REVIEW: Possess by Sarah Dalton

Mary Hades is drawn back into the world of the macabre as she moves with her family into the mysterious old house, Ravenswood. The mere mention of Ravenswood induces terror among the locals, and when strange things begin to occur, Mary and Lacey decide to get to the bottom of the secret hidden in the historic house once and for all.

As a dark power gathers, Mary finds her life becomes interconnected with the disturbing events that transpired in 1847 to eleven year old Liza Blair. The more Mary is drawn into Liza’s story, the more she realises someone close to her is in grave danger from the sinister energy at Ravenswood.

Set in the backdrop of an unsettling forest, and with strange neighbour Emmaline Delacroix obsessed with death and séances, Possess will take you even deeper into the murky depths of Mary Hades’s unusual life.

Book two in the Mary Hades series.

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NOTICE: THIS IS A SEQUEL FOR ANOTHER BOOK. THERE MAY BE SPOILERS FOR THE PREVIOUS BOOK. Review of Book One.

MY THOUGHTS
After the events in the first book, Mary Hades has moved back home with her family only to have the bombshell dropped on her that the are essentially switching homes with another woman who wishes to live closer to the city. Their new home now rests out in the outskirts in a very large, old, and beautiful. A home with a history that no one will tell them. The previous owner is very jumpy, no one ever wants to come to their new home, and their odd new neighbor skirts around all questions. Mary knows something is wrong with the house, but cannot sense any ghosts. It's only her mom's strange behavior and a young girl's diary from long ago that she can begin connecting the dots.

What's interesting about this series is that each book focuses on another ghosty story and I actually very much enjoy that. It's recommended to read Mary Hades and even My Daylight Monsters, the prequel, will help you understand things, but you won't be entirely confused without the stories within them.

This book was very short and felt more like a novella than a full book. I felt like half this book was Mary and half this book was Liz, the girl from the 1800s. I thought that this was very interesting, that we got to see how the house affected the past and how it was affecting the present. I felt like a lot more was happening in Liz's parts, but the Mary timeline picks up the pace near the end. It was also interesting how history seemed to repeat itself.

As for the book itself, I wish I could've gotten more information, as I'm still confused about the house, but overall this was very frightening and dark. It brought up some very unexpected things as well. I felt like one of the strongest things in this book, though, was probably Mary and her mom's relationship. It goes through hardships in this book, but I really think it grows stronger.

For some reason, I just didn't enjoy it as much as book 1. This ghost story did have very scary aspects, but this book was very short and so it did feel a bit rushed to me.

As for romance, THERE IS NONE! Hurray! What I liked about this is the fact that it proves that you can still have a great book without the romance!

IN CONCLUSION
Overall, this was a very creepy ghost story and it was told in a very unique manner, I just didn't enjoy it as much as book 1 (though this is still a great book!). This book is very short, around 170 pages, and very gripping, so you will get through this book very quickly! I very much like how each book has it's own ghost story while still having the same basic cast of characters! I am excited to see what creepiness will come next!

I hereby give this book

3.5 Wheels

Meaning: I liked it, but it wasn't quite amazing.