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tobyyy's review against another edition
4.0
A very satisfying ghost story set in Charleston, NC. Although this was the 6th book in the series, it worked fairly well as a standalone. I’m going to have to delve into the rest of this series — I was quite surprised by how much I enjoyed this novel!
laurenjodi's review against another edition
4.0
The Awakening
4 Stars
Graveyard restorer, Amelia Grey, is caught up in another mystery when the ghost of a murdered girl begins haunting her. Amelia's quest for justice takes on a personal note when the ghost child's connection to her own family as well as that of her former lover, John Devlin, becomes apparent.
Whether it is the haunting sadness of Woodbine cemetery, or the old world gothic atmosphere of the Devlin mansion, or the spine-tingling evil of the dilapidated Duvall island, Amanda Stevens demonstrates once again that she is truly gifted when it comes to establishing the ominous settings in this series.
The mystery itself is rather straightforward and it is not difficult to guess the various guilty parties or their motives. Nevertheless, it is entertaining to accompany Amelia on her quest to uncover the truth and there are one or two surprising revelations.
As with most of the books in the series, it is the relationship between Amelia and John Devlin that really grips the reader. The intensity of their emotional and physical connection is simply breathtaking and their moments together leave the reader aching for more.
Despite these wonderful elements, the pacing is rather drawn out and there are several questions that remain unanswered at the end, which is unfortunate, as this is the final installment. Hopefully, the rumors of a spin off series are true and this will not be the last we see of Amelia and John.
4 Stars
Graveyard restorer, Amelia Grey, is caught up in another mystery when the ghost of a murdered girl begins haunting her. Amelia's quest for justice takes on a personal note when the ghost child's connection to her own family as well as that of her former lover, John Devlin, becomes apparent.
Whether it is the haunting sadness of Woodbine cemetery, or the old world gothic atmosphere of the Devlin mansion, or the spine-tingling evil of the dilapidated Duvall island, Amanda Stevens demonstrates once again that she is truly gifted when it comes to establishing the ominous settings in this series.
The mystery itself is rather straightforward and it is not difficult to guess the various guilty parties or their motives. Nevertheless, it is entertaining to accompany Amelia on her quest to uncover the truth and there are one or two surprising revelations.
As with most of the books in the series, it is the relationship between Amelia and John Devlin that really grips the reader. The intensity of their emotional and physical connection is simply breathtaking and their moments together leave the reader aching for more.
Despite these wonderful elements, the pacing is rather drawn out and there are several questions that remain unanswered at the end, which is unfortunate, as this is the final installment. Hopefully, the rumors of a spin off series are true and this will not be the last we see of Amelia and John.
clarissep's review against another edition
3.0
Wanted to read something creepy and atmospheric after a change. Skipped to the last book to find my “closure” for this series. It’s a satisfying conclusion although it dragged in some parts. I think maybe this series just lost its luster for me with the passage of time. It’s not as creepy as I remember, although Amanda Stevens is still as solid a writer as ever with her imagery.
runningoncoffee's review against another edition
5.0
What a great book and a great ending to one of my most loved book series. I just fell in love with Amelia and Devlin throughout all of the six books and I will miss them. Amanda is a fantastic writer and knows how to make the reader become part of the story.
andimontgomery's review against another edition
5.0
Wow, this series has really hit its stride. And this installment was, IMO, the best yet. Amelia is once again working on a local cemetery restoration with some pretty terrifying elements. What I enjoyed was that her restoration work weaves in more fluidly with other plot lines that have been ongoing the last two installments. Many secrets are revealed in this one, and the ending is a real zinger. Next!
snowbenton's review against another edition
1.0
Thank god this series is over. Never again do I have to suffer Stevens' misuse of words (and in this particular volume's turn at wildly inaccurate inventiveness: "quilled," a word that means to roll into tubes, was used twice when Stevens was describing hair standing on end, as if she thought that because porcupines have quills that you could acceptably turn their body part into a verb). This book, admittedly, did have two scenes that were pretty chilling, but that's about all the good I can say. Amelia is still a blithering idiot. I wish I had counted the number of times during the series that she would think to herself how dumb an idea was and then immediately follow the thought with "I don't know why I sat down / went to him / got in the car." That is not character building -- it's stupidity.
rclz's review against another edition
4.0
This was good and good enough I'm ticked off it's the end of the series. She says she's writing a short to go with it but from the sounds of it, it's mostly to intro new characters for a new series. I like Devlin and Amelia. I blew right through this....good end to the series just sucks when a good series ends.