Books for a Delicate Eternity

3 and 3/4 stars.

A copy of this novel was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, look at me, ¾ stars now. What is the world coming to?

Olivia Black is special. The main reason: she has a ghost hand.

When Olivia’s ghost hand reaches into a classmate during a Calculus test, and pulls out a baggy full of razor blades, let’s just say that’s when things start to get a little crazy for Olivia.

Let’s start off this review by saying: I really liked Ghost Hand. I was pretty excited when Ripley sent me an email asking me to review it, because it was already on my TBR list! And when I started reading, and couldn’t stop, I was even more excited.

From the moment Ghost Hand begins, Patton’s writing just grabs you by the lapels (I do not care if you are not wearing something that has lapels, lapels are the only way to grab someone), and pulls you in, head first. It was constant action, and didn’t drag once in the 300 odd pages. I hate dragging, so +1 to Ripley for achieving this. The world she created was intriguing, and inviting, and made me want to keep reading and not stop until I had finished the book (which is exactly what happened).

I liked Olivia as a character very much. I seriously felt like I was reading about a real life teenage girl. She used phrases that teenage girls in the modern day use, and I found myself laughing out loud at them. I loved how real she was - she felt like a friend telling me all of her epic adventures, and it was awesome to feel that way about a fictional character. I would have loved to learn a little bit more about her personality, as she seemed like the kind of girl I could have gotten along with. She had dyed black hair, and wore all back clothing, but we didn’t really get much insight into her obviously gothic side. Hopefully there will be more of that in book two, Ghost Hold (more on that later).

I really liked Marcus as a love interest, and I thought his cocky attitude was endearing. Bad sign. I always like the endearing cocky ones. Again, hopefully we can learn more about him in the sequel, as I still have a few questions about his past. He’s such an interesting character, and I want to know more details about how he ended up where he is right now.

The premise of this book is amazing. A ghost limb! At first I thought that Patton was referring to phantom limbs; where amputees can still feel sensations in their lost limb, but I was wrong. PSS (or Psyche Sans Soma), is something that Patton has created. I didn’t know this, and was constantly wanting to go and Google it to make sure, but I didn’t want to tear myself away from reading the story. You know an author is amazing at creating something when you’re questioning its existence in the real world.

The writing style was very engaging, and although I would have preferred some more descriptions of people and places, it didn’t impede on my enjoyment of the story that was being weaved.

I am so extremely eager to find out how this story progresses in the sequel, Ghost Hold, and I really hope I can get my hands on a copy soon! I love this unique idea, as it is becoming harder and harder to find amazing, never-before-read ideas in the YA genre, and I am so happy to have found one.

© 2013, Chiara @ Books For A Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.