
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publication Date: 7/1/08
Publisher: Harper Collins
Blurb (GR): After years of frequent moves following her mother’s death, Chloe Saunders’s life is finally settling down. She is attending art school, pursuing her dreams of becoming a director, making friends, and meeting boys. Her biggest concern is that she’s not developing as fast as her friends are. But when puberty does hit, it brings more than hormone surges. Chloe starts seeing ghosts–everywhere, demanding her attention. After she suffers a breakdown, her devoted aunt Lauren gets her into a highly recommended group home.
At first, Lyle House seems a pretty okay place, except for Chloe’s small problem of fearing she might be facing a lifetime of mental illness. But as she gradually gets to know the other kids at the home–charming Simon and his ominous, unsmiling brother Derek, obnoxious Tori, and Rae, who has a “thing” for fire–Chloe begins to realize that there is something that binds them all together, and it isn’t your usual “problem kid” behavior. And together they discover that Lyle House is not your usual group home either…
Review:
"The Summoning" is the first YA novel written by Kelley Armstrong. It tells a story of Chloe, a 15-year old girl who suddenly finds herself capable of seeing ghosts. Only, of course, nobody believes her and she is quickly sent to a boarding house for disturbed kids for psychological evaluation. It turns out however, that the house and its inhabitants are not quite what they seem to be.
While this book was definitely a page turner, I was a little disappointed in it. I felt that the narration dragged quite a bit in the middle of this novel and the build-up to the climax of the story was too long with almost no payoff. This book definitely read as a part of a trilogy: it had a lot of loose ends and didn't really attempt to give a closure, even a temporary one.
I will continue reading this series because I am rather curious to see where the story goes and how the characters develop, but looking back, this is a type of book which is better to read once all parts of the series are out.
3/5 stars