A review by bookbratmn
The Raising: Novel by Laura Kasischke

4.0

OOOH I had such a hard time rating this book. I really really really wish I could give it a 4.5. It totally rates a 5 for keeping me interested - I read 3/4 of the book today - but I think why I gave it a 4 was that it was not a 'satisfying' read. There was a resolution (I had pretty much figured out the mystery part - or the main gist of the mystery - by chapter 80) but I felt gypped at the end. There was sort of a brief 'epilogue' wrap up of the surviving characters and I get the message she was sending about being haunted and 'hauntings' but it felt cheap - like she was tired of writing about the characters and just wanted to be done. I liked the supernatural vibe it kept giving all the while it was giving you the feeling that there was a more plausible explanation for what was going on. I really liked how she tied the various plot lines together. There was so much to like about this novel but my gut says it isn't a 5. That said - if you liked Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon, you will enjoy this book and the ending is much more consistent than the ending to Dismantled!