Brad About Books: Rebel Spirits by Lois Ruby

Read from May 13 to 14, 2013

REBEL SPIRITS
Expected Publication Date: June 1, 2013
Publisher: Point (Scholastic)
Format: ARC
Page Count: 304 pages
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Infused with history and mystery, this tale of ghosts, love, and murder takes place in present-day Gettysburg, where the Civil War still looms large.

Lori Chase doesn't know what to think about ghosts. She may have seen a few in the past, but those were just childish imaginings...right? Only now that she is living in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, spirits seem to be on everyone's mind. The town is obsessed with its bloody Civil War history, and the old inn that Lori's parents run is supposedly haunted by the souls of dead soldiers.

Then Lori meets one such soldier--the devastatingly handsome Nathaniel Pierce. Nathaniel's soul cannot rest, and he desperately needs Lori's help. Because Nathaniel was not killed in the famous battle. He was murdered. Lori begins to investigate the age-old mystery, stumbling upon shocking clues and secrets.

At the same time, she can't help falling for Nathaniel, just as he is falling for her...

I hate to say it, but I was disappointed by Rebel Spirits. While the plot was intriguing, I couldn't get past the characters. 

I'll go ahead and start with the problem I had with Rebel Spirits - the characters just felt too two-dimensional for me. I couldn't connect with Lori, which was the biggest problem I had. She just seemed too flat for me to get in touch with, and I just didn't like her. Nathaniel was better because of his secretive backstory, and I enjoyed learning about his past! 

And luckily, that's what redeemed Rebel Spirits for me. The scandal, the secrets and the hidden past makes Rebel Spirits an enjoyable, quick read. Whenever it's brought up in the book of Nathaniel's mysterious past, I was reeled in and hooked deep into the story, and it kept my interest the entire time. It definitely was my favorite part about the book and redeemed it for me.

And the entire story felt too jumbled, for me at least. We had the hidden past-thing going on, and then, BAM insta-love, which I didn't care for in this case. I don't read many ghosts stories, especially not ones with insta-love, so I guess Rebel Spirits does stand out in that way. I just would have preferred more eerie and haunting scenes, less romantic. But that's just for me.

Overall, Rebel Spirits let me down. Who knows, this may be the book for me! Some parts worked for me, some didn't, unfortunately.

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