{my thoughts} - This book was rather enjoyable. It is about a girl named Hannah Smith that is kidnapped. She is assumed to be the daughter of an Earl until she informs her captors that they have the wrong girl. She goes through weeks of self discovery. She learns what it is like to trust in others and to have freedom. Things she otherwise hadn't had the ability to enjoy in the past. This book centers around paranormal abilities and many different emotions. This book is a rather fast read, it captures the reader and drags them into the book. I enjoyed learning new details as they were reveled, but what I enjoyed most was actually feeling like I was Hannah, like I was in the book and the book was about me. It is incredibly well written and pulls you in from page one.

{reason for reading} - I was given a copy of this book by a fellow blogger in return for an honest review. ( )

I was very intrigued when I read the synopsis for this book and I wasn't disappointed. Hannah was a very strong female MC and I liked that after a lifetime of being sequestered in an attic with just Violet for company, she came into her own when she was mistakenly kidnapped in Violet's place. She because assertive and stood up for herself. And Jack was a very intriguing character as well, even though the reasoning behind some of his actions wasn't explained until the end of the book, when everything was tied up quite nicely.

All in all, an enjoyable read for fans of Gothic paranormal romance books.

4/5 stars. ( )

I listened to the audio book of this. I had a 12 hour road trip yesterday, and I spent most of the trip listening to this book. I was worried that it would make me tired, but the story was so good that it kept me engaged the entire time. It had me laughing a few times and kept me guessing most of the time. I was constantly trying to solve the mystery. I don't know if I would have enjoyed the regular book format more or less. I can say that I found the woman doing the narrating to be very entertaining. On the same note, the only reason that I gave this book a 4 star is because they really should have gotten a male to do the male voices in the book. It was off putting to hear this woman trying to do multiple male voices and none of them very good. She was excellent at all of the multiple female voices and accents that she did. I did eventually get used to hearing her do the men's voices though I just would have preferred an actual male's voice for the men's parts. ( )

I received a copy of this book months ago through Library Thing in exchange for an honest review. I am so glad I finally read this book! This was very well written. The characters are colorful and complex, the story line is interesting and steady paced. There are some great twists. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the rest of what this Author C.J. Archer has written. I will be purchasing everything she ever wrote because if the rest are as good as this, then I need to have them. I am especially excited to see how this series ends. This book could be stand alone, but I am very happy that it isn't. ( )

Thank you to the author for providing me a copy to review.

I had a lot of trouble with this book. A supernatural Gothic novel set in England had me very interested. Unfortunately, I wasn't too captivated from the start. Hannah and her friend Violet Wade were kept locked in an attic their entire lives. Hannah has narcolepsy and her friend Violet can start fires with her mind. Hannah is soon kidnapped and sent to Frakingham House, aka Freak House because of her assumed fire-starting abilities. Trouble is, she's the wrong girl. If she tells them she's the wrong girl, though, her best friend Violet will be taken instead..,Not to mention there's a charmingly handsome fire-starter named Jack who is to be her teacher.

I had a lot of trouble with the way the plot unfolds in the first half of the book. I think that's why it was so hard for me to get through it. I knew the premise of her being "the wrong gir" couldn't last too long, especially because eventually shed have to show her fire starting abilities. It seemed, therefore, kind of silly to me to be reading a story when I knew it would have to come out eventually and it was sort of bland. However, about halfway in this started to get good. Very good. The story picked up pace and became extremely interesting and the mysteries grew. I totally didnt see where the story was going, so I started then to really enjoy reading it.

If I had to rate the first half of the book I would give it 1 star. If I had to rate the second half is give it 4 stars and tell you ill probably read the next book in the series. So, to be fair I'll go in the middle and give it 3 stars.

I'd recommend this book for people who like gothic mysteries with a touch of romance. ( )