Four and Twenty Blackbirds (Eden Moore #1) - Cherie Priest

5 Stars!!!!!

ABOUT THE BOOK -

Although she was orphaned at birth, Eden Moore is never alone. Three dead women watch from the shadows, bound to protect her from harm. But in the woods a gunman waits, convinced that Eden is destined to follow her wicked great-grandfather--an African magician with the power to curse the living and raise the dead.

Now Eden must decipher the secret of the ghostly trio before a new enemy more dangerous than the fanatical assassin destroys what is left of her family. She will sift through lies in a Georgian ante-bellum mansion and climb through the haunted ruins of a 19th century hospital, desperately seeking the truth that will save her beloved aunt from the curse that threatens her life.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR -

Cherie Priest is the author of twelve novels, including the steampunk pulp adventures Dreadnought, Clementine, Ganymede, and Boneshaker. Boneshaker was nominated for both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award; it was a PNBA Award winner, and winner of the Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel. Cherie also wrote Fathom and the Eden Moore series from Tor (Macmillan), Bloodshot and Hellbent for Bantam, and three novellas published by Subterranean Press. In addition to all of the above, she is a newly minted member of the Wild Cards Consortium - and her first foray into George R. R. Martin's superhero universe, Fort Freak (for which she wrote the frame story), debuted in 2011. Cherie's short stories and nonfiction articles have appeared in such fine publications as Weird Tales, Subterranean Magazine, Publishers Weekly, The Living Dead 2, and the Thackeray T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities. She presently lives in Chattanooga, TN, with her husband, a fluffy young dog, and a fat black cat.

Visit her at her website - HERE

MY REVIEW -

Why have I never read this author before??? I got this book from the library to read for a book group I belong to on Shelfari. 

Wow! what a great book! Lets see how many adjectives I can come up with - Creepy, scary, spooky, eerie, ghostly, goosebump giving, chilling, freaky, unputdownable, believable, detailed, heartstopping. OK, I guess that's enough, you get the point.

Another reviewer actually said "the plot is too detailed and too well crafted"... whaaaaaaat??? I don't think you would ever hear me complain that a book was TOO well crafted!

I thought the writing was brilliant! I thought the character development was excellent. The storyline, very original. I was so excited to find this was a series! I can't wait to read them all! I am so glad I discovered this one. Very worth the read!

Warning - this is pretty graphic (blood and guts) and is pretty creepy and scary in parts. Ya know - it kind of reminds me of "American Horror Story: The Coven" It has that feel to it. It is, like the description says , very Gothic.

If you want a spooky, but believable story for Halloween about ghosts and witches - Choose me, choose me!

"Suddenly, we were rich. We moved up to the mountains with the rest of the rich people, and I started school.

And I started seeing the dead women.

And I stabbed my counselor with his own dull knife.

And I ran away from his office, all the way home..."

"She believed that the more snow you got for winter the smarter you were, and consequently, the hotter your summers the more likely it was you'd marry a cousin." Hahaha loved this line!

"My question invited the presence closer. Something was different about this entity. Something about its voice, or its touch, suggested more strength than mere spirit had ever shown me. I clenched my fists and held them against my thighs, refusing to move. A faint, chuffing gust of air came and went close against my skin, It was sniffing me, smelling me - tickling the sticky inside crooks of skin at my elbows and under my chin. It snorted a hard puff of stale air against the side of my face." Goosebumps!!!

Get yours from Amazon - HERE

and from B&N - HERE