I'm especially excited to shout-out this book's birthday (so excited that I'm hitting it a day early!) This one just happens to come from a very sweet author that I know...and who just happens to be very talented as well. Her stories always grab in all the right ways. Plus, she writes in a variety of directions. So, I was thrilled to get my hands on a copy and share it with you.
RATTLESNAKE
by C. Lee McKenzie
Evernight Teen
YA Paranormal
290 pages
The desert town of Rattlesnake isn’t a destination. It’s a last resort. Seventeen-year-old Jonah Guthrie’s aunt sold their home in New England and fled to this place to escape the humiliation of his dad’s indictment for embezzlement and subsequent disappearance.
While their late uncle left them a house and a silver mine, the house is a shambles and the mine is defunct. They’re almost out of money, so they have no choice but to stay in Rattlesnake. And then Jonah discovers they’ve inherited something else. Her name is Catherine, and she’s been dead for over a hundred year. Now, she needs his help.
While their late uncle left them a house and a silver mine, the house is a shambles and the mine is defunct. They’re almost out of money, so they have no choice but to stay in Rattlesnake. And then Jonah discovers they’ve inherited something else. Her name is Catherine, and she’s been dead for over a hundred year. Now, she needs his help.
MY TIDBITS
Past and present weave tightly together to cast a tale full of mystery, longing, and heart.
After his father's indictment and disappearance, Jonah and his sister follow their aunt in a last effort to a small town, where his uncle has left them property. Not only is the house as broken as their lives, but Jonah soon meets the ghost of a girl, who'd lived there long before...and her history isn't any gentler than his. Or so it seems. Both need to figure out their lives (past and present), and both are about to face obstacles, which threaten to destroy their last threads of hope.
When I picked this up, for some reason, I thought it'd be set partly in the past, but it sits pretty strongly in present day. Jonah and his younger sister have quite a bit to deal with before they hit the dying town of Rattlesnake. It's hard not to sympathize with both, especially since they are both kind and just trying to stay afloat. Bullying, crushes, abuse, rumors, and secrets bring tension (and triggers), which make this a tale which draws in and holds the reader in the pages. Being under 200 pages, it's a quick read, anyway. Yet, it packs everything necessary to round it off into a solid tale.
I especially enjoyed the aunt and the other characters. Each one brings personality as well as their own subplots. These add richness and give the entire read the heart it needs to really dig in.
After his father's indictment and disappearance, Jonah and his sister follow their aunt in a last effort to a small town, where his uncle has left them property. Not only is the house as broken as their lives, but Jonah soon meets the ghost of a girl, who'd lived there long before...and her history isn't any gentler than his. Or so it seems. Both need to figure out their lives (past and present), and both are about to face obstacles, which threaten to destroy their last threads of hope.
When I picked this up, for some reason, I thought it'd be set partly in the past, but it sits pretty strongly in present day. Jonah and his younger sister have quite a bit to deal with before they hit the dying town of Rattlesnake. It's hard not to sympathize with both, especially since they are both kind and just trying to stay afloat. Bullying, crushes, abuse, rumors, and secrets bring tension (and triggers), which make this a tale which draws in and holds the reader in the pages. Being under 200 pages, it's a quick read, anyway. Yet, it packs everything necessary to round it off into a solid tale.
I especially enjoyed the aunt and the other characters. Each one brings personality as well as their own subplots. These add richness and give the entire read the heart it needs to really dig in.
