Saturday, May 5, 2012

Book Review: The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell


The Vespertine

Saundra Mitchell




Publication Date: March 7th 2011

Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books

Pages: 293

Genre: Historical, Paranormal, Young Adult

It’s the summer of 1889, and Amelia van den Broek is new to Baltimore and eager to take in all the pleasures the city has to offer. But her gaiety is interrupted by disturbing, dreamlike visions she has only at sunset—visions that offer glimpses of the future. Soon, friends and strangers alike call on Amelia to hear her prophecies. However, a forbidden romance with Nathaniel, an artist, threatens the new life Amelia is building in Baltimore. This enigmatic young man is keeping secrets of his own—still, Amelia finds herself irrepressibly drawn to him. When one of her darkest visions comes to pass, Amelia’s world is thrown into chaos. And those around her begin to wonder if she’s not the seer of dark portents, but the cause.

I have to admit, there is something about the synopsis for this book that doesn't quite do it justice. The Vespertine is a magical, mystical book that wraps you up in the late 1800s and a touch of magic. After reading so much present day books, it took a bit for my head to wrap itself around the prose style and historical setting, but once I did the perfect word to describe it is charming. The characters were light as was the plot for the most part.

I really liked the use of the medium boom in the time period and the way Amelia's powers work.

The other thing I really enjoy is the romance. It is a very well written, seductive romance. The seduction is much like that of knights and their ladies in medieval times where it was more the subtlety and idea that made it seductive, rather than seductive acts.



I recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction and the mentalist boom that happened around that time. I also recommend it to people who enjoy forbidden love stories that have your toes curling for almost nothing at all.


4 Bookmarks



0 comments:

Post a Comment