[(Dark Touch: Shadows )] [Author: Amy Meredith] [Apr-2010]

Dark Touch #1

by Amy Meredith

Fifteen-year-old Eve Evergold is cute, sassy and enjoying a busy social life. What she doesn't know yet is that someone close to her is an evil demon that only she has the supernatural power to defeat. She needs to work out who it is - and fast! Because although there's something very attractive about the dark side...dating a demon? Pure hell!

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Demons, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Magic

Paperback

First published April 1, 2010

About the author

Amy Meredith now lives in California, though she has lived and worked in New York and the Hamptons where our heroes, Eve, Luke and Jess, come from. She has always had a fascination with the supernatural and wishes she had a super power like Eve's - although in real life she says she would definitely prefer shopping to demon-fighting!

Reviews

[Vishnu Chevli · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Shadows" is the first novel in dark touch series by Amy Meredith. I picked up this book because of its trendy cover. It's edgy YA supernatural/paranormal story

The story is about Fifteen years old Eve Evergold, who lived in small-town Deepdene where everyone knew each other. As the year begin two new boys moved into town one was minister's kid Luke and the other mysteries fellow Mal. Some mysterious things started to happen as the year started. Some of the girls were seeing shadows and having nightmares about demon sucking their soul. These girls soon went crazy. On the other hand, Eve was discovering some strange power in herself. She could feel electric charge in her fingers. She could move things without touching. To find out more about her powers and the thing that happened to other girls she took help of Luke and her best friend Jess. They soon found out that she was the great great great granddaughter of Deepdene's witch. She also had acquired crush on mal and he invites her to his house. There suddenly she realized that mal is the demon and he tried to suck her soul but she killed him. Story end where Eve is thinking that either she has killed mal or send him back to hell.

I enjoyed Eve and Jess 's friendship and their fashion talk, what I didn't like was saving of Deepdene was solemnly resting only on Eve's shoulder. Other than that I enjoyed this book.
if you like to read paranormal and supernatural things than this book is a perfect pick for you.

Detailed Review Link - http://chevusread.blogspot.in/2018/02...

[Sunni · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a really disappointing book. I had high expectations for this book, mainly because of the beautiful cover art. I constantly find myself being drawn to really dark books, so this one seemed quite appealing.

I really do not do this often. But the second I read:
"This one wasn't supposed to be scary," Jess said. "I heard it was going to be like a Twilight movie..." I started noting the likeness of the novel to Twilight (by Stephenie Meyer).

Like I said, I seldom make judgments about connections a book has with another. Only if it extremely obvious that the author might as well stamp a big copyright symbol on the cover.

Things that I noticed that sounded very familiar:
Small town? check
Mysterious, sexy, old fashioned, new boy? check
Shallow main character? check
Best friend of said character who is just as shallow? check
Second new boy who becomes close with main? check
second new boy starts lusting after main? check

and the list definitely goes on...

At one point, I was tempted to just give up reading the novel altogether. It became so predictable that there was really no point in reading further.

Here's an example, Eve (main character) goes off on her own when Katy has to buy detergent for her mother. Eve goes strolling along on her own, and the streets are deserted. I'm thinking, “Huh. Funny if she ran into some guys who were going to follow her."
So, she's on her own and she sees four guys in the distance (big surprise). Takes a peek at them, one spots her. Eve suddenly thinks, "crap, not a good idea" and turns away from them, they start following her. They're calling her names, and she's panicking, one grabs her and she ends up zapping him with her all new power. (This surprised me because I was so certain that sexy mysterious boy would show up and save her.) Then all of a sudden, sexy mysterious boy shows up and saves her! Tells the guys to leave her alone or they'll have to deal with him. So then all my thoughts of surprise pretty much deteriorated…
Eve is surprised and worships her hero for rescuing her.

See what I mean? Will the similarities never end? All I have to say is this, the book was disappointing, and why someone would publish this I have no idea. Since one is already enough. Anyway, that's just my opinion and there are many people who may disagree.

[Sita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it at Tia's house...

I’m pretty sure I read this one night when I was staying over at Tia’s, yep, I was that bored. She was addicted to Sims at that point (I don’t see the appeal) and spent most of the night on that or watching Dexter (I see the appeal in that, I mean who doesn’t love a good serial killer. And he can’t hurt me, I’m in Australia, Dexter is in Miami. Ha!)

I can’t remember a lot of the book. But I remember the basic plot and the characters, and the (sucky as all hell, just give in to the lust already) romance. I guess I do remember the book after all. But because my memory is all over the place. Let’s do a list. We shall call the list ‘Sita’s Findings.’ Right, let’s begin.

1. The book was very short, finished it in about an hour (I think)
2. It was set in a rich peoples town
3. The main girl and the main guy should just hook up already
4. The main guy (what’s his face) is a priests son
5. The main girl kills/fights demons
6. The main girl is a witch
7. The main girl is friends with someone who opens a door to hell
8. She dates a demon
9. This book was predictable
10. This book was a light, easy read.
11. This is not a romance novel it’s just paranormal (not much romance, barely any kissing, lot’s of gazing from a distance. But not much else.
12. I’m tired
13. I feel like watching Grey’s Anatomy

That’s what I can remember of the book. This book is a quick read, that will take about 2 hours, tops to read. So if you read it and don’t like it. Really. What have you lost? 2 hours of your life, but not much else.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shadows is the first book in the 'Dark Touch' series and although the cover, which I think is pretty cool, promises an edgy, young adult supernatural story, it didn't quite deliver, although it was an entertaining read.

Eve is a fifteen year old girl who discovers she has acquired supernatural powers to zap demons, but she also loves to shop with her best friend Jess. They adore Jimmy Choo (what 15 year old do you know can afford JC?!) and applying lots of lipgloss, even at the most opportune moments. Unfortunately, the combination of light fluffy shopping, boys and sitting drinking espressos didn't really mesh well with the supernatural powers and evil demons.

I enjoyed the friendship between Eve and Jess though and their light banter was fun, but I feel it would have worked much better in a non-supernatural setting. With the threat of many deaths and armed with the knowledge that she is the only one who can save them all resting firmly on Eve's shoulders, the banter was just misplaced and didn't work for me.

Luke and Mal are the two new boys in town and all the girls are drooling over them, but are they what they seem? Eve is also smitten with both, but just can't seem to choose. Unfortunately, there's more serious things to deal with, like demons, which are pretty creepy and sinister, and people in town, including Eve's friend, Megan, are acting strangely and ending up in hospital, for the insane...

A few twists and turns along the way kept my attention for the most part and there are a few action scenes which are quite exciting, especially the last scene with Jess battling a nasty shadow demon...

VERDICT:

Shadows is at times a bit childish in nature, everything happens too quickly and too easily, which for me made it all a bit unrealistic and unbelievable. However, I liked the characters, albeit a bit under-developed for my taste. Having said that, Shadows is a quick, fun read that in my opinion would be more suited to younger teens.

[NorwegianBook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in a new series aimed at the pre-Twilight age group. The author, Amy Meredith, lives in California, but she has also lived and worked in New York and the Hamptons where the main characters in the Dark Touch - series are from. She has always been fascinated by the supernatural.

Story:
The summer is over, and it is time to get back to school for Eve Evergold and her best friend Jess, in the town of Deepdene. And this autumn, two new boys are also attending school with them. Luke Thompson is the son of the new minister in town, and he is cute and very flirtatious. And there is Mal, smouldering and mysterious Mal, who have just moved into "The Razor place" - a mansion which used to belong to a rockstar and which is said to be haunted. And school has just started, when mysterious things starts to happen in town. Many girls freak out and are sent to psyciatric institutions. There are talk of demons appearing in people's nightmares, and soon Eve must figure out who she can or cannot trust and look into the town's dark history.

Main Character:
Eve Evergold is fifteen years old, and like most teenagers she has a very busy social life. She loves to shop and look at boys and enjoys a comfortable life. But even though her parents has a lot of money, she does not come across as a spoiled brat. She is quite likeable, and I became more and more fascinated by her as the story progressed. The author has managed to make her evolve throughout the story, and from being a carefree and happy girl you can actually see how the events in this book affect her. I love it, when authors manage to do just that. I am looking forward to get to know her better in future books in this series. Eve is a person I would have loved to have as a friend in real life; I am sure she would have made me laugh a lot.

The Book:
Dark Touch, The Shadows is a witty and spooky read. From the opening scene you are thrust into a story full of gothic atmosphere combined with glamorous surroundings. There is romance, riddles, suspense and dramatic events. I got more and more engage in the book as the story progressed.

The friendship between Jess and Eve are so well describe, you have no problem understanding why these two are best friends. They seem to be having so much fun together. "The shoe scale", their weapon for describing who hot a boy is, is hilarious. And there is also a great deal of trust here. Eve would do anything for Jess and Jess would do anything for Eve. They confide in each other and support each other. That's true friendship.

I also like how the author has portrayed Luke and Mal. They are both a bit mysterious and I kept on reading to get to know them better. I am sure they would appeal to the target group of this series.

The book does not require a lot of energy to get into. It is an easy and atmospheric read and I had no problem figuring out some of the riddles in the book. But despite all that, I enjoyed it. Sometimes it is refreshing to read something that does not require a lot of thinking.

Dark Touch, the Shadows is for readers who love the supernatural combined with lighthearted chick lit. A perfect book if you want to relax, get spooked and get in a good mood all at once.

The publisher has also created a beautiful and eye-catching cover that really captures the atmosphere in this book: gothic glamour

[Ellie Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having happened upon this book in a charity shop (or Thrift store, if you're from the US), I was pleasantly surprised to discover a KICK-ASS READ!

Evie's character was strong and determined, yet still feminine and realistic as a typical teenage girl. The secrets she uncovers had me turning the pages as fast as I could. There were many twists and turns that I didn't see coming but I'm not complaining: I loved every moment.

If you're looking for a teen novel that combines awesome fashion sense, the paranormal, and some cute high-school guys, then this book will suit you. :)

[Mati · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amy Meredith - Gölge
Dark Touch 1

Burası Deepdane. Huzurlu, az nüfuslu, hayatın gezmek tozmak ve alışverişten ibaret olduğu küçük bir kasaba. Deepdanede hayat her zamanki sakinliğiyle devam ediyordu ki birden bazı kasabalılar aklını kaçırmaya başladı.

Eve ve Jess, Deepdanein popüler kızlarından. Hayatlarında erkekler, ayakkabılar ve güzel elbiselerden başka pek bir şey yok. Ancak karanlık ve gizemli olaylar baş gösterince, iş başa düşüyor. Atalarından kalan mirasın farkına varan Eve, Deepdanei yüz yılda bir basan iblislerden kurtaracak kişinin kendisi olduğunu düşünüyor.

Gizemli bir yabancı her şeyi alt üst edebilir. Hem kasabayı hem Evein hayatını.

YORUMUM

Young Adult-Paranormal tarzında bir kitap, ilk tanıtımını gördüğümde, kapağı ve konusu itibariyle dikkatimi çekmişti.. Her ne kadar ergenlere yönelik olsa da -bildiğiniz gibi bu tarz kitapların bir çoğunda ergenler yetişkinler kadar olgunlar.– okumak istemiştim. Ancak itiraf etmeliyim ki beklentilerimi karşılamadı. Tamam, anlatım sade ve akıcı ama karakterlerin bir derinliği yok. Çok sığ kalmışlar. Alışveriş düşkünlüğü özellikle ayakkabılara hayranlık o kadar göze sokuluyor ki, fantastik tarafın sanki çerezmiş gibi kaldığını düşündüren kısımlar oluyor. Jess’in aslında kötü bir durum karşısında bile saçma sapan espri yapması ya da olayın ciddiyetini görmezden gelmesi oldukça sinir bozucu. Asıl karakter olan Eve ise o kadar boş görünüyor ki insani duyguları olduğunu ancak öfkelendiğinde anlıyoruz. Karakterlerin içinin biraz daha dolu olması gerektiğini düşünüyorum. Luke ve Mal ise birbirlerinin zıt özelliklere sahip karakterler. Luke bir rahibin oğlu olarak dikkat çekiyor, dışa dönük, yakışıklı ve çapkın. Evle tanışmasının ardından doğaüstü yeteneğine şahit olunca bir anda kendini Eve’nin kankisi yerine koyması da cabası. Eve’in sinirlerini oldukça bozuyor ama onun ne düşündüğüne takılmadan da edemiyor. Mal ise son derece düzgün,yakışıklı,biraz da merak uyandıran bir tip. Eve’in bir gözü Mal’da ise diğeri de Luke’ta. Birinden biri kötü. Maalesef kötü karakterin kim olduğunu şıp diye anlıyorsunuz, o kadar açık yani.
Gizem yaratılmaya çalışılmış ama gizem yok, kitabın sonunu tahmin edebiliyorsunuz. Biraz spoiler gibi olacak ama hani iblislerden bahsediyorsunuz, gayri ihtiyari tanrıya yaklaşırsınız, ama eve iblisle çarpışmasında Gandhi’nin sözleriyle güç topluyor.
Konu fikir olarak gayet güzelmiş ama çok yüzeysel kalmış. Yetişkinlere yönelik, derinlemesine ve bütün olarak işleniyor olsaymış ilk kitap için çok daha iyi şeyler çıkarmış gibi geldi bana.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book =] Loved the characters. It was quiet scary in places and had a really good twist at the end! Looking forward to reading the rest of this series.

[Kirsti · Rating 1 out of 5]

o_o Is it possible to lose brain cells when reading a book? I sure felt like I did! Firstly, Eve and Jess are total airheads. Eve of course, is given the slightly more unusual name because she ends up being the one with the powers. No offense to the girls called Jess out there, but it is a stereotypical airhead name (for the awesome girls called Jess out there, I apologize) They think about shopping, and boys, and yet the whole dialogue seems to have a very young voice in my mind. They didn't read like 15 year olds, that's for sure. They were so incredibly shallow! At one point, they are talking about how vicious rumors can upset someone, or get them bullied. Jess then comes back with her own memory; of the time her father wore tie dye drawstring pants to the market and people at school the next day were talking about it. Oh. No. Not a fashion faux pas! Daddy, can't you get anything right while shelling out for my three hundred dollar shoes?

Reading about two irritating girls shopping while the also extremely shallow boy did the research almost did my head in. Luke thinks nothing of making out with a different girl each day, and can't understand why a girl whom he took to the movies and then made out with all night might think he's boyfriend material. He's the one always teasing Eve about how much care she takes with her appearance, but then in return he is a major horndog. Great.

Somewhere in there there are oh so scary demons that will haunt your dreams and drive you mad, but you'll have to sort through descriptions of extreme beauty, exactly how popular the girls are, and shoe descriptions. Bleaurgh!

[Elena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh dear crap.
Is Amy Meredith kidding me or what?

I couldn't even finish this book.
Let me just say, our main character was a fourteen-year-old girl who just came out of Junior High.
And no, this is not a book for children. This is supposed to be Young Adults.
Again, are you kidding me?

Our main character is a superficial, idiotic girl who cares about boys, make-up and shoe-sales.
And no, I'm not going to tell you she has some deeper feature, because she hasn't.
All her she and her bestfriend do is gossip and talk about fashion.
Then things complicate when two new guys move to their town. You see, in this town for rich kids, everybody knows everybody, no one exclused. So it's a big deal when some new face appears.
So here the Amy Meredith had me laughing. Seriously girl, seriously?
Two fifteen-year-old (at the max) guys trying to play the broody, hot and mysterious male leads?
Please.

Things complicated even more when dear main character starts seeing shadows.
That's right. She sees shadows, hears weird noises, and this scares the poop out of her.
Lucas, the blond new guy, tries to help her but since they're both idiotic kids what do you honestly expect them to accomplish.

Okay, I didn't finish this book. I'm not even sure I reached half of it.
I only know this is probably the worst read I had in 2011. Maybe in my whole life.
I want to forget all about this but I'm afraid I can't. Poor me.

[Jodie · Rating 2 out of 5]

When l first picked up this book l was excited about reading this book but l have to admit my excitement was quickly ruined by how the book was written. I found the book written in quite a simple way with not much description and most sentences quite 'simple'. Because of this l found it hard to connect with the main characters and wasn't left feeling like they were real people like with most books which l enjoy a lot. This then mean't l couldn't slip into another world while reading this book and wasn't made to believe.
Another reason l wasn't left believing in the story was how unrealistic l found some of the book, if someone finds out they have superpowers l feel they would take longer to get used to these powers and be more surprised.
Maybe this book is for younger age than me, l mostly enjoy young adult fiction even though l usually enjoy reading more adult types of books but this may be a exception.
Even though l have mentioned a lot of negative things l did find it ok book and did enjoy a few chapters more than the rest of the book. I do have the second book in the series but won't be rushing to read it.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but it wasn't a masterpiece of any kind. It reminded me of many of the other books in it's genre.

Eve and Jess are normal fifteen year old girls living in the Hamptons. That is until girls from her local high school are going insane and she finds herself shooting out electricity from her finger tips. Eve and her best friend have to figure out who is causing havoc in her town as she is the only one with the power to stop him.

Eve and Jess were really good friends but I didn't relate that much to their lavish lifestyle of shopping and parties, at times they were both irritating as they would prefer to talk about nail polish than stop a demon that was on the lose. I did like their relationship with Luke though and thought they all worked well as a team. The paranormal element wasn't suprising and it was pretty obvious who the demon was but overall this was an entertaining read.

[Ellie Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a bit stereotypical and predictable . For example Eve and Jess loving shopping and being your typical 15 year old girls and Luke being a bad boy who is actually nice with Mal or should I say Malphas actually being the master demon.

However, I did enjoy it. It’s a fast little read can get you out of a reading slump.

[Books In Bloom · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it...but of course, i liked the dude i shouldn't. haha. i wonder if he'll reappear in the series.

[Kinga · Rating 1 out of 5]

0,5 ⭐
pół gwiazdki za głupotę głównych bohaterów która mnie bardzo bawiła

[kagit kiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Öyle çok ahım şahım bişey değil, konu ve karakterlerin klasik olduğu bi çırpıda okunacak bir kitap.

[DreaNA * · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am too old for this book xD
I don't read supernatural stories about teenagers saving their friends and families and villages anymore.
It was too shallow, too predictable but somehow a bit enjoyable.
Luke seemed like a nice guy and I got confused at one part who was the master demon.
Also, everything happened too fast to have any enjoyment out of it, the ending is too happy but I get it.
And I really didn't want to know about their clothing and shoes and famous people they know, it was just extra information to fill up the book.

[erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

i could write and essay on how poor this book was… but it’s not worth my time. i found it in a book swap and i will be returning it to the book swap tomorrow. this was utter drivel, but entertaining drivel. it read like something i would have written aged 15, and that’s not a compliment. terrible prose, awful shallow characters, dialogue that i had to stop and read out to my family because it was that cringe… but entertaining. i did finish it in less than a day, so there’s something

[Mummy's Naughty Corner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay I enjoyed this but Eve and Jess did annoy me. Very immature girls and it hard to think off them being close to adult hood. I also guess who the demon as a few chapters in as it was very obvious. I did like Mal and how he tried so hard to seduce Eve. I feel like we needed more info on the witch and what she could do. It just seemed like Eve would hold out her hands close her eyes and poof. I can see younger people enjoying this but as an adult i did find it lacking in places.

[Maja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ogólnie fajny klimat i pomysł na historię jednak czegoś mi tu brakowało, trochę miałam wrażenie jakbym czytała o odcinku z czarodziejek (z lat 90) dlatego taka wysoka ocena XDD

[Me Through Pages - Tania · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a Greek girl so it was a really easy way to start reading English novels!
I am not really satisfied of the whole story but the vocabulary was quite informative...

[Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lots of people who have given this book a deservedly low rating have also mentioned how they think that 'younger teens would love it'. I was twelve or thirteen when I first read this book. I was given it by a friend who got it free in Bliss magazine, and she gave it to me as she knows I like to read, and at that point she didn't at all. I knew straight away, just by looking at the front cover, that it was going to be one of the most cliche, unrealistic, Twilight rip-offiest books I would ever read. But I kind of enjoy laughing at that type of book, just to see how bad it can get. So I went off and read it.

It was just as I thought it would be. The main character was shallow and rich and bitchy. She was described as 'cute and sassy and enjoying a busy social life', which speaks for itself. Her name was Eve Evergold (why do these authors feel the need to give their characters names that supposedly 'mean' something? Even Stephanie Meyer didn't do THAT). Eve and her best friend Jess (who is glued to her hip throughout the whole thing - when will people realise that friends do NOT always come first to teenagers? Personally, I hate my friends) rate boys according to designer shoe labels (which, despite being a teen of a smilar age to Eve's, I have NEVER HEARD OF, and nor do I wish to). They have WAY too much money and still complain about it. And yet... we're supposed to worry for Eve, and be HAPPY when defeats whatever-his-name-is? Amd sorry, but I just couldn't believe that whole ridiculous fight scene at his house. Actually I couldn't believe any of it.

I picked up on all of the faults when I was twelve. Young teens are not as ignorant and idealistic-romance-driven as people like to believe. Sure, some are... but so are many older people. I know this has been pointed out a thousand times, but remember Mr Rochester? And what's-his-name in Pride and Prejudice? they both host the same broodiness that is hated nowadays, but they're two of the most acclaimed books of all time. And nobody says that THEY should be left to the twelve year olds. The twelve year olds have more sense.

All in all, this book seemed as though Amy Meredith was trying to relate to teenagers but failing miserably. Perhaps she was trying to indulge us by chucking in everything she thinks teenagers want - a 'BFF' (I HATE that), cute, sassiness, a busy social life, lots of guys, lots of money, lots of designer labels, and, let's not forget, some cliche little battles to fight. I don't honestly know what was going through her head when she wrote this, but I do know that I would love to go round to her house and explain to her why she shouldn't have.

[Amy Jacobs · Rating 1 out of 5]

No matter how much you fall in love with this gorgeous cover, be warned that the book is not as beautiful as the art. I was looking for a new paranormal book in the young adult genre and remembered getting this one a while back. I dusted it off, and dove right into a book that was suppose to be suspenseful and full of intense scenes of paranormal chills. Unfortunately, Shadows fell short of my expectations.


This book seems to be written for more of the younger teens in mind. With that said, I still felt that the younger teen generations would have just as many problems as older readers with this book. It was written with more focus on shopping and repetitive character descriptions that made me feel like I was reading a promotional ad instead of a book. Yes, the main characters are rich and beautiful. Enough! Move on to something substantial. Then when it finally starts to pick up, the plot goes so far out on a limb it was unbelievable. The characters are too accepting of the supernatural and think they can handle demons by reading journals.


I ended up not finishing this book which was a disappointment. I always try to finish a book no matter what, but I just couldn't take the unbelievable story line and characters anymore. Not a series I will be continuing.

[Char · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

*****SPOILERS*****

15 year old Eve Evergold is a pain in the arse who cares about nothing but boys, looks and how much money mummy and daddy have put on her AmEx. She's spoilt, vain, stupid, immature, shallow and in need of a good slap.

This book is meant to be about demons and a dark force living in Deepdene (which used to be called Demondene [obviously]) which is stealing the souls of the local residents but for the majority of this book we're just told how beautiful Eve is with bluer than blue eyes and her black ringlets.

The writing is as though it's for a 10 year old, or more likely the brain washed rich bitches who live in the Hamptons for real and just want to read about girls like them.

I never relate with rich main characters as my upbringing was the complete opposite and if I'd known about the main characters I wouldn't have wasted my money on it.

I hated this book so much. It's the worst book I've read this year and the only thing that stopped me from giving it a straight up 1 star review was the half decent ending. Yay! The author did something right.

More of a rant than a review but I'm going to be putting a review on my blog and I couldn't bear to be polite about this insufferable book again.

[Booknut 101 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strap on your Jimmy Choos - it's time for a little demon hunting!

Eve's life revolves around a few things:
- Shoes
- Shopping
- Lip gloss
- Prada bags
- Making sure not to max out her credit card
- Her best friend Jess

But when girls around town start taking trips to the psych ward, screaming that they're plagued by 'shadows' and 'demons', Eve and Jess start to uncover some sordid secrets about their hometown and what lurks within the darkness. On top of everything, Eve starts to develop some interesting abilities - including sparks shooting out of her fingers, the ability to melt lipstick and to turn nasty thugs into ash. Not to mention the strange appearance of not one - but two - new guys, both extremely cute.

Like Eve didn't have enough to worry about.

An adventure with a fashionista whose brains, wit and courage will be needed in order to save those she loves.

[Rachel (The Rest Is Still Unwritten) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an easy enough read. It wasn’t overly complex and while it had a bit of a mystery it wasn’t so much that it was maddening.
The plot was cool, although I had a slight problem with Eve and Jess. Just a tad. I felt they were very vain at times and.... like Luke mentioned in the actual book...shallow. I mean who goes from worrying over having freakish new powers and abilities and dealing with a demon hell bent on ripping out peoples souls to obsessing over what they’re gonna wear on their upcoming date or the new Gucci sale that’s on at the small? Hello? Superficial anyone?
Still, other than that it was alright.

[moi, k.y.a. · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5
3yıldız vermek istemiyorum. Etmez o kadar. :( Zaten klasik Dex hareketleri diyorum, devamı yok. :P

Başlarda normal iki kızın arkadaşlığına şahit olduk. İşler adım adım tuhaflaştı. Kurgu ekşınlı olmadığı için pek de heyecanlanmıyordum ancak ne zamanki şah iblis olaya bire bir girdi işte o zaman oturduğum yerden doğruldum.

Kurgunun sonu çok daha heyecanlı ve olaylı olduğu için güzeldi ama ikinci hatta üç ve dördüncü kitaba gerek var mıydı bilmiyorum. Olur da ikinci kitaba denk gelirsem okurum ama ay ne olacak diye merak etmiyorum.

[Phoenix Titus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I see several people giving these books not so great reviews. I think they are forgetting that they're adults and these are YA books. If you want something deep and meaningful try reading a grown up book.

Personally I am really enjoying this series. I'm so thankful that it's not another Twilight knock off. The story line keeps me interested, I feel connected to the characters, and it's a great read at the end of a busy day.

[Georgia · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

I got to page 66, I seriously cannot waste my time on this.

[Alexandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me: Oooh, pretty cover. What the hell, I need a new book anyway. *impulsively buys*

Well, let's just say I wasn't expecting great things from this book. I bought it two years ago and didn't read it - I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I read it as soon as I bought it. It wasn't a bad book. In fact, it was written quite well, and I feel younger teens would enjoy it. But I am not a younger teen.

This book annoyed me from the third page. The main character Eve shows herself to clearly be a spoilt brat who spends money like she has an everlasting fucking money fountain in her house. Oh wait, she does - her parents. Eve whinges about how she's almost gone over her "AmEx limit" that her parents have set for her. Poor little baby. You get money handed to you on a silver platter - you can just tell this girl will grow up to be an annoying, high-maintenance waste of air. As you can see, Eve and I did not get off to a great start. Her personality honestly did not change throughout the entire novel. Eve remained a shallow and self-obsessed airhead. But she was nothing compared to her best friend Jess. NOTHING.

GOD HELP US


Jess was one of THE MOST ANNOYING CHARACTERS I HAVE EVER READ. Her incessant and completely inane babble about fashion and makeup made her look like a total idiot. And she never redeemed herself - at least Eve turned out to be a badass demon killer. Jess was AW-FUL. She seems to think the remedy to any bad situation or emotion is shopping.



She also seemed to think - wait, she didn't think at all. I feel as though this character was not given the gift of a brain. I am at a total loss here. Jess was a character with no substance whatsoever. In my opinion, she is a total waste of space.

Speaking of shopping, did I mention that this entire book is about shopping? Yes, you heard me correctly. Shopping, makeup and boy trouble. These girls are FIFTEEN YEARS OLD and buying Gucci bags and Jimmy Choo heels. I would hazard a guess that it's about 40% demon, 60% fashion related bullcrap.

Don't even get me STARTED on the fact that this book takes THREE PAGES to describe how Eve is putting on lipgloss.

THREE.

PAGES.

Last time I checked, putting on lipgloss takes about two seconds. Why the fuck did it take this girl about seven minutes?! I will never understand! I give up. My brain is HURTING.



Now onto more pressing matters: Eve is basically a Mary Sue character. Beautiful, "sassy" (according to the blurb), rich and popular. BUT WAIT! She actually has a flaw! Wait for it...she...is...CLUMSY! I bet you never saw that one coming. I swear on everything I love, the next time I read about a female main character who's main flaw is clumsiness, I will actually go to the publisher and flip a table. Also, as I have mentioned previously, Eve is as shallow as a toddler pool. That is probably the only real flaw she has, and I don't think the audience was actually supposed to see it as a flaw. Her shallow personality was brought up by Eve herself early in the novel, as this conversation occurred between her and Jess:

Eve: Jess, am I shallow?
Me: YES, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, YOU ARE SHALLOW!
Eve: I really do like to shop. And I like my make-up. And purses. I enjoy my purses. And I spend a ton of time thinking about my hair...
Jess: What you're saying is that you're a girl.



Okay, so here Amy Meredith has made a mass generalisation about the females of planet Earth. Apparently we all have an unhealthy obsession with boys, shopping, makeup and hair. NO. NO. NO. I'm sorry, but last time I checked, I actually enjoy acting like a human from time to time - I attempt to do constructive things with my day instead of spend my mother's money. This infuriated me to no end. I am getting angry just writing this. You really need to read this book to understand just how shallow and selfish these girls really are.

With the copious amounts of shopping these people do come incredibly boring shoe descriptions. I do not give a rat's arsehole about the colour of Eve's old Jimmy Choo heels. I don't care about the gorgeous boots she saw in the Gucci sale. I certainly don't want to read paragraph upon paragraph describing them! It is wasting my valuable time and literally adds nothing to the plot. I mean, if the shoes turned out to have a special silver heel that turned out to be the weapon that could kill the demons, then sure. Include the shoes. Sadly, they are there to make the book a bit thicker and further drive home the fact that Eve is probably the most superficial character you will ever read about.

One thing that really irks me is that Meredith spends so much time describing these godforsaken shoes to me yet barely describes the TWO MAIN LOVE INTERESTS. From what I could gather from the sparse descriptions of them, Luke has blonde hair and green eyes, and Mal has dark hair and dark eyes. This is all the information I could find of them. I have no idea how to picture them! WHY?! They are supposed to be hot people! I want to imagine hot people! I can't do that without a description! The only other thing I could glean about Mal's appearance is that he is "smouldering". This was the only word used to describe him in the first half of the book.



The characters seem to be so accepting of the fact that Eve has powers and demons are running around the town. They get over it within a few lines and then go back to talking about clothes. Honestly, if I found out I could shoot lightning out of my fingers and kill demons, I would go completely crazy with awe and never stop talking about it. Also, after the "finale showdown" at the end of the book, the characters go back to teasing each other and joking around after about two sentences. THIS MAKES NO SENSE! Why do they not see how massive the situation is? They seem way too easygoing even though their world has been turned upside down. This sort of ruins the book for me, as the characters aren't even developed enough to react to such situations. Grr. I have more negatives to speak about, but I will restrain myself.

ONTO THE POSITIVES!

Although it sounds like I want to forget that I ever read this book, it does have a small number of redeeming qualities. The writing is good and the plot is also decent; unfortunately it's just messily executed. I did enjoy parts of the book, and it flowed nicely, despite some parts being pretty bland. Yes, it was relatively predictable, but I'm an over-analytical reader. If I were a fourteen year old, I'm sure I'd love this book to pieces and give it five stars. It's just too light and fluffy for me personally. But as I stated earlier, it's not a bad book, not at all.

Similarly, the scenes involving the demons were great. They were action-packed and made me want to keep reading. Sadly, they were few and far between. They were also quite short - but they encouraged me to keep reading.

In my opinion, Luke was the only character who was somewhat developed and written well. He was quite believable and had a few funny lines that, admittedly, I chuckled at. Luke is a flawed, realistic, resourceful character and I genuinely enjoyed the scenes he was in. I just wish he were the main character instead of Eve. Oh well. I feel kind of bad for Luke, you know. Being stuck with the two biggest airheads in America (Eve and Jess) and having to translate Latin documents while they go off shopping. So typical. You poor, poor soul.



Overall, it's 2 stars from me. I feel that the cover and the blurb give me the wrong impression - I expected an intense supernatural demon book with some awesome romance thrown in. I got a very watered down version of this. Give it a try if you want to; as I have written, it isn't bad. It is much more suited to younger teens (12-15) than anyone else. I may read the rest of the novels, as the story is quite interesting - but I don't know if I can stand reading any more long-ass descriptions of high heels.