Giving Up the Ghost

Saranormal #6

by Phoebe Rivers

Sara discovers an exciting new paranormal ability—but will it hurt more than it helps?Though the paranormal has become nearly normal for Sara Collins, life has been stranger than usual lately. Accidents and mishaps are happening at home, and Sara’s dad and Lady Azura aren’t getting along very well. Lady Azura blames the negative energy in the house. Sara’s not sure what that means, but she’s also a little preoccupied dealing with a new power she’s just the ability to read minds. What starts off as fun insight into people’s thoughts quickly leads Sara down a frightening path. Is Sara hearing the true thoughts of her friends and family, or is some sort of negative energy wreaking havoc? Sara confides in Lady Azura and together they discover that Sara’s new ability is not a gift like her other abilities. Rather, it’s a curse. A curse that Sara needs to overcome before it destroys her most important relationships.

Genres: Paranormal, Ghosts, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Mystery, Childrens

160 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 5, 2013

About the author

Phoebe Rivers had a brush with the paranormal when she was thirteen years old, and ever since then, she has been fascinated by people who see spirits and can communicate with them. In addition to her intrigue with all things paranormal, Phoebe also loves cats, French cuisine, and wiling her afternoons away in coffee shops writing stories. Phoebe has written dozens of middle-grade fiction books and is thrilled to now be exploring Sara’s paranormal world.

Reviews

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a continuation of the ending of book 5. This new power grows and Sara is finding out things about her friends and family that she doesn't like. There is also another complication. A dark energy has been drawn to Sara and is disturbing the entire household.

Sara learns a valuable lesson as she finds out that having a gift isn't always a gift when it can hurt her and her relationships with her friends.

I liked this book. It was a great lesson in both humility, life, and character. Albeit using paranormal powers. But what the heck. It worked.

I think I would have gone crazy if I had to go through this particular gift. Gah! No way would I would want to deal. Does anybody really want to know what someone really thinks of you? I certainly don't.

[Luna :) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did find Sara’s self-pity really annoying ngl, especially since I could see the party being for her a MILE AWAY. But then again, CHILDREN’S BOOK so whatever, understandable. Although I guess her insecurity is pretty in character as she has never had friends before, hoping would have turned it into disappointment, yada yada.
Something I did find very interesting was how telepathy was depicted. The author managed to show greatly the pros and cons of Sara’s ability, not only saying yeah it could be a cool power, but also by teaching a great lesson of empathy and, most importantly, of privacy. I feel like her perspective is really unique, I’ve read about telepathy in other books and I still would want to have the ability. However, her teaching the difference between being a bad person due to actions rather than thinking is a very important one, especially for children learning where the blurry line lies.
Intrusive thoughts exist, emotions happen, and everyone is entitled to their privacy, in order to decide whether to act on them or just disregard them due to their silliness and / or wrongness. The author was good on making me consider another perspective.
I also liked the fact that Lily knew in the end :).

[shel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually picked it up in a book store without knowing that this is actually a series (lol). But I ended up liking it!

I love the fact that Sara felt guilty to read people's thought because she felt like she was eavesdropping. I never though of that, but after reading this I admitted Sara was true. So now I never wished to got the power of reading other's though anymore XD.

I also love Sara's relationship with Lily and her boyfriend, Jayden.

And the ending too!

[Jess - The Hexed Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like that we're getting more of the lore of Sara's powers, but this one was boring AF.

[Midnight Moon Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the whole series so much

[Snow · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5/5

[Aimee Holland]

Exclusion is the worst feeling in the world

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a review of both Giving Up the Ghost and The Secrets Within.

The Saranormal series follows twelve-year-old Sara Collins on a journey of discovery as she begins to develop supernatural powers. Guided by her great-grandmother, Lady Azura, who possesses powers of her own, Sara slowly learns how to identify, harness, and control her various abilities. In book six, Giving up the Ghost, Sara begins to read minds while a negative force seems to descend upon her household. In book seven, The Secrets Within, Sara finds that she can read the memories associated with an object, which helps her to know things about the object’s significance to the people who have owned it.

I have only read two books in this series, but it’s not hard to tell from those that each story follows a certain formula. In every book, it seems, Sara discovers a new power, tries to figure it out on her own, uses the power to either help or hinder a personal relationship and ultimately calls on Lady Azura for help figuring things out. This repetition from book to book isn’t a problem, as I think it provides the comfort readers often appreciate about series books, but I did find myself wondering a few things.

If I’d read the earlier books, would I know why Sara is developing powers? In the books I read, it seems as though she takes the fact that she has these abilities somewhat for granted, and it bothered me that I didn’t know the greater context of her situation. If such a context isn’t provided at all in the series, I’m not sure what the motivation is to keep reading. Personally, I would like a bit more suspense surrounding the overall meaning of Sara’s powers. I know I would be freaked out if I were seeing dead people and hearing my best friend’s thoughts!

I also wondered a lot about Sara’s personality aside from her supernatural side. I feel like I know her powers better than I know her. It might be easier for the reader to step into her shoes if Sara seems like just an average middle schooler, but I think I would prefer a more well-rounded character with a more defined personality.

Saranormal is a solid series to recommend to girls who like magic and ghost stories, but who also enjoy reading about real girls in real-life situations, not in imaginary kingdoms. It is a nice read-alike for Scholastic’s Poison Apple books, and might even appeal more strongly to readers because it is a continuous series following one main character. Girls who have liked the Worst Witch series as younger chapter book readers will easily grow into this one as they approach middle school.

[Chelsey Wolford · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been one of my goals since the beginning of the New Year to try and read as much middle grades fiction as I possibly can. Books like this one make me wonder why I don’t read more of them? This book is number six in an ongoing series by Phoebe Rivers about a girl who can see and talk to spirits. Sara, our heroine, hasn’t quite figured out if this is a curse or a blessing as of yet, but with the help of her great-grandmother, in this book, she may just come around to the idea a little bit more. In this installment, Sara and her great-grandmother Lady Azura, who can see spirits as well, are sensing a negative energy in the house and Sara is bound and determined to figure out what it could be before it hurts her family.

I love to see how Sara’s character grows throughout the series. For example, in this book Sara obtains a new “gift”: reading the minds of others. Just when Sara thinks she can accept the fact that she can see and talk with spirits, she is thrown another curveball. I love how Sara continues to try and live a normal life and still submerge herself in her crowd of friends and not single herself out or label herself “different” or “odd.” Sara finds solitude and comfort in her family as well, and I think this sends out an awesome central message for the targeted age groups for this book. She puts her family first and does anything she can to ensure their trust and safety.

These books are so unbelievable cute and so easy to read. I was finished with this book before I had even started it, and Rivers relates the text and the events in Sara’s life to things that pre-teens might experience today. She draws in central issues like problems or disagreements among Sara and her close friend in order to draw the reader in and hopefully relate them more closely to Sara herself. I love this series and my younger cousin loves when I receive books like this one too. So not only do they have one vote, but now they have the vote of one eager eleven year old as well! Check them out today. This would be a wonderful book to tempt younger children that don’t always have the desire to read.

***A HUGE thank you to the publishers at Simon Spotlight for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review***

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This time around, Sara has to fend off a ghost that is creating very bad energy in her home. This is personal. And her almost boyfriend Jayden is preparing to move back to Atlanta (sniff). Oh, and everyone seems to have forgotten her birthday (bummer). Oh and that pesky mind reading thing is really starting to suck.

I just love Sara. She is so sweet. She is still very innocent, as are her friends, as they fumble their way into adulthood. The adult characters are handled well also. I wish I lived in their town. I just love the ocean.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good addition to the series. The only thing that irritated me is that Sara still doesn't trust Lady Azura. They know about each other's powers and yet Sara can't find it in herself to trust her. It took her half the book for them to talk about what was going on.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Haven't read any of the other books in the series. Looks like a good series for girls that enjoy books with a supernatural theme.
In this book, Sara discovers that she has the ability to read minds which is causing her some stress. Also strange things are happening in her home.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great story of Sarah and her abilities to help others. This one was a little more scary than the others.

[Lilian · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was an exciting book for me and I'm excited to read the next series!