Review: The Summoning

by Kelley Armstrong
publisher: HarperTeen
date published: July 1, 2008
format: hardcover
pages: 390
source: library
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N
challenges: Goodreads 2011 Reading Challenge; 2011 YA Reading Challenge

From Goodreads:

"After years of frequent moves following her mother’s death, Chloe Saunders’s life is finally settling down. She is attending art school, pursuing her dreams of becoming a director, making friends, meeting boys. Her biggest concern is that she’s not developing as fast as her friends are. But when puberty does hit, it brings more than hormone surges. Chloe starts seeing ghosts–everywhere, demanding her attention. After she suffers a breakdown, her devoted aunt Lauren gets her into a highly recommended group home.

At first, Lyle House seems a pretty okay place, except for Chloe’s small problem of fearing she might be facing a lifetime of mental illness. But as she gradually gets to know the other kids at the home–charming Simon and his ominous, unsmiling brother Derek, obnoxious Tori, and Rae, who has a “thing” for fire–Chloe begins to realize that there is something that binds them all together, and it isn’t your usual “problem kid” behaviour. And together they discover that Lyle House is not your usual group home either…"

What I Thought

From the very first page of the prologue I was drawn into the story. It has been a long time since I read a book with ghosts in the plot line. This was a good one to read to re-introduce myself to ghost stories.

Not only is this book about a girl who can see ghosts, it is a mystery, as well. As I read, I had more and more questions: How did Chloe inherit her abilities? What happened to her roommate? What exactly is up with Derek? Who is the ghost trying to contact her at the group home? Where is Simon and Derek's father? Some of these questions were answered, but you just know there is more just waiting to be revealed in the next two books.

There are some very interesting characters in this book. First, there is Chloe, a shy late-bloomer who finds herself in a strange situation. Then, there are the brothers, Simon and Derek, who are surrounded by mystery. Rae, Chloe's friend at the group home, is a girl who is kind but isn't quite what she seems to be. Tori is the token mean girl in this book, but you're left wondering what she's covering up. Add the various adults with murky motives and the ghosts and you've got quite the ensemble.

The more I read, the more I was anxious to see what would happen next. There's mystery, subterfuge, foreboding, some horror, and just a smattering of underlying romance that may or may not turn into something in later books. It is very fitting that Chloe is a movie buff, because there were moments during the reading of this book that I found myself worrying over her actions like I would a character in a horror movie. I just wish that the conclusion of this first book had been wrapped up just a little more. Instead, it ended with the beginning of a conversation, which left me a little frustrated, as I can't get to the library to pick up the next book in the series until tomorrow, plus I have a ton of homework over the next three weeks. I guess I shall just have to wait. Based upon the cliff hanger (a very sheer one, at that!), I give The Summoning 4 hoots.