Crossing Over

Soulvine Moor Chronicles #1

by Anna Kendall

THE LAND OF THE DEAD IS A DANGEROUS PLACE TO BE...

...AND SO IS THE LAND OF THE LIVING

Whether it's a curse or a blessing the fact remains: whenever Roger is in enough pain he can cross over to the Land of the Dead and speak to the people there. It's an unexpected gift - and one that, throughout Roger's life, his violent uncle has taken advantage of. Roger has been hauled from fairground to fairground, and beaten into unconsciousness, in order to bring word of the dead to the recently bereaved. It's a hard, painful way of life.

So when Roger has the chance of a new life, it seems a gift. He has a chance at safety and at living a life of his choosing, tucked away in the royal court. But life is unexpected, and when Roger falls in love with the bewitching, willful Lady Cecilia he has no idea what he is letting himself in for. With every step he takes towards her, he is drawn deeper into court intrigue, into politics, and even into war...

...and when Roger's curious abilities come to the Queen's attention, everything changes forever.

Trapped in courtly politics, bound by secrets, Roger is torn between his own safety and that of his friends. He can save them... but only if he can bring himself to perform a deed so unthinkable that the living and the dead shrink from it alike...

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Fiction, Magic, Death, Romance

330 pages, Paperback

First published June 24, 2010

About the author

Anna Kendall was born in Ireland and emigrated with her parents to the United States at the age of twelve. For several years she taught fourth grade. Anna lives in Seattle, where she plays a lot of chess. Crossing Over is her debut YA novel.

Reviews

[Belinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 sterren - Nederlandse paperback 🌷🌷🌷
**** Ik stelde het overgaan zo lang mogelijk uit. Zoals altijd vreesde ik de aarde in mijn mond, de vleesloze beenderen, de wormen, de kou en het duister. Stel dat dit allemaal een keer niet voorbij ging ? Stel dat ik vast kam te zitten in dat afschuwelijke moment tussen leven en dood, voor eeuwig bij vol bewustzijn in mijn graf? Bovendien wilde ik niet terug naar Hartah. Tegenover mijn angst om te blijven stond mijn angst om weg te gaan. Dus treuzelde ik bij de bemoste kei en keek naar de doden. Ik probeerde met een van hen een praatje te maken. **** 🦋🦋🦋
Ik kan niets anders zeggen dan dat dit boek mij vanaf pagina een te pakken had. En hoe verder ik in het verhaal kwam, ik echt mee leefde met de hoofdpersoon die een gave heeft waar hij beslist niet om heeft gevraagd en waarvan hij eigenlijk zelf helemaal geen gebruik van wil maken. Maar ja, daar denkt een koningin anders over. Naast het verhaal worstelde de hoofdpersoon niet alleen met zijn gave maar ook met zijn puberende gevoelens. Keuzes maken is niet gemakkelijk. Zeker niet in de wereld van Rogier. Goede young adult, met duidelijk lettergebruik. Dus ook voor degene met een dyslexie. 🌷🌷🌷

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the world that was built in this story but as for the story itself I thought it was just ok. I never came to like Roger. I know that he was raised in an abusive environment and that probably stunted his social growth but I found him him to be irritating and dislikable. As is typical of most YA books these days there is the love interest. After he escapes life with his abusive uncle he fixates on Lady Cecilia and falls in "love" with her. I imagine it's because she's the first beautiful and lively female he meets as a part of his new life. But it irks me despite all the evidence that she is nothing but an empty headed twit that he fixates on her and is totally clueless about the other girl who is in love with him. He's like a child who sees a shiny toy and decides that is the one he must have despite anything else that comes across his path.

**Spoiler start**

Even though he does end up realizing what he had in front of him all the way it made me mad that he only gives up on Cecilia after she is gone for good. It's almost as if he is just settling for the consolation prize.

**End spoiler**

I was also hoping he was going to be one of those characters that overcomes the obstacles in his life to grow into someone who is heroic. I felt we do not really see that. He remains whiny, self absorbed and selfish other than his devotion to Cecilia. I do not understand why he inspires people like Maggie and Mother Chilton to help him when he's rude and ungrateful.When he does finally do something heroic it seems out of the blue.

The world this story takes place in was fascinating. It's basically a kingdom ruled by women and everyone sees it as the right of women to rule because they are the ones who give life. The idea of men ruling is totally foreign to them when they meet people from another land who are ruled by men. It mixes a bit of medieval flavor, with fantasy and a bit of modern day with guns, a foreign weapon, intheir world. I found it funny that the Queen's brother is married off to the Queen of another country in order to seal an alliance. It's like the polar opposite of the stereotypical male dominated world.

I felt like there was still unanswered questions about this whole world that Roger is able to cross over into, how he is able to do so and the history of the people at Soulvine Manor. I don't know if it's set up for a future book or not but it would have been nice to have more answers to make it feel like a complete story.

Overall it's not a bad book and I think others may enjoy it but it just wasn't a book for me.

[Kimberly Francisco · Rating 3 out of 5]

Soooooo uneven. Parts of this were a solid two, but it soared at times to a four-star book.

A few things:
-I know the protagonist is a 14/15 year old male, but the constant references to his erection were jarring and out of place most of the time. One time he referred to it as he was unintentionally feeling up a mentally handicapped woman...very uncomfortable.
-The middle just dragged, but it picked up nicely at the end and was very exciting.
-I didn't buy the romance.
-It feels a lot like an unfinished book. There were many unanswered questions, but I didn't feel like the author was setting up for a sequel. It felt more like those threads were just dropped, which was a shame, because it was those unresolved threads I found most compelling.


I liked the storyline a lot. Despite the general plot (a teen can cross over into the land of the dead), this does not feel at all like the typical teen paranormal fiction that floods the current market. It's most definitely a fantasy, set in a fantasyland, and I'm glad I got to read it.

[Amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

Crossing Over was, by far, one of the worst books that I've read. Period.

First off, the main character was probably one of the stupidest people I've ever read about. He slept every single night with people near him, knowing that he had secrets but still perfectly willing to share them in his sleep-talk. Shouldn't any sane person know better? Especially when the freaking queen is about to murder his ass and LITERALLY threatens to like all the time. Also, Roger is the horniest teenage boy that has ever graced fiction. I sincerely doubt that a fourteen year old boy would get a boner from looking at some pretty lady.

OMG THE ROMANCE MADE ME WANT TO BARF ALL OVER ANNA KENDALL. He essentially lived his life saying, "DAMN THAT GURL IS LOOKING FINE AND I THINK I WANNA BONE HER. OH, check it out, there's another girl who noticed my existence! Maybe I should whip out my dick for her too! Wait! Maggie's my friend, but she's also a female. Do I sleep with her or no? ALRIGHT I'LL DO IT." Why would anyone want to have sex with him? He's an asshole who only thinks with his dick. And he kept mooning over this chick Cecilia who literally did nothing but giggle and try to remove all the STDs that she contracted in her life as the classy whore of the castle.

As for the plot, literally nothing happened the entire time. The worst part was that if there was any action, Anna Kendall somehow managed to write it in a way that was SO INCREDIBLY BORING that I'm pretty sure I deserve an award for even completing this. The climax - you know, the point where the main character feels horrified or experiences some kind of revelation? COMPLETELY DESTROYED because of the author's unique ability to bore the shit out of me. The most interesting part was definitely the drama between the two queens, but it's so trivial in comparison to his traveling to see the dead people power, that most of that was just skipped over. Most of the stuff she covered was unimportant or unnecessary. For example, she didn't need to tell me all the different ways Roger managed to hide his hard on throughout the book.

The best part about this book was Kendall's worldbuilding, but even that had issues because she drew it out so goddamned long that I feel like I know everything about that place. If anyone abused their worldbuilding ability... Most of the time, all you really need is explain what's going on once or twice, but don't keep describing the goddamn place three or four times over and over and over. It's boring and it's a waste of words. After the first time she described the country of the dead, I was pretty much set for the WHOLE BOOK, but nope. Anna Kendall decided to bore me with three or four or twenty more descriptions for it.

I only finished this book so I could feel justified in making fun of it. I'm actually kind of angry that I wasted my time on this, but I hope that other people read this and take it as a warning.

[Nicole Gozdek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ich wurde leider mit dem Protagonisten und der Geschichte nicht warm. :(

[Just Me · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hmmm, not sure what I think about this one. It was captivatingly written. I picked it up because of the title, not knowing how the story would unfold. I may read another of her books, just to compare.

[Hallie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review up on Strange Horizons.

I disagree -- strongly -- with Connie Willis. Has the sky fallen yet?

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 sterren - Nederlandse paperback
Dit boek heb ik voor mijn verjaardag gekregen dus het was een streven om het ook tijdig voor mijn volgende verjaardag te lezen. Je moet ergens beginnen om de alsmaar groeiende Nog te Lezen stapel (herkenbaar?) in te dammen/bij te houden, maar het is gelukt! Nu ja, dit boek is gelezen maar de boekenkasten puilen nog uit van de nog niet gelezen boeken.

Wat ik leuk aan het boek vond, was de tijd waarin het zich afspeelde: de middeleeuwen. Of iets wat erop leek in elk geval, met kastelen, herbergen en magie. En ook de groei die Rogier doormaakt, vond ik interessant om te lezen. In het begin merk je dat niet echt, maar op een gegeven moment, na een aantal gebeurtenissen, bedenk je je opeens ‘hij is duidelijk geen veertien jarig kind meer’. Dan worden de acties die hij neemt ook leuker om over te lezen. Danderzij vond ik trouwens apart en origineel bedacht, helemaal het effect dat Rogier in de wereld van de Doden kon hebben en welke krachten hij uiteindelijk bleek te bezitten die hij per toeval ontdekte.

Als groot fantasy liefhebber van o.a. Feist en Heitz is dit een boek wel iets anders. Al heeft het wel iets weg van de boeken van Raymond Feist. Dit is een fijn boek om lekker door te lezen, goed geschrevenen en goede opbouw van spanningsboog.

[Rea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full review can be found here.

The story starts by putting its best foot forward as we observe Roger, a slave to his uncle, being forced to cross over to the land of the dead in order to scam mourners out of their money. The author’s idea of this land where the dead exist is not at all what I was expecting and so much the better for it. The way that it’s described, it’s as though the dead are all waiting for something maybe? They sit and stare at nothing; they’re, for the most part, unresponsive and only a few will rouse themselves long enough to interact with Roger. But then, though Roger describes this land as being heavily populated, I can’t imagine that there were nearly enough dead there. This led me to speculate about what could possibly have happened to all those other dead from times gone by. Whether or not the author intends to address this in future books I couldn’t say, but it certainly opens the door to vast opportunities.

After this strong opening, though, the story gets a bit weird as Roger arrives in the court of his Queendom. There were a lot of slow parts here, though I have to take into consideration that I was rarely able to read more than a chapter at a time and this may have affected how I saw the advancement of the plot.

The reader is introduced to Lady Cecilia at this point and Roger’s infatuation. The story is told in Roger’s voice and he believes himself to be in love with the pretty little flirt but it’s obvious that it’s only infatuation as there’s actually very little substantial communication between the two characters, not to mention that Cecilia always treats Roger as her inferior (which in the court he is but he can’t see that this means she could never bring herself to view him as a potential suitor). I didn’t really like his obsession with Cecilia, mostly because I didn’t buy that he could be that obsessed just due to her looks.

There is also, of course, a bigger political intrigue going on around them. This is court and what’s court without political backstabbing? In this case, the Queendom is ruled by a queen who is supposed to pass power to her daughter when the daughter turns 35. However, this time around the old queen didn’t consider her daughter fit to rule and refused to pass on the power. This didn’t stop her daughter from having herself crowned and setting up her own court within her mother’s court. She’s also determined to get her Queendom at any cost.

Roger comes into all of this in that the young queen recognises him as one able to cross to the other side and she tries to use him to gather intel there. Of course, for the most part the dead won’t talk to him so he invents a lot of this intel. This is another part of the book that I wasn’t particularly fond of. The parts in the land of the living and the passages where Roger crossed over to the land of the dead had nothing to do with each other and it left me feeling unsatisfied. I understand why it was there and done like this, I just didn’t enjoy it much.

Once Roger’s out of the court again, chasing Cecilia as she’s brought the queen’s wrath down upon her head, things pick up again for a while. I really liked the intrigue of Soulvine Moor – a place no one will speak of but the place where Roger’s mother died. I really liked the hints at who Roger is and I was fascinated by the picture painted at this point. I found myself really immersed in the book.

And then Cecilia comes back into it again and everything collapsed. I didn’t like Cecilia to start with and Roger’s unhealthy obsession with the girl and his selfishness that dictates all his actions at this point pushed me to the point where I didn’t like Roger either. I found this part to be particularly boring as all it focuses on is both characters’ bad points. I just ended up feeling really frustrated with both characters.

Thankfully, it picks up again for the final climax. I found myself completely immersed in the story at this point. I was itching to read all evening but couldn’t slink away to find a quiet spot. Eventually, I managed to finish the novel, though. I feel that it left off in just about the perfect place; it has certainly caught my attention enough for me to want to read the sequel. Especially as there won’t be any Cecilia in it!

The setting was very interesting and about the opposite of what might be expected. The world is fairly reminiscent of a mediaeval landscape but then the wild savages come with heir firesticks that they call guns – usually it’d be the more civilised society that gains the secrets of guns first but I really like what the author did here. As mentioned before, the land of the dead was also very interesting, particularly when Roger starts inadvertently affecting it. That was an original twist even if the twist itself could be seen a mile off.

However, I have to admit that I often found Roger to be a frustrating character. He had a lot of character flaws and at times these eclipsed his good points so much that I found myself wondering whether I really wanted to continue with this series after this book. The ending means that I do but it was touch and go for a while.

The whole thing with Cecilia really didn’t work for me either. The problem with this is that it’s Roger’s desire for Cecilia that pushes certain points of the narrative. It just wasn’t founded beyond Cecilia’s beauty, which meant that Roger’s obsession with the girl came across as creepy rather than romantic. I liked Maggie. She gave it to him straight and would put him in his place. I look forward to getting to know her better in the next book.

Choosing to write this book from a young male’s point of view was an interesting decision on the author’s behalf. It certainly made the book stand out from the masses of books written from a female point of view. I’m not completely sold on all Roger’s bodily reactions, though, but that said not being a male myself I don’t really know how all that works and maybe it’s justified by the rampant hormones of a 14-year-old boy!

[Charisse · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a unique concept, and it wasn't badly done nor was it badly written. It just wasn't for me. That's why it gets so few stars.

It stayed true to its medieval-esque setting, which I applaud the author for, but as a YA book, I didn't expect it to be quite so detailed or gruesome. The beginning and various parts towards the end made me feel physically ill. It was difficult to read in that respect. If she was going to be this gritty then I feel like she should've gone for an adult fiction book with this tale. I'm assuming that since the main character is 14 when this starts, THAT is why it's labeled as a YA book, along with the level of writing style I suppose. It just didn't sit well with me that it was YA with all of those awful details and moments. It covered just about every disgusting, dark, horrible thing that can happen in life, all in one book. It was VERY hard to stomach.

I also didn't like nor understand the main character. I felt like I never got a true sense of who he is, what his morals are. He doesn't seem to have any morals (understandably so, given his childhood) nor does he seem to be particularly intelligent and yet he manages to survive within his horrible world. It just didn't seem to fit. He's smart enough and observant enough to understand what's going on around him when a crucial plot point arrives, but not smart enough or observant enough to figure out the overarching plot lines which are the most obvious to both the readers and the characters (IMHO). I just couldn't nail him down, what he wanted, what his morals were, if he even HAD any morals, if he was funny or smart or kind... I had no idea who he really was. His idea of love is absolutely ridiculous and annoying.

I felt AWFUL for Maggie. I wanted different things for her. I didn't connect with any character except maybe Maggie a little tiny bit. That made it hard to feel bad for all these horrible things that were happening to the characters.

I mostly just wanted the book to be done so I never had to think about it again. I almost wish I hadn't even finished it. The reason I finished it was the discover the answer to one of the mysteries presented near the beginning of the book. Little did I know, that this book is the first of a TRILOGY! The second of which I can't even find on Goodreads. I thought this was a standalone as I never heard anything about the sequels after this book came out back in the day. If I had known it was a series, I don't think I would've even given it a second shot. As it is, I'm glad I pushed through it so I can give my review with no doubts. Needless to say, I never did get the answer to that one mystery I was holding out for because it's essentially the cliffhanger for the next book. As much as I want to know how that plot line ends, we got enough clues in this book for me to make a solid guess at how things go down. That's enough for me. I don't want to see what new atrocities she comes up with for the next few books as I felt like she covered most of the worst ones already.

The ending also felt a little rushed. It was as if she realized she was getting close to her contracted number of pages and had to quick finish everything. Things just sped up really fast in convenient ways to cover all the plot points she had left without covering all the time happening between them. She would start talking about an event, as if this event had been happening for a while and we the reader knew all about it, when this was the first time she had mentioned it! Solely because she didn't seem to want to write out how that event began; she wanted to jump right to her final point. It was an odd way to end a book. Almost as if she realized she needed a cliffhanger to get us to read the next book OR she realized she never did tie up that one mystery so she decided to write a second book last min or something ridiculous like that. It just didn't seem to be part of the overall plan, more as a last thought she threw out there. It was strange. I didn't like it. This should've just been a standalone book honestly. She only had one maybe two points to tie up. She could've EASILY done that within the confines of this book if she had wanted to. Oh well!

This wasn't a bad book, it had decent writing, decent characters, a new idea to present, and was very true to her world. I just didn't like that world and what happened there. It was too dark for me, as a YA book. It would be a totally different story if this was an adult fiction book. If you're super into those dark medieval tales where things get gory and disgusting and there doesn't seem to be many redeeming qualities in the characters, then this one is for you. Otherwise, I do not recommend this book to anyone. (And no, it is NOTHING like GoT or anything else in that genre. This is a one of a kind book.)

[Lady Biblio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not good, but not the worst. The concept - a boy with the ability to cross over to the land of the dead through pain induced sleep - is intriguing; the execution of the concept is lacking. Writing quality goes up and down throughout the entire novel. Going from a solid 4 to trudging along at a 1. This book has the potential to be something great but failed to deliver. It has the land of the Dead, a civil war, and a witch Queen; all of which weren't touched by Anna Kendell. Plus she left loose ends everywhere, which I guess sets up for the other books to answer.

Roger, the main character, is a whiny, erection obsessed young lad who suddenly decides to take charge of his life at the last 50 pages or so. Before then he is 'in-love' with every girl who pays him attention and wants to do them all. Plus has sleep-talking episodes, spilling secrets while groups of people are around as if these sleep terrors are new, which they aren't. Then sometimes, he visits the land of the dead. The Land of the Dead, as described way too many times in the book, is a place where the dead people go and they become unacknowledged bumps on a log. Roger is an annoying main character but he fits in with the other annoying characters in this book.

Now world building is another story. I liked the world, despite how unused most of it is. We have a land that is in a civil war with two coloured queen battling it out for the throne, okay battling it out is a strong notion for them just having a mother-daughter fight. The idea of the different coloured rulers was something I actually liked. Was it actually practical for the people in the story, no. With every queen they'd have to rip up the tiles, redye every fabric, pretty much redo the entire castle over and over and over again. So it is great in theory but not in actual practicality. Moving past the civil spat of the kingdom we go to the Land of the Dead. An underused, boring place that doesn't have a whole purpose in the book. Other than, I think, it was added because the description talked about Roger's ability and the land itself. It had the potential to be so much more than what we got. I never imagined it containing people who are boring and seem to be waiting for something. I imagined... well I imagined sort of what we got a glimpse of during the war. With the soldiers not accepting their deaths as final, and seeing them wanting to know of the outside world. Instead everyone who is dead accepts it and become a bump on the log. Even so, with Roger's ability he is limited to the world. Unable to talk to anyone, discover anything or even use it for his benefit. That's why I feel like it was added in for no reason at all. Maybe the other books would tell me what the dead are waiting for but right now, only looking at this book, the dead are boring, uneventful and pointless.

May rating is 2 stars for the fact that the entire book wasn't pushed it it's potential. There is so many directions Anna Kendell could have gone and she went with the boring, erection obsessed way. The writing overall boring, with boring action and uneventful everything else.

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I snagged an ARC of this book (out in October) when I saw that it had a back jacket blurb from none other than Connie Willis, and I'm glad I did.

The first clue that Kendall is doing something new and different is the setting. I'm so used to the standard quasi-medieval fantasy world - motto: "all the pageantry, none of the dirt" - that when Kendall includes more believable details like disease and bad food, it's powerful.

The story follows a teenage boy with the ability to "cross over" into the land of the dead. Far from making him a superhero, this puts him in great danger as he becomes a pawn of progressively more and more powerful and ruthless people. The land of the dead is creepy, the characters are well-rounded (and sometimes also creepy), and the ending makes following the story all the way through worthwhile - even though it left me with a couple of questions that will nag me! This is definitely worth looking for when it comes out.

[Mollie · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I first read the summary, I thought this book had a lot of potential. It did not live up to my expectations.

[Jana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Shittiest book ever

[Lisa Boland · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a couple of very interesting points made in this book. Like the difference between women and men:
"Women who create life must rule.
Men who defend life must advise."
The other quotation in the book that I found important might be more personal:
"The beset, grieving, and afraid come to the tent with the stars on it."
I think I need to paint some stars on my tent. I've already started handing out herbs and other healing advice. It almost feels like this was the book I needed after my mother passed. It helped me find a new direction for my life. I hope others find it interesting although I doubt those who believe men are superior would appreciate the Queendom. My sincerest gratitude to Anna Kendall. Please let me know if you need to visit my tent, the one with the stars on it.
Lisa Boland

[Bukcrz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Great created world (and the only reason I kept reading) but a disgusting “romance”. I think this book would have been fine without the romance angle.
The male main character was in loved/infatuated to a selfish airhead and sacrificed even the love of a better woman - and the lives of others - just to pleased the airhead.
Worse is that the male main character kiss deeply, NOT just a peck the dead airhead’s body - morbid and so base - I want to get that out as a warning. That is how debased the male character is.
The sad part is the better woman stuck with the male main character - who (the man) to me is the lowest portrayal of any man - even when she knows she was not valued as the selfish airhead.
Other than that, its an interesting created world.

[Natalia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fantastyka to gatunek, który kocham całym sercem, ale o tym już nie raz Wam wspominałam i pewnie jeszcze nie raz to zrobię. Po co o tym wspominam? Abyście zrozumieli, z jakiego powodu sięgam po tego typu książki bez głębszego zastanowienia. Dlaczego w ich przypadku wystarcza mi po prostu sam blurb, no i może jeszcze klimatyczna okładka, aby porwać je z półki? Zacznę może jednak od samego początku…

Roger Kilbourne jest już prawie mężczyzną, jednak, co mu po tym skoro ciągle żyje w strachu przed swoim wujem – Hartahem. No i do tego… jego dar…, o którym nikt nie może się dowiedzieć, ponieważ mógłby wtedy zostać oskarżony o czary, a co za tym idzie… powieszony bądź spalony na stosie. Chłopak potrafi, bowiem przechodzić do krainy umarłych i rozmawiać z jej mieszkańcami (choć to ostatnie nie należy do najłatwiejszych). Przed długi czas jego wuj, z premedytacją wykorzystywał ten fakt, aby zarabiać na różnych wiejskich jarmarkach. Jednak ciągle było mu mało. Niestety plan szybkiego wzbogacenia się przyniósł mu tylko śmierć, a Rogerowi natomiast namiastkę upragnionej wolności. Nie na długo… Chłopak trafił, bowiem na dwór królewski Reginokracji, w którym toczy się cichy spór o władzę pomiędzy matką i córką.

Początkowo pełni rolę męskiej praczki na zielonym dworze królowej Caroline. Wydaje mu się, że gorzej już raczej nie będzie… a jednak. Niby dostaje awans na błazna samej królowej, jednak dodatkowe obowiązki, jakie się z tym wiążą wcale nie należą do przyjemnych. Tym bardziej, że królowa (sama oskarżana o bycie czarownicą) doskonale zdaje sobie sprawę, iż Roger potrafi odwiedzać krainę umarłych. Co z tego wszystkiego wyniknie?

Anna Kednall to tak naprawdę pseudonim amerykańskiej pisarki, irlandzkiego pochodzenia – Nancy Kress. Kobieta ma na swoim koncie wiele prestiżowych nagród między innymi Nebulę i Hugo. Jej powieści, chociaż zaliczane do gatunków fantasy oraz science fiction, cechuje wyjątkowy realizmy, a tematy, jakie w nich porusza często dotyczą dalekiej przyszłości, rozwoju inżynierii genetycznej oraz sztucznej inteligencji. Być może właśnie, dlatego ich główną grupą odbiorczą stali się dorośli czytelnicy. Jednak w przypadku Na drugą stronę, sprawy mają się wręcz odwrotnie. Książka rozpoczyna, bowiem serię noszącą tytuł Kroniki Duszorośli, która skierowana jest do młodego grona miłośników słowa pisanego.

Jak już pisałam na samym początku, po książki fantastyczne sięgam tylko znając blurb i okładkę. Jednak w przypadku Na drugą stronę ten pierwszy aspekt nie do końca mnie do siebie przekonał. Powiem więcej, sugeruje raczej banalną historyjkę przepełnioną do granic możliwości romansami, flirtami, dworskim życiem, intrygami i politycznymi sporami. Raczej nie wiele ma to wspólnego z fantastyką. Co więc sprawiło, że dałam szansę tej powieści? Na pewno intrygująca okładka, a także pewne zdanie… Dokładnie takie:
„Kraina umarłych to niebezpieczne miejsce… Podobnie jak świat żywych…”.
Mi to w zupełności wystarczyło, aby natychmiast zapałać chęcią zapoznania się z historią, w której umarli mogą odgrywać znaczną rolę. Niestety, okazało się później, że jest to chybione spostrzeżenie. Prawdę mówiąc, jakoś nie przypadła mi do gustu koncepcja krainy umarłych w wykonaniu Anny Kendall. Liczyłam na coś dużo bardziej intrygującego, energicznego (nawet, gdy mowa o umarlakach) i… mrocznego. Tymczasem przychodzi nam czytać o spokojnej krainie, w której umarli zajmują się… nic nie robieniem. Nawet krótki epizod, jaki autorka postanowiła nam zaserwować, który miał na celu „ożywienie” akcji w tym miejscu, niczego nie zmienił.

Kolejną rzeczą, która mnie rozczarowała był sam protagonista. Nie dość, że jego postać była „płaska” i nijaka, to jeszcze tak mocno grał mi na nerwach, iż z miłą chęcią bym go rozszarpała. Co prawda daleko mu do mojego anty ulubieńca od Andrew Fukudy, ale muszę przyznać, mocno go ściga. Pomijając jednak ta małą dygresję. Do tej pory nie bardzo wiem, czy rzeczywiście był on aż tak głupi, czy tylko takiego udawał, aby wyciągnąć dla siebie jak najwięcej korzyści. Ja rozumiem, że to biedny chłopak wychowany bardziej na niewolnika niż wolnego człowieka, w wiejskiej i do tego dysfunkcyjnej rodzinie, a i średniowieczne czasy, w jakich przyszło mu żyć, niczego nie ułatwiały, no, ale ludzie! Po co udawać głupszego niż się jest w rzeczywistości? Żeby tylko wyciągnąć z każdej sytuacji jak najwięcej dla siebie? Ja rozumiem, że można się tymi wszystkim dobrami wręcz zachłysnąć, ale zazwyczaj każdy ma swój limit. Dla mnie takie zachowania, jakie przedstawiał protagonista ocierają się wręcz o wyrachowanie i przebiegłość. Jednak to, co najbardziej razi, to fakt, że cały czas mowa w o osobie czternastoletniego chłopca.

Jeżeli chodzi o fabułę, to z początku miałam wrażenie, że składa się na nią zbiór niepowiązanych ze sobą zbyt mocno, sytuacji, w jakie pakował się zazwyczaj Roger. Innymi słowy mówiąc, ani niczego nie wyjaśniały, ani nie wnosiły zupełnie nic do całej historii. Tak przynajmniej wyglądało to na pierwszy rzut oka. Dopiero ostatnie wydarzenia uświadamiają jak wszystko jest ze sobą połączone. Samo zakończenie utwierdza również w przekonaniu, że po kolejny tom jak najbardziej trzeba sięgnąć. Tempo akcji jest raczej spokojne, żeby nie powiedzieć nawet… lekko monotonne. Mimo to, od książki ciężko jest się oderwać.

Na drugą stronę może i nie okazało się tym, czego oczekiwałam, ale i tak miło spędziłam przy niej czas. Jestem bardzo ciekawa jak potoczą się dalej losy Rogera i jego znajomych. Co do polecania i odradzania, to nie mam zamiaru robić ani jednego, ani drugiego. Sami zdecydujcie, czy macie ochotę dowiedzieć się, o co w tym wszystkim chodzi.

[Helga Beuckelaers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even doorbijten totdat het boek op gang kwam ... om dan tussen de intriges van de Groenen en de Blauwen door te laveren. Voeg daarbij nog wat magische elementen en plaatsen zoals "Danderzij" en andere plaatsen en alle ingrediënten voor een boeiende (YA) fantasyverhaal zijn aanwezig. Benieuwd naar het vervolg!

[۰ ۪۫ Maja Haber ۪۫ ۰ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Strasznie głupia książka. Bezsensowna.

[M.S. Happi · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending was pretty unsatisfying. There are too many questions left unanswered and not in a good way. And the Cecilia plot line was infuriating.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I yelled at the main character a lot, but still enjoyed the story enough to seek out the second book

[Elias · Rating 3 out of 5]

5/10

[Mackenzie Keogh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two Stars...only because I'm in a good mood from finally finishing this book,otherwise it would be only one.

If you're like me then you probably picked up this book because of its unique cover, which i will openly admit is still one of my favorites on my book shelf, and 'The Land of the Dead' just seemed too spooky and cool to pass up. Wrong. I was most excited to read Kendall's idea of 'the land beyond' only to discover that it was the most boring and depressing version of heaven/hell/limbo/whatever I have ever encountered. BORING SPOILER ALERT: the dead just sit there staring at flowers....the whole time.

A bad ass after life filled with zombies, ghosts, and some kind of super old dead samurai that helps our even more bad ass protagonist is not the only thing this book lacked. I honestly believe that if I asked Mrs. Kendall if she knew what character development was she wouldn't be able to answer. I felt no emotional connection to any of the characters, especially Roger. Well that's a lie, the only person I felt had an actual personality was the evil Queen. At least in her wicked actions there was an almost human reasoning behind them.

To be honest, I think I hated the main character the most. Roger was the most weak, emotionally unstable, and pathetic fictional character I have come across yet. I mean he was only fourteen but still, most girl heroins I have read about have bigger cahones than this kid and are not nearly as sensitive. If he wasn't crying (literally "sobbing") his "member was stiffening." That phrase showed up an uncomfortable amount of times throughout the book, even more so awkward because he was only fourteen. At one point I became a little paranoid and started looking over my shoulder to make sure nobody was reading and thinking i was reading a biography about "crossing over" into manhood and child pornography or something. At one point his member acted on its own accord simply by looking at a girl whom he falls in love with...don't get excited, she is a complete twit. I didn't understand the romance from the very second she was introduced to the book. The first thing that she uttered made me instantly hate her...I kept trying to see what point Kendall was trying to make with having Roger fall for a character like her but I guess you'd have to stoop to her level of thinking and I was not going to let myself slip into that oblivion.

Anna Kendall: if you ever read this, that sounded personal, but I can assure you it's not. I just hate your writing and this book.

Before I wrap this up I'd like to say thank you to Kendall for rushing the ending and making it as utterly non-entertaining and forgettable as the rest of the book. This way I didn't have to dwell any longer inside these excruciatingly long, small font-ed pages. I felt it left too many loose ends and this is the first time I am actually 100% fine with it.

I think that just about covers it. Don't read this book.

[Heronolen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Je suis incapable de ne pas finir un livre que j'ai commencé. Ce qui explique parfois mon entêtement face aux plus sombres bouses...
Pourtant ici, j'ai failli abandonner à plusieurs reprises. Un mauvais livre aura au moins le mérite de me faire rire aux larmes mais ici, je me suis incroyablement et profondément ennuyée.

Il ne se passe rien. Les personnages sont creux.

Roger, notre héros, est censé être un enfant battu, mal-nourri, gardé prisonnier à l'arrière d'une charrette. Son oncle violent l'exploite comme monstre de foire.
Une fois Roger enfui, on peut s'attendre à ce qu'il soit un jeune homme de 14 ans traumatisé, méfiant, prudent...

Non.

Roger n'est intéressé par une seule chose.



Les meufs.

Jeunes, vieilles, handicapées mentales et j'en passe, Roger mettra à point d'honneur à nous parler de leurs poitrines et de son membre devenu tout dur.

Merci Roger pour tous ces détails mais, moi, ce qui m'intéresse c'est ton super pouvoir de voyage au pays des morts, tout ça.



Quant aux aventures de Roger, elles sont d'en ennui profond. Roger cherche à aller sur le lieu de décès de sa mère, lieu dont le nom fait hurler d'horreur tous les gens qu'il croise. Pour autant, personne ne semble lui expliquer une bonne fois pour toute quel est ce lieu étrange et pourquoi Roger ne devrait pas en parler sous peine de mort.
Non, ils se contentent de lui dire : "Ne redis plus jamais ce nom !" et de partir en courant les bras en l'air.

Roger continuera donc à en parler à tort et à travers parce que lol.

Bien entendu, quand Roger croise la seule personne qui, en le voyant, lui balance directement : "Tu es celui qui voyage au pays des morts et qui veut trouver le lieu maudit interdit dont personne ne doit prononcer le nom ?" Roger se contentera de se percer un bouton d'acné et répond : "lol non mdr tmtc" avant de repartir penser à des glandes mammaires.



Bref, je me suis ennuyée comme un rat mort.

[Delaney Austin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn’t a good one, but nor is it horrible. It is definitely creative and well-written--the setting is absolutely enticing and well thought-out, the drama is believable, and the author uses captivating descriptive language and lets the reader create a perfect image in their mind as to what’s going on, no matter how elegant or brutal. With Roger as the narrator, you are able to know how he feels towards every situation he becomes involved in. The dialogue is also unique--the characters speak in different made-up dialogues depending on their social class and where they were born; otherwise, they speak in a totally different language. The entire setup is absolutely stunning with potential.

However, there are several crucial errors in the execution of this story. You can’t read three chapters of this book without enduring some awkward and inappropriate scenes that seem to make no contribution to the plot whatsoever. Just because the book is in first person does not mean we need to know how the protagonist feels about everything, especially things we never wanted to know to begin with. The worst problem, however, is the characters. I can’t name a single likeable person in this entire book. Roger is irritatingly insensitive, Maggie is hotheaded and quick to jump to conclusions, Cecilia is just blatantly obnoxious, spoiled and ignorant--the list could go on and on. Even the most innocent characters were just small roles who would eventually perish. While Kendall is great at creating mean-spirited characters, she can’t seem to manage developing any redeeming personality traits, and for a book with so much death and tragedy, I really need to care about the characters if she wants me to feel bad for them.

In conclusion, this book gets three stars for potential, plus the fact that despite its major flaws, I couldn’t put it down. The setting was just so interesting, and I wanted to know what happened next in the story. But that doesn’t excuse its issues.

[Beth Kemp · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a classic fantasy in some respects: vaguely medieval-type setting, magical elements, strong sense of a class divide. At the same time, none of these are exactly as expected: the 'land of the dead' is an original idea (as far as I can tell), and the society is matriarchal - the characters find it completely bizarre that in other societies men rule, as women clearly should be in charge as the givers of life. Roger's gift/curse/ability is a unique product of this unique world and is the main point of interest in this novel.

Roger narrates his own story and his voice convinced me as that of a relatively young teenager, although I was slightly jarred out of the story by his many references to erections. I also found his love for one of the court ladies irritating, as she was clearly a silly individual, but this didn't strike me as necessarily unrealistic. Teens (of both sexes) do develop what they experience as strong lurve feelings for inappropriate people, after all.

The land of the dead itself was not at all what I expected, and this was refreshing. Strange things occur in this land in the course of the novel, and I'm sure there is much more to be discovered about how it works in the rest of the trilogy. Roger himself doesn't really know much about it all, but he is beginning to be curious in this book, so perhaps he will find people who can explain it all to him in his travels.

Overall, I enjoyed this novel. It resolved the main plot issues, whilst leaving enough mystery about Roger's gift and the bigger picture to resolve in the rest of the series. I'd recommend this to teen fans of paranormal fantasy who are looking for something different to vampires, werewolves, angels and fairies.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like "Crossing Over" more than I did. I had learned about this book at Norwest Con a few years ago when I attended a reading by Nancy Kress, aka Anna Kendall. Apparently, since the this is a young adult novel with subject matter very different from the science fiction that Nancy Kress usually writes, the publisher decided to have Nancy use a different pen name for "Crossing Over".

So, Nancy Kress read the first chapter of "Crossing Over" during the reading at Norwest Con and I liked it. It wasn't until recently that I got around to purchasing the book and reading it.

Well, unfortunately, I can't recommend it. I liked the idea of a "world of the dead" and a person who could cross over and communicate with the dead. But for the most part, the world of the dead was pretty boring and not that imaginative. The dead just sit around staring at nothing most of the time and can't be roused from their stupor once they settle down to it. So Roger, the main character who does the crossing over, with a few exceptions, doesn't have any real conversations with the dead. That was disappointing. I wanted Roger to have more interaction with the dead.

Also, Roger is not a very likeable character. He is cowardly, annoying, boring, unintelligent and lacking in social skills. He falls for a beautiful nit-wit lady beyond his reach and ignores the pretty cooking maid who is constantly trying to get his attention. The way he speaks to and treats both women leaves a lot to be desired. I just couldn't get into Roger. The sex scene at the end came out of nowhere and the timing of it was ridiculous. The dialog in general was stupid.

"Crossing Over" is the first book is a series of three. I don't plan on reading any more in the series.

[Rosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is also published at http://living-for-books.blogspot.com/

"The land of the dead is a dangerous place to be... and so is the land of the living"

Roger Kilbourne can cross over to the land of the dead... he just needs immense pain to do it. Of course inflicting the pain doesn't bother his uncle, Hartah, who takes advantage of Roger's "gift" whenever possible.

So when the promise of a better life comes along, Roger grabs it with both hands and hangs on. Roger's new life at the royal court, though tiring, is a better life than he ever knew. He has food, water, shelter and nobody beats him... Unfortunately things don't go as planned and Roger falls love with the flirtatious Lady Cecilia, and in doing so unknowingly draws himself into a world full of politics and danger...

And when Roger's "gift" is noticed by the Queen, his new simple and good life will be turned upside down...

Decisions must be made by everyone, but the ones Roger has to face can either help or destroy, one wrong step and all that he loves could be plunged into the land of the dead...

When I read this book's summary I thought, wow! This is gonna be one good book! And it was! My one problem is Roger. The main character is a selfish coward, and he keeps reminding himself that too... What annoys me is that he doesn't bother to do something about it! At the end, he comes through but his decision causes lots of confusion! I loved Maggie and Jee, and I just can't accept how Roger doesn't see a good thing when it's right in front of him!

Of course there wouldn't be a story, and the book wouldn't be as good, if Roger was perfect... because, let's face it, nobody is!

[Karissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I do wish I could say that I enjoyed this book, but really I didn't. It started out promising with young Roger being beat by his uncle in order to con hard working patrons out of their money. Roger crosses over to the world of the dead and speaks to whomever the patron wishes to hear from. But of course everyone in the world of the dead is catatonic so trying to speak to any of them is useless.
But his life changes when his uncle attempts to rope him into (I don't remember the term for this) ambush a ship and steal all that is on it. Of course everyone gets caught, but Roger uses his gift to find the men on the ship and ends up saving his neck and somehow gets a job at the palace at the queens laundry.

It is when Roger meets Lady Cecilia and is so smitten that I am lost. Cecilia is vapid and she's a horrible character. I know he's a young boy, but please don't set your standards so high! Not that she is really of high standards. It kind of picks up when speaking of the Queens but then loses me when Roger decides he MUST save Cecilia.

I did enjoy this world where queens rule. There are two competing Queens. The first being the mother who refused to give her daughter the throne. The second being the daughter. Each has their own colors, blue and green.
The story, though, could have been a little better I will admit. The cover is beautiful, which like many is why I picked it up. And the blub on the inside jacket sounded decent. I just wish it had been.