by Phoebe Kitanidis
Release Date: 4/17/2012
Format: ARC from Author
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Age Group: YA
SUMMARY
"What if you forgot your identity and had to rely on other people to tell you who you were?
And what if to discover your true self, you first had to unravel a mystery so big and terrifying you were not sure you’d survive solving it?
When Marshall and Elyse wake up in each other’s arms with zero memory of how they got there or who they are, it’s the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future.
Terrified by their amnesia, the two make a pact to work together to find the answers that could jog their missing memories. As they piece together clues, they discover they’re in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls, where everyone seems mysteriously happy, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town’s perfect facade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything—not the death of Marshall’s mom, not the hidden shame in Elyse’s family, not even the day-to-day anguish of high school.
Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marsh and Elyse fall into an intense relationship...but the secrets they uncover could be the death of this growing love—and the death of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls."
MY REVIEW
This book is definitely going on my top 12 list for 2012!
If you're looking for a very unique and different kind of story to read, this is it!!!
The writing, the characters, the story-line, the pacing - everything is spot on... even if I wanted to, tried to, forget this book, I would never be able to! Yes, it is that good!
Can you imagine waking up, not knowing where you are or who your with? But also, having absolutely no idea who you are??? Mind blowing!
And ladies and gentlemen, that is how this story begins!
We meet Her and Him, who we eventually learn are Elyse and Marshall. As scared as they are, they are able to go with their instincts to trust one another and help each other figure out what has happened to them, why they cannot remember anything and why their town, Summer Falls, and its residents are so odd and completely out of it - it's creepy. Page-turner creepy.
Their discoveries are so unpredictable and and at times sad, you cannot help but feel what these two are going through as they discover who they are/where, how they feel about it each other before and now, and you start to really fall into this odd world of theirs and really hope that things will get better for them soon.
*A bit spoiler-ish here...
There are ghosts walking about! They're not spooky scary, but if you can see one, you better run away!
I really did like the whole paranormal twist to this story and how it developed. However, my one and only wish is that I would have liked to have known more about the the 'legendary tribe' and Summer Falls guardians at the end of the story. We do get to find out as to why and the how, but will it happen again? I'm hoping that their will be some sort of short story or novella to give a little bit more detail.
*End spoiler.
I highly recommend this book!
Magic, ghosts, mystery, trust and love all mixed into one of the best paranormal books I have read in a long while!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Phoebe Kitanidis wants you to know:
How to pronounce her last name.
It's actually really easy...
Just say "kitten eat us" really fast.
(It's Greek.)
