Saturday 9 February 2013

Review: The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington


The Dead and Buried

The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication date: January 1st 2013
Source: NetGalley
My rating:  3.5 stars

 
 A haunted house, a buried mystery, and a very angry ghost make this one unforgettable thriller.

Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school: It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. . . . But then things begin happening. Strange, otherworldly things. Jade's little brother claims to see a glimmering girl in his room. Jade's jewelry gets moved around, as if by an invisible hand. Kids at school whisper behind her back like they know something she doesn't.

Soon, Jade must face an impossible fact: that her perfect house is haunted. Haunted by a ghost who's seeking not just vengeance, but the truth. The ghost of a girl who ruled Jade's school — until her untimely death last year. It's up to Jade to put the pieces together before her own life is at stake. As Jade investigates the mystery, she discovers that her new friends in town have more than a few deep, dark secrets. But is one of them a murderer?


The Dead and Buried is one of my favorite combinations for a story: mystery, suspense and a little romance thrown in for good measure. 

Jade is thrilled to be starting school where there’s more than thirty students in her whole grade.  Growing up she lived in a rural town, and longed to be in a big city and school.  Somehow, her dream has come true.  Even the house her family has moved into seems too good to be true: new, big and beautiful.  When Jade receives strange looks from her classmates, she soon finds out why her parents were able to afford the big and beautiful house. Murder houses are always discounted.  Jade finds out the most popular girl in school, Kayla Sloan died under suspicious circumstances, where she now lives.  When her little brother, Colby starts seeing a “glimmering girl” in his room, and she is anything but Casper the friendly ghost, Jade must dig further and find out exactly what happened. 

As she investigates, Jade finds out Kayla had a lot of potential enemies.  She delighted in manipulating and crushing people, so there’s no shortage of suspects.  Among the possibilities is, Donovan.  He’s got eyes as striking as blue topaz and a thoughtful personality that intrigues Jade, and she’s drawn to him.  He provides that little bit of romance that I always crave in my reads!

Jade was an admirable and determined character.  She cared more about her little brother’s welfare than her own.  Even though Jade never met Kayla, her presence is everywhere and still impacting lives, and not in a positive way.  If you’ve ever seen the movie Rebecca* or read the story and enjoyed it, this will appeal to you because there’s a lot of similarities.  Rebecca is even mentioned as Jade’s class assignment. Kayla’s presence overshadows everything and everyone, even in death.  

The mystery had me guessing until the very end.  I had suspicions, but was a little surprised.  I had goose bumps reading some of the scenes because some of them were downright creepy, and I loved those suspenseful feelings.   This was a fast, addictive, and fun read.   You could easily finish this in one sitting. 

*As a side note, I recently read Rebecca, and I enjoyed the Hitchcock movie more.  The book had me drowning in descriptions, and to me, lost some of the dramatic and suspenseful effect that the movie radiated brilliantly.  Hitchcock was the man!  


16 comments:

Vegan YA Nerds said...

Ooh, this sounds very intriguing indeed! Kayla reminds me of Ali from Pretty Little Liars, so I think I'll have to read this!

Unknown said...

Suspense, mystery and a little romance? I might read this book. I haven't read a book from Kim yet, this might be it :D

-Dannielle

kit said...

I love Hitchcock, and loved Rebecca, and I like the comparisons you drew between them - this sounds fun and pretty creepy, I'll be looking out for it!

Shirley said...

Ooohhh GOOSEBUMPS. That's a good sign! This sounds really creepy and mysterious - something that I LOVE in books!! I agree with Mandee's comment above; Kayla does remind me of Ali from PPL! (Speaking of Ali & Kayla, why are cruel girls always the "popular" ones? Like, should've the NICEST girls be popular? hahaaa I can never get my head around that :/) Anyway, I'm hoping to read this soon ;) Hopefully this will be out in Australia! I NEED IT NOW.

Sam (Realm of Fiction) said...

Suspense and a little romance thrown in is one of my favourite combinations, too. :) I'm glad you enjoyed this well enough, Rachel! I quite liked Clarity by this author - more than I thought I would - so I'm sure I'll make a start on this eventually. Brilliant review. :)

Jessica@Booked Up! said...

Oooooh, what a creepy blurb! It's got me intrigued right away!

I love how Jade cares more about her brother than herself. Characters like that are wonderful to read from, so it sounds like I would warm to Jade quite quickly.

I remember trying the book Rebecca once, but it was too difficult for me and the descriptions were so long and I ended up putting it down. Then I read New Girl, a modern version of Rebecca, and really enjoyed it.

Thanks for your lovely review, Rachel! This is definitely something I will have to check out, even if it does give me goosebumps the whole time! :D

Livvy said...

I have the movie recorded to watch of Rebecca so I can't wait to watch that now. I'm going to try to do it at some point this weekend.

This definitely sounds like I might like this book, especially when you compared it with Rebecca.

Fab review, Rachel! :)

Maja (The Nocturnal Library) said...

I loved Jade too, she was very brave and resourceful and instantly likeable. I adored her little brother too. You're right about this being a one-sitting read, I finished it in a single afternoon and really liked it.
Great review!

Keertana said...

I'm not a huge fan of Kim Harrington, but I'm glad that you wound up enjoying this book, Rachel. It's always a huge plus point when a novel can keep you guessing till the end, so I'm thrilled that was the case here. Wonderful review, dear! :)

Blythe Harris said...

This review bumped this book high up on my TBR list! I got an ARC of this a few months ago, but failed to read it before publication, but I hope to still get around to reading it! I'm glad to hear that this book kept you guessing right up to the end - I love it when books keep me guessing and have me constantly changing my thoughts on the killer, etc, and this book sounds perfect for that. Great review, Rachel!

Wendy Darling said...

Uh, I was already interested in this book, but comparing it to REBECCA? One of my favorite books and films EVER? I am reading this asap!! Thanks for the nudge, lovely Rachel.

Wendy @ The Midnight Garden

Aneeqah said...

I really need to pick this one up! It sounds like a great weekend read type thing, where I can just read something fun and quick. Jade definitely seems like a strong and caring main character, and I can't wait to read about her, and that little bit of romance as well. ;) The mystery also sounds really fantastic, and I love it when an author is able to keep me guessing until the end!

Amazing review as always, Rachel! <3

Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings said...

I adored Rebecca when I read it in H.S. and I really enjoyed this one. The diary was awesome! Glad you liked it as well!

Renae @ Respiring Thoughts said...

This book does sound quite interesting. I love your comparison to Rebecca, and I like the idea of a ghostly type mystery. At the same time, some of the things do sound a bit cliche (girl moves to new town, boy with crazy unique eye color, etc.) This could be fun, though!

Anonymous said...

I've read one book by this author but I didn't really enjoy it. I still requested this book from NG because I love a good mystery with a dash of romance too, but I've still not gotten to it. I'm glad that you enjoyed it, Rachel. I like the sound of Rachel. Plus, it's always great when the author surprises you with the revelation at the end! :)
Great review, Rachel. :)

Leanna Elle said...

I thought this one was a fun read even though I figured out the culprit really quickly! I hate when I do that!

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