 |
| Source: Goodreads.com |
Publishing Date: January 3rd, 2012
Page Count: 304
Source: Borrowed from my Local Library
Format: Hardcover
Description from Goodreads.com:
Isobel's life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she met on the internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling, gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, social life. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievably good-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother.
But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that it isn't only her life unraveling-her sanity might be giving way too. Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father did before her, or she's seeing ghosts. Either way, Isobel's fast on her way to being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.
Review:
I have been looking forward to reading this novel for a long time. The cover was the first thing to get me hooked, because its so pretty, but seeing it in person is even better. That purple cover is breathtaking. I was always drawn Unraveling Isobel, because it sounded like it was going to be very interesting and maybe remind me of "Ghost Whisperer", which is one of my favorite TV shows, and i have been just dying to find a book like that. Unfortunately, Unraveling Isobel is not like "Ghost Whisperer", but it was still a very good read and definitely peeked my interests and kept me reading till the end.
From the beginning i was pretty much hooked. There wasn't a dull moment in Unraveling Isobel where i wanted to skip to the good part, because on almost every page there was a good part. I really loved Isobel, because she was such a true teenager. She didn't act unrealistic and i honestly loved that she felt like she was going crazy, because every teen has had that feeling that they don't fit in and that they are overwhelmed, or that things will never get better. I will admit that the crush on the step brother did weird me out a little. I wasn't appalled by it or anything, because they aren't related so it wasn't really incest, but it was just the point that they were supposed to act like siblings and it just rubbed me the wrong way. I did get over it though and just tried to pretend that they weren't related by marriage so that i could just enjoy the story. I do feel that Cook might have felt the same way, though. Like the crush wasn't quite okay or that others might feel that way about it, because she definitely made sure to hammer it in at every possible moment to mention that they were in no way truly related.
Besides all of that i really loved where the story went. It was a pretty creepy book and just kept getting more chilling as it went on. Just to give you an image of how creepy this book gets, or how much of a chicken yours truly is, i just recently moved into a new house and so i was already on my toes being alone in it, but one day i decided to read while waiting for my family to get home. Now keep in mind that it was the middle of the day, around 2pm, with the blinds open, sitting in the living room, and i was getting so scared that i had to stop reading and watch tv. We could just chalk it up to me being nervous in my new house (that could have ghosts! haha) or me being chicken, or we could just say that its Unraveling Isobels's fault, which is what i am going to go with. The last thing that i loved that i am going to mention is the ending. You honestly don't know what the ending will be like until the very last chapter. Its not like other books where the ending is predictable and you already know ahead of time how this will play out, because the reels in your head are constantly going with this one and will not stop until the last page when everything is finally laid out.
Overall:
I really enjoyed Unraveling Isobel. It was different from other ghost related novels that i have read and it definitely still got me spooked. I recommend this to anyone looking for a ghost mystery YA. Hats off to you Eileen Cook, your novel is definitely one of my favorites.
Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 4/5
