BLURB
It’s been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost hunter Cas Lowood can’t move one.
His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live -not walk around half dead, pining for her. Her knows they’re right, but in Cas’s eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.
Now he’s seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he’s asleep, and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong… These aren’t just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.
Cas doesn’t know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he know she doesn’t deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it’s time for him to return the favor.
Review (Spoiler Review):
Kendare Blake gave me another wave of chills with this book! I got a lot of scare with this one. Not to mention the unintentional jump scares my family gave me when I’m still reading this. (My dad suddenly barge inside my room while reading the scary part of the book in the moment where Cas was so shock to see Anna in front of them while he and Thomas were watching TV.)
The first book was a little predictable because it was just your typical cliche in a story -the killer spare the hero’s life. But in this book, it’s a bit different. Unlike the first book, I didn’t really try predicting this one. Though in all honesty, having a second book to Anna Dressed in Blood is a bit predictable too. Anna goes in hell and Cas will definitely save her. Still I just read and wait for the twist to come and shock me, it did, a little.
So Anna’s in hell, and Cas will definitely save her. But how?
Cas discovered the Order of the Biodag Dubh (Order of the Black Dagger). It’s the order where Cas’s father and Gideon were members of it. He discovered that the athame could be their key to saving Anna. So Cas and Thomas flew from Thunder Bay to London, Gideon’s house. Carmel sort of step out of their trio because she value her life and dreams so much that she can’t be with them because being with them also means being close to death. Though it was cool that it was just Cas and Thomas. I don’t really feel like Carmel could be a ghostbuster or something.
When they arrive, they were attack by a girl named Jestine. At first I thought Jestine is not really a threat but a mystery. Gideon introduced her as his niece but Cas felt it’s not. I felt it too. I even thought that Jestine is gonna be Anna’s proxy or something. You know, because Anna is dead she and Cas could not really make a family no matter how much they love each other. Cas find Jestine attractive though so yeah. Only to find out that Jestine was actually trained to be Cas’s replacement!
I'm like
Not too long after they arrive in Gideon’s house, Carmel arrived. Like, I don’t get her? She decided to go and then she comes back again. Her reason for coming for them was because Cas brought Thomas on the other side of the world! I mean, what did she expect?! Thomas was determined to help Cas until he gets Anna back! So it’s so obvious that he’ll come with Cas!
So Cas, Thomas, Carmel and Jestine went out to go the ‘headquarters’ of the order. They faced a lot of test before getting on their destination though. Still, they arrived alive and kicking. It was agreed that Cas and Jestine will go inside and get Anna as a form of test to know who is more worthy to carry the athame, to be the warrior who will carry the will of the athame.
This is where the story became really interesting. When Cas found Anna, he barely wink just so she won’t disappear in his sight. They fought the Obeahman who turns out was the one who was torturing Anna in many gruesome ways. When Anna and the Obeahman was fighting, it occur to me that Anna is stronger when she’s protecting Cas. She’s ignoring her broken arm and other injury just so the Obeahman won’t get near Cas. Jestine was trying to fight him too but with the three of them joining force, they still didn’t stand a chance.
Cas found a way to defeat the Obeahman. And yes, he defeated it. When the Obeahman was gone, Cas was barely breathing and Jestine already came back in the real world. It was only him and Anna together in Hell while holding each other’s hands. This part here reminded me of Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chases’s walk to Tartarus in the Heroes of Olympus Series. And this part here actually broke my heart and got me into actually spacing out after closing the book.
I really thought Cas could pull Anna from where she is, save her as what he calls it. But no. The moment the Obeahman was gone, the whole place changes. The dark atmosphere of the place changed into a summer, peaceful land with Anna’s Victorian house standing in the middle of it. Cas tried bringing Anna with him but something happened. Another Cas appeared and for a minute there, Anna forgot that she’s with the original Cas. That moment then, Cas knew that he could not bring her back.
"This place lies. But it’s a good lie."
And so he did what he had to. He kiss Anna, one last time to tell her that he loves her and he’ll miss her.
"Instead I kiss her, one time, and try to tell her in that single gesture everything that she’ll forget as soon as she turns away. I tell her I love her. I tell her I’ll miss her. And then I let her go."
It still breaks my heart that Cas needs to let Anna go.
I actually felt like I was the one who let go and not Cas. Just imagine how much Cas was willing to sacrifice for the girl he loves! Not to mention the girl was already dead so many years ago. It was heartbreaking!
I wasn’t really expecting that Cas and Anna will live happily ever after. I just thought that Cas could bring Anna back and send her to a better place where she really belongs. But then I guess that place is where she truly belongs. In the arms of a fake Cas living in their Victorian house yet at peace and not tortured.
I’m not expecting a third book for this series though. I may not be that satisfied with the ending but it’s not disappointing either. This book is really scary and romantic. Not the cheesy kind of romantic but the I-will-cross-hell-for-you kind of romantic.
I’m glad I’ve been a part of Cas and Anna’s roller coaster adventure. I will never forget them. They may be your typical cliche kind of love story but they are not your typical couple.
Rate:
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