Robin Reviews It: Haunted Echo by Janet McLaughlin

If you are in the mood for a little bit of spookiness and a whole lot of fun, Janet McLaughlin's Haunted Echo is sure to be a teen crowd-pleaser. The dialogue is witty and the story line unique. I normally shy away from stories that scare me, but this book is more mystery and less horror. I would describe it as a "Ghost Whisperer" for teens with clean romance and a plot that will have you second-guessing where it is headed. With it's simplistic writing, you'll breeze through this read in one sitting - just make sure it's not too late at night, or you might give yourself a little scare.

Title: Haunted Echo
Author: Janet McLaughlin
Genre: YA Mystery
Summary: Sun, fun, and her toes in the sand. That’s what Zoey Christopher expects when she joins her best friend and fellow cheerleader Becca on an exotic Caribbean vacation. What she finds instead is a wannabe boyfriend, a voodoo doll, and Tempy – a tormented young ghost whose past is linked to the island grounds. Zoey has always seen visions of the future, but when she arrives at St. Anthony’s Island to vacation among the jet set, she has her first encounter with a bona fide ghost. Forced to uncover the secret behind the girl’s untimely death, Zoey quickly realizes that trying to solve the case will place her in mortal danger. Shaken and confused by a menacing threat and by her budding feelings for the too-cute, too-nice Chris, will Zoey find a way to survive this vacation and put Tempy to rest?

About the Author:

Janet McLaughlin has been involved in the communication field most of her life as either a writer, teacher, or editor. She is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and is an avid fan of all things spiritual and mystical. In fact, she's convinced she was a Shaman in a past life! Her other passions involve reading great books, playing tennis with her daughter, traveling with her husband, and meeting people from all walks of life. 

Janet lives in Florida with her husband Tom. HAUNTED ECHO is the first novel in her Soul Sight Mystery Series.

Robin Review's it: Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold

Book Title: Carter Beats the Devil
Author: Glen David Gold
Pages: 662
Published: 2001
Publisher: Hyperion
Recommended for: 18+

An engaging story of Carter the Great with fantastic illusions and fun historical tidbits.

4.25 Stars

My Opinion: The backdrop of this story is one of historical events mixed in with possibility. As a master of illusions, Carter grows from a child fascinated with magic to an adult who lives for it.

The details that went into the staging and magic acts were flawless. The descriptions gave me the illusion of being an audience member back when Houdini or Carter took the stage. I Iiked that the magic in the book was possible and still so amazing that you could hardly believe it.

The two love stories, though definitely not the center of the book, carried me from the middle to the end. SPOILER: My heart broke when Carter's first love met with tragic accident as part of one of Carter's magic tricks. I liked that he didn't just get over it and had to go through years of struggle before finding his final love.

I was awestruck at how the author took real events from the 1920s, like the death of President Harding, and turned it into a fantastic story that had me Googling the internet to find out what really happened to the president and what Glen David Gold made up. What was even more fun was that some of the things COULD have happened. SPOILER: How cool would if have been for the real President Harding to escape scandal and find peace with his wife on a remote island? I mean, how did he come up with this stuff?!?

Though it took me a few chapters to get into the book (some of the jumping around from character to character didn't get me emotionally engaged until later), overall the book was well-written and researched with enough surprise to keep me reading until the very end. I'm excited to pick up some more of Gold's books.


My Content Rating: PG-13 
SEXUALITY: Moderate (references to prostitution and homosexuality--the red tie)
LANGUAGE/PROFANITY: Mild
DRUG/ALCOHOL USE: Moderate
INTENSE/SCARY SCENES: Moderate (mostly just intense illusions)
VIOLENCE: Moderate (agents getting beat up, attempted murder, death)

**Robin-approved for 18+ audiences**