Review of "The Summoning" by Kelley Armstrong

The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong

Genre: YA/Supernatural

Page Count: 390

Summary: My name is Chloe Saunders and my life will never be the same again.

All I wanted was to make friends, meet boys, and keep on being ordinary. I don't even know what that means anymore. It all started on the day that I saw my first ghost - and the ghost saw me.

Now there are ghosts everywhere and they won't leave me alone. To top it all off, I somehow got myself locked up in Lyle House, a "special home" for troubled teens. Yet the home isn't what it seems. Don't tell anyone, but I think there might be more to my housemates than meets the eye. The question is, whose side are they on? it's up to me to figure out the dangerous secrets behind Lyle House...before its skeletons come back to haunt me.

(Summary from GoodReads.com)

Review: Chloe Saunders is a 15-year-old art school student until the day that she starts to see ghosts in school and is sent to Lyle House, a mysterious group home, to be treated. After being convinced by the staff that she is mentally ill, Chloe starts to find out the truth about Lyle House, her fellow patients, and herself. All in a very realistic way. 

My favorite part of this novel had to be Chloe and how she reacted to everything. In most YA novels, the protagonist just goes along with everything that happens to them like it's an everyday occurrence to be kidnapped by monsters or develop supernatural powers. In The Summoning, Chloe does just the opposite when she starts to learn about her abilities. She freaks out like any normal person would. 

I loved how relatable Chloe was as a character and she really carries the story through when it seems to drag on forever in the middle of the book. The beginning and the ending are both so interesting that it makes the middle worth getting through. The Summoning does tend to be a bit slow and is obviously the first book of a trilogy as it sets up the story. 

Overall, I loved the story, the diverse cast of characters, and the plot twists that  sometimes totally blindsided me. For anyone on the fence about this book, give it a shot and it will definitely be worth your time. 


And the best part? No cliched YA love triangle! 

Rating: