Monday, December 19, 2011

Review: The Deepest Cut by JA Templeton

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The Deepest Cut
J.A. Templeton
Release date: June 27th, 2011

Goodreads / Purchase

Sixteen-year-old Riley Williams has been able to see ghosts since the car crash that took her mother’s life and shattered her family. Guilt-ridden over the belief that she’s somehow responsible for her mom’s death, Riley is desperate to see her mother’s elusive spirit to gain her forgiveness.

When her father moves the family to Scotland so they can all start over, Riley believes her life couldn’t get worse––that is until the ghost of nineteen-year-old Ian MacKinnon catches her purposely cutting herself. An uneasy truce quickly turns into friendship, and soon Riley’s falling hard for Ian.

Riley believes her gift could help Ian end the curse that has kept him tied to the land for centuries, but that would mean letting him go forever and she’s not sure she is strong enough to do that. As if her life wasn’t complicated enough, the spirit of the woman who killed Ian returns and she’ll stop at nothing to keep Riley from helping Ian find eternal peace.

*A copy was provided by JA Templeton for review purposes*
If you thought Anna Dressed in Blood was scary – It has Nothing on this one! Don’t get me wrong I really enjoyed Anna and thought it was creepy and a lot of fun. But seriously scary? Not really. The Deepest Cut gives us an actual spine-chilling ghost story that will make your hairs stand on end. Kind of like the equivalent of this: Click here at your own risk! (You know you want to!)

Riley has been able to see ghosts since her mom died a few months ago. To start over, her family moves to Scotland in a great big house that used to be an inn. She soon meets this ghost, Ian, who lived in the castle across the street and was murdered by a jealous servant who has cursed him to roam the earth for eternity. This servant – Laria – is determined to stop Riley from trying to help Ian. Let me tell you, this Laria is terrifying! And if you think ghosts can’t hurt the living, you’re wrong. Laria is evil and goes to extremes to try to get Riley to stay away. I’m a real sucker for ghost stories. Even though they scare me to death, I absolutely enjoy reading about them. The Deepest Cut is one of the best ghost stories I’ve read. Although, there were a few elements that I found unnecessary to the story (though not enough to lessen my liking of the book). Like how Riley would cut herself. I felt as if that storyline often got put on the backburner and forgotten for a while. It did help with the character development a little, yet, while I didn’t mind the side-plot, it does feel expendable. I’m also wondering why Tom was so adamant on having Riley spend time at the mausoleum. He seems like a strange character that I hope we get to find out more about later on.

Along with the hair-raising, there is also romance in this story: a convincing and passionate romance. Riley is falling fast for Ian who is clearly gorgeous, but a relationship with a ghost can’t really be real, can it? I loved how the relationship was intertwined with the ghost plot, as well as how much chemistry there was between the two. Ian is a wonderfully mysterious character that pulls on your heartstrings. It’s certainly a really unique relationship that you know can’t have a happy ending. However, JA Templeton leaves us with a killer cliffhanger that will make you rethink it all. I was extremely happy to find out the next installment is due at the end of the month because it’s definitely one of those fun-but-I-may-die-waiting type of endings.

A real page turner full of fear, love, sadness, along with bittersweet ending, The Deepest Cut will be greatly enjoyed by readers who love ghost stories that leave you undoubtedly spooked and full of mixed emotions.
 

5 Hot Espressos
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Giselle

Canadian blogger, wife, mother, coffee lover, and sarcastic at heart! She has had a love for all things bookish since before Amazon and eReaders existed *le gasp*. You can also find her organizing tours and other fun things at Xpresso Book Tours.

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31 Responses to “Review: The Deepest Cut by JA Templeton”

  3. Jenny

    Oh man, how scary is scary? I’m a huge wuss, but I got along with Anna Dressed in Blood perfectly fine:) Glad there’s some romance in there to offset the ghost story part, that will temper my wussiness:) Awesome review!

  4. Giselle

    It’s really good ladies!!

    @Jenny: Umm.. well it’s not Stephen King scary but it’s as scary as a YA can get I imagine. Let’s just say I wouldn’t read it alone at night! 🙂

  6. Amy

    Oh this book sounds excellent. I love creepy scary books! I will definitely be getting this one. Thanks for the fantastic review!

  8. Jaskirat@SeeitORreadit

    I’ve never heard of this one but it sounds soooo totally awesome!!!! It sounds a bit sad and spooky but the premise is very intriguing. Soooo glad to hear you enjoyed the romance too 🙂 Great review! (as usual!).

    BTW sorry I haven’t been stopping by much this week…I’ve been busy with school 🙁 But don’t get too used to it because one the break starts I will be popping by here everyday..no wait more than once a day and I’ll expect some awesome reviews from u kaaaay!?!?!?

    Jaskirat~SeeitORreadit
    International 300 Follower Giveaway

  9. Giselle

    Thanks ladies!

    @Jennifer | Book Den: Oooh come on! You know you want to! Muahahaha

    @Jaskirat: Don’t worry about it I know it’s a very busy time. Lucky for me I’m done with school and with xmas shopping! Phew! =)

  10. A Canadian Girl

    I avoid scary ghost stories because I’m a big chicken but I’ve got Anna Dressed in Blood on my wishlist and now I’ll probably add this one to it too because you gave it 5 espressos and made it sound so good. If I get nightmares though, it’s all your fault! 😉

  14. Lauren M

    Oh, wow. I loved Anna Dressed in Blood, so The Deepest Cut sounds right up my alley! The romance aspect is really appealing, too: it’s always nice to see it done right! 🙂 Thanks for the review!

  15. Giselle

    oh I can’t wait to see your reviews ladies!

    @A Canadian Girl: Haha i’m a total chicken but they’re like crack I MUST read them anyways. Then I don’t sleep for days!

    @Lauren M: If you loved Anna you will really enjoy this one too I promise!

    And FYI- it’s only 0.99$ for the ebook right now at Amazon for Kindle and B&N for Nook.

  16. Alexa

    I’ve been meaning to comment on your review since this morning! Anyway… This sounds really creepy. And since I’m a scaredy cat, I’m trying to decide if I can handle it or not…

  17. danya

    Ooooh, I think I should probably steer clear of this one…a little too creepy for me, I’d bet! Thanks for the excellent review 🙂

  19. Candace

    I’m afraid of scary books. I’m not really into being scared. BUT, this book sounds AMAZING! Maybe I could deal with the scary… the settings, the characters, the plot… it all sounds fantastic! Thanks for the great review!

  21. Kelly

    Great review! I love ghost stories, too, and I have to say, Anna Dressed in Blood wasn’t as scary as I had hoped. I’ll definitely be checking out The Deepest Cut, since you said it’s scarier than Anna.

  22. Mimi Valentine

    Oh my gosh, scarier than Anna Dressed in Blood?????? *curls up in a million blankets and hides in the corner* Okay, I’m ready to read it now! LOL! x) I LOVED Anna — it was the first horror book I’ve ever read! — so your review and fantastic five stars for The Deepest Cut make me SO intrigued to read this! It sounds like such a chilling, emotional, and bittersweet book!

    Amazing review, Giselle!! This wouldn’t have been a book I’d pick up on my own because I tend to shy away from scariness, but you convinced me! 🙂

  27. Rebecca

    Ohhh, scarier than Anna, huh? Honestly I didn’t think it was that scary. Perhaps more gory. But it’d be cool reading something a bit more scary for a change. o: Now I’m even more excited to pick this up! Great review. 😀