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m00plays's review against another edition
5.0
Why did I read the ending before bed?!?!
I am not a person who loves horror and I generally stay away from it but WOW.
I would highly recommend this book, it created the mood and drama so well that it felt like I was reading a movie! I could imagine everything in precise detail and I WAS SO FREAKING SCARED!
I am not a person who loves horror and I generally stay away from it but WOW.
I would highly recommend this book, it created the mood and drama so well that it felt like I was reading a movie! I could imagine everything in precise detail and I WAS SO FREAKING SCARED!
asaph95's review against another edition
3.0
That was just the scariest, most haunting story I've ever read.
Review to come!
Review to come!
coraline88's review against another edition
5.0
This book scared the living daylight out of me. I was not expecting to be that scared! Horror is my fave genre both in movie and in book format, so I thought that this would be a fun read and it wouldn't faze me at all. NOPE. Oh boy. It scared me to the point of curling up into a ball in my bed and covering my head with the sheets. I can handle gore (sorta). But for me, any horror story involving ghosts in mirrors makes my skin crawl. It probably wasn't the best idea to watch the Bloody Mary episode from Supernatural right before I read this.
I absolutely loved the fact that it was set in a British boarding school, it made it seem more forboding and was a perfect setting for this classic urban legend. I rooted for the main character and Naya(this rarely happens for me in the horror genre) and I really enjoyed the presence of a strong female friendship, even though it's not the main element of the story. The rest of the characters were not as fleshed out, but I didn't mind that too much. I loved Bloody Mary as the antagonist, she was perfect in my opinion. Really fantastic read and I'll definitely be rereading this for years to come.
I absolutely loved the fact that it was set in a British boarding school, it made it seem more forboding and was a perfect setting for this classic urban legend. I rooted for the main character and Naya(this rarely happens for me in the horror genre) and I really enjoyed the presence of a strong female friendship, even though it's not the main element of the story. The rest of the characters were not as fleshed out, but I didn't mind that too much. I loved Bloody Mary as the antagonist, she was perfect in my opinion. Really fantastic read and I'll definitely be rereading this for years to come.
declandrum's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Loved the character writing and found the book got better and better as it went on. I nervous for a disappointing ending but I was very satisfied.
mehsi's review against another edition
5.0
Merging stuff so that I don't have any (or at least only a few) duplicates any more.
So I will be posting my updated review when I re-read this book in 2016.
This will be my old review with new comments. :P Old parts of my review are in bold. The newer parts are in normal font. I thought this would a fun new way to do things. :P
I love books about Bloody Mary, one of my favourite urban legends.
Yep, I am still seriously in love with Bloody Mary and her legend. I love how a lot of books always come to the same basis, but then flip things around. It is really fun since you know that something is bound to go wrong when they do x and y, but you have no idea what the writer will do this time when Mary is summoned.
This time we have a more modern Mary, as in 1940/50's. The name stays the same, and also some of the back story, but a lot is quite new.
Still loved that this happened. Often Mary is quite a bit older, and a modern one is even more fun. I wouldn't mind a Mary from this age though. Can you imagine the havoc she can wreck. It is a bit like the Ring. Can you imagine if our girl from the well might know about internet? Or spam? Or phishing. :P
The main character was a bit annoying though with her Caine this and Caine that, and more Caine swoon. It just got a bit boring and I noticed I started to just skip through the things. Yay! Nice for you that you got yourself a hot new boyfriend, but come on people, you have 5 days left of your little life, now is not the time for hooking up and kissing. And I still don't see why Caine fell in love with our main character, especially not after what the main character is sprouting about herself. I mean, my mental image of the girl wasn't that good, not with the boohoos about it and such.
I however did love her for her loyalty, for sticking to her friend Naya and trying to save the girl. They really have a wonderful bond, and I do hope that bond lasts outside of Highschool.
Haha, I am trying to imagine the me of 2 years ago saying all this. :P I would love to tell her that she won't have that problem with a re-read 2 years later. That in fact she will love the MC, and that she will love Caine. That she will like the romance. That she will be rooting for them. :P
Yes, during this re-read I was just happy with the romance. I felt it wasn't a problem that they were kissing, or exploring their relationship. If anything, it fitted perfectly. It gave a bit of light-heartedness in the whole Mary-wants-to-kill-everyone-and-oh-hey-she-is-right-behind-you. :P
I also could see better why Caine fell in love with our MC. She is funny, she has snark, and even though she complains quite often about herself, I could see a sweet, lovely girl.
It seems he would rather have a girl who is really herself, who doesn't pretend, and who even smiles, and replies back with some fun comments.
Her dedication to Naya? I loved that, and I will always love it, no matter how many times I read it. Their friendship is just so lovely, and it makes me happy to see such a friendship. Especially if you see other girls being mean to each other (like the popular club).
The Mary story took some starting up, and was at the beginning terribly boring/slow and I considered dropping the book a few times. Luckily that I didn't, because when the whole Mary business starts I couldn't drop the book. The creepiness takes some time to settle in, but when it starts to pop up I was scared out of my mind. Yay, for reading this in the late evening when it is dark and I am alone in house. Yep, not going anywhere at all but the room I am in!
Yes, it was that scary. There are several instances that Mary shows herself (in school, in mirrors, in the dark of the night and in your bed). It was absolutely terrifying and I was checking around me to see if there was something.
Yes, it started a bit slow, though I didn't have the whole I-want-to-drop-the-book-a-few-times problem that I had during the first read. Maybe also because I knew that it would get creepy very soon. Yes, even after two years I could still remember several things.
When it truly started it was indeed creepy, scary, and so much more. Like the first read, I was also checking around myself to make sure I was alone. Also a big big NOPE to mirrors.
I loved the Mary background story we have in this book. We find out what happened to Mary during her school time, and when she disappeared. And wow, what a rollercoaster ride that was. Poor Mary, however, I should warn you, nothing is what it seems. Be warned.
Same feelings as I had the first time. The ending was still a bit of a shock to me, even though I vaguely still remember it. Indeed, nothing is what it seems with Mary.
The ending gave me dual feelings. On the one hand I was delighted by this ending, so creepy and it paved the road for a second book! On the other hand I was disappointed, I didn't really expect this to happen and I was hoping for a certain ending to happen.
Yep, still those dual feelings when I got to the end. It feels a bit inconclusive, and I do wonder if everyone is now truly safe or if there is something more going to happen. I guess there never will be a second book, though I definitely would love one.
Oh and definitely a lot of plus points for this gorgeous cover!
Yep, definitely loving the cover to bits. It is just such a perfect cover. I love how it matches with the story, and you can just feel the creepiness crawling out of the cover.
I would really recommend this book, just be warned, the first pages are a bit boring but as soon as the story picks up pace, be sure you are in a room with lots of light because you ain't gonna sleep any time soon.
Hear, hear for this! Mary will creep you out. You will be rooting for our MC, and her friends. This is really a perfect Halloween read. Plus, who can resist a good boarding school story that also features a very scary, and dedicated, ghost.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
So I will be posting my updated review when I re-read this book in 2016.
This will be my old review with new comments. :P Old parts of my review are in bold. The newer parts are in normal font. I thought this would a fun new way to do things. :P
I love books about Bloody Mary, one of my favourite urban legends.
Yep, I am still seriously in love with Bloody Mary and her legend. I love how a lot of books always come to the same basis, but then flip things around. It is really fun since you know that something is bound to go wrong when they do x and y, but you have no idea what the writer will do this time when Mary is summoned.
This time we have a more modern Mary, as in 1940/50's. The name stays the same, and also some of the back story, but a lot is quite new.
Still loved that this happened. Often Mary is quite a bit older, and a modern one is even more fun. I wouldn't mind a Mary from this age though. Can you imagine the havoc she can wreck. It is a bit like the Ring. Can you imagine if our girl from the well might know about internet? Or spam? Or phishing. :P
The main character was a bit annoying though with her Caine this and Caine that, and more Caine swoon. It just got a bit boring and I noticed I started to just skip through the things. Yay! Nice for you that you got yourself a hot new boyfriend, but come on people, you have 5 days left of your little life, now is not the time for hooking up and kissing. And I still don't see why Caine fell in love with our main character, especially not after what the main character is sprouting about herself. I mean, my mental image of the girl wasn't that good, not with the boohoos about it and such.
I however did love her for her loyalty, for sticking to her friend Naya and trying to save the girl. They really have a wonderful bond, and I do hope that bond lasts outside of Highschool.
Haha, I am trying to imagine the me of 2 years ago saying all this. :P I would love to tell her that she won't have that problem with a re-read 2 years later. That in fact she will love the MC, and that she will love Caine. That she will like the romance. That she will be rooting for them. :P
Yes, during this re-read I was just happy with the romance. I felt it wasn't a problem that they were kissing, or exploring their relationship. If anything, it fitted perfectly. It gave a bit of light-heartedness in the whole Mary-wants-to-kill-everyone-and-oh-hey-she-is-right-behind-you. :P
I also could see better why Caine fell in love with our MC. She is funny, she has snark, and even though she complains quite often about herself, I could see a sweet, lovely girl.
It seems he would rather have a girl who is really herself, who doesn't pretend, and who even smiles, and replies back with some fun comments.
Her dedication to Naya? I loved that, and I will always love it, no matter how many times I read it. Their friendship is just so lovely, and it makes me happy to see such a friendship. Especially if you see other girls being mean to each other (like the popular club).
The Mary story took some starting up, and was at the beginning terribly boring/slow and I considered dropping the book a few times. Luckily that I didn't, because when the whole Mary business starts I couldn't drop the book. The creepiness takes some time to settle in, but when it starts to pop up I was scared out of my mind. Yay, for reading this in the late evening when it is dark and I am alone in house. Yep, not going anywhere at all but the room I am in!
Yes, it was that scary. There are several instances that Mary shows herself (in school, in mirrors, in the dark of the night and in your bed). It was absolutely terrifying and I was checking around me to see if there was something.
Yes, it started a bit slow, though I didn't have the whole I-want-to-drop-the-book-a-few-times problem that I had during the first read. Maybe also because I knew that it would get creepy very soon. Yes, even after two years I could still remember several things.
When it truly started it was indeed creepy, scary, and so much more. Like the first read, I was also checking around myself to make sure I was alone. Also a big big NOPE to mirrors.
I loved the Mary background story we have in this book. We find out what happened to Mary during her school time, and when she disappeared. And wow, what a rollercoaster ride that was. Poor Mary, however, I should warn you, nothing is what it seems. Be warned.
Same feelings as I had the first time. The ending was still a bit of a shock to me, even though I vaguely still remember it. Indeed, nothing is what it seems with Mary.
The ending gave me dual feelings. On the one hand I was delighted by this ending, so creepy and it paved the road for a second book! On the other hand I was disappointed, I didn't really expect this to happen and I was hoping for a certain ending to happen.
Yep, still those dual feelings when I got to the end. It feels a bit inconclusive, and I do wonder if everyone is now truly safe or if there is something more going to happen. I guess there never will be a second book, though I definitely would love one.
Oh and definitely a lot of plus points for this gorgeous cover!
Yep, definitely loving the cover to bits. It is just such a perfect cover. I love how it matches with the story, and you can just feel the creepiness crawling out of the cover.
I would really recommend this book, just be warned, the first pages are a bit boring but as soon as the story picks up pace, be sure you are in a room with lots of light because you ain't gonna sleep any time soon.
Hear, hear for this! Mary will creep you out. You will be rooting for our MC, and her friends. This is really a perfect Halloween read. Plus, who can resist a good boarding school story that also features a very scary, and dedicated, ghost.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
tamz27's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
isleofmona's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
paulabrandon's review against another edition
3.0
Eesh. Even the Point Horror and Fear Street books from the 90s had more bite and edge than this.
Imagine a very neutered version of The Ring and you have Say Her Name
Bobbie Rowe is a student at Pipers Hall. One night, she and a group of friends share the story of Bloody Mary. They decide to chant her name five times, but only Bobbie, her best friend Naya, and her crush Caine go through with it.
Before you know it, the three of them are being haunted by Mary, with the message "Five Days" warning of them of what is to come. (I mean, seriously, how The Ring-like could you get???) Bobbie has lots of I-want-Caine-to-be-my-boyfriend-because-he's-so-hot thoughts while the two of them try to figure out why Mary is haunting them and see if they can avoid disappearing without a trace in five days.
I actually didn't mind this. There was some effectiveness in the three teens being able to see Mary constantly lurking in the shadows inside mirrors or anything with a reflection. (Reminded me of Poltergeist III. I wanted to find out what happened to Mary in the past. It was a quick read and mostly entertaining. Just be warned going in, this is very, very, very tame. We're talking PG, barely even PG-13. Being YA, of course Bobbie is just as preoccupied with Caine as she is with saving her own skin, and it wore thin. I wanted less teen romance and better scares.
There are plenty of other stories out there based on the Bloody Mary legend more exciting, scary and spooky than this, but it's diverting enough to pass a couple of hours without being annoying.
Imagine a very neutered version of The Ring and you have Say Her Name
Bobbie Rowe is a student at Pipers Hall. One night, she and a group of friends share the story of Bloody Mary. They decide to chant her name five times, but only Bobbie, her best friend Naya, and her crush Caine go through with it.
Before you know it, the three of them are being haunted by Mary, with the message "Five Days" warning of them of what is to come. (I mean, seriously, how The Ring-like could you get???) Bobbie has lots of I-want-Caine-to-be-my-boyfriend-because-he's-so-hot thoughts while the two of them try to figure out why Mary is haunting them and see if they can avoid disappearing without a trace in five days.
I actually didn't mind this. There was some effectiveness in the three teens being able to see Mary constantly lurking in the shadows inside mirrors or anything with a reflection. (Reminded me of Poltergeist III. I wanted to find out what happened to Mary in the past. It was a quick read and mostly entertaining. Just be warned going in, this is very, very, very tame. We're talking PG, barely even PG-13. Being YA, of course Bobbie is just as preoccupied with Caine as she is with saving her own skin, and it wore thin. I wanted less teen romance and better scares.
There are plenty of other stories out there based on the Bloody Mary legend more exciting, scary and spooky than this, but it's diverting enough to pass a couple of hours without being annoying.