This book was quite simply everything I hoped it would be, then more. If you're after kick-ass action, a phenomenal heroine and a world that comes to life, this is your kind of book.

SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY picked me up and whirled me away in the best possible way--the action kept coming and coming! (And the action sequences are rocking!) It would ease off just enough for me to catch my breath, and then we were away again! And oh, the finale! I can't say more, but aaaaaah!

Okay, that's probably my exclamation mark quotient for any one review. Here's what I loved about this book, aside from the amazing pacing:

The characters: With just a few deft strokes, Susan Dennard immediately lets us know who we're dealing with--and then proceeds to peel away the layers so we learn more about them at every turn, plunging deeper and deeper. Even the minor characters spring to life--one of my favourites was Mrs. Fitt, Eleanor's mother, who could have been a stereotype and instead is so vivid and genuine--I could always see (and to some extent sympathise with) her motivations, even when I was right there with Eleanor in wanting to strangle her. There are some fabulous originals in there (I think Jie might be my favourite, though you'll have to read to learn more), and Daniel, well. Excuse me while I fan myself a little! I am in love!

Eleanor herself is a strong, memorable and totally three-dimensional heroine. Her evolution is seamless, and so gradual, but somehow over the course of the book she grows from the girl we first meet, busy trying to fit into everybody else's idea of what she should be, into... well, I can't spoil you, but into a girl capable of pulling off THAT finale!

The setting: I'm a history major, and it always bugs me when I can tell a writer hasn't done her research. Have NO fear on this score. For me, getting a historical setting right is all about dropping in enough information that you can paint a real picture of the time and place, but picking the right information, so that it's colour for the story, not just exposition--the goal is to give the reader a true sense of being there, but also to convince the reader that the author knows her stuff, so we can trust her. The tiny details in SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY hit the perfect balance, and they really pulled me into Philadelphia. I walked through those Exhibition Halls!

The story: They say that there's no such thing as a new idea these days, to which I say AU CONTRAIRE. They are wrong. There's so much action jammed into this thing you could get two books out of it, and the twists and turns kept catching me off guard, then leaving me kicking myself for not seeing them coming. Susan Dennard has a story and a half to tell here, and between fighting the Dead with a parasol, pursuing a missing brother and getting up close and personal with the Spirit Hunters themselves, I was with Miss Eleanor Fitt every step of the way.

I stayed up WAY past my bedtime reading this book. Bring on the sequel.