplyDeleteThe cover was so damned scary it almost put me off reading the book!
DeleteThank you Kristen!
Great review Pili. <3 I'm glad you enjoyed this book :D Though.. I had big issues with it :\ just not good enough in my eyes, hih. But I do get why you liked it :) Thank you for sharing your thoughts about it sweetie. <3
ReplyDeleteThank you sweetie! I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy this one more!
DeleteUrban fantasy? Not horror? I'm still going to pass but it's not what I thought it would be!
ReplyDeleteAlyssa @ The Eater of Books!
It has some horror elements here and there, mostly the tension and all that, but I'd consider it more urban fantasy/paranormal than horror!
DeleteSo happy to see that you liked this one, Pili! I love this one so, so much! The characters were amazing, and the author wrote the multi-genres really well. You feel the horror and the suspense and the action so amazingly.
ReplyDeleteFaye at The Social Potato
YUP, YUP! I'm so very happy you insisted on how it wasn't really scary but more full of action and suspense!
DeleteThank you, Faye!
Dude, I had the same initial reaction as you. That cover is damn scary and I cannot deal with horror AT ALL. If I ever see blood when I'm watching a TV show, I already just wanna run and hide under the covers lol. This seems fantastic though! I clearly need to reconsider this one.
ReplyDeleteLovely review, Pili! <33
Isn't it so scary? But yeah, if even a wuss like me dealt with it, it's not truly horror, so I hope you'll give this one a chance Melanie!
DeleteLove the sound of the supernatural element here Pili! Isn't it wonderful when you discover a new read from a review? I love how the romance slowly develops from a friends first though, that's what makes it so sweet. Great review Pili!
ReplyDeleteYUP! I love how I thought the book wouldn't be for me (bad Pili judging a book by its cover) but then I read Faye's review and realized I might really end up loving it and I did!
DeleteI had the exact same reaction as you when I saw the cover. I'm a huge wuss when it comes to horror books - my imagination goes into overdrive and I end up not sleeping. But your review definitely has me intrigued! I'm definitely reconsidering this one and may add it to my list of books I can buy this year.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the fantastic review, Pili!
YES, YES! Do add it to your list Samantha! I'm the biggest wuss and this was intriguing and tense but not scary! I finished it in one night and then slept like a baby!
DeleteHahaha I love how your first reaction to the book was to shudder lol ;) Didn't know this was a series but I'm so happy you enjoyed it! Now I gotta try too!
ReplyDeleteYES!! You have to Eileen! It was a fantastic book & debut!! And I think it's a trilogy!
Deletei would like to read this i believe!
ReplyDeleteI think you'd like this one loads, Britt!!
DeleteI didn't like the cover to this one, so I kind of skipped over it if I am honest. But as more and more positive reviews started to tick in I knew this had to be one I should try. So yes, I can't wait to read this.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the cover was also the reason I almost passed this one over, but I highly recommend you check this one, Olivia!
Delete