Review: Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

August 30, 2011

Tor Teen

Received from Publisher for an honest review

Synopsis:
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father's mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn't expect anything outside of the ordinary: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he's never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
But she, for whatever reason, spares Cas's life.

My Review:
ANNA DRESSED IN Blood is a chilling and action-packed novel that will knock your socks off! I was completely blown away with the story! It's got a hot ghost slayer, killer ghosts, and scenes that will have you jumping out of your seat! I can't brag enough about ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD!

Cas is everything I could want in a protagonist--strong but not afraid to show a little weakness, bold, and willing to go to any lengths to save the world from the awful ghosts. The way he describes the ghosts chilled me to the bone. Thank goodness there is someone like Cas to kill these ghosts before they murder more people.

I give props to Blake for involving Cas's mom, and in a way his dad, in the story. Not many YA books have the parents be such a big part of the kids lives so it was very refreshing. Cas's mom is a bit cooky but she loves Cas so much and is willing to support him in his ghost killing. While Cas's dad is dead, Cas still feels a powerful connection to him and misses him like crazy. Cas's dad is the reason why he kills ghosts--his dad did it and in the end it got him killed.

Anna was not at all what I expected. I expected someone with no soul or conscience but Anna is much more complicated than that. Anna is a ghost that is like no other ghost he has encountered before. He feels bad for her when he learns what happened to her, but doesn't want to sympathize for her. Yet it isn't so easy as that. Anna brings a lot of complications to Cas's life!

ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD is a phenomenal YA debut that made me a fan of Blake. Her writing flows beautifully and her characters all have their own stories. If you haven't already read ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD, you are sure missing out!

My Rating: