An Absence of Light by Meradeth Houston blog tour #review #YA @MeradethHouston @EvernightTeen


Hi and thanks for stopping by our blog. We are today's stop on An Absence of Light blog tour. We are sharing our review. Enjoy!

An Absence of Light by Meradeth Houston
Published by: Evernight Teen
Publication date: October 31st 2014
Genres: Horror, Science Fiction, Young Adult

Synopsis:

Leah’s always seen the shadow creatures. She thought she was immune to their evil—until now.

She’s walked into a massacre, stolen a BMW, and is running from the law for a crime she didn’t commit. Nineteen-year-old Leah’s life just went from mildly abnormal to totally crazy at lightning speed. But no one will believe that the shadow creatures are framing her for the murder, because she’s the only one that can see them. At least that’s what she thought.

When Leah stumbled across a group who share her ability, she discovers they have something she doesn’t: a way to fight back. When the group offers to teach her how to kill the shadow creatures, Leah jumps at the chance. But something is brewing with the creatures. They’re tracking down the hunters like there’s no tomorrow. Leah suspects that maybe there won’t be, and it’s up to her to make sure tomorrow comes. Because she’ll do anything to stop the shadows, including risking her life—and the life of the one she loves—to keep the world from being lost to darkness forever.


Purchase:
Amazon | B&N


Rating: 4 of 5 enjoyed it
Cover comment: A little lacking, graphically speaking
Book source: I received a promotional copy

I love being a reader, especially at times when I begin a book and during my reading discover something surprising. An Absence of Light by Meradeth Houston surprised me by how good it was, by how unique the premise was and by simply entertaining me.

Leah is a wonderful character, sympathetic and good. She can see shadows, these black colored blobs that move and travel around. They're menacing, dark and disturbing. She feels they're evil and hates them, especially after they violently rip away the people she loves--her family. After discovering their bodies, she flees, afraid she'll be blamed for their murders. When the stolen car she's driving runs out of gas, she finds herself in another town, in front of an auto shop. The owner comes out and Leah spots shadows. So does he. Now Leah knows she's not crazy, someone else can see those things too.

An Absence of Light was not what I was expecting. Fast paced, with interesting characters and strange bad things, the story unraveled quickly in a believable way. Along for the ride, I was again surprised when the story delved deeper into the history of these menacing blobs and a new set of twists fascinated me. Leah used to be a victim of these things but after meeting auto shop owner Manuel and his friend/employee, Alex, she discovers they have also been touched by these things and have developed a way to fight back. With the need for diversity in books, I was stoked to see characters with names like Manuel. 

I enjoyed the easy rapport between Leah, Manuel and Alex, as well as Manuel's Nana and and Alex's sister, Emily. With the help and guidance of her new friends, Leah became determined to fight these things and avenge her family. Since she had a unique ability to not only change time when fighting these things, she could also communicate with them, the possibilities for a richer story increased. And the mutual admiration and occasional clashing of heads between Leah and Adam kept things fun too.

The story kept me fully invested, entertained and involved. I'm so glad I read this and will look out for other books by this author. Engrossing, dramatic, mysterious, with a touch of romance and enough action to keep the reader satisfied, An Absence of Light was a delightful surprise. 

About the author:
Meradeth’s never been a big fan of talking about herself, but if you really want to know, here are some random tidbits about her:

>She’s a Northern California girl. And now is braving the cold winters in Montana.
>When she’s not writing, she’s sequencing dead people’s DNA. For fun!
>She’s also an anthropology professor and loves getting people interested in studying humans.
>If she could have a super-power, it would totally be flying. Which is a little strange, because she’s terrified of heights.

Author links: website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Comments

  1. This sounds like such a fun read - action packed and twisty which is right up my alley! I also like that the characters seem to be very well developed which is often not the case with action-packed/plot driven books. Great review, Laurie!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you so much!! I'm so happy you enjoyed Absence!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks so much for your review, Laurie! And for joining in on the tour :) If you have a second, and it’s not too much trouble, would you mind posting your review to Amazon? It would really help me out! Thanks either way!! (http://www.amazon.com/An-Absence-Light-Meradeth-Houston-ebook/dp/B00OY1ZFJW)

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