Nocturnal
Author: Chelsea M. Cameron
Publisher:Createspace
Length: Appx. 232 Pages.
E-Book, via Amazon Kindle PC
Rating: 3 Brownies
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GoodReads Synopsis:
Seventeen-year-old Ava-Claire Sullivan's mother is dying. Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that her greatest solace comes from someone who's already dead.
Peter Hart saves her one night in a graveyard from an attacker just as strange as he is, and now Ava can't stop thinking about him. She wants to see him again – even after he warns her he's dangerous, and she begins to realize what he is. Her best friends don't know anything about death, but Peter does, intimately. He's waiting for her the next night she comes to the cemetery, and the next...
But their growing bond comes up against a promise Peter made a long time ago, a promise that could destroy them both. Now Ava has to decide just what she's willing to give up to hold onto the one thing that could last forever.
Peter Hart saves her one night in a graveyard from an attacker just as strange as he is, and now Ava can't stop thinking about him. She wants to see him again – even after he warns her he's dangerous, and she begins to realize what he is. Her best friends don't know anything about death, but Peter does, intimately. He's waiting for her the next night she comes to the cemetery, and the next...
But their growing bond comes up against a promise Peter made a long time ago, a promise that could destroy them both. Now Ava has to decide just what she's willing to give up to hold onto the one thing that could last forever.
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My Review:
I'll be honest and say I haven't the slightest clue about where to start on this one. Yes, I did enjoy the book, but there's nothing specific about it that I feel inclined to begin with.
I guess I'll just start from the beginning.
So, the beginning felt like an entity of its own, almost detached from the rest of the novel. It slams you right off the bat with some pretty heavy news: the main character's mother is dying. Yes, legitimately dying, A.K.A, no vampires... yet. One would think that starting a novel off on such a down note might not be the best idea, but somehow Cameron still managed to take hold of my attention. As I read on, however, I worried that the entire novel would be based on the morbid behavior of a distraught teenage girl. Negativity seeped into Ava's every thought, which made the first chapters difficult to push through. I came very close to dropping the book, but a little voice in my head urged me to continue. Fortunately, I didn't have to struggle very long. Somewhere after chapter 4 it became a new story, rid of the morbidity that weighs heavily upon the first chapters.
I discovered pretty quickly, after all of the my-mother-is-going-to-die mantras eventually stopped, that I actually really liked Ava's character. Her thought's lost their angst-y coating and she became someone I could actually see myself being good friends with. You can tell that she really cares for her friends, Tex and Jamie, and that they truly care for her too. In fact, I'd like to note that Tex was one of my favorite characters. She just always exudes this quality of playfulness and sincerity, and I loved the banter between she and Ava; it felt believable.
Speaking of characters, I may as well bring up the love interest. Peter. Peter, Peter, Peter. The first time his point of view came up, I didn't like where his character was headed. Something felt really off, and I hated the way his character was presented. Again, like the beginning of the book, it got better around the third time around, but those first two were honestly just plain weird to read. His character through Ava's point of view, though, I adored. Everybody loves an innocent, clueless soul and that's exactly what Peter is. I won't blow too much about him, but all you need to know if you're interested in reading Nocturnal is that he's not your typical hero. I'll leave it at that and allow you to uncover the rest.
The world building was nothing spectacular and sometimes I found it difficult to picture certain things. I would've loved a more detailed description of the graveyard in particular, as that was easily my favorite setting. There's enough to outline an image in your head, but the rest is left up the reader.
Now, one thing I think needs to be pointed out about this novel is that it felt more like an introduction than anything else. Aside from a few set-up-esque plot points, not much goes on. The "climax" comes at the very end, and even then nothing is fully established. I'm really hoping that Nightmare will be different in this respect, as this novel had virtually no central conflict.
Another thing that the novel lacked was follow up on a lot of essential questions. There were so may side problems that almost none of them were even remotely resolved. Aside from mentions here and there of her mother's illness, the whole idea is pushed completely to the way-side. I almost completely forgot at some point that her mother was ill at all! Further, conflicts within Jamie's life are never examined, and though I understand that Ava has a lot of her own stuff to dwell on, it got to the point where I forgot Jamie even existed. There are other unresolved issues that are too important to spoil, but if you read the book you'll know exactly what they are. The inconsistency is rather disappointing.
I feel kind of like jelly now after sitting here and editing this, but I shall depart with one last tidbit. This book, while nothing special, is pretty darn good, especially because it's absolutely free right now. It's definitely worth looking into, and despite the bad rep that vampire's get, (to which, I admittedly contribute), this vampire book is at the very least bearable if not thoroughly enjoyable. I give it 3 tasty brownies :)
I guess I'll just start from the beginning.
So, the beginning felt like an entity of its own, almost detached from the rest of the novel. It slams you right off the bat with some pretty heavy news: the main character's mother is dying. Yes, legitimately dying, A.K.A, no vampires... yet. One would think that starting a novel off on such a down note might not be the best idea, but somehow Cameron still managed to take hold of my attention. As I read on, however, I worried that the entire novel would be based on the morbid behavior of a distraught teenage girl. Negativity seeped into Ava's every thought, which made the first chapters difficult to push through. I came very close to dropping the book, but a little voice in my head urged me to continue. Fortunately, I didn't have to struggle very long. Somewhere after chapter 4 it became a new story, rid of the morbidity that weighs heavily upon the first chapters.
I discovered pretty quickly, after all of the my-mother-is-going-to-die mantras eventually stopped, that I actually really liked Ava's character. Her thought's lost their angst-y coating and she became someone I could actually see myself being good friends with. You can tell that she really cares for her friends, Tex and Jamie, and that they truly care for her too. In fact, I'd like to note that Tex was one of my favorite characters. She just always exudes this quality of playfulness and sincerity, and I loved the banter between she and Ava; it felt believable.
Speaking of characters, I may as well bring up the love interest. Peter. Peter, Peter, Peter. The first time his point of view came up, I didn't like where his character was headed. Something felt really off, and I hated the way his character was presented. Again, like the beginning of the book, it got better around the third time around, but those first two were honestly just plain weird to read. His character through Ava's point of view, though, I adored. Everybody loves an innocent, clueless soul and that's exactly what Peter is. I won't blow too much about him, but all you need to know if you're interested in reading Nocturnal is that he's not your typical hero. I'll leave it at that and allow you to uncover the rest.
The world building was nothing spectacular and sometimes I found it difficult to picture certain things. I would've loved a more detailed description of the graveyard in particular, as that was easily my favorite setting. There's enough to outline an image in your head, but the rest is left up the reader.
Now, one thing I think needs to be pointed out about this novel is that it felt more like an introduction than anything else. Aside from a few set-up-esque plot points, not much goes on. The "climax" comes at the very end, and even then nothing is fully established. I'm really hoping that Nightmare will be different in this respect, as this novel had virtually no central conflict.
Another thing that the novel lacked was follow up on a lot of essential questions. There were so may side problems that almost none of them were even remotely resolved. Aside from mentions here and there of her mother's illness, the whole idea is pushed completely to the way-side. I almost completely forgot at some point that her mother was ill at all! Further, conflicts within Jamie's life are never examined, and though I understand that Ava has a lot of her own stuff to dwell on, it got to the point where I forgot Jamie even existed. There are other unresolved issues that are too important to spoil, but if you read the book you'll know exactly what they are. The inconsistency is rather disappointing.
I feel kind of like jelly now after sitting here and editing this, but I shall depart with one last tidbit. This book, while nothing special, is pretty darn good, especially because it's absolutely free right now. It's definitely worth looking into, and despite the bad rep that vampire's get, (to which, I admittedly contribute), this vampire book is at the very least bearable if not thoroughly enjoyable. I give it 3 tasty brownies :)
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