It's Sunday! Time for a review. Today I'm reviewing this lovely book which I received as an ARC from a contest through Spencer Hill Press:
Jodi Marshall isn’t sure how she went from normal teenager to walking disaster. One minute she’s in her junior year of high school, spending time with her amazing boyfriend and her best friend. The next she’s being stalked by some guy no one seems to know.
After the stranger, Alex, reveals himself, Jodi learns he’s not a normal teenager and neither is she. With a kiss that kills and a touch that brings the dead back to life, Jodi discovers she’s part of a branch of necromancers born under the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. A branch of necromancers that are descendents of Medusa. A branch of necromancers with poisoned blood writhing in their veins.
Jodi’s deadly to the living and even more deadly to the deceased. She has to leave her old, normal life behind before she hurts the people she loves. As if that isn’t difficult enough, Jodi discovers she’s the chosen one who has to save the rest of her kind from perishing at the hands of Hades. If she can’t figure out how to control her power, history will repeat itself, and her race will become extinct
After the stranger, Alex, reveals himself, Jodi learns he’s not a normal teenager and neither is she. With a kiss that kills and a touch that brings the dead back to life, Jodi discovers she’s part of a branch of necromancers born under the 13th sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus. A branch of necromancers that are descendents of Medusa. A branch of necromancers with poisoned blood writhing in their veins.
Jodi’s deadly to the living and even more deadly to the deceased. She has to leave her old, normal life behind before she hurts the people she loves. As if that isn’t difficult enough, Jodi discovers she’s the chosen one who has to save the rest of her kind from perishing at the hands of Hades. If she can’t figure out how to control her power, history will repeat itself, and her race will become extinct
Title: Touch of Death (Touch of Death #1)
Author: Kelly Hashway
Publication Date: January 15, 2013
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
I write for children of all ages from picture books up to young adult. I am proudly represented by Lauren Hammond of ADA Management. My debut YA, TOUCH OF DEATH, releases January 15, 2013 through Spencer Hill Press. Also look for my other upcoming YA novels: STALKED BY DEATH (Spencer Hill Press, July 23, 2013), THE MONSTER WITHIN (Spencer Hill Press, April 2014), THE DARKNESS WITHIN (Spencer Hill Press, TBA), and INTO THE FIRE (Month9Books, spring 2014). My debut MG series CURSE OF THE GRANVILLE FORTUNE releases in 2016 through Month9Books.For more about me and my published works, please visit my blog at http://kellyhashway.blogspot.com or check out my Facebook fan page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelly-H....
So, without further delay. Here are my thoughts:
I want to thank the publisher, Spencer Hill Press, for providing me with an ARC of this book through their Christmas Giveaway contest. Winning this book for free has in no way influenced my review or opinion.
So, let me first say that I was totally upset with myself for missing out on getting an ARC directly from the publisher in the first place. I just put in too late for it. So, when I won a copy, you can't believe how excited I was. Not that I would not have gone out and gotten a copy anyway, I mean, look at that gorgeous cover! I love the cover. It's totally and completely amazing. The girl, the background, everything about it makes me want to pic it up and read it!
Then there are the characters.
First there's Jodi. She's an interesting character. She's quite naive, seeing as she has been home schooled for almost all of her life. Now that she's in the public school system, she's learning what it means to have friends, and a boyfriend. She's also learning that she's different, although she can't quite put her finger on what that is. I like how she slowly discovers things, how it's all very much a mystery to her, but she doesn't seem scared by it, more interested than anything else. Although I do find that she's not quite as scared by some things that would freak me out if I were a teenage girl. She's not weak, which is a nice change from many of the YA characters I have seen. And she's not afraid to stand up for what she believes. She's relatable and believable. And, while she is strong, she still has those silly teenage tendencies to be a bit unsure of herself at times.
Alex, well, he's swoon worthy for sure. First off, green eyes? Heck yeah! gotta love that about a guy. He does start off as kind of a creep, but he means it in a sincere way. And since he's not quite used to being around people like Jodi and her friends, I get the feeling he's not quite sure how to act. There is a lot of mystery surrounding him, and the clues as to who he is and why he's hanging around Jodi come slowly, to both the reader and the main character! He has a sweetness to him, but he also likes to hide things, and keep things back that he believes Jodi may not be ready to hear or learn about. And he certainly had a great sense of humor. He and Jodi had some nice banter in this book.
The secondary characters are a great supporting cast. There are good and bad, for sure, tho it's hard to tell who is who until the very end. I don't want to delve too deeply into them but know that you have a: best friend, boyfriend, snotty girl, overpowering mother, displease father, and supportive teacher.
The story, well, it certainly was unlike anything I have read before. I love the way it wraps Greek mythology about Medusa into it's midst. You rarely see her as the center point of a book based on this. It's been a long time since I've read anything at all about her. So it was nice to get a bit of a refresher before I was introduced to the main part of the story. This is the first book I have read that includes some kind of walking dead or zombie in it and necromancers. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it sure was different. And since I have recently gotten into The Walking Dead, it was a perfect way to bide my time while this show is on it's hiatus!
I enjoyed Hashway's writing. I found it to be clean and easy to follow. She developed the characters well, giving each their own unique personality. I did find the tone of the writing to be a bit young, as I'm used to reading more mature YA writing, I suppose. But Hashway certainly pulls off the creep factor underlying this book and gives us a fairly fast paced read with action, adventure and a bit of romance.
All in all I enjoyed this book as a fast and easy read. Mostly I was happy to not be bogged down with a ton of characters I needed to learn about and remember. I wanted a book that would take me on a journey without having to have my mind sunk into it so deep I had to think hard to understand it. I think it would be something a younger teen would enjoy, as opposed to an older teen. I'm interested to see where Hashwway takes her story with the second book.
4 out of 5 stars from me.
So, let me first say that I was totally upset with myself for missing out on getting an ARC directly from the publisher in the first place. I just put in too late for it. So, when I won a copy, you can't believe how excited I was. Not that I would not have gone out and gotten a copy anyway, I mean, look at that gorgeous cover! I love the cover. It's totally and completely amazing. The girl, the background, everything about it makes me want to pic it up and read it!
Then there are the characters.
First there's Jodi. She's an interesting character. She's quite naive, seeing as she has been home schooled for almost all of her life. Now that she's in the public school system, she's learning what it means to have friends, and a boyfriend. She's also learning that she's different, although she can't quite put her finger on what that is. I like how she slowly discovers things, how it's all very much a mystery to her, but she doesn't seem scared by it, more interested than anything else. Although I do find that she's not quite as scared by some things that would freak me out if I were a teenage girl. She's not weak, which is a nice change from many of the YA characters I have seen. And she's not afraid to stand up for what she believes. She's relatable and believable. And, while she is strong, she still has those silly teenage tendencies to be a bit unsure of herself at times.
Alex, well, he's swoon worthy for sure. First off, green eyes? Heck yeah! gotta love that about a guy. He does start off as kind of a creep, but he means it in a sincere way. And since he's not quite used to being around people like Jodi and her friends, I get the feeling he's not quite sure how to act. There is a lot of mystery surrounding him, and the clues as to who he is and why he's hanging around Jodi come slowly, to both the reader and the main character! He has a sweetness to him, but he also likes to hide things, and keep things back that he believes Jodi may not be ready to hear or learn about. And he certainly had a great sense of humor. He and Jodi had some nice banter in this book.
The secondary characters are a great supporting cast. There are good and bad, for sure, tho it's hard to tell who is who until the very end. I don't want to delve too deeply into them but know that you have a: best friend, boyfriend, snotty girl, overpowering mother, displease father, and supportive teacher.
The story, well, it certainly was unlike anything I have read before. I love the way it wraps Greek mythology about Medusa into it's midst. You rarely see her as the center point of a book based on this. It's been a long time since I've read anything at all about her. So it was nice to get a bit of a refresher before I was introduced to the main part of the story. This is the first book I have read that includes some kind of walking dead or zombie in it and necromancers. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it sure was different. And since I have recently gotten into The Walking Dead, it was a perfect way to bide my time while this show is on it's hiatus!
I enjoyed Hashway's writing. I found it to be clean and easy to follow. She developed the characters well, giving each their own unique personality. I did find the tone of the writing to be a bit young, as I'm used to reading more mature YA writing, I suppose. But Hashway certainly pulls off the creep factor underlying this book and gives us a fairly fast paced read with action, adventure and a bit of romance.
All in all I enjoyed this book as a fast and easy read. Mostly I was happy to not be bogged down with a ton of characters I needed to learn about and remember. I wanted a book that would take me on a journey without having to have my mind sunk into it so deep I had to think hard to understand it. I think it would be something a younger teen would enjoy, as opposed to an older teen. I'm interested to see where Hashwway takes her story with the second book.
4 out of 5 stars from me.
So, don't delay. You know you want to go out and scoop this one up! Click on the link below to buy through Amazon!
Thanks for a great review. I'm so glad you enjoyed Touch of Death.
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