Anna Dressed in Blood
Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story. . .
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.
Wow. Yet another stunning cover here that conveys the story perfectly. Let’s see if I can be coherent without just gushing forever about how much I love this book.
First of all, I added it to my TBR list quite a while back when the Gatekeeper said how much she was enjoying it. Then not so long ago I was wandering through the book store looking for a thriller to read as “research” for my revisions when this gorgeous cover stared back at me.
I sat down on a Sunday morning and started this book and finished it that same evening despite everything else going on around me. You know, laundry, kid, food…who needs any of that when you’re reading an awesome book, right?
The book is jam-packed with action, edge-of-your-seat intensity, and an unexpected twist.
This is one of those reads where you can’t help but love Cas and root for him the whole time, but underneath it all you wonder if he’s a little misguided. Until the ending. Holy ending, Batman. The whole time I was reading the book I was thinking, “Okay, this isn’t too scary. This is good.” Then the ending happened. Then I didn’t think I’d ever be able to sleep again.
Or eat for that matter.
It does get a bit gruesome, so beware.
All in all, this book was AMAZING. If you want something with a strong male protagonist, to recommend to a boy to read, or just something to keep you up all night reading — this is it. I very highly recommend. Also, I can’t wait for the sequel!!!! HURRY UP, AUGUST!
