Night Visions
Visions #1
by Elena Gray
Paranormal Romance
Published December 18, 2012
*Ebook obtained directly from the author in exchange for an honest review*
Synopsis via Goodreads:
Plagued by visions and voices, Samantha Cade must be losing her mind. Until she realizes there's a hidden, urgent message wanting to be revealed. Just how, she'll have to figure out.
When Ian Behr reappears in her life after six long years without so much as a goodbye, dormant longing awakens. To survive this turmoil, she'll need to guard her heart.
Will Ian be her doom...or her salvation?
Grab Your Copy:
About the Author:
Amidst piles of laundry you will find Elena tapping away at her laptop, escaping into her own paranormal world. Her characters are demanding and opinionated. They keep her up at all hours of the night. But she wouldn't have it any other way.
While she's not a soccer mom, she is a football, basketball and baseball mom. Two active boys, lovable dog and devoted husband round out her family.
My Review:
Night Visions was a really good debut Paranormal novel. While I'm not jumping up and down screaming "Best book ever" I'm still bouncing in my seat saying "if you like shifters + mystery + a little romance, get this book!"
While there were a few places that left me a little confused with a scrunched up face saying "huh," overall, this novel kept me on my toes and attached to the characters. Don't let me fool you by saying the entire novel focuses on shifters - that would be misleading on my part. The novel focuses on Sam, with voices constantly in her head, seeing visions here and there but not understanding them, trying to find her brother, and struggling with her feelings for Ian vs wanting to be mad because he left her. Although shifters are all around, they aren't the primary focus.
There isn't a lot of background as far as the characters go but Elena gives you just enough info to like or hate them. There are a few holes but they aren't so large that you feel like you're missing something. You learn that Sam has a brother Jason, but you never find out where their parents are or what happened to their parents... You learn that Ian lived next door and left out of the blue, but you never learn where he went in between being with his parents and then being old enough to build his own place in the mountains. Then there's Scott - you know he's been a great friend of Sam's for a while, helped pick her up after Ian ran off, but you know very little else up front. Later, you learn who Scott's father is, but the mystery aspect of the novel is really "who the heck is that guy and what does he want." So you're still a little clueless as to knowing much about him. Plus, it's hard to tell if he's a good guy or a bad guy? I mean, he wants to free Sam but then he shoots her up and knocks her out when she's trying to escape.... Anywho... these aren't deal breakers for the novel. They may sound bad but honestly, they're small little details when you're reading the novel.
The story really draws you in and the mystery keeps you wondering "what in the world...." There's also the fact that every single aspect of Sam's life has just about been a lie... it seems like everyone knew what was going on EXCEPT Sam. That was a little frustrating & I think Sam went a little easy on everyone. LoL I would've given them Hell if it was me they'd lied to for years.
I'm hoping that Elena is able to expand on these characters in book 2 even though it's going to focus on another set of characters.
The plot moves at a solid pace and I never really got bored. There was something going on constantly.
Overall, I think this is a pretty good start to a new paranormal series and I definitely want to pick up book 2 when it comes out so I can continue the story. I know I've noted areas that may sound negative, but honestly, while reading, you aren't thinking about any of that. While reading, you're entranced by what's going on. I only noted the areas above after finishing the novel and looking back.
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
Cover Rating: 3.5 Stars
Characters: 4 Stars
Plot: 3 Stars
Climax: 3.5 Stars
Ending: 3.5 Stars
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