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A review by goodbetterbetsy
Blackwood by Gwenda Bond
4.0
Miranda Blackwood has spent every day of her life on Roanoke Island. She's always been a bit of an outcast, but has found her own little niche in the world helping out the local theater company when they put on the annual summer production about the lost colonists of Roanoke Island.
Things change for Miranda when 114 members of the community vanish in the night. Could whatever happen to the colonists be happening again? Miranda has to find out what is going on. She feels connected to the mystery in a way she doesn't really understand. And she is surprised when she finds help in the last place she expected.
First, I have to say, this whole story is based on the mysterious disappearance of the Roanoke colonists. I am sold. The story grabbed me almost right from the beginning. I was kind of on the fence (I didn't know a whole lot about the plot) about where the story might go, but I was pretty gripped once people started disappearing.
I liked Miranda a lot. She was the kind of girl who took what life handed her and didn't waste too much time feeling sorry for herself if the hand she was dealt was a bad one. She rolled with the punches. However, as the story moved along her character evolved and we were able to see that a lot of what she showed people was just a facade. I thought her character development was well done. Sometimes I wanted to shake her by the shoulders, but that happens a lot when I'm reading (see my upcoming review of Insurgent by Veronica Roth.)
I also liked Phillips. I almost wrote him off based on his name alone. Then, author Gwenda Bond, threw in a little jab about his name that made me chuckle so I got over it. He turned out to be a pretty decent guy. I thought his connection to Miranda seemed a little odd considering he hadn't been on the island (or spoken to her) in a few years, but I was willing to ignore that for the sake of the story.
All in all I really liked this and recommend it to history buffs, paranormal fans, and anyone who likes a pinch of romance added to the mix.
Things change for Miranda when 114 members of the community vanish in the night. Could whatever happen to the colonists be happening again? Miranda has to find out what is going on. She feels connected to the mystery in a way she doesn't really understand. And she is surprised when she finds help in the last place she expected.
First, I have to say, this whole story is based on the mysterious disappearance of the Roanoke colonists. I am sold. The story grabbed me almost right from the beginning. I was kind of on the fence (I didn't know a whole lot about the plot) about where the story might go, but I was pretty gripped once people started disappearing.
I liked Miranda a lot. She was the kind of girl who took what life handed her and didn't waste too much time feeling sorry for herself if the hand she was dealt was a bad one. She rolled with the punches. However, as the story moved along her character evolved and we were able to see that a lot of what she showed people was just a facade. I thought her character development was well done. Sometimes I wanted to shake her by the shoulders, but that happens a lot when I'm reading (see my upcoming review of Insurgent by Veronica Roth.)
I also liked Phillips. I almost wrote him off based on his name alone. Then, author Gwenda Bond, threw in a little jab about his name that made me chuckle so I got over it. He turned out to be a pretty decent guy. I thought his connection to Miranda seemed a little odd considering he hadn't been on the island (or spoken to her) in a few years, but I was willing to ignore that for the sake of the story.
All in all I really liked this and recommend it to history buffs, paranormal fans, and anyone who likes a pinch of romance added to the mix.