Author: Victoria Schwab
Pages: 272
Edition: US ARC
Publication date: 28th August 2018
Read: 19th – 23rd May 2018
Rating:
Cassidy Blake’s parents are The Inspectres, a (somewhat inept) ghost-hunting team. But Cass herself can REALLY see ghosts. In fact, her best friend, Jacob, just happens to be one.
When The Inspectres head to ultra-haunted Edinburgh, Scotland, for their new TV show, Cass—and Jacob—come along. In Scotland, Cass is surrounded by ghosts, not all of them friendly. Then she meets Lara, a girl who can also see the dead. But Lara tells Cassidy that as an In-betweener, their job is to send ghosts permanently beyond the Veil. Cass isn’t sure about her new mission, but she does know the sinister Red Raven haunting the city doesn’t belong in her world. Cassidy’s powers will draw her into an epic fight that stretches through the worlds of the living and the dead, in order to save herself.
City of Ghosts is Victoria Schwab’s first paranormal middle grade novel and, like all her other books so far, she kills it. Almost literally, in fact; City of Ghosts is a story about death, ghosts (shocking), friendship, and adventure.
As you’d expect from one of V’s novels, the writing style is exciting and fun. It’s not quite at the same level as A Darker Shade of Magic, but that’s mainly down to the intended audience. Schwab’s tone is aimed at middle grade readers, but her style is open and varied, making it engaging for all ages. (Take it from someone in their twenties who thoroughly enjoyed it).
The narrative is a clever balance of playful jokes and dark descriptions of the world beyond the veil. Edinburgh is rendered beautifully in our imaginations and it’s clear that the Schwab loves the city. The streets, gardens near the station, and nuances of the city centre are captured inquisitively, building the world of the book up gradually. Although the descriptions of the castle and royal mile become a touch too romanticised at times, realism is maintained in the dankness of the underground vaults and unnerving atmosphere of the graveyard. If you’ve been to Edinburgh a few times, the narrative makes it easy to pinpoint some of the locations, but at other times the map in the front of the book comes in handy (and it’s lovely, so drool away).
Cass is the kind of main character you immediately want to be friends with. She’s young, but pragmatic, warm, witty, and open-minded about the fact that she can see ghosts on a day-to-day basis. She humours her parents, who can’t see them but believe resolutely nonetheless, and some of the ironic moments in the book come from them not knowing her secret. Although her naivety gets her into hot water (more than once), her intentions are always good and inevitably draw people to her.
Competing for the title of ‘my fave’ is Cass’s best friend Jacob – resident ghost of the Blake family. Jacob’s humour and antics made me laugh frequently and his friendship with Cass was one of the things I loved most about the novel. There’s no unnecessary romance, no uneasy dynamics between them as they discover their attraction, and no flirting. They’re best friends first and foremost, and it’s wonderful. Their friendship is the driving force behind a lot of action-packed moments in the book, and they save each other time and time again because of that bond. If you’re not busy next week, get yourself a friendship like Cass and Jacob’s.
The light-hearted moments in the book are offset by some equally dark moments as Cass discovers more about her ability and meets Lara, who can also see ghosts (but has none of Cass’s tolerance for them or charm). The pacing speeds up as the plot progresses and moral questions are thrown up about who should have the power to ‘play god’ and what it means to be truly alive.
The book descends into darker tones still with the entrance of the Red Raven, and like all Schwab villains, she’s more than a match for the hero, which is what makes her so chilling. After all, what’s a story of good vs evil without a villain who might win? Although I wasn’t a huge fan of the name Red Raven (sounds a little gimmicky to me), her abilities and motivations made her real threat, and the kind of dark character you wouldn’t want to meet in a gloomy Edinburgh alley.
I went into City of Ghosts expecting great things from my favourite author, and I wasn’t disappointed. Although the book didn’t quite have the same impact for me as ADSOM or Vicious, I was enthralled by the plot and fraught with tension during the action scenes. I’m hugely fond of Cass and Jacob (I will fight anyone who tries to hurt them), and although there’s been no word yet on where book two will be set, I can’t wait to see where their adventures go next.
This is on my TBR! So happy you liked it!!
Yay! I hope you love it, it’s a really fun adventure 😊
Great review! I really need to get my hands on a copy
Thanks Kirsty! Yesss please read it and send me an in-depth essay of your thoughts 😉
Amazing Review!. I feel like I’ll love this book, I can’t wait to read it 😍
Aww thanks Sofii! It’s a great book, if you like paranormal and spooky stories that aren’t too dark then it’s definitely one to pick up. I hope you love it 😊
i really want to read this, it sounds great!
It’s such a good book, especially towards the end when the action really ramps up. Cass and Jacob’s friendship is so great as well 😍
Even though I am a Schwab fan, I was on the verge of dismissing this one when I found out it was MG, but now I think I should take a look!
It’s a really fun book and better than a lot of the other middle grades I’ve read. This is probably because the action/plot + character development ration just right. I don’t normally read much MG but I had to because it was V 🙂
EEEK I’m so hyped to read this!
It’s great! Hope you love it! 😃
Ooh this sounds a great blend of light and dark. Great review!
It really is! There are some really fun moments and some really sinister moments, but V creates a really good balance between them. Aww thank you!
im so excited to read this myself, im rly glad you lovedit
It’s really good! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did 😃
Loved your very detailed review! I haven’t read any of Schwab’s books yet
but after discovering that she is your fav, I might buy her books sooner than planned 😊
Aww thank you so much! I’d definitely recommend picking up any of her books, they’re all brilliant, but some of my favourites are the A Darker Shade of Magic series and Vengeful. 🙂