Jessica Arnold

(This review can be found on my blog The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl).


When I read the blurb to this book, I didn't really know what to expect. I liked that it dealt with mirrors and ghosts. That's what drew me in. Luckily, I found this book to be super interesting!

I do like the title of this book. It pays homage to Lewis Carroll, and even some scenes in the book do the same.

I'm not a big fan of the cover although it does have to do with the story. I would've liked to see something spooky on the cover such as Elizabeth Blackwell staring out from the mirror or something similar, but that is just a personal opinion.

I did enjoy the world building and found it to be believable. However, I was a bit confused as to why and how Alice always ended up at the hotel's swimming pool at midnight for just an hour every night. Perhaps that could've been explained better. I was also a little big confused about the fog and how it differed for the witch and for Alice, but I won't go into details as I don't want to give away any spoilers. I do like how Alice's version of the hotel is different from the actual hotel and how she sees the real world through mirrors.

The pacing was brilliant in The Looking Glass! I'll be honest. I wasn't expecting this book to instantly catch my attention from the very first page, but it did just that. From the first sentence, I was hooked and couldn't wait to find out what would happen next to Alice.

I enjoyed the plot very much, and I felt it was fairly original. (Don't worry, the next few sentences aren't spoilers). Alice dives into the hotel swimming pool and hits her head. She almost drowns and ends up in a coma. However, her spirit is stuck at the hotel where she must figure out the mystery of Elizabeth Blackwell if she's to reunite her body with her spirit. While I didn't feel that there were any major plot twists in the story, I still really enjoyed it. Oh, and don't worry. There's no cliff hangars either.

I found the characters to be very well written and likable. Alice is a very down to Earth, normal teenage girl. She was easy to relate to and had a likable personality. She is a very curious about everything, but that ultimately comes to her advantage. I also really liked Tony and how he was so willing to help Alice. He came across as a real sweetheart and a very brave person. George is another character who I wasn't really sure of to begin with but ended up liking.

I enjoyed the dialogue and felt it was appropriate for a young adult book. It flowed smoothly and never once felt forced. My favorite bits of dialogue were when Alice was thinking to herself. There's no swearing in this book, but there is some minor violence.

Overall, The Looking Glass by Jessica Arnold is a highly interesting read. The plot will keep readers very much immersed in the book. The world building is very detailed albeit some minor confusing details.

I'd recommend this book to those aged 13 who are after a book that's a little bit scary but not too much and for those who are after a book with a brilliant story line.

I'd give The Looking Glass by Jessica Arnold a 4.5 out of 5.


(I received an free ebook of this title from the tour host in exchange for a fair and honest review).… (mere)

MY SIMPLISTIC REVIEW

The Looking Glass
by Jessica Arnold
4 1/2 OUT OF 5 STARS
Amazingly different read for sure! I give this book 4 1/2 stars. It was so different and so beautifully written and detailed that I really could not put this story down and I felt as though I was there with Alice throughout the story. The detail was so beautifully written that I felt I was there and could visualize the Bed and Breakfast. This made me love it even more! I have read LOTS of paranormal, YA genre books, but this is truly unique! Let me start with the synopsis of this beautifully written book.....
Find the diary, break the curse, step through The Looking Glass!Fifteen-year-old Alice Montgomery wakes up in the lobby of the B&B where she has been vacationing with her family to a startling discovery: no one can see or hear her. The cheap desk lights have been replaced with gas lamps and the linoleum floor with hardwood and rich Oriental carpeting. Someone has replaced the artwork with eerie paintings of Elizabeth Blackwell, the insane actress and rumored witch who killed herself at the hotel in the 1880s. Alice watches from behind the looking glass where she is haunted by Elizabeth Blackwell. Trapped in the 19th-century version of the hotel, Alice must figure out a way to break Elizabeth’s curse—with the help of Elizabeth's old diary and Tony, the son of a ghost hunter who is investigating the haunted B&B—before she becomes the inn's next victim.

Like I said before, a very interesting concept. Basically Alice wakes up on the sofa in the B&B her family is vacationing at in Maine and realizes quickly that something is seriously wrong. No one can seem to see or hear her. She then realizes that she can see the current scenes unfolding through the mirrors in this old haunted B&B as she is trying to figure out what is going on.... and learns that she has hit her head in a diving accident in the pool at the B&B and is in a Coma in the nearest hospital, but her soul, or the "ghost" of herself is trapped in the haunted B&B. She learns about the history of the house through a diary she finds of Elizabeth Blackwell's and her mission begins. She has to try to save herself, to figure out how to break the curse, before she is consumed by that very curse. I loved the slow romance between Alice and Tony's characters as well (always a sucker for some romance :) and I LOVED the ending! What a fabulous story! All Alice needed was to accept herself and realize how amazing she was! I knew immediately that I really needed this book after reading the synopsis! I have always been a huge fan of ghost stories, horror movies, paranormal genre books, since I was a young child. This is a fabulously different ghost story that I will definitely be reading again! My daughter would love this as well.. and it is a fabulous Paranormal (w/a hint of romance) suitable for the Young Adult. Jessica Arnold did a fabulous job writing this beautifully written story! So much detail, and I never wanted to miss a word! Definitely add this one to your TBR list if you love a good paranormal/ghost story! Thanks to Jessica for a refreshingly different YA book!… (mere)