Far From You

Far From You

by Tess Sharpe

Source: Liberty Bay Books

Format: Physical ARC

Nine months. Two weeks. Six days.

That's how long recovering addict Sophie's been drug-free. Four months ago her best friend, Mina, died in what everyone believes was a drug deal gone wrong - a deal they think Sophie set up. Only Sophie knows the truth. She and Mina shared a secret, but there was no drug deal. Mina was deliberately murdered.

Forced into rehab for an addiction she'd already beaten, Sophie's finally out and on the trail of the killer - but can she track them down before they come for her?

I wasn't sure if I'd like this one when I started out. Infact, I wasn't sure if I even wanted to pick it up, but I fell in love within the first pages. Every second I spent reading it was well worth it.

This is one of those raw books that just tears at you inside as it progressive. It was so real and emotional, with intense mystery. It was amazing and the plot was masterfully spun. I was reeling with every turn and it was perfectly paced. I had my suspicions, but I was still surprised when all the pieces fell together at the end. The end was just as intense as the beginning and every second in between, it was utterly satisfying. 

Sharpe kept the writing perfectly simple, letting the story speak for itself rather than overwhelm it with fancy words. There was detail where it was needed and tasteful, but really Sharpe let the emotions shine through, and the story take over, and it was brilliant.

Characters. Ah Sophie. Sophie is possibly my favorite flawed character ever. She has so much going on and there are so many reasons she should be a totally unreliable character and far too flawed to be a good balanced character, but it didn't come out that way. I loved every single part of her, and especially her flaws. She was stunning and amazingly real. She also developed beautifully, the pace of the development was really great, and the progression/development ran so deep

All the other characters were brilliant even in their pain, misfortune, and fear. I feel like Sharpe really realized that if she was going to write such a dark story with so many negatives and flaws, then there needed to be some bright spots to help readers get through it and she did a great job of bringing those out and balancing the dark and the light. One of the ways she did it was through supporting characters, Sophie's friend and Aunt were so fun and positive and even though I didn't get to know them very well, or for very long, but it seemed I knew them the instant they were introduced, and they were spectacularly loveable, and surprisingly prominent for their roles.

Sophie's parents were actually involved and it was so cool to be able to see both sides of parent child conflict. Her dad was the sweetest thing and their relationship was so touching. Then you have Sophie's mom where the emotions are even more complicated, but still realistic and raw and just really added another dimension to the tale.

Last Thoughts: Overall, I ended up completely enamoured by this book, so much so that I couldn't see flaws. it is a truly heart wrenching, yet surprisingly empowering read that is sure to fascinate and ensnare. It will have readers holding their breath until the last page.

Note: This book deals with multiple powerful and tough issues and I would recommend that only readers that are about Sophomore age (or possibly Freshmen, depending on maturity) and up read it.

Although, my love for this one runs deep, I feel that four out of five stars or four and a half stars out of five is an apt rating.

Goodreads and Liberty Bay Books!

General Gif. Consensus: 

The Girl From The Well

The Girl From The Well

by Rin Chupeco

You may think me biased, being murdered myself. But my state of being has nothing to do with the curiosity toward my own species, if we can be called such. We do not go gentle, as your poet encourages, into that good night. 

A dead girl walks the streets.

She hunts murderers. Child killers, much like the man who threw her body down a well three hundred years ago.

And when a strange boy bearing stranger tattoos moves into the neighborhood so, she discovers, does something else. And soon both will be drawn into the world of eerie doll rituals and dark Shinto exorcisms that will take them from American suburbia to the remote valleys and shrines of Aomori, Japan.

Because the boy has a terrifying secret - one that would just kill to get out. 

 I really, really  love horror type books. I haven't read many, but I must say every one of the ones I've tried has been totally worth it. The Girl From The Well was no exception, and worth every penny.

I thought it was going to be ALL about Okiku. Thankfully it wasn't. It was also largely Tark's story. I honestly don't think it would have worked as well if it had been all about Okiku 24/7.  There was a good balance that really helped take the book to the next level.

I loved every. Single. Character. Ok, that's not entirely true,  I wasn't a huge fan of Tark's dad. He wasn't really there, he cared, but it didn't really seem like he did. His actions felt conflicted. (I also wasn't a fan of the lack of parents all around.)

Tark was adorable. I felt for him. I didn't feel super-duper connected to him or anything, but I really did sympathize with him and I really enjoyed him.

Okiku was definitely my favorite, but I feel like that was because I got to know her best out of all of them. I loved how she was used as an unreliable narrator and the way she is so conflicted. Her struggle is so beautiful and she just makes you feel all the feels.

Callie was a really cool character she was kind, strong, and independent, and really a great role model. However, she wasn't setting standards insanely high. She was very normal and expressed human emotions and reactions to the situation like not trusting the creepy, murdering, ghost girl. Common sense folks, this girl had it. After a while I was kind of annoyed with her distrust though. Okiku had already proved she was trying to do the right thing. She'd always come through for Tark and Callie and their loved ones, she was helping souls, and the only people she hurt kind of deserved it. Yet Callie still won't trust or believe that Okiku won't do something crazy like posess them or murder her and Tark in their sleep. I get that she does some bad stuff but by the end we've pretty much established that she won't ever hurt them. However, that may just be because I am biased and love Okiku. I do understand Callie's distrust, I just was pretty much over it by the end, and I wanted her to be over it too. 

Miscellaneous things I loved:

-Plot. It was very suspenseful and mysterious. This one is a page turner. It was a bit heavy, but I still wanted to devour it.

-Revealing. The mystery was unparalleled. Chupeco did such an amazing job of dropping little hints and giving just enough information that it wasn't confusing, but you still didn't really know the whole picture. She didn't reveal it all so slowly that it was painful, and it never all came out in a big section of word vomit and info dumping.

-Writing/Style. The feeling of the writing and just everything about it from the perspective to the style was cool and creepy and intense. Not many books are written like this one let alone achieve that same chilling and suspenseful feel.

One last issue:

-The ending. I was so ready for a killer ending. I wanted it to be resolved but I wanted my heart to still be racing by the end. I wanted to be holding my breath and to have my heart twisted. None of that happened. It was resolved, but  maybe a little too much so. It was like everyone, or almost everyone rode off into the Disney sunset and all was right with the world again. It wasn't a bad ending, I just wanted it to be a bit more gritty, and more bittersweet after all I went through to get there. There was such build up then it just ended.

Last Thoughts: This book may or may not have claimed my soul. It was one of the creepiest and most successfully suspenseful and mysterious books I've read. Tastefully freaky, it will get under your skin and once it does, there is no stopping until you've read every word.

Four and a half or five stars, I can't decide. Either way it receives my highest recommendation and my utmost devotion. ;)

Goodreads and Liberty Bay Books.

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