When Eleanor Zarrin attacks her school bully and ex-friend, she finds herself fleeing to the home she was sent away from as a child. She can feel that there’s something different about her, and she hopes to find comfort among her estranged family. What Eleanor finds is that she’s different from everyone, including her own mother. Struggling to fit in, she calls on someone she thinks is a safe bet. Instead, Eleanor quickly finds herself fighting to save the very family she once thought didn’t want her.
I originally picked up this book thinking it was going to be a gothic paranormal novel with werewolves as the primary supernatural being. In a way, that is indeed what I got. I have to admit that I did not like the book at first. I was talking to my younger brother about it as I was reading, and he asked me why I was still reading it. I told him that I had to know if the accountant everyone is in love with is a vampire like I thought he was.
Sadly, I read nearly half the book only because I wanted to see if Arthur was indeed a vampire, but you know what? I’m sure glad I did because it got really interesting around the halfway point. The characters I didn’t care for started having a lot more depth, and the story itself became so interesting that I only put the book down when I had to. It was totally worth questioning if confirmation or clarity on Arthur’s supernatural status was really worth continuing.
Sure, it’s a slow burn with an immature protagonist who spectacularly misinterprets her grandma’s final wishes. However, Eleanor is a realistic character living in a supernatural setting with a family who doesn’t entirely trust her, if at all. There are several realistic things that occur, such as the jealousy Eleanor and her sister have for one another their roles are reversed. Quite a few of the characters turn out to be extremely interesting, and the backstories are truly explosive. I now completely understand why the first half of the book is the way it is, and in hindsight, it set up the rest of the book extremely well. I’m so glad I didn’t give up on this book because it turned out to be such a good read in the end.
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