The Restorer (Graveyard Queen, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Jan 13, 2012 Lisa Kay rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: m-audible-dot-com, authors-a, series-g, 2012-in-2012-group-challenge, setting-usa-south-carolina, all-time-favorites, authors-s, genre-mystery, character-ghosts, genre-paranormal

Pictures of Oak Grove Cemetary, from Amanda Stevens’s website: www.thegraveyardqueen.com

Book Quote:

An old live oak guarded the darkest corner of the garden, and a swing hung like a childhood memory from one of the gnarled branches.

★★★★½ (This is a review of the audiobook.) Oh, this one is excellent! The first thrilling mystery in the Graveyard Queen series is narrated by the wonderful Khristine Hvam , who is perfect for this first person POV telling of a Southern gothic. She doesn’t miss ...more

22 likes · Like · see review

Feb 04, 2012 Shannon rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-mystery, novels, ghosts, color-blue, mystery, adult, paranormal, color-black

Can't give this quite 4 stars, though it's a very high 3. The ghosts were creepy and the setting was appropriately atmospheric and I rarely think books are scary and there were some definitely freaky parts so I have to give it points for that. Amelia is a bit bland (though not as bad as some of the plain in YA I've read) but she's your typical cozy mystery heroine. Devlin was hot though.

Longer review to come, possibly. ...more

7 likes · Like · see review

Feb 25, 2012 Literary Ames rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, death-reapers-zombies, paranormal, kindle, 1st-in-series, read-in-2012, series-abandoned, bought-in-2012

Unfortunately The Restorer reminded me of Prophecy of the Sisters due to the dreadfully slow pace and verbose prose reminiscent of 19th century literature but without the flair and beauty of the prominent writers of the time who could effortlessly produce graceful descriptions of a haunting nature, Victorian gothic-style. Edgar Allan Poe, for example. The dialogue, also, had an oddly formal quality to it that most modern English speakers don't use anymore. This made the book seem unnecessarily l Unfortunately The Restorer reminded me of Prophecy of the Sisters due to the dreadfully slow pace and verbose prose reminiscent of 19th century literature but without the flair and beauty of the prominent writers of the time who could effortlessly produce graceful descriptions of a haunting nature, Victorian gothic-style. Edgar Allan Poe, for example. The dialogue, also, had an oddly formal quality to it that most modern English speakers don't use anymore. This made the book seem unnecessarily long-winded like an incessantly chatty person who goes on and on about nothing in particular.

Very little happened in the first half, it was painfully boring and repetitive (her father's damn rules), and the second was almost as bad. The scenes down in the well and it's tunnels were the most fascinating sections in the book but they only constitute perhaps 50 pages in total. Within those pages we get a glimpse at Amelia and Devlin's psyches as they explored those ancient and neglected passageways, trying to find a way out, hoping they wouldn't stumble upon the murderer in the dark shadows where he would have the upper hand.

Amelia is hollow. Devoid of meaningful experiences. Virginal. Naive. She's an eternal good girl with a lifeless but practical life, a perfectionist. Almost robotic. Constrained by her father's rules and her own fear that she'll attract the attention of a ghost which could attach itself to her and psychically drain her energy, she's never thought to break them even once to see what would happen. Until now, sort of. Passively. She doesn't actively break them, she just lets things naturally progress instead of stepping back as she was told to by her father. This makes her both an uninteresting and irksome heroine who's only appearance of growth is the emergence of curiosity as she turns amateur detective. What is there to like about that?

Devlin, the homicide detective, is almost the opposite. He has spirit (dulled somewhat by his guilt and grief over the loss of his wife and child, whose ghosts are sucking the life out of him), and from what others have said; he once was a very passionate man. But still, we don't really get to know him past his strong sense of honor, justice and nobility.

The romance aspect isn't one I cared for. Stevens appears to snap her fingers, forcing their chemistry, their kiss. The tug of war: Devlin's unconscious succubus-like siphoning of Amelia's strength when they're physically close, her father's warnings telling her to walk away, together with Devlin's reluctance to let his dead wife and daughter go so he can move on plus the ever-presence of their ghosts, against their mutual attraction, was tiresome and in no way was that war resolved here.

Pushed into the background was the mystery. Everything was concentrated on the deaths and burials but not the hunt for the killer. Also, too many other things were going on, too many unrevealed secrets and answers to questions Amelia's never been brave enough to ask her parents about. Ones that aren't unveiled in this book. My mind didn't try to solve the mystery of the murderer, I think, because I didn't care.

I didn't care. I wasn't invested in the outcome, the characters or the writing. I wasn't enchanted by the imagery or chilled by the ghosts. I felt the book was unfocused and aimless, unproductive. It needed tightening up, to be whipped into shape for a faster pace and a clearer message would've made Amelia's first journey out into the real world far more enjoyable. ...more

6 likes · Like · see review