Monday, September 16, 2013

Review ~ A Night At The Asylum

 A NIGHT AT THE ASYLUM
Blurb:
Sara Featherstone is a loser. At twenty she is still indentured to her parents, her best friend is a closet clairvoyant, and her long-time boyfriend has just dumped her and refuses to tell her why. Five years ago her world ended with her brother, Tommy, running his motorcycle into a tree, and the life she might have lived had never started. Catapulted into the dark streets after a "visitation" from Tommy, Sara has no idea that all that wasted time is about to catch up with her. A chance encounter with a man wielding a knife sets in motion a chain of events so bizarre that Sara will soon question everything she has ever believed. From her boyfriend's fidelity to her best friend's innocence to what her brother knew about a missing classmate, irony is about to make Sara its bitch, and the next twelve hours could be her last.
My Review:
5 Stars
SPINE TINGLING SUSPENSE THAT'S SURE TO KEEP YOU UP AT NIGHT!
I love a good scary tale that doesn't rely on the gory gruesome effect to get your attention, & this one definitely hit the mark! A book I simply could not put down! It's not your average ghost story laying it all out plain & simple with a few lil' bumps in the night. Oh no, this is full of suspense that will have you guessing until the very end. Spine tingling questions, answers you never saw coming unfold before your eyes, & just when you think you've figured it all out a new piece of the puzzle 
falls in our laps. 
I am really digging Jade McCahon's writing style! My favorite being her skillful use of what we believe (or may have heard) about the "other side" with her own unique twists including plenty of spooky details to bring it to life. The characters are borderline addictive yet very believable dealing with their own demons & drama, the ghostly visits creepy enough to have you jumping at the slightest squeak, & the unraveling plot totally paralyzing. Tommy is the typical older brother who we think we know everything about, but later come the surprising revelations that make total sense after the fact. At times I found myself unknowingly holding my breath in sync with Sara. Jamie amazes me! I really enjoyed getting to know Cole a bit more. Raymond is not at all what he seems, & Emmett is the unexpected domino in this wild chain reaction! If you enjoy a ghostly encounter that's sure to keep you up at night you are in for a treat!         

Get your copy of A Night At The Asylum HERE!

Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
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Interview with the Author:
1) When did you start writing? Why?
I've been writing since penning a poem at four years old. I don't even know how I knew what a poem was. I just knew that I got a lot of encouragement for it, and from then on, I wanted to be a writer.

2) Tell us your favorite thing to write about.
The horror genre, for me, is just home. When I was a kid I would write funny stories, adventure stories, anything really about girls who were resourceful and strong. When I was eleven, there was this clique of girls in my new school (right out of a novel, right?) who would pass these books around under their desks and whisper. I wanted to be friends with those girls, and I wanted to read those books. What were they? Horror novels. Slasher style books. Point paperbacks. R.L. Stine, Christopher Pike, Caroline B. Cooney...these were like my favorite movies, only in book form. My real life was, at the time, one scary story after another, but these stories...this was a fear I could control, just by opening or closing the cover.

3) What kind of paranormal do you prefer, spooky or exotic?
In spite of my love of spinning fiction, I have the mind of a skeptic, so the quiet, realistic horror story is what really draws me in. I try to write from a skeptic's point of view, because I assume that represents my reader, for the most part. In A Night at the Asylum, Sara, the main character, is a skeptic. She ignores every sign and signal that her brother, Tommy, tries to send her from the other side, and that becomes the catalyst for a 12 hour downward spiral into the craziest night of her life. He is trying to send her a message, and she has to listen, now, today, so it becomes necessary for her journey from skeptic to believer to happen incredibly fast...which would be pretty hard to deal with, to say the least.

On the other hand, I don't mind exotic characters: vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters. As long as the story is told with a realistic voice, and avoids "fluff"...I can get hooked.

4) Name your favorite supernatural creatures.
I would have to say ghosts, of course, then probably superhuman killers like Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees. Zombies are pretty awesome...and of course vampires...although I don't see a vampire novel in my future...but you never know.

5) Are there any other hobbies that you enjoy?
I am also a songwriter and an artist, and I take a ridiculous amount of pictures of my three children (hey, school pictures are expensive). I am a Lyme disease activist and have belonged to a group of paranormal investigators called the Olathe Society for Paranormal Research and Investigation (OSPRI) since 2005. So...I guess you could say I keep myself pretty busy!
 

~ Jade McCahon ~
Jade McCahon is an author, artist, musician, and friend to ghosts. She lives in Lawrence, Kansas, with her husband and three children.
Stalker Links:
Twitter @JadeMcCahon
Goodreads

Enter the Giveaway HERE!
*Giveaway ends on 9/22/13

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