Book:  Wake Unto Me
Author:  Lisa Cach
Release date:  March 31, 2011
Publisher:  Speak
Pages:  304
Source:  Author

A haunted castle, a handsome young man dead for four hundred years, one heck of a scary portrait of a witch, and a treasure hunt — not to mention a princess for a roommate! — all await 15 year old American girl Caitlyn Monahan when she earns a scholarship to a French boarding school.

There are secrets behind the stone walls of Chateau de la Fortune, buried for…moreA haunted castle, a handsome young man dead for four hundred years, one heck of a scary portrait of a witch, and a treasure hunt — not to mention a princess for a roommate! — all await 15 year old American girl Caitlyn Monahan when she earns a scholarship to a French boarding school.

There are secrets behind the stone walls of Chateau de la Fortune, buried for centuries along with the mystery of who killed Raphael, the charming ghost who visits Caitlyn at night. But as Caitlyn unearths the history of the castle, nothing scares her as badly as the secret she learns about herself, and the reason she was chosen to come to the Fortune School.

And nothing breaks her heart as badly as falling in love with a dead guy.

Wake Unto Me is an absolutely extraordinary debut from Lisa Cach.  I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started it so I was pleasantly surprised when I was immediately drawn into Caitlyn’s world.  This is another one of those books that I know my review will not do justice to.

Caitlyn Monahan doesn’t know what is wrong with her.  All she knows is that she does not fit in, not with her family, her friends, or her town in Oregon.  When she gets the chance to go to boarding school in France, she jumps at it.  Everything is not as it seems at the Fortune school though.  Caitlyn is having strange dreams but she doesn’t mind because they bring her to Raphael.  But how can she be with Raphael?  Is he even real?  And if so, how does Caitlyn visit him in her dreams?

Where to begin?  I can honestly say that there was nothing about this book that I didn’t like.  At first I was a little confused by Caitlyn but that cleared up very quickly.  I began to understand her and really like her.  She was confused and pretty alone.  She was very easy to like and want to read about.  Raphael was also great.  He was so sweet.  I really did like him and his story.  Amalia and Naomi were great friends to Caitlyn and they were both great characters with very fun personalities.

The story is what really got me.  I had no idea how everything would tie together in the end.  The mystery of that kept me reading.  Lisa Cach did a wonderful job tying it together in the end and I felt that all my questions were answered.

Overall, Wake Unto Me is a very original debut that I think will appeal to everyone.  I can’t wait to see what’s next from Lisa Cach!

First line:  “Is she the one?”

Rating:  A++

Cover:  A