Title : The SwallowAuthor : Charis Cotter
Publication date : September 9th 2014 by Tundra Books
Since I don't really read horror books, I thought why don't I give it a try. Deep down I love mysterious books, and I know horror might be a good start. Oh, the good thing is, The Swallow is a middle grade book, which is the kind I like because so far, it hasn't disappointed me.
The Swallow is a story about two girls, Polly and Rose. Both were thirteen and lived in the 1960s Toronto, Canada. Polly was a lively girl, love books about ghost, but not even once she ever came across one. Rose, in the other hand, had this gift of being able to see them. It made her frustrated because she felt like never being left alone.
The narration goes very smoothly. Honestly, for a middle grade book, I think The Swallow is quite creepy. I could feel goosebumps during reading it, which is a little unusual. The retro setting of this book also adds more spookiness. And nope, I don't have the courage to read it at night at first. It's a real page turner, with dual point of view, Rose's and Polly's, both are first person narration. Although I like Cotter's writing style, this book has the tendency of having voices that are too similar. I wish I could differ Polly's and Rose's narration and if it's not written whose story it is, I would definitely have no clue. I think it would be so much better if only one character does the first person narration while the other is told with third person point of view.
The Swallow : A Ghost Story has this twist and turns which I never saw coming. It's very good, because I never like predictable tales. The ending is also nice, no unfinished business left, with a touch of bittersweet conclusion. Overall, it's a good story about friendship, trust and letting go. I believe everyone should read this book, just to remind ourselves that good friend is very hard to find. Now, time for favorite quote:
I knew all about jealous. It ate you up. It poisoned everything. It made me hate Susie, with her baby smell and her pink PJs, who never hurt anyone. It made me hate my brothers, because my parents paid more attention to them than me. It made me hate Lu, because she was so much smarter and prettier than I'd ever be, and it made me hate Moo and Goo, because they took my father away from me. And finally, it made me hate myself for being so unpleasant and petty.
5 rating for The Swallow : A Ghost Story. I can't believe I actually love a horror book, yay! See, it could be really fun reading from outside your comfort zone. I recommend this for every horror lovers, even when you're used to read adult horror book, this one isn't less creepy, I promise. So, how about you? What's the scariest book you've ever read? Care to recommend one?
