Review: She Smells The Dead by E J Stevens

Title:  She Smells The Dead

Author:  E J Stevens

Series:  Spirit Guide, Book #1

Genre:  YA, Paranormal, Shapeshifters

Published:  August 2010

Publisher:  Sacred Oaks Press

Format I Read: Paperback

Pages:  168

How I Got It:  received from author

Book Summary:

It's the beginning of senior year and Yuki's psychic awareness of ghostly spirits is threatening to ruin her life. Her ability to sense spirits of the dead isn't glamorous like the ghost hunting on television.

SHE SMELLS THE DEAD.

The smell impressions are becoming stronger. Yuki is being visited in her dreams, and she suspects that her friend Calvin is involved in something strange. To make matters worse her crush on Garrett is going unrequited, Yuki's friend Emma is on a rampage against bee oppression, and Calvin Miller mysteriously disappears.

Will Yuki be able to focus her powers in time to save the lost soul who is haunting her? Meanwhile, who will save Yuki from following the spirits into the light?

My Thoughts

Yuki is a unique teenager.  She has an annoying habit of smelling dead people.  When spirits have unfinished business, they haunt her until she is able to figure out how to help them.  Instead of seeing or conversing with the dead, each one has a certain smell that alerts her of their presence.  With the help of her friends, Yuki is about to be once fierce ghost whisperer.

First of all, I love the cover.  I also loved the storyline.  I’ve read a lot of ghost stories about people being able to interact with the dead and being able to help trapped spirits move on; but none where the dead could be helped without actually seeing or talking to them.  It’s a different twist and I think that’s what made She Smells The Dead so interesting to me. 

The story was a little slow at first, but once I got a sense of who Yuki was and her ability, I did enjoy the story.  I loved her support system.  Although Yuki was considered different to most kids at school, she still had Calvin and Emma by her side to share her secret with and to keep her life normal-when she’s not being haunted.

She Smells The Dead lays the foundation for a great new YA series.  E J Stevens did a wonderful job of introducing this series.  I am very interested to see what will happen next. 

My  Rating

I give She Smells The Dead four flowers of love.  If you love ghosts, Goths, and a little bit of YA romance, you will want to check this book out.

BTW, E J Stevens will be guest posting Oct 25th and giving away a signed copy of She Smells The Dead and swag.

Manifest by Artist Arthur

Title:  Manifest
Author:  Artist Arthur
Released:  August 1, 2010
Series: Mystyx, Book 1
How I Got It:  received ebook from Net Galley for review

Book Summary:

When fifteen-year-old Krystal Bentley moves to Lincoln, Connecticut, her mom's hometown, she assumes her biggest drama will be adjusting to the burbs after living in New York City.

But Lincoln is nothing like Krystal imagined. The weirdness begins when Ricky Watson starts confiding in her. He's cute, funny, a good listener-and everything she'd ever want-except that he was killed a year ago. Krystal's ghost-whispering talents soon lead other "freaks" to her door-Sasha, a rich girl who can literally disappear, and Jake, who moves objects with his mind. All three share a distinctive birthmark in the shape of an M and, fittingly call themselves the Misfits. They set out to learn what really happened to Ricky, only to realize that they aren't the only ones with mysterious powers. But if Krystal succeeds in finding out the truth about Ricky's death, will she lose him for good?

My Thoughts:
Normally, I don't read a lot of teen books but every now and then I hear good things about certain ones and have to find out what all the hype is about.

After reading Manifest, I was glad that I did.  Most teen stories don't hold my interest, but this one had me interested from the very first page.

Krystal is a troubled teen that can't seem to figure out where her life got turned upside down.  She's so angry at the decisions that have been made for her, that she lashes out at anyone that comes near her.  Her father won't return her calls, her mother is living in la la land, her new stepfather can't stand her,  and the cute ghost boy won't leave her alone. 

Ricky is recently deceased  but hasn't quite made it over to the other side. Krystal is his only connection to finding out what happened to him, but she's so caught up in her own nightmare to be concerned.

At several points in the story, I wanted to snatch Krystal and beat the brakes off her.  She wasn't a typical teen, she was actually a poster child for kids that need discipline.  But despite my feelings for the little brat, I came to love her and her story.

It's been awhile since I've read a good mystery and this book hit the spot.  It had so many twists and turns, you never knew what was going to come up next.  As far as suspects, no one was safe, because I found myself suspecting everybody.

When this book comes out, it will be going on my shelf, right next to all my other favorites.

My Rating
I give Manifest five stars because it was a wonderful read.  I do recommend this book to anyone that enjoys young adult and a good mystery.  I can't wait for the other books in this new series to come out. 

Read and excerpt from Manifest

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