ARC Review: Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter

Author: William Ritter

Genre: YA, historical, paranormal

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Publication Date: August 23, 2016

352 pages, hardcover (340 ARC)

Check out the full synopsis on Goodreads.

NOTE: Thank you to Algonquin YR for providing an ARC of Ghostly Echoes at BEA!

Ghostly Echoes was one of the top books I was hoping to get at BEA. I LOVED Jackaby and Beastly Bones, and I could not wait to dive back into New Fiddleham with these characters. I was not disappointed. (And I got to meet William Ritter, which was awesome!)

I absolutely adore these characters and this world so so much. Everything about these books is just…charming. But I think the best part of Ghostly Echoes is that it’s a bit darker than the other two books in the series so far.

The third book in the Jackaby series focuses a lot on Jenny Cavanaugh, the ghostly owner and resident of 926 Augur Lane, and finding out what happened to her all those years ago. She becomes a huge player in this books, and I loved seeing her strong spirit (no pun intended) and attitude. The way that Jenny’s murder, and all of the characters’ pasts play into and connect to the plot really helps you feel drawn into this one.

And, as always, I loved Abigail’s personality and drive. I especially enjoyed learning more about Jackaby’s past, and I’m excited to see more of that in the fourth book – thank goodness for book four!

It’s kind of hard to review this one without any spoilers, especially because it’s book three in the series, so I’ll just say that I could talk about how much I love this series all day, and you should probably just go ahead and read them all.

The bottom line: This is a quick, fun read full of adventure, folklore, mythology, people and creatures, ghosts and possession. Ghostly Echoes –might– have been my favorite Jackaby book, but we’ll have to wait for book four to be sure.

Rating: 9 – practically perfect

ARC Review: Beastly Bones by William Ritter

Author:  William Ritter

Genre: Young adult, historical fiction, fantasy

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Publication Date: September 22, 2015

304 pages, hardcover (291 ARC)

Check out the full synopsis on Goodreads.

Shout out to the wonderful Emma aka Miss Print for being so kind and sending me her ARC.

Brilliant, wonderful, charming, witty, fantastic, fun, entertaining. Basically, think of any good word you want, and it can probably be used to describe Beastly Bones, the follow-up to William Ritter’s debut novel, Jackaby (which I read earlier this year and loved).

I think the best part of this book is how many layers there are; there are so many stories all woven together into one incredible book. Not only do we have the theft of the dinosaur bones, but there’s also a group of shapeshifting kittens, a mysterious monster, a murderer who may or may not be a vampire, and so many other delightful things. Honestly, delightful is one of the best words I can think of to describe Beastly Bones.

Abigail is just as witty and wonderful as in the first book. I love reading her narration – she’s clever and charming. I’m also a big fan of Jackaby; he’s just quirky enough and I know it may turn some people off, but he reminds me so much of Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock, which I totally dig. We also get a few new characters in this one – namely paranormal creature trapper Hudson and nosy but fierce and independent reporter Nellie.

Beastly Bones opens up so many possibilities for future books – YES, THERE’S GOING TO BE MORE – and I loved the little bit of foreshadowing we get for the next book. I will say there were a few instances where I just wanted to yell at the characters because they were taking so long to put it together, but overall, I was completely into the story and I cannot wait for the next one – this is the main problem with reading books that aren’t even out yet. EVEN LONGER TO WAIT.

The bottom line: Three words – GIVE ME MORE! How about four more? Definitely a favorite series.

Rating: 8 – freaking fantastic

Audiobook Review: Jackaby by William Ritter

Author: William Ritter

Narrators: Nicola Barber

Audiobook length: 7.5 hours

Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Publisher: HighBridge Audio (Audiobook); Algonquin Young Readers (book)

Check out the full synopsis on Goodreads.

The book:

Jackaby is described in its summary as “Doctor Who meets Sherlock”. I think this is a pretty apt description – Jackaby is similar to both the Conan Doyle Sherlock and the Benedict Cumberbatch Sherlock with a little bit of Matt Smith thrown in for good measure. Usually I hate when books are compared to other books, TV shows, or movies, but in this case, it wasn’t off the mark. Thankfully, Ritter’s characters are so unique and solidly-done that I was able to completely separate them while reading (er..listening to) the story. The world that Ritter has created is full of seriously cool fantastical creatures and I absolutely loved learning about everyone and everything in it.

My only complaint is probably going to surprise most of you. There is practically no romance in the book, which is actually quite nice to have, but the lengths Ritter went through to emphasize the lack of romance between Abigail and Jackaby is a little ridiculous. Instead of allowing the two leads who would actually make a really great couple because of how well they balance each other, we end up having two secondary characters written in for Abigail and Jackaby and it really just muddles the story. In fact, the romance between Abigail and her police officer often feels forced. Here’s hoping the romance that actually should be happens in Beastly Bones (the sequel to Jackaby).

The audiobook/narrator:

Nicola Barber is a fantastic narrator. She has an amazing ability to do different voices distinctly and with incredible believability. I was able to become fully immersed in the story because each of the characters’ voices were all so unique and easily identified. I’m so glad she narrated this story because it made for a wonderful listening experience. I would highly recommend checking out some of the other books she’s narrated (I also listened to Wild Born by Brandon Mull narrated by her).

The bottom line: Jackaby is a fun, enjoyable novel. Ritter mixes an amazing fantasy world with historical details that make reading Jackaby like being in the world of Sherlock Holmes if it were on a different planet. Nicola Barber’s narration is absolute perfection, and if you are a fan of audiobooks, I’d highly recommend checking this one out in that format.

Rating: 7 – pretty good

Waiting on Wednesday: Beastly Bones by William Ritter

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine in which we share a book that we are eagerly anticipating!

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Author: William Ritter

Release date: September 22, 2015

Synopsis from Goodreads: “I’ve found very little about private detective R. F. Jackaby to be standard in the time I’ve known him. Working as his assistant tends to call for a somewhat flexible relationship with reality.”

In 1892, New Fiddleham, New England, things are never quite what they seem, especially when Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer R. F. Jackaby are called upon to investigate the supernatural.

First, a vicious species of shape-shifters disguise themselves as a litter of kittens, and a day later, their owner is found murdered with a single mysterious puncture wound. Then in nearby Gad’s Valley, now home to the exiled New Fiddleham police detective Charlie Cane, dinosaur bones from a recent dig mysteriously go missing, and an unidentifiable beast starts attacking animals and people, leaving their mangled bodies behind. Charlie calls on Abigail for help, and soon Abigail and Jackaby are on the hunt for a thief, a monster, and a murderer.

Why I’m excited: I ADORED Jackaby – the writing style, the characters, the time period (and you guys know that I don’t usually like historical fiction), all of it. It was a really fun, entertaining, and unexpected book for me. I was very happy to hear there was going to be a sequel when I finished it, because I don’t think I could’ve handled not seeing these characters again. I can’t wait to visit East Fiddleham again and see what these wonderful characters are up to.