Thursday, July 2, 2015

The Haunting of Sunshine Girl by Paige McKenzie


Rating: ★★★☆

Brief Summary: Something freaky is going on with Sunshine's new house . . . there's the chill that wraps itself around her bones, the giggling she can hear in the dead of night, and then the strange shadows that lurk in her photographs. But the more weird stuff that happens, the less her mom believes her. Sunshine's always had a quirky affiliation with the past, but this time, history is getting much too close for comfort . . .

Favorite Quote: Honestly there isn’t one… There was nothing literary worth noting throughout the whole thing.

Why You Should Read it: STOP! Before you crack open this book, I highly suggest that you go watch a few of the videos on Youtube first. I had never heard of Sunshine Girl, but when the store I work at got the book in on Tuesday the synopsis was enough for me to pick it up and give it a go. Paige McKenzie's character Sunshine's personality translates a million times better on film than it does on paper.

At first, all that was going through my head was "Oh great, another YA heroine that's 'not like other girls'. Another one that only reads Jane Austen and she literally used the word literally every other page. I almost started to make tallies in my notes every time the word was used, but decided against it. The prose isn't the best, and the author uses commas to represent pauses in speech more than I care for, but once you get to the first really scary scene, everything changes.

Throughout the book, there are a few super-scary scenes that raised bumps on my arms and they were the best parts about the entire story. Sunshine's house is haunted by one playful spirit that likes to play checkers and another that is just plain, well, not nice. In between mysterious footsteps, the sound of distant laughter and a few slamming doors, there are bigger moments involving lots of water and lots of screaming. Luckily, there were enough scenes like this to help numb my brain to the unnecessary love interest with the nerdy boy in the leather jacket, the fact that it was repeated over and over again that Sunshine 'didn't want to seem weird/odd/strange/vintage/out of place but......maybe she was'

Again, though, I urge you. Watch a few of the Youtube videos (they're only a minute or two long each). After that, her quirks and overall teenage girlishness make more sense.

Overall, I liked the book. (and Without it I wouldn't have discovered the videos!) And I'll probably end up getting the second installment as soon as I see it on the shelf!

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