Abnormally Abbey

by Allan Evans

14-year-old Abbey has always been a spook magnet. Dead people are drawn to her—which is not nearly as glamorous as it sounds. Summer camp has brought new extremes as an escalating series of paranormal incidents make it clear a message is being sent. As Abbey and her new friends are fighting to stay alive, the message reveals a life-changing secret. That is, if she can trust the message—kind of like trusting the safety message from the shop teacher with missing fingers. Abbey is not a happy camper.

Genres: Young Adult

Paperback

Published September 22, 2020

Reviews

[Risa Nyman · Rating 5 out of 5]

“In your life, cows will drop.” That sentence from Abnormally Abbey has special meaning and sticks in your head long after you finish the book.

This is a paranormal story about a fourteen-year-old girl, who is coping with the loss of her mother through mysterious circumstances. Abbey gets stuck in Camp ToughLove for the summer and meets the challenges there with her unique sense of humor.

In the camp a strange symbol appears to Abbey wherever she goes, and she struggles to find its meaning. Mr. Evans takes the reader on a twisting journey as Abbey and her friends participate in a potentially deadly scavenger hunt where she learns she can face whatever life throws her way.

[Judy & Marianne from Long and Short Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imagine showing up for church camp only to realize something has gone terribly wrong!

The paranormal elements of the storyline were handled nicely. I liked seeing how gradually the plot built up to them. There were brief moments of paranormal activity in the beginning, but the author saved the most exciting scenes for much later on. This gave me plenty of opportunities to anticipate what might happen next which is one of my favorite things to do with this genre.

I wasn’t such a big fan of the romantic subplot or of Abbey’s love interest himself. This book was already so filled with twists and turns that there wasn’t much space for the romance to develop. There were also certain aspects of the backstory of Abbey’s love interest with that concerned me as well. He didn’t truly seem to understand the serious nature of the things that lead to him being sent to this camp, and that made me wonder if he was actually a safe person for her to be around. These aspects of the plot should have been developed much more fully. It took me a long time to figure out if the narrator was writing them as a cautionary tale, a genuine romance about two romantically inexperienced teens, or something else entirely.

It was nice to meet characters gradually. The camp Abbey’s father picked out for her had a lot of different teens and adults staying there, so it was nice to be introduced to people as they became important to the plot instead of all at once. This made it easy for me to keep track of everyone and get to know them before the storyline sped up and Abbey gathered more evidence about what was really happening at this strange summer camp.

Anyone who loves ghost stories with a spiritual bent should give Abnormally Abbey a try.

[Emi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abby is your typical 14 year old getting ready to start her high school year this summer. Oh, and she can see ghosts. She tends to keep this to herself after years of worrying her parents and scaring away potential friends. Now, through a mistake, she has been sent to a summer camp for troubled teens and her real troubles are about to begin.

I really thought this book was adorable. It’s definitely written for younger teens, though classified as young adult, but the characters were likable and the plot was fun and without a lot of the typical annoying angsty teen drama. I did feel that Abby conversed with adults more easily than a typical 14 year old and that adults tended to not talk down to her as much as I feel adults tend to do to younger teens, but overall, the relationships felt generally real and believable. My only real hang up was that Abby repeatedly says how no one ever believes she can see ghosts and that she is ostracized for it, but in the book everyone, including the adults believe her without any questioning. A minor issue in an otherwise even book. And I appreciate a happy ending when I can get one and this one had a really cute ending.

I’m definitely not the demo for the book, but I really enjoyed it anyway. I love a good young adult or even maybe late junior high aged book when well done. They are often fun and have much happier plots than adult aged books and this one did not disappoint.

I received an advance review copy of this book for free, and am leaving this honest review voluntarily.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spending six weeks of summer in a boot camp for troubled teens isn't an inviting scenario for any 14 year-old girl. For Abbey, it's even less so since her dad thought he was dropping her off to a church camp before he left on assignment. Even "talking" to her mom who's been missing for years doesn't provide the comfort it normally does. If all that isn't enough, Abbey can see ghosts, and one can imagine how well that's taken by other kids her age.

With her dad being unreachable, and the attorney Abbey asked for help unable to break her out of the boot camp, Abbey is stuck dealing with a mean girl, the occasional creepy ghost, and an eerie symbol that keeps showing up. Thank goodness for a friendly roommate...oh, and that cute guy.

The best way to describe Abnormally Abbey by Allan Evans is that it has a lot going on. That's not a bad thing if enough space is given to develop each of the plot points. Unfortunately, at just over 200 pages, that wasn't the case here. The reader's enjoyment will depend on which aspect of the story they're hoping is at the forefront...constant 80s music references, romance, boot camp, mystery, paranormal, mean girl versus quirky girl... The best way to enjoy it is just to take it all in stride and know that you will be faced with some hard-to-swallow and some overly-convenient moments.

At its core, Abnormally Abbey is a summer camp romance with a mystery thrown in, one in which the suspense slowly builds until it explodes. The intended audience will most likely forget anything they didn't care for by the time they reach the end.

[Basicsadie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young 14 year old Abnormal Abbey who sees dead people gets dropped off at the wrong camp (A Boot Camp No less) by her father on his way out on an assignment. Abbey tries every trick in the book to get out of this camp including contacting an attorney! The only way out is a parent! Her mother has been missing for several years and her dad is on an assignment that she can't reach him at. The attorney does his best to help Abbey, but can't under the circumstances. Abbey decides to make the best of it when she catches the eye of a boy named Turner. There could be a saving grace in this! Abbey makes the best of the boot camp, building up strength, friendships and inner power. A strange symbol pulls at Abbey as she sees it everywhere. She just doesn't know what it means! Together with her friends and an unseen force, Abbey and her friends are lead to safety with a surprise ending!
I rooted and cheered for Abbey as she made her way through this boot camp, making friends, building physical endurance and learning about herself. This is a great fit for teens and will enjoy the dialogue and story-line. I did find some loose ends in the story that still have not been answered, but overall I enjoyed the story-line, characters and the happy ending! I recommend this book and think it will be enjoyed by many, older adults too!

[Amy Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abnormally Abbey is the story of a quirky fourteen year old who gets stuck at a camp for kids with issues, but the camp isn’t just a tough love camp...there’s something very creepy going on. Strange deaths have occurred in previous years. Thousands of frogs die. And more. And for Abbey, the girl who has grown up seeing ghosts everywhere, the mysteries of the camp are ready to be unlocked.

This book was very cute! It’s creepy but not too creepy for me and I have Ghostbumps level tolerance. It was definitely appropriate for upper middle grade and early YA readers and even for youth. It was funny. And even a little swoony at times. So it had the whole package.

I LOVE Abbey. She has an 80s song for every situation and she is a little weird but super responsible and driven and interesting. I liked all the ensemble as well. The twins are endearing especially.

Also really clever pop culture references. I loved these lines: “Okay, I could handle this. No digging. No holes. No lady warden with rattlesnake venom in her fingernail polish.”

The story was well-paced, and never dull, and the mystery is intriguing and fun. Highly recommend and a perfect read for the upcoming Halloween season.

[JADE TURNER · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was provided an ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Abbey is a 14 year old girl that is sent to church camp by her father. Little did she know, she was actually signed up for the wrong camp, a boot camp for troubled children. Abbey is also no normal girl, weird things always seem to happen to her and at this camp that is no different.

I quite enjoyed reading this book and one of my favorite aspect is the continually reference to classic 80s songs. It was fun to read about a young girl (assuming) set in our time, enjoying the music of the past. It was awesome to see her connect her life to these hits! Definitely one of my favorite parts about the book.

The book does move at a quick pace, and due to this, I found that the side characters stories were not as developed. I liked these characters and wanted to learn more about them, since Abbey grows to have such a connection with each of them. I do wish the author would have slowed the pace of the book down, so I could really understand the other characters to full understand their influence on Abbey at camp.

Overall I quite enjoyed the book! Anyone who is a fan of paranormal or even just YA novel would definitely enjoy reading this!

[Elpis G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The book follows 14 year old Abbey who mistakenly gets sent to the wrong summer camp. At that summer camp, weird things keep happening and Abbey and her friends believe that it might have something to do with her ability to see ghosts.

I just want to start with the fact that I really enjoyed the concept of the book. The cover and the mysteries of that world drew me in right away. And there were many twists and turns with the plot with it really only making sense at the end. Especially since I didn’t expect that at all.

That being said, the book definitely had some issues. Beyond Abbey, most of the characters weren’t developed as thoroughly. Turner probably was the most but even then beyond finding out a bit of his backstory, we didn’t see him develop at all. Abbey’s POV also felt very inconsistent. At times, she sounds exactly like a fourteen year old and at other times she sounds like someone much older. While I suppose this could’ve been a result of being largely independent due to the loss of her mother, it still felt a bit jarring to read.

Overall 3.5/5 stars.

[Hepzibah Becca Jael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abnormally Abbey
Allan Evans

Favorite Highlighted text:
“If I were him, I wouldn’t quit my day job to become a motivational speaker.”

Review

I LOVED this book is definitely an understatement, because I absolutely devoured it after turning the first page!
Our MC is Abbey who's somehow mistakenly sent to camp Tough Love instead of camp Agape but now her dad's on a secret mission so he can't attend calls, lawyering up isn't helping with things either so she has to suck up and go through the camp apparently. She meets some quirky personalities on camp, hears things and sees dead frogs which spook her out but something abnormal is following her around is it there to help Or to make her loony?
Read to find out!

A very interesting and artfully written spooky book that will keep you on your seats edge, the plot is ever twisting like an clean version of a Stephen King novel the horror and gore is there but it's a little on the mild side and one of the best thrillers I've read in a while! The characters are relatable and unique, the writing style is brilliant and the cover is just perfect!

[Vivenya · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very torn about this book. I actually liked the idea and the character from the start. However, the actual writing of the plot has always brought me out of the flow of reading in some places. The feeling that everything is a little very unrealistic (and I don't mean the ghost part) bothered me a lot. This feeling was confirmed to me when the plot turned into a treasure hunt, which was coherent and worked really well. In these situations the author was able to show that he knew how to write an exciting and engaging story. Everything around that scene felt like it was a series of scenes, not a story.
On the positive side, I would like to highlight the group of four friends, who have grown very dear to me during the entire adventure.
With further experience and an eye to ensure that information is not repeated too often, I think the next books have potential. Unfortunately, this left me a little disappointed.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seldom in my life does a the right book find me at the most perfect time, this is one of these books. And for that reason I can't give it anything less than 5 stars I would probably give it more if possible. While not relevant to this review actually but in a way I guess it is, I lost a life long friend( more than 30 years of friendship) weeks ago to a 20 yr fight with cancer. The friendships under crazy circumstances, the hope of more than what we see being at play, and the music references may for a spectacular experience. I was already sold on this author having read a couple of his books prior to this one and now he is at the top of my list.

Do your self a favor and lose your self in Abbey's world you will not regret it. Now on to the next one…

for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Sunny · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me, this book started out kind of slow and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it. It took me some time to warm up to Abbey b/c she felt very repetitive with her dialogue and not very deep. But she grows on you and closer to the end of the book, she really starts to develop as a character. When she begins to bond with some of her campmates, her personality finally starts to come through.

I enjoyed the other characters a lot. They were very different from one another, but meshed well. And they all had interesting backstories that brought them to camp. Overall, this book came together slowly, but I ended up enjoying it and am curious to see what will happen to Abbey next and whether her new friends will be a part of her journey.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Trina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.. What caught my eye about this novel was it's title. I am so glad I checked it out. This book was so good and not your typical horrific paranormal story. I immediately fell in love with Abbey and I could connect with all her 80s music references being a 70s baby myself. This novel is more YA than anything, because there is no language, sex, or recreational drug use. This is a really wholesome story with a tiny edge of unease. I am definitely going to keep an eye out for other works by this other. He had my interest from page one.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do love a good YA paranormal book. This was a bit younger than I typically read so the adjustment period took me a bit. But, this was a good read. Creepy without being too scary. Relatable characters for young teens and a cool protagonist. The author captured the awkwardness of this age perfectly. The story follows Abbey who can see ghosts... she gets sent to the wrong summer camp and learns to work with her superpower. It was nice to finally read something that doesn’t require a huge book commitment. So often I read a book that I now have to read five more. This was wrapped up tightly at the end.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Kathleen Byers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abbey is a girl, just coming into womanhood who has always had a connection to a spiritual world. She winds up getting sent to the wrong camp for 6 weeks and ends up making some lifelong friends. Her resourcefulness and willingness to listen to the signs she is being sent saved her and her friends from a deadly fire. She and her mother were obsessed by 80's music which maintains a theme throughout the book. I found my self singing along at the mention of some of them. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book.

[Erica Robyn Metcalf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Abnormally Abbey by Allan Evans is a tale about determination, overcoming obstacles, and friendship. Oh, and ghosts!

This was such a cute tale! I loved that the main character was obsessed with songs from the 80’s. She had a song for every situation she found herself in, no matter if that was an upbeat and light situation, or the more harrowing.

This is a great book for young adults or 80’s music fans that are looking for a quick and fun read!

More here: https://www.ericarobynreads.com/book-...

[Janis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful quirky book! I would say it is aimed at young people more than adults but I enjoyed it thoroughly. It is a clean paranormal mystery so from your granny to your tween can read it. Nor is it too scary. The characters are well developed and the plot flows at a good pace. It has just the right amount of the unknown to keep you guessing until the end. I'm looking forward to the next in this series.

I received an advanced copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Gina Clabo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This middle grade book deserves 5 stars. I would like to thank Allan Evans for allowing me to read your book and discover a new author. This was so well written as it had my favorites Friends, Ghost, Lessons learned. I loved the details of the hard times Venezuela is still going through, it does put into perception of the little things we see as worst thing ever.. take time to think of what others are going through then look at yours does it compare. The friendship was lacking at the beginning but by the end friends for life. Abbey had a unique ability to see ghost and as she was sent to the wrong camp it did teach her a valuable lesson and that was to listen to herself and believe in herself which the story told in a unique way, as well as fun action pack way. Loved. Recommend to 13 and up. This book was free to read by Booksiren.com you can go to their site to find new authors as well as known. All genres get choices all for free just sign up. Love them.. Gina Clabo (ps Loved the 80's music reference in this book great taste.

[Mark Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun read. I’m far from a young adult that this book is aimed at, but it as a great read. I especially enjoyed the balance or humor and scares. I also had a good time with all the 80’s pop song references.

[Sablehawk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Ghost Girl

There is a lot to love in this book. I think my favorite part is hanging out in Abbey's head for her trip to camp. I've thrown away more books than I've finished in 2020, this one kept me reading. Ghosts, teenagers, and danger.

[Natalie Esperanza · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book! The point of view, from young abby is fantastic. I actually found myself thinking about young kids who claim to see spirits, that must be horrible at times for them and completely frightening growing up that way. This book really gives you insight into that life.

[Kari Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abnormally Abbey is a fantastic read that kept you on the edge of your seat. The plot was well thought through, which made the suspense that much more exciting. The Minnesotan shoutouts were a fun addition. Overall, a great spooky story.

[America Salverda Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun quick coming of age read. The 80’s music had me smiling throughout the whole book!

[Cat B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Any paranormal thriller that starts with the protagonist tiptoeing down a darkened basement stair... has my attention. Abbey is a very excentric character with a sassy sense of humor and a love of 80s music... and she sees dead people. Very promising start that, unfortunately, did not quite pan out for me. I found no character development with the supporting characters and the story was, for me, pretty mild. It had a few good moments but really was written for a much younger audience than I. Probably an exciting read for the 13+ crowd.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and this is my honest and unbiased opinion of the tale.

[Thindbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

*This book was sent to me by the author to give an honest review in return*

I enjoyed reading this book. It's about a girl named Abbey who is accidentally sent to the wrong summer camp where paranormal freak accidents have started to occur. Abbey makes new friends and tries to solve the mystery to see what is behind the messages from the accidents. I enjoyed the writing of this book and the plot structure was well done. The pacing was great which was fast and perfect for this book since it's a thriller with paranormal. All the paranormal scenes were greatly written and were my favorite.

The main character in this book is Abbey and it is written in her POV. I love how she is brave and isn't scared of all the paranormal activities being occurred in the camp. She had great character development and met many new friends. This book has some good side characters that I enjoyed throughout the book and were involved a lot in the book.

This book was a great read. It just didn't get 5/5 stars because there were some flaws but nothing major. I think this book is perfect for middle grade reads and those who love thrillers.