Fourteen-year-old Iris and her friend Collette decide to do something different this summer in their teeny tiny town: speak to the dead. At first, Iris pretends to just go along with Collette hearing things and seeing things. Until one night, Iris really does hear something: a boy's voice. Over the course of the summer, the girls begin to piece together the town's one and only piece of unfinished news about a boy named Elijah who disappeared and whose body was never found.Although the narrator is naive and has a voice that seems much younger and far more imaginative than a fourteen-year-old, Iris does tell the story well and through plain and simple language. She doesn't like to be bossed around by Collette but is afraid to lose her best friend. She's not interested in boys but really wishes Elijah would come out and just say what he wants from her rather than pelting her bedroom with rocks.The story was haunting and a perfect ghost story to tell around a camp fire. It also captures the heart of Southern Gothic: God-fearing and superstitious people, children wandering around saying they're afraid of witchcraft but they pretend to do spells anyway, knowing the proper way to bury the dead based on who can go to heaven and who can go to hell. The sweltering heat, playing around by the river, and the ghost lights that float away from the bayou all created such a rich atmosphere for this chilling tale. Another fabulous novel from Saundra Mitchell! I just love the way she writes - you feel so connected to the characters, the scenes, and the plot. I loved her books from The Vespertine series and have been anxiously awaiting the third to come out. In the meantime, I borrowed Shadowed Summer from the library and was hooked from the first page. I'm not one to go through the plot and write my own synopsis in a review format, but if you like young adult books with a ghost story theme, you should read this book! (And then read her Vespertine series as well... seriously... pins and needles waiting for Book #3!)
What do You think about L'estate Dei Fantasmi (2011)?
I don't wish to over state things, but this book may actually be perfect.
—nnn123
Good for people who loves mystery with a pinch of horror. ;)
—angela
