Title: Unbroken (A Ruined Novel #2)
Author: Paula Morris
Reviewer: Karen
Genre: YA Paranormal
Rating: Fabulous
Alerts/Warnings: Mild violence
Premise: " Returning to New Orleans for spring break, sixteen-year-old Rebecca finds herself embroiled in another murder mystery from more than a century ago, when she meets the ghost of a troubled boy" (King County Library System).
Opinions: Depending on what library you frequent, this series of ghost novels maybe labeled confusingly. My library showed Dark Souls as listed as the second book in the series followed by Unbroken. However, Dark Souls is a different location, different group of people. I looked up this author on another site and they show Unbroken as book two. So here is my recommendation -- just read them all. ;-)
Unbroken picks up the story from Ruined. Rebecca is back in New Orleans, a year later. However, where the first book took place over several months, now we get to enjoy a more intense experience as everything is piled into one Spring Break. This time she has to decide who to trust to reveal her secret -- that she is still seeing ghosts -- and has to help save one before his only chance of passing on is destroyed. I love being able to learn more about what happened after Ruined. But I love even more this time around that she is not facing things alone. She has friends on her side, even if they don't understand everything she is experiencing. I loved learning more about the history of New Orleans, art history, and learning about Jazz Fest. My favorite part is Rebecca getting to open more about her New Orleans experience with her best friend from New York, Ling. Ling is FABULOUS and a true friend who brings a new depth to the story. I'm glad we could see more of Rebecca's "cousin" Aurelia again as well.
For someone who is frequently scared by her own active imagination and usually stays well away from scary stories I am finding myself reading more and more of them this year. I'm impressed by the line up of authors who are bringing new light and love to a genre I usually stay far away from. As for me...Paula Morris is now one of my favorite authors.
One warning for parents - if you have a highly sensitive kid, then I recommend reading these books first to determine if your child can handle reading them. I really enjoyed this books, but I think it is because I am older and can separate a little better what I'm reading from my own life. If I were younger I still might have earned a few good nightmares.
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