Cherry blossom lipstick: check
Smokey eyes: check
Skinny jeans: check
Dead kid in the mirror: check
For sixteen year old Mattie Hathaway, this is her normal everyday routine. She’s been able to see ghosts since her mother tried to murder her when she was five years old. No way does she want anyone to know she can talk to spooks. Being a foster kid is hard enough without being labeled a freak too.
Normally, she just ignores the ghosts and they go away. That is until she see’s the ghost of her foster sister… Sally.
Everyone thinks Sally’s just another runaway, but Mattie knows the truth—she’s dead. Murdered. Mattie feels like she has to help Sally, but she can’t do it alone. Against her better judgment, she teams up with a young policeman, Officer Dan, and together they set out to discover the real truth behind Sally’s disappearance.
Only to find out she’s dealing with a much bigger problem, a serial killer, and she may be the next victim…
Will Mattie be able to find out the truth before the killer finds her?
I can’t really remember when I bought or got this book, but I did buy the audible narration of it and was in the mood for something creepy for this Halloween season. Since it had been a while, I decided to try Apryl Baker’s The Ghost Files.
I fell in love.
The writing is simple. An easy to get into read with some typical young adult tropes, but did deal with issues. Right off the bat you feel Mattie’s strength. I say strength because she doesn’t let her hard past get in the way from surviving. And surviving is what she’s doing. She has a tough exterior and a bit of a soft interior, but you have to dig in.
Yespecially, the attitude could get annoying, but I wasn’t deterred.
The elements of horror and mystery far outweighed that aspect. the ghosts are disturbing, looking as they did in death. The concept is awesome and kept me going.
The relationship between Dan and Mattie is interesting and bordered on something I’m not suse about. He’s an adult and she isn’t. There is a connection, but I’m not entirely convinced that their relationship will turn into a romance. It doesn’t matter though, Baker is doing a good job of not making Mattie commit to anyone.
That said, there are quite a few guys who find her attractive. Mattie is quick to like them, but I don’t see it as a romantic like. It’s more of a like to hang around or a person you like to look at.
The book is a quick read. If you are reading it, you could finish it in a sitting. If you go the Audible route, like me, the narrator is annoying. I could do without her voice, but I stuck to it because I genuinely liked the story. It is a good quick young adult paranormal horror that ends on a cliffhanger.
Casia's Corner 