Book:  Shadow Hills
Author:  Anastasia Hopcus
Published:  July 13, 2010 from Egmont USA
My edition/number of pages:  ARC/400

Age group:  Young adult
Source:  Publisher
Series?:  I don’t know.  I hope so.

His love captivated her… his secrets might kill her.

Since her sister’s mysterious death, Persephone “Phe” Archer has been plagued…more His love captivated her… his secrets might kill her.

Since her sister’s mysterious death, Persephone “Phe” Archer has been plagued by a series of disturbing dreams. Determined to find out what happened to her sister, Phe enrolls at Devenish Prep in Shadow Hills, Massachusetts—the subject of her sister’s final diary entry.

After stepping on campus, Phe immediately realizes that there’s something different about this place—an unexplained epidemic that decimated the town in the 1700s, an ancient and creepy cemetery, and gorgeous boy Zach—and somehow she’s connected to it all.

But the more questions she asks and the deeper she digs, the more entangled Phe becomes in the haunting past of Shadow Hills. Finding what links her to this town…might cost her her life.

Have you ever loved a book so much that you didn’t know what to say about it?  That’s how I am right now with Shadow Hills.  I know that nothing I can write will do justice to this book but I will give it my best shot.

Persephone (Phe) Archer has no clue what she is doing.  On a crazy whim she enrolled at Devenish Academy in Shadow Hills.  When the brochure came in the mail for her sister she knew she had to go there.  Now that she’s actually there though things are weird.  The guy of her dreams (literally) is there and he is hiding something, something that nobody is supposed to know about.  Too bad Phe is curious and stubborn.  She is determined to uncover the mystery of Shadow Hills but some will do anything to stop her.

Shadow Hills is one of my new favorite books.  Not only was it wonderfully written, it was a fantastic story.  It was the right mix of romance, mystery, and creepy killers.  The YA genre is lacking in mystery books but not anymore.  Anastasia Hopcus’ debut novel just shot to the top of my recommendation list.

Phe was a funny character but only because she wasn’t supposed to be.  After her sister’s death she was really depressed but it changed when she got to Devenish.  She met people who she could relate to and she slowly started to get over her grief.  The funny part about her was how stubborn she was.  She got into so many crazy scary situations because she wouldn’t listen to Zach.  Who, by the way, is sexy!  He was sweet, kind, caring, and the perfect gentleman.  I loved him and the rest of the cast of characters.  Well, except for the villains, obviously.

Overall, Shadow Hills is a must-read!  It’s a breath of fresh air in an annoyingly similar market.  I’m pretty sure there is going to be a sequel and I can’t wait.  I want more Shadow Hills and more Zach.  =]

First line:  I had though nothing could be worse than what they had already done to me, but I was wrong.

Writing:  5

Characters:  5

Plot:  5

Ending:  5

Originality:  5

Overall:  25=A++

Cover:  5=A++