Book Review: Shadowland (The Mediator #1) by Meg Cabot

About the Book:

Suze is a mediator which means that she can see and communicate with the dead. Some may think of it as a gift, but to her it's more like a curse. She doesn't like the fact that these dead people aggravate her  until she solves the problems that are keeping them from going on to the other side. When she moves to sunny California to find a ghost living in her bedroom and he doesn't seem to want her to solve his problems, she's a little stumped. She even finds herself being a tad bit attracted to him, but she hates to admit that.

Just when she thinks that she'll have it easier in California, she arrives at her new school. A different, much more violent ghost of a recently deceased teenage girl occupies the school and she is blood thirsty. Suze can't allow such an evil spirit occupy the school so she must figure out a way to get the ghost to leave for good and hopefully not become one of the dead she's become used to seeing.


My Thoughts:

This book was an enjoyable read. I really like the fact that Suze is a female character that can take care of herself. She doesn't have to rely on someone else to rescue her, but she can get herself into more trouble than she bargained for and may need a little help along the way. She's a very confident young woman in what she can do as a mediator. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that she is attracted to the (living) boy that is liked by most girls and he really seemed to be an air head. Sometimes, it makes sense for a character to like that kind of a person, but I didn't think it suited Suze to fall for a guy like him. It's also interesting that Suze can communicate with spirits but she still isn't so sure that God exists. Suze is really the only character that I feel like I got to know very well in this book. Jesse, the ghost who lives in Suze's bedroom, is probably a close second. I love the fact that this is a series of books, so I hope the other characters in the book will become more dynamic and seem more like actual people as the series goes on. I would recommend this book to fans of Meg Cabot and anyone who has an interest in the paranormal and people who can speak with ghosts.

Overal, I gave this book a 3 out of 5 stars.

You can purchase this book by clicking the links below.

E-book version

Print Paperback version

Review of Immortal Desires by Laura Eno

What if your soul mate lived in an entirely different century? That's exactly what happens in Laura Eno's book called Immortal Desires. It's a fantasy/paranormal romance novel. The theme of the book is about finding the one person that is especially made for you and a little bit about saving the human race.

The main female character, Deanna is a woman of the 21st century and is heart broken when the man she thought she loved calls off the wedding. As you would think any person might do when their heart is broken, she mopes around for awhile until a year later when she gets a job opportunity from a huge corporate office.

She thinks it's all a joke until she's actually on her way to the place in Boulder, Colorado. That's where the story really kicks off. There, she encounters a strange man in her dreams named Ian Mackay, a 16th century Scottish warrior. Unbeknownst to her he's the one creating the dreams for her because he knows the two of them are soul mates. He's an immortal who works for her boss.

What Deanna doesn't know about the strange job opportunity is that she isn't there to really DO anything. Her boss, Robert Thornton, plans to have her recycled into the well of souls. He, Ian, and the Aeneas Council are against another set of immortal beings called the Conri who are trying to take the souls for themselves because they think that what Robert and the Aeneas are doing is stopping the existence of the human race.

Ian doesn't want Deanna's soul to be recycled and convinces Robert to send her back to him in the 16th century.

The question that's on their minds is what kind of effect will their action have on the project and what things will change for Ian and his clan who were known to have all died out after he ceased to exist because he had had no children? Also, how does this action impact the whole of humanity?

This story made me feel all the warm tinglies of a great romance novel and the suspense of an awesome paranormal experience. In a strange way, I felt as if the book also tried to explain the answer to the question of what humanity really is all about. Is it moral for an immortal to have say over a human's own life? Is it necessary to kill off someone just so that humans will not go extinct? That's my personal take from the book, of course, it may speak to you in a whole entirely different way.

 I loved the way the story  flowed and how the point of view would change between Ian, Deanna, and Robert so that there is no missing out on a single idea of the story. When I started reading, I just couldn't put it down until I'd finished it from cover to cover.

The story of 16th century Scotland was amazing as well. I was intrigued with the comparison of the 1500s to the present and it got me to thinking about my own culture and where I come from. Over all, it's such an amazing read and I do not regret a single word of it! It's worth your time, trust me.


You can buy the book here: Amazon: Kindle Version
                                       Amazon Paperback
                                     
Of course, there may be other places to buy this book, but I included these two links.

Also, be sure to check out Laura Eno on Goodreads!