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64th out of 554 books
—
2,366 voters
Shadowed Summer
Iris is ready for another hot, routine summer in her small Louisiana town, hanging around the Red Stripe grocery with her best friend, Collette, and traipsing through the cemetery telling each other spooky stories and pretending to cast spells. Except this summer, Iris doesn’t have to make up a story. This summer, one falls right in her lap.
Years ago, before Iris was born,...more
Years ago, before Iris was born,...more
Hardcover, 192 pages
Published
February 10th 2009
by Delacorte Books for Young Readers
(first published February 6th 2009)
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Nov 12, 2008
R.j.
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of suspense novels, people who love beautiful writing
If I had seen this book in the bookstore I would probably never have picked it up. A ghost story? A graveyard on the cover? Looks like horror/occult -- so very not my thing.
And then I would have missed out on a beautifully written, fantastically characterized, gripping, suspenseful, and touching book.
Saundra Mitchell's writing is rich and sensuously evocative, yet so easy and natural to read -- a rare combination. Her dialogue sparkles, and the heroine Iris and her friends are absolutely believa...more
And then I would have missed out on a beautifully written, fantastically characterized, gripping, suspenseful, and touching book.
Saundra Mitchell's writing is rich and sensuously evocative, yet so easy and natural to read -- a rare combination. Her dialogue sparkles, and the heroine Iris and her friends are absolutely believa...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This novel will be haunting me for sure! In case you didn’t know, I’m not a big fan of ghost stories, because I am the biggest wuss. I remember when I read Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the third grade... (this was long before the tv show, there was actually a movie starring Kristy Swanson and Luke Perry, the book was by Richie Cusick)... anyway, I couldn’t sleep for weeks! And I used to watch that show called Are You Afraid of the Dark? Did anyone else watch that? Sorry, back to the review, this...more
Shadowed Summer drew me right back to early teen/childhood, that bizarre and beautiful time of life where nothing and everything makes sense all at once. A chilling mystery and coming of age story so uniquely written, you will have to dig deep to find a cliche in Saundra Mitchell's lyrical prose.
The narrator Iris is tough and flawed and funny. I rooted for her from start to finish and admired the scratches and cuts on her knees---this is a kid, like Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn before her, that just...more
The narrator Iris is tough and flawed and funny. I rooted for her from start to finish and admired the scratches and cuts on her knees---this is a kid, like Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn before her, that just...more
Iris (very pretty name) and her best friend Collette, both around 14 years old, like to cast spells at a cemetery in their boring town in Louisiana to pass the time during the summer.
One day at the cemetery, a ghost appears in front of Iris saying "Where ya at Iris?" Since then he begins to haunt her and bother her causing her to wonder who this guy is and how he ended up dead.
Iris, Collette and a cute boy, Ben, try to solve this mystery all the while coming across some problems arising from the...more
One day at the cemetery, a ghost appears in front of Iris saying "Where ya at Iris?" Since then he begins to haunt her and bother her causing her to wonder who this guy is and how he ended up dead.
Iris, Collette and a cute boy, Ben, try to solve this mystery all the while coming across some problems arising from the...more
I read Shadowed Summer in one sitting...it is a fantastic story and sets a standard for modern ghost stories that will be hard to match.
I adored Iris...her relationships with her friends and family are perfectly executed, her emotional turmoil is thoroughly compelling, and I just wished she'd never end.
Congrats to Saundra Mitchell for taking this romance novel-obsessed reader and making me care deeply for a ghost story.
I adored Iris...her relationships with her friends and family are perfectly executed, her emotional turmoil is thoroughly compelling, and I just wished she'd never end.
Congrats to Saundra Mitchell for taking this romance novel-obsessed reader and making me care deeply for a ghost story.
This is a tight, can't-put-down ghost story in which two girls and the dread Boy who attracts them both go seeking a boy who disappeared from their small town when their parents were teenagers. Mitchell raises echoes of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD as the kids get information from different citizens of the town, painting a portrait of it in their meanderings. Iris is the one who attracts Elijah's ghost, and she spends the book balancing her discoveries with her friendship wither rapidly-maturing Colett...more
I am leaning more towards 4 1/2 stars on this book because some of the pot points actually surprised me in a good way. I can predict things with crazy scary accuracy when I read books and this one caught me off guard. It was a great read right before Halloween. So fun!
At first I wasn't totally sure about this book. I don't read much mystery or ghost stories so I didn't know what to expect. I wasn't really expecting to like it, but I still felt compelled to read it for some reason. Turns out that was a good thing.
Quick Overview: Iris and her best friend Collete are 14 and live in a tiny and boring Louisianna town. They spend the hot summer days pretending to cast spells in the cemetary, one day though Iris actaully sees the ghost of a boy. He continues to hau...more
Quick Overview: Iris and her best friend Collete are 14 and live in a tiny and boring Louisianna town. They spend the hot summer days pretending to cast spells in the cemetary, one day though Iris actaully sees the ghost of a boy. He continues to hau...more
I am not a huge fan of ghost stories. Mostly because I am a wuss. When I was younger, say, in grades five through seven, I LOVED ghost stories and curling up with a good mystery. But since I got older? No. Give me the romance and the fluff and the fantasy.
But SHADOWED SUMMER took me back to those days I really, really loved a good ghost story. And this one is SO much more than a ghost story. It reminded me why I liked some more than others. The ones I loved taught me something, showed me somethi...more
But SHADOWED SUMMER took me back to those days I really, really loved a good ghost story. And this one is SO much more than a ghost story. It reminded me why I liked some more than others. The ones I loved taught me something, showed me somethi...more
“Nothing ever happened in Ondine, Louisisana, not even the summer Elijah Landry disappeared,” is the opening line of the book. But the summer fourteen-year-old Iris and her best friend Collette decide to call up a ghost, too much happens in Ondine. Buried secrets come to light, old wounds are reopened, and a persistent ghost will not leave Iris in peace.
SHADOWED SUMMER is not just a straightforward ghost story. It is a novel full of treasures – glinting humor, shimmering descriptions, and a bea...more
SHADOWED SUMMER is not just a straightforward ghost story. It is a novel full of treasures – glinting humor, shimmering descriptions, and a bea...more
mitchell drew me with her first sentence in shadowed summer, and i was sucked in all the way until the end. this debut is a story like nothing i have read before in young adult, with voice spot on, incredible dialogue (not surprised mitchell also happens to be a screenwriter) and interesting yet complicated relationships. iris is the perfect heroine, and i was with her all the way. the mystery of eli's murder held me to the very end, to a conclusion that stunned, was heartbreaking, yet made so m...more
There are books that I love for the intricate plots and books that I love for the beautiful prose. And then there are the books that have both. Shadowed Summer is one of these. I wanted to race through the book to find out why the ghost of a boy named Elijah is haunting 14-year-old Iris, and to find out the truth about what happened to him. But I also wanted to linger over the little vivid details, beautiful and funny and precise and real.
This is a ghost story that will be haunting me for a whil...more
This is a ghost story that will be haunting me for a whil...more
Fourteen-year-old Iris isn’t really looking forward to summer in Ondine, Louisiana. She lives in a small and boring town with virtually no entertainment—unless she makes it up herself. That’s what she and her best friend Collette have been doing for all their lives, making up spells and playing make-believe. But when the friends cast a spell to summon the spirits of the dead and it actually works—well, for Iris at least—they know nothing will ever be the same. A ghost is haunting Iris, and littl...more
Sarah Rees Brennan called it a supernatural To Kill a Mockingbird - coming of age in a sleepy Southern town. I'd give it a 4.5 if I could, and I'd rather round up than down in this case. The atmosphere was incredible, the characterization just about perfect, the writing beautiful and haunting. It was genuinely scary in places and completely heartbreaking in others. There were some great twists and this is about as solid a ghost story as you can get. Creepy and wonderful and more than it seems.
I loved Shadowed Summer, a beautiful confection of deftly handled prose, mystery and extremely lovable characters. The end is shocking and sweet, much like the rest of it.
Where y'at, Saundra Mitchell? I hope a bookshop near me, often, for years to come.
Where y'at, Saundra Mitchell? I hope a bookshop near me, often, for years to come.
I loved Shadowed Summer, a beautiful confection of deftly handled prose, mystery and extremely lovable characters. The end is shocking and sweet, much like the rest of it.
Where y'at, Saundra Mitchell? I hope a bookshop near me, often, for years to come.
Where y'at, Saundra Mitchell? I hope a bookshop near me, often, for years to come.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
A girl and her best friend in a small Louisiana town play at casting spells, and the ghost of a disappeared boy shows up, wanting to be found. Okay, I'm a total wimp. I can't even read a scary YA book without getting all spooked. This is why I know I can never pick up Stephen King books...like ever. And this is why I'm still only about halfway through "The Forest of Hands and Teeth." Read this one this morning. I think I was on page 5 when I started, then proceeded to read the rest in one sittin...more
Wow. Seriously. Wow.
I just finished Shadowed Summer and I absolutely loved it! It’s the kind of book where the second I close it, I just want to open it back up and read the whole thing again. It's an amazingly fantastic book---it was SXSW in Austin when I was reading this and even though I'm a music fiend, I actually skipped a concert I’d planned on going to because I HAD to finish reading Shadowed Summer.
The characters are so authentic, understandable, and sympathetic that you feel for each a...more
I just finished Shadowed Summer and I absolutely loved it! It’s the kind of book where the second I close it, I just want to open it back up and read the whole thing again. It's an amazingly fantastic book---it was SXSW in Austin when I was reading this and even though I'm a music fiend, I actually skipped a concert I’d planned on going to because I HAD to finish reading Shadowed Summer.
The characters are so authentic, understandable, and sympathetic that you feel for each a...more
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The thing is I am a little disappointed with this book. It has a fantastic premise and since it’s a ghost story I was eager to get freaked out. But this book turned out to be more of a thriller than a ghost story. Of course there is a ghost, but the book does not revolve around the creepy things the ghost does. It’s more about finding out why this person still is in the in-between world and what is his unfinished business on Earth? There were a couple of scenes that were a little scary but then...more
What a fantastic and compelling mystery and spooky ghost story. Iris and her friend Collette find themselves in the middle of the towns one and only mystery, the disappearance of a Elijah Landry. When Elijah begins to appear to Iris as an angry ghost, she suspects the worst, that maybe he was murdered. Now the chldish games they once played are becoming dangerous as Elijah gets more voilent. The girls try to find out what really happened and discover that sometimes the past should be left alone....more
I expected a lot more from Shadowed Summer. I thought there would be more action and mystery. Instead, there were very few scenes where it had mystery and intrigue.
What I liked best about Shadowed Summer was the idea of a ghost story. When I first read the first chapter, I thought it’ll be scary like The Devouring or Deadly Little Secrets because the first chapter was scary. Especially that last line. However, as I progressed into the novel, I realized that the plot and writing didn’t rivet me....more
What I liked best about Shadowed Summer was the idea of a ghost story. When I first read the first chapter, I thought it’ll be scary like The Devouring or Deadly Little Secrets because the first chapter was scary. Especially that last line. However, as I progressed into the novel, I realized that the plot and writing didn’t rivet me....more
This is a cute story. I would say its mostly innocent, until you get to the end. The mystery in here was great. I pretty much figured out what happened to Elijah by the time I got to the end, but I definitely didn't predict the "why". I really enjoyed the way the author wrote the story. She used southern language that made it seem very real. This was a quick fun read.
Jul 22, 2008
Carrie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Everyone -- adults and teens
Recommended to Carrie by:
Saundra Mitchell
I was enthralled by Saundra Mitchell’s debut novel, Shadowed Summer. Over and over again I found myself pausing to re-read descriptions and roll the words around on my tongue, amazed at her clarity, at her ability to find the perfect way to encapsulate this world. I was unable to put it down, not only because Iris captured me so fully, but because I was too afraid to turn out the light!
This is more than a ghost story, it is about a girl on the edge of growing up and learning how to re-define her...more
This is more than a ghost story, it is about a girl on the edge of growing up and learning how to re-define her...more
I think I would really give this 3.5, but it was close enough to 4 to give it the 4 stars. It's not a book I'd normally read, but my friends had the ARC and I was excited to borrow it and see what it was about. It was a good, easy read, and an interesting story. She did a great job painting the images of a hot, melting summer in Louisiana. I just didn't love the ending, it was okay, but not my favorite. I don't want to spoil it, but for those who read it and know me well enough, they will probab...more
I almost didn't read this book because I didn't really like the cover, but it was so well reviewed by others that I decided to give it a shot. I'm really glad I did! Finally, a young adult novel that doesn't have the stereotypical romance, discovery of secret powers, etc. The writing was wonderful, and the characters acted their ages without being overly whiny or precocious. Overall, the story kept me guessing throughout, it was well-paced, and came across as really genuine. I loved this book an...more
Iris e Colette sono due ragazzine di 14 che vivono ad Ondine, una cittadina dove non accade mai nulla: l'unico fatto interessante fu nel 1989, la misteriosa scomparsa di un giovane di nome Elijah Landry.
Le due ragazze sono solite passare il tempo inventando storie e creando nuovi incantesimi per i loro giochi, ma un giorno i giochi diventano realtà e Iris, Colette e il loro giovane amico Ben si ritrovano ad aver a che fare con tavole Oui-ja, sassi che compaiono all'improvviso, camere messe a so...more
Le due ragazze sono solite passare il tempo inventando storie e creando nuovi incantesimi per i loro giochi, ma un giorno i giochi diventano realtà e Iris, Colette e il loro giovane amico Ben si ritrovano ad aver a che fare con tavole Oui-ja, sassi che compaiono all'improvviso, camere messe a so...more
L'estate dei fantasmi ha una cover che mi ha attirata fin dal primo momento.
Contavo molto su ciò che quella cover nascondeva e al contempo rivelava, complice ovviamente il titolo stampato su: una storia di fantasmi, una storia avvolta da tenebre, da rumori, sussurri nella notte... insomma da tutto ciò che potrebbe tener sveglio e allerta l'animo più coraggioso e temerario.
Per me, fifona patentata, una ghost story ogni tanto è l'ideale per scuotermi, darmi quella giusta dose di brividi che come...more
Contavo molto su ciò che quella cover nascondeva e al contempo rivelava, complice ovviamente il titolo stampato su: una storia di fantasmi, una storia avvolta da tenebre, da rumori, sussurri nella notte... insomma da tutto ciò che potrebbe tener sveglio e allerta l'animo più coraggioso e temerario.
Per me, fifona patentata, una ghost story ogni tanto è l'ideale per scuotermi, darmi quella giusta dose di brividi che come...more
La storia si svolge ad Ondine,una piccola cittadina dove non succede mai niente.
Qui Iris e Colette si divertono a fare le streghe,a lanciare incantesimi e a creare storie di fantasmi per passare il tempo,aspettando di compiere 16 anni per prendere la patente e scappare.
Iris è la più accomodante tra le due,quella che si fa trascinare nei giochi,mentre Colette è "il capo",colei che sceglie le situazioni.
E' tutto un gioco,finchè nell'estate dei loro 14 anni durante l'invocazione di un fantasma,Iris...more
Qui Iris e Colette si divertono a fare le streghe,a lanciare incantesimi e a creare storie di fantasmi per passare il tempo,aspettando di compiere 16 anni per prendere la patente e scappare.
Iris è la più accomodante tra le due,quella che si fa trascinare nei giochi,mentre Colette è "il capo",colei che sceglie le situazioni.
E' tutto un gioco,finchè nell'estate dei loro 14 anni durante l'invocazione di un fantasma,Iris...more
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Saundra Mitchell is a longtime screenwriter and author. Random House's Delacorte Press published her debut novel, Shadowed Summer, on February 10th, 2009. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's will publish her next novel, The Vespertine in Spring 2011, with its companion novel, The Springsweet, following in Spring 2012.
For almost ten years, she was the sole screenwriter for the Book of Stories, On...more
More about Saundra Mitchell...
For almost ten years, she was the sole screenwriter for the Book of Stories, On...more
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Jul 11, 2009 10:54am