newtsdaisies's review against another edition
2.0
This book was a huge disappointment in comparison to how great the first book was. The characters were irritating, the plot was incredibly dull, and it had a very unsatisfying ending. Would gladly read the first book again but won't be returning to this book.
boose's review against another edition
2.0
seri birinci kitabın sonu ile bitseydi daha iyi olurmuş gibi hissediyorum..
kblincoln's review against another edition
5.0
Come for the horror, stay for the snark.
If you enjoyed the dreamy, action-packed gothic horror of Anna Dressed in Blood, you will definitely enjoy the sequel, Girl of Nightmares. Cass thought he'd triumphed over his father's murderer when the the poltergeist-esque Anna dragged the Obeahman down to hell with her in the climactic scene of Anna Dressed in Blood.
These days Cass is uneasy, and despite his psychic/voodoo friend Thomas and queen bee Carmel telling him to let Anna go- he can't. He is seeing her in dreams, and she isn't happy. In fact, she seems tortured.
Cass will have to delve deep into the border between life and death without the blessing of the adults he's come to rely upon. Nobody wants to help him bring back Anna Dressed in Blood.
With the introduction of a new, kick-ass character late in the book and creepy, creepy scenes set in places such as a Suicide Forest (with bodies that act like Doctor Who Weeping Angels) and the Obeahman's version of Hell, this is spine-tinglingly fun to read.
And what makes it fun is not only the scary tension, but also Cass' irreverent voice.
"Welcome," some dude says to us as he opens the car door when it pulls up to the main building. He's young and groomed, in a black suit, looking like he fell out of GQ. He and the driver might be twins. It's sort of disconcerting, like Fembots in reverse. I bet the cook looks like this, too."
It's a bit gory, with references to many dead bodies, so I probably wouldn't want my third grader to accidentally read it, but it's fine for older kids.
This Book's Snack Rating: Spicy Nacho flavored Doritos for the kick of horror-tension on top of crunchy, action-packed plot and snarky characters
If you enjoyed the dreamy, action-packed gothic horror of Anna Dressed in Blood, you will definitely enjoy the sequel, Girl of Nightmares. Cass thought he'd triumphed over his father's murderer when the the poltergeist-esque Anna dragged the Obeahman down to hell with her in the climactic scene of Anna Dressed in Blood.
These days Cass is uneasy, and despite his psychic/voodoo friend Thomas and queen bee Carmel telling him to let Anna go- he can't. He is seeing her in dreams, and she isn't happy. In fact, she seems tortured.
Cass will have to delve deep into the border between life and death without the blessing of the adults he's come to rely upon. Nobody wants to help him bring back Anna Dressed in Blood.
With the introduction of a new, kick-ass character late in the book and creepy, creepy scenes set in places such as a Suicide Forest (with bodies that act like Doctor Who Weeping Angels) and the Obeahman's version of Hell, this is spine-tinglingly fun to read.
And what makes it fun is not only the scary tension, but also Cass' irreverent voice.
"Welcome," some dude says to us as he opens the car door when it pulls up to the main building. He's young and groomed, in a black suit, looking like he fell out of GQ. He and the driver might be twins. It's sort of disconcerting, like Fembots in reverse. I bet the cook looks like this, too."
It's a bit gory, with references to many dead bodies, so I probably wouldn't want my third grader to accidentally read it, but it's fine for older kids.
This Book's Snack Rating: Spicy Nacho flavored Doritos for the kick of horror-tension on top of crunchy, action-packed plot and snarky characters
kasperin's review against another edition
4.0
Kind of a sad/happy ending? I was hopping for something else. But still a good book
octobertune's review against another edition
3.0
Read this review, and many more on my blog October Tune!
Warning, this review might have some minor spoilers for the first book in the series!
After reading Anna Dressed in Blood, I was both curious and not curious at all for the sequel. I wouldn't have minded if the story had ended with the first book, because to me it was a very good ending. But the story didn't end there. No, there was Girl of Nightmares, the second and last book of this series, where apparently Cas was going to try to rescue Anna from wherever she got dragged into.
To be honest, I was quite reluctant to read this book, mainly because of the 'romance' in the first one. I mean, he falls in love with a ghost, seriously? I know I'm not the biggest romance fan, but this kind of felt weird to me. I liked the rest of the book enough to not give it two stars, but the romance just ruined it for me. Still, I was curious for the rest of the story, so I got Girl of Nightmare.
The first half of the book, I was annoyed at Cas' determination to get Anna out of Hell. The girl is dead, let her be dead. She may not be in peace, but there is nothing you can do about it. I felt frustrated every time he ignored his friends' advice, his mother's advice, basically everyone's advice. I wanted to grab him by the shoulders, shake him and tell him to let her go. But of course, Cas did not let her go. He spend most of the book wanting to get her out of Hell, and he actually risked his life a couple of times because of this, and it just made me really angry. Sure, I get it, he's in love with her - but she's a ghost, she's been dead for decades, and she's in Hell. There is a very small change they will ever get together again.
During the second half of the book, things started to get more exciting, and I started to read with more pleasure. Carmel started acting really odd, and the guys were planning on opening a door to Hell to get Anna out. Seriously, these guys have probably never seen a Supernatural episode. BAD IDEA, BAD IDEA! Anyway, we got introduced to a new character - Jestine, whose name just sounded really odd to me (I mean, Jestine and Carmel for an English and American girl - but Anna for a Finnish girl - I don't hate the names, but I just thought it was funny). I didn't like Jessy - I am going to call her that - at first, because she felt like a complete show-off at first, but she kind of grew on me in the end.
When I got to the last couple of chapters, I started to feel really anxious, because there were only about fifty pages left, and nothing had really happened yet. I got more and more stressed, the more I read on, and the ending actually left me a bit.. yeah, well, unsatisfied I guess? I don't know, I just didn't like the way it ended, and I had kind of hoped for more closure. In the end, I think the characters started to grow on me more than usual, I even started to like Cas a bit more, but yeah I want to know more about them. Maybe a novella, Ms Blake? That would be really nice.
In the end, I liked Girl of Nightmare, but I wouldn't really call it one of my favourite reads of this year. If you're into horror stories, like Miss Peregrine's, I recommend this series to you - unless you're totally not into weird romances.
My opinion of this book in one gif:
Warning, this review might have some minor spoilers for the first book in the series!
After reading Anna Dressed in Blood, I was both curious and not curious at all for the sequel. I wouldn't have minded if the story had ended with the first book, because to me it was a very good ending. But the story didn't end there. No, there was Girl of Nightmares, the second and last book of this series, where apparently Cas was going to try to rescue Anna from wherever she got dragged into.
To be honest, I was quite reluctant to read this book, mainly because of the 'romance' in the first one. I mean, he falls in love with a ghost, seriously? I know I'm not the biggest romance fan, but this kind of felt weird to me. I liked the rest of the book enough to not give it two stars, but the romance just ruined it for me. Still, I was curious for the rest of the story, so I got Girl of Nightmare.
The first half of the book, I was annoyed at Cas' determination to get Anna out of Hell. The girl is dead, let her be dead. She may not be in peace, but there is nothing you can do about it. I felt frustrated every time he ignored his friends' advice, his mother's advice, basically everyone's advice. I wanted to grab him by the shoulders, shake him and tell him to let her go. But of course, Cas did not let her go. He spend most of the book wanting to get her out of Hell, and he actually risked his life a couple of times because of this, and it just made me really angry. Sure, I get it, he's in love with her - but she's a ghost, she's been dead for decades, and she's in Hell. There is a very small change they will ever get together again.
During the second half of the book, things started to get more exciting, and I started to read with more pleasure. Carmel started acting really odd, and the guys were planning on opening a door to Hell to get Anna out. Seriously, these guys have probably never seen a Supernatural episode. BAD IDEA, BAD IDEA! Anyway, we got introduced to a new character - Jestine, whose name just sounded really odd to me (I mean, Jestine and Carmel for an English and American girl - but Anna for a Finnish girl - I don't hate the names, but I just thought it was funny). I didn't like Jessy - I am going to call her that - at first, because she felt like a complete show-off at first, but she kind of grew on me in the end.
When I got to the last couple of chapters, I started to feel really anxious, because there were only about fifty pages left, and nothing had really happened yet. I got more and more stressed, the more I read on, and the ending actually left me a bit.. yeah, well, unsatisfied I guess? I don't know, I just didn't like the way it ended, and I had kind of hoped for more closure. In the end, I think the characters started to grow on me more than usual, I even started to like Cas a bit more, but yeah I want to know more about them. Maybe a novella, Ms Blake? That would be really nice.
In the end, I liked Girl of Nightmare, but I wouldn't really call it one of my favourite reads of this year. If you're into horror stories, like Miss Peregrine's, I recommend this series to you - unless you're totally not into weird romances.
My opinion of this book in one gif:
lestaslettering's review against another edition
1.0
For such a great first book, the sequel was just meh. TF kind of ending is that?
abigaillo's review against another edition
5.0
Seeing the vulnerable side of Cas, I think I fell just a little more in love. And that ending honestly made me cry!
anniedelsignore's review against another edition
3.0
I'm quite disappointed in this sequel for a couple reasons. 1. Not enough Anna. She was my favorite character because she's so freaking creepy and she did not get enough page time. Even the visions and dreams of her weren't enough. 2. Nothing really happened. Throughout the whole book, I felt like Cas and the gang were wasting time. This probably could have been a quick short story or something. 3. Not scary enough. The first book completely terrified me. Sure, Suicide Forrest was creepy as hell, but nothing could compare to the first book. 4. Atm, I'm kinda mad that Cas and Anna didn't end up together. Like he literally went to hell to bring her back and then didn't. And okay, what kind of future did they have etc. it really wouldn't make sense but still. It's the premise of the thing. I wanted love and happiness and togetherness and not me crying like I am now.
meganmreads's review against another edition
4.0
Girl of Nightmares concluded the Anna Dressed In Blood duology and was very good. Anna Dressed In Blood could have been a standalone novel, but there were some loose ends to tie up, such as figuring out what actually happened to Anna and if she was okay. The book explored more of Cas and his purpose, including figuring out the history of his father and the true mission of those who wielded the athame. It also allowed for Thomas and Carmel to grow as characters.
The sequel wasn’t nearly as horrific and ghostly as the first book, but I thought it was a very good sequel and one that explored the characters, what happened to them, and what consequences there might be for the justice that Cas served. It’s like the author was plagued by the characters and just had to give us some more growth and a closer look at who they really were.
I highly recommend the books, especially if you’re a fan of YA paranormal and horror. It’s a unique story and I definitely enjoyed it.
The sequel wasn’t nearly as horrific and ghostly as the first book, but I thought it was a very good sequel and one that explored the characters, what happened to them, and what consequences there might be for the justice that Cas served. It’s like the author was plagued by the characters and just had to give us some more growth and a closer look at who they really were.
I highly recommend the books, especially if you’re a fan of YA paranormal and horror. It’s a unique story and I definitely enjoyed it.