Review- Blackwood by Gwenda Bond

Author: Gwenda Bond
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
ISBN: B007GYN7DU
Release Date: 9/04/2012
Goodreads Page: Click Here



On Roanoke Island, the legend of the 114 people who mysteriously vanished from the Lost Colony hundreds of years ago is just an outdoor drama for the tourists, a story people tell. But when the island faces the sudden disappearance of 114 people now, an unlikely pair of 17-year-olds may be the only hope of bringing them back.

Miranda, a misfit girl from the island’s most infamous family, and Phillips, an exiled teen criminal who hears the voices of the dead, must dodge everyone from federal agents to long-dead alchemists as they work to uncover the secrets of the new Lost Colony. The one thing they can’t dodge is each other.

First off lets get the technicalities out of the way. I was provided a copy of this book to review through Netgalley. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated in any way for them.

Review:

The mystery surrounding Roanoke Island has always been one that has fascinated me. According to legend 120 colonists one day up and disappeared the only thing different about the town after their absence was discovered was a single word "Croatoan" that had been crudely carved into a tree.

Blackwood takes the story of Roanoke Island and spins it on its head. Roanoke in present day has become a hot vacation spot filled with tourists and seasonal residents. After 114 citizens go missing its up to the locals left behind to figure out what happened and more importantly why.

Blackwood is a great debut and I did enjoy reading it unfortunately at times I was left confused and at others the story just felt rushed.

Pros-

Blackwood has a great idea but I am sorta bummed this is a stand-alone book.

Blackwood has some really great characters who helped enrich the story rather then feel just secondary to Miranda and they overall mystery.

Phillips was funny,charming and totally swoon-worthy. I just wish that his and Miranda's relationship developed over a longer period of time. It felt way to rushed.

Cons-

The story builds and builds then at the end it sorta just falls flat. Instead of being full of suspense I was left wondering what the heck just happened and finding myself flipping back and rereading several times.

Blackwood as mentioned above felt rushed and I really truly believe either the book should of been longer or split into two.

Overall this was a good book. I liked the Authors theory on Roanoke Island and the mysticism involved. I just was a bit disappointed with the pacing and wonder what could of been had this been longer or split up. I will be giving Blackwood by Gwenda Bond ★★★.

Want to Learn more about this Book or Author? Check out the links below
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Learn More about the Author: Here
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Follow Gwenda on Twitter: Here

Comments

  1. This book sounds really good to me :) I have it already and can't wait to read it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was good just really wish it had been longer or broken into two books instead.

      Delete
  2. I felt the same as you when I read it. I enjoyed it, but there were moments I was confused, and also moments I felt it kind of rushed and I didn't know why things happened the way they did. Good review!

    ReplyDelete

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