Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Review: Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Release Date: November 22, 2010 Publisher: Penguin Australia
Genre: Paranormal
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 348
Source: Penguin Australia
Blurb (from Penguin Australia
Sam leads a pretty normal life. He may not have the most exciting job in the world, but he's doing all right - until a fast food prank brings him to the attention of Douglas, a creepy guy with an intense violent streak. Turns out Douglas is a necromancer who raises the dead for cash and sees potential in Sam. Then Sam discovers he's a necromancer too, but with strangely latent powers. And his worst nightmare wants to join forces . . . or else. With only a week to figure things out, Sam needs all the help he can get. Luckily he lives in Seattle
The Quickie Review
Slacker Sam’s suddenly cosy life is shattered when he discovers he’s a necromancer (fancy word for someone who is able to raise the dead), now poor Sam is introduced to a whole new world he never knew existed whilst trying to deal with a crazy power hungry necromancer, a talking head, a locked up hybrid werewolf cross faerie and a baby faced wise beyond her years harbinger, what’s a slacker to do? Hold Me Closer, Necromancer is a darkly funny, action packed debut novel from Lish McBride which will leave you asking ‘will there be a sequel Lish?’
The Full Blown Review
Poor Sam he’s not having the best week but somehow getting threatened by some weirdo in a suit is the least of his worries as his week is only getting worse what with a talking head that used to be his friend hanging around and being attacked by this crazy guy with exceptional strength who can remove a car bumper with their hand. Apparently Sam is a necromancer and a powerful one at that - someone just forgot to mention that to Sam- suddenly Sam is wanted by one of the most powerful necromancers around for being a threat and you don’t want to get on that mans bad side, believe me.
I loved this book which I wasn’t expecting at all, actually I had no idea what I was getting into when I picked up this book, it just turned up one day from the wonderful folks over at Penguin Australia and boy am I happy it did because from simply reading the blurb alone I probably wouldn’t have picked it up otherwise (that sounds bad doesn’t it? But it’s true).
From the very first chapter I knew I would love Sam and I did, he was very funny, he had this great deadpan humor going on with a touch of sarcasm which I am especially fond of (I am exceptionally versed in the subtle art of sarcasm, just ask my parents). I especially loved his sharp witty banter with the other characters in the book especially Ramon his best friend and co-worker at Plumpy’s (is that not the best name for a fast food restaurant ever? Plumpy’s it just rolls off the tongue). Lish also wrote some really intense scenes with Sam and his mother which were very realistic, I really felt for poor old Sam, I'd be pretty ticked off too especially considering the secret she was keeping from him.
Apart from getting Sam’s perspective we also delve into the heads of three other characters, Ramon, Sam’s best friend and Plumpy’s grill cook extraordinaire, Douglas Montgomery, an exceptionally powerful sadistic necromancer, and Brid, a hybrid werewolf cross faerie who has been captured by Douglas for one of his creepy experiments.
Ramon is a friend anyone would want as were Sam’s two other Plumpy’s co-workers, Frank and Brooke, they were all willing to do anything to help Sam. I especially loved how the boys were really protective over Brooke even after her little incident with Douglas and a sword, they took it all so well and were very caring towards her.
Now what can I say about Douglas , I don’t think I can sufficiently put his creepiness into words, all I can say is that man is one twisted necromancer. The scenes where he was trying to train Sam in his necromancer abilities showed just how much of an evil sod he was. On the flip side we have Brid who was a kick ass heroine, she was so strong even after everything that happened to her. I really loved how we got to see through Brid’s flashbacks her interactions with her close knit family which gave us a real insight into her character. Also fear not romance lovers there’s a little bit of lovin’ that goes on between Brid and Sam.
From the get go the story progresses at a quick pace and doesn’t really slow down until the end and speaking of the end I really hope there’s going to be a sequel, its definitely possible with the ending, so here’s hoping!
So if you’re looking for a YA book with a darker tone that’s also exceptionally funny this is most definitely for you, bravo Lish McBride for writing such an entertaining read!
* I thought I should mention that the book is a tad violent, has some colorful language and a sex scene so for those of you who are a bit sensitive perhaps you should give this book a miss, its definitely a book for older YA readers as the main characters are in their late teens and in college *
Rating
4.5 out of 5
Goodies
Hold Me Closer, Necromancer Book Trailer –
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