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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
funny
lighthearted
I LOVED IT. There are so many elements put together that make this series great. I suggest you read it. Now.
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
First hate review, kinda nervous ðŸ¤
My AGONY has finally ended! God when I tell you this meagre 250 page book nearly took me out of the game, I mean it. I was seriously ready to never touch another book again.
I was going to mention that it’s just young adult, and I may just be aging out of the genre, but this book is not getting away that easy. There are plenty of young adult books that are well written and have something meaningful to say. Young adult books are not inherently bad in the slightest, but this one is.
The nostalgia from liking this series as a kid only took me so far, and the hell that was the internalised misogyny, casual racism, ableism, and MY GOD THE BLATANT HOMOPHOBIA. There was literally a whole ass slur casually dropped. Took me several pages to pick my jaw up off the floor after reading it, but the plot moved on as if nothing happened. I get it’s a 25 year old book, but that’s not really an excuse for bigotry.
Main character is so mean, a not-like-other-girls to the absolute most insane extremes, and is straight up just absolutely horrible to be around. I have never hated being in someone’s head so much. At one point she criticises girls for walking past a table with a man she perceives as attractive because of course they’re only walking past to get attention from said man. As if women aren’t allowed to simply be walking near a man? God forbid a woman breathes without getting criticism for it. Early 2000s must have been a wild time.
I genuinely cannot believe a woman produced this blatant story of pure hatred against other women. And, against plenty of other minorities, mind you. For example, there is a character who has Albinism who is referred to as a freak for that reason multiple times. A freak. I cannot believe how easy it would have been to simply just not make CeeCee have Albinism if she was just there to be bullied and abused. There were points where I was just begging for Suze to go back to just trashing women because it would take the focus off using gay as an insult, making racist digs, or the wild ableism.
The villain of the story is a ghost who killed herself because she got broken up with. I’m not joking. That is genuinely the plot - she’s angry that she killed herself over a boy and regrets it, so she tries to kill the boy multiple times. There is not a single second of introspection on mental health, or healing for this character. Suze lies to her, manipulates her, and then has an exorcism to get rid of the problem. She’s also dating the ghost’s ex.
You simply cannot get away with not saying anything meaningful and just being hateful for 250 pages just because it’s meant to be a fun read for teens.
Worst piece of literature I’ve ever read. Should have DNF’d. I will not be touching the sequels, and I wish I had have just let this series stay as a nostalgic memory from primary school.
My AGONY has finally ended! God when I tell you this meagre 250 page book nearly took me out of the game, I mean it. I was seriously ready to never touch another book again.
I was going to mention that it’s just young adult, and I may just be aging out of the genre, but this book is not getting away that easy. There are plenty of young adult books that are well written and have something meaningful to say. Young adult books are not inherently bad in the slightest, but this one is.
The nostalgia from liking this series as a kid only took me so far, and the hell that was the internalised misogyny, casual racism, ableism, and MY GOD THE BLATANT HOMOPHOBIA. There was literally a whole ass slur casually dropped. Took me several pages to pick my jaw up off the floor after reading it, but the plot moved on as if nothing happened. I get it’s a 25 year old book, but that’s not really an excuse for bigotry.
Main character is so mean, a not-like-other-girls to the absolute most insane extremes, and is straight up just absolutely horrible to be around. I have never hated being in someone’s head so much. At one point she criticises girls for walking past a table with a man she perceives as attractive because of course they’re only walking past to get attention from said man. As if women aren’t allowed to simply be walking near a man? God forbid a woman breathes without getting criticism for it. Early 2000s must have been a wild time.
I genuinely cannot believe a woman produced this blatant story of pure hatred against other women. And, against plenty of other minorities, mind you. For example, there is a character who has Albinism who is referred to as a freak for that reason multiple times. A freak. I cannot believe how easy it would have been to simply just not make CeeCee have Albinism if she was just there to be bullied and abused. There were points where I was just begging for Suze to go back to just trashing women because it would take the focus off using gay as an insult, making racist digs, or the wild ableism.
You simply cannot get away with not saying anything meaningful and just being hateful for 250 pages just because it’s meant to be a fun read for teens.
Worst piece of literature I’ve ever read. Should have DNF’d. I will not be touching the sequels, and I wish I had have just let this series stay as a nostalgic memory from primary school.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Suicide, Violence
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Fatphobia, Racism, Colonisation
First read: 2006
Re-read: 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014
Re-read: 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014
Suze is a ghost mediator from New York transported to Northern California. Honestly what I liked was her sassy attitude and her willingness to settle ghostly disputes with her fists. But then what else would you expect from a Meg Cabot? A fun, light summer read.
Really funny, with some dark undertones and sinister plots. Here's a summary:
Suze is not normal. Infact, she is so NOT normal that she can talk to the dead. But she doesn't just talk, she mediates. And when she mediates, she gets into trouble. So when her mom remarries (and yeah, she can talk to her dead dad) Suze gives up dirty New Yorkian life and moves all the way to sunny, hot California. It's a new place, a place to start fresh and to make friends. Instead of going to graveyards at midnight or helping ghosts who just want their daughter to remember to feed the cat. Things like that.
But when a hot boy (GHOST!) starts haunting her room, Suze must delve deep into the history of little Carmel, California. And when a girl at school kills herself over a boy, Suze needs to act quick and get rid of her before the ghost takes them all down.
Shadowland (The Mediator, #1) is a great book that you should definitely read. It's funny, charismatic, and dark all at the same time. Meg Cabot has written yet another masterpiece.
Suze is not normal. Infact, she is so NOT normal that she can talk to the dead. But she doesn't just talk, she mediates. And when she mediates, she gets into trouble. So when her mom remarries (and yeah, she can talk to her dead dad) Suze gives up dirty New Yorkian life and moves all the way to sunny, hot California. It's a new place, a place to start fresh and to make friends. Instead of going to graveyards at midnight or helping ghosts who just want their daughter to remember to feed the cat. Things like that.
But when a hot boy (GHOST!) starts haunting her room, Suze must delve deep into the history of little Carmel, California. And when a girl at school kills herself over a boy, Suze needs to act quick and get rid of her before the ghost takes them all down.
Shadowland (The Mediator, #1) is a great book that you should definitely read. It's funny, charismatic, and dark all at the same time. Meg Cabot has written yet another masterpiece.
I'm waiting to see where this series goes before I raise my ratings. Basically, I loved the idea. Of course, I loved that movie The Sixth Sense, too, so I guess it's no surprise I'd love this book. I am also a longtime fan of Meg Cabot. Sure, her books aren't for deep thinkers, but if you've got a two year old who wakes up at the crack of dawn and are busy writing a book of your own, Meg Cabot is JUST THE PERSON to read!!
As usual, she didn't disappoint. I loved the main character. One thing I have to say for Cabot, her girls aren't wimpy and neither are her boys. She is also one of the better authors at creating side characters that are well fleshed out.
I think my only complaint with these books —and honestly it's how I feel about a lot of YA fiction— is that they're too short. Much, much too short. Another 50 pages at least, with character development would have made me a happy girl. Thankfully, it seems to be a fairly long series, so I guess this will give her a chance to develop the main characters over time.
Happy Reading!
As usual, she didn't disappoint. I loved the main character. One thing I have to say for Cabot, her girls aren't wimpy and neither are her boys. She is also one of the better authors at creating side characters that are well fleshed out.
I think my only complaint with these books —and honestly it's how I feel about a lot of YA fiction— is that they're too short. Much, much too short. Another 50 pages at least, with character development would have made me a happy girl. Thankfully, it seems to be a fairly long series, so I guess this will give her a chance to develop the main characters over time.
Happy Reading!