Wednesday, March 5, 2008

A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb

Imagine living as a ghost for 130 years. No one has ever been able to see you, hear you, or feel you, and you've never seen another ghost. And then one day, a boy looks at you. He doesn't just look through you, he actually looks you in the eyes and acknowledges your presence. That's what happens to Helen, and now her world is suddenly linked with the human one. Not only do she and the boy, James, fall in love, but she discovers that he is actually a ghost like her but is inhabiting an abandoned human's body. Helen, following his example, also goes into a body in order to be with him, which brings about tons of trouble. She and James must find a way to be together, bring peace to the lives that they are living as humans, and find a way to heaven.

I liked this book a lot. It was written in a sort of old-fashioned style which was really neat and there was a bunch of great imagery. I liked how the author really delved into the details of living as a ghost and explored all the aspects of it. I've read about vampires and werewolves in books, but never about a ghost, so this was really cool. Also, the whole story has an aura of spookiness about it, and it sent shivers down my spine more than once. Helen and James can't remember anything about how they died in their previous lives as actual humans, and seeing them find out about their pasts was really eery. I also liked the whole romantic side of the book with Helen and James' relationship, seeing as their human bodies came from such unsimilar backgrounds. I did feel as though their relationship was rather underdeveloped and I think the author could have done a little more with it. Overall though, A Certain Slant of Light was a breath of fresh air for me. I would highly recommend this book.

4 comments:

  1. great reveiw! i've been wanting to read this book, i might have to move it up in my pile!

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  2. I hadn't heard of it until now, it sounds cool. ^^ -goes to find it-

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  3. Your review's great! I read this book a couple years ago and REALLY liked it, but somehow could never come up with a good enough summary to make it sound interesting. And sadly, once I reread it several months ago it didn't do so much for me.

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  4. i havent read this book but i think it looks good so ya idk if u should read it thats y i didnt ya i think it might be a bad book but i think it wont be its a ood book so i guess u could read it

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