Anna Dressed in Blood (Anna, #1) in Addicted to YA

Feb 04, 2012 Rachel rated it really liked it

Cas Lowood is a ghost hunter, like his father before him, and he and his hippie witch mother travel the world taking care of murderous ghosts with a magical knife that only Cas can wield.

From page one, I was hooked. Praise be, a teenage boy narrator who actually sounded like a teenage boy! I was beginning to think it was an impossible feat. And in addition to that, I really liked how the novel had the feel of an old-timey crime novel.

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Oct 10, 2011 Falling for Books (Tia) rated it it was amazing

First Line: The grease-slicked hair is dead giveaway-no pun intended.

Favorite Quote: “Over the course of my life I’ve been to lots of places… Those towns aren’t any less haunted than the others. They’re just better liars.”

My thoughts: I was originally drawn to the cover of this blood. It reminds me of every scary tale I’ve ever been told in school as a kid. I must say, that I really enjoyed this book! I found the beginning of the book to be truly creepy and scary. I really couldn’t put this boo ...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Sasha rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, horror-suspense, paranormal

Dark, terrifying, detailed, and seductive, Anna Dressed in Blood is everything a good ghost story should be, and then some. Holding nothing back, this gritty and bold foray into the world of haunted houses and ghost hunters is an excellent debut for Kendare Blake, and one that sets the bar high for horror/supernatural YA books in general.

Theseus Cassio is a ghost hunter, pure and simple. Armed with his father’s athame, a knife-like weapon that sends ghosts to the afterlife, and a spicy combinati Dark, terrifying, detailed, and seductive, Anna Dressed in Blood is everything a good ghost story should be, and then some. Holding nothing back, this gritty and bold foray into the world of haunted houses and ghost hunters is an excellent debut for Kendare Blake, and one that sets the bar high for horror/supernatural YA books in general.

Theseus Cassio is a ghost hunter, pure and simple. Armed with his father’s athame, a knife-like weapon that sends ghosts to the afterlife, and a spicy combination of bravado and sarcastic dry wit, Cas travels with his mother across the continent, chasing the next big haunting. When Cas catches wind of Anna, a ghost with particularly violent tendencies (evisceration being one of her trademarks), he knows he has to head north. However, when he arrives at the sleepy Canadian town where Anna was murdered decades before, he finds himself embroiled in a lot more than he could have anticipated when murders much like his own father’s start happening to the locals. The story that follows is compelling and heart-stopping, all in a measure.

Let’s start with the protagonist. While I felt in some ways like details of Cas were lacking—for example, I still have no clear idea what he looks like, so I just pretend he looks like a younger Dean Winchester—there was still something comfortable and familiar about Cas. His voice comes across as clever, sharp, and witty. Plus he swears like a sailor. My kinda guy! Kendare Blake did an excellent job portraying Cas as the teenager he is, but with the gravitas and detachment of someone who has faced all the violence he has. Despite this, Cas still manages to keep a killer sense of humor and is sweet in a disgruntled and endearing sort of way.

There is also a colorful supporting cast, which provides dimension and gives us a slight break from Cas’ emotional isolation on occasion. For example, Cas’ mother is a white witch, and quite an eccentric but cool lady. I wasn’t entirely convinced that a mother would allow her son to pursue this kind of profession, but I understood why she did it—better to allow him to do it and keep an eye on him rather than have Cas hunt ghosts in secret and (view spoiler). Cas has contacts around the world who help him with his research, particularly Gideon (the Bobby to Cas’ Winchesters), who is like a father figure to Cas. Cas’ friends, the (view spoiler) Thomas and popular girl Carmel, are great as well, if a little hard to like at first. But, as everyone knows, a good hero cannot go on his quest alone, and ultimately his friends are what help Cas succeed in the end.

Anna. Let’s talk about Anna. She is f***ing terrifying!!! The horror was what I bought the book for and Ms. Blake does not disappoint. Gore, jump scares, creepy atmosphere… this book has everything. The reason behind Anna’s curse is equally skin-crawling. It’s been a while since I’ve been genuinely freaked out by a description in a book, but Anna Dressed in Blood has plenty of those scares per chapter. But luckily, we have humor mixed in with the horror, which is a great balance that kept me from from being too emotionally drained. The plot moves along at a fast enough clip that there isn’t a lull in action, which I appreciated, but jeez, my nerves were frayed by the end of it!

(view spoiler)

Finally, my favorite part of the book would probably be the overarching mythology. It has to do with Cas’ father, the athame, and voodoo, and there’s certainly plenty of story left in there for a sequel. And how about that ending? It closed off some loose ends while simultaneously opening a whole new can of worms, in a way. I look forward to seeing Cas and his Scooby Gang (can I call them that? I’m going to call them that.) tackle more ghosts, and maybe even some monsters if my wishes come true. Overall, I simply couldn’t put Anna Dressed in Blood down. I feel so lucky to have stumbled across this book, and highly recommend it to those who enjoy horror, interesting characters, and the complexities of a good mytharc. Bring on the sequel!

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Oct 23, 2017 AshleyA (MamaNeedsBooks) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: library-reads-audio, library-reads-series

If I were going to rate this on the audio alone it would be a one. This narrator is terrible, IMO. However, the story itself was good and had me drawn in. I am going to read the physical book when I have a chance so I can get the awful voice out of my head.

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