Eleanor Wood

NOTE: I received the eARC from MIRA INK in exchange for my honest review.

First, let me say that this is not my usual type of read. What I mean is that I like me some good mystery, especially when the spiritual is involved. But by spiritual I usually mean the Christian side of it. Not the occult. Even though I've read a bunch of witchy books too. I'm just saying that the Ouija boards and tarot cards aren't really my cup of tea.

However, the idea caught my attention, as well as the twin thing that's going on. Much like the author herself, I love mysteries involving twins, so you know, I just thought I'd give it a try.

Let's begin by saying that the writing style is neat and captivating. It flows well, and is almost grammar free. The narrative (i.e. descriptions) are very nicely balanced and there is a lot more showing than telling. One thing that I think the editors didn't notice (although my copy was a proof so it might've been fixed afterwards) was the constant switch from present to past tense inside the narration itself. At first I thought that there was a special effect meant to be accomplished with this switch. But it became obvious that this wasn't the case and it just didn't sound right.

Then there were the characters, who were really awesome in a fictional kind of way. To be honest, I can't imagine them sounding realistic at all, in a real world situation.

Sorana was supposed to be a down-to-earth, sensible girl, but she turned out to be anything but that just because of the sisters. I was quite a bit disappointed in her because of her inability to stand up for herself. True, in the end she did understand how wrong she'd been the entire time, but still. I really couldn't understand how it could be obvious to everyone else that something was wrong with the twins, except Sorana. Of course. She continued calling Elyse 'her friend' even when it was crystal clear that this was not the case at all.

Nathalie was the most sensible one of them all, it seemed. Until she completely freaked out and went wacko.

The twins Elyse and Melanie were mysterious alright, but in a more creepy way than I'd thought. In the end, my opinion of them came out to be actually true, in a really freaky way. So, I guess it's safe to say that I didn't like them at all.

A bunch of teen problems were addressed here, although I don't think it was done on purpose. Smoking weed, drinking and sleeping around seemed to be taken for the norm, which actually disgusted me. More so, every scene involved some form of the above and none of the characters reacted to it in any particular way. I didn't like that at all. It was as if it was normal for girls to do any and all of those things on a daily basis. Well, I think that it's not normal, so I don't really understand the point of it.

With all that said, Gemini Rising could be interesting to you, if you don't mind any of those things I mentioned.… (altro)

This is the perfect girly Young Adult story. It's got everything you could wish for, including a sneaky, creepy hint of the supernatural. So this is a very easy 4 stars, I really really liked it.

The characters were well written and this story was very believable. The situations and mannerisms were real. These teenage girls WERE teenage girls, wrapped up in school and trying to fix their lives and grow up too fast. I could really identify with Sorana, she reminded me of me - quiet, good as English, bad at Maths.

Unfortunately, I've never had a brain for Maths - I just don't.

Drink, drugs and rock'n'roll. And Ouija boards.

The story is fun and girly and humourous. You experience everything with Sorana - from her first hangover to her first funeral.

I like the way that the possibly supernatural bits were written - it's left up to the reader to decide. It makes this book perfect for those who don't like the supernatural and those who love it. FANTASTIC!

There are threads of mystery and a thrilling conclusion to the tension-filled story that's been building up and up from the very beginning. And it's not predictable. This story does not end how you think it will. I was truly shocked by the ending.

If you like [a:Sarra Manning|42559|Sarra Manning|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1267401953p2/42559.jpg] then you'll like Eleanor Wood. I hope to read more from her in future!

Thanks to Carina via NatGalley for a copy of this.… (altro)