5 February 2016

Review #335: Romancing the Dark in the City of Light by Ann Jacobus



My rating: 4 of 5 stars



“But in the end one needs more courage to live than to kill himself.”

----Albert Camus



Ann Jacobus, an American author, pens her debut YA psychological thriller, Romancing the Dark in the City of Light that unfolds a heart-wrenching and thoroughly riveting tale about a young teenage girl, with a problem of drinking and escaping her issues, who is trying to find love on her stay in Paris, while dealing with her mental tantrums.







Synopsis:

Summer Barnes just moved to Paris to repeat her senior year of high school. After being kicked out of four boarding schools, she has to get on the right track or she risks losing her hefty inheritance. Summer is convinced that meeting the right guy will solve everything. She meets two. Moony, a classmate, is recovering against all odds from a serious car accident, and he encourages Summer to embrace life despite how hard it can be to make it through even one day. But when Summer meets Kurt, a hot, mysterious older man who she just can't shake, he leads her through the creepy underbelly of the city-and way out of her depth.

When Summer's behavior manage to alienate everyone, even Moony, she's forced to decide if a life so difficult is worth living.


Summer has just shifted to Paris to live with her mother and to complete her high school so that she can enjoy her deceased grandfather's inheritance. But Summer has lots of issues, previously she has been throw out of four boarding schools on disciplinary grounds. Summer misses her father a lot whom she loved dearly, and just like her father, Summer too suffers from depression and with a drinking problem. But Summer is determined this time to complete her senior year and to get admitted in some college. But to keep herself focused, she needs love. And she even successfully finds two matches to fulfill her heart's desire-one is her schoolmate, Moony, a Christian-Muslim guy with full of positive vibes and walks with a disability suffered in an accident long-time age, another is a strange, mysterious and hot guy, Kurt, who lives in the darkness of the city and is really good at pointing out the flaws of fellow human beings. And as much as Summer wants to fall for Moony, that much she desires for the bad guy, Kurt, whom she can't say no to all his demands, even if that pushes her on the edge of death.

Firstly, being a debut author, Ann pulled this story really intriguingly and skillfully. Firstly, her writing style is brilliant and it felt like the author has poured out all her emotions while writing this story, not only that the emotions sync perfectly with the mood of the main character. The narrative style of the author is articulate and quite dark which only has a bewitching power in it's hold. The story opens perfectly and flows smoothly with a medium face towards the unpredictable climax.

The characters are terrific and are thoroughly well developed. The main character, Summer, is a troubled teen, who is still coping with her father's loss from her life, on top of that, she has a habit of drinking, as well as she is highly depressed with her life, school, inheritance and mostly about finding love. Summer likes to toy with the idea of death too much. This darkness within her makes her someone who has too much attitude. The flaws within her made me sympathize with her as well as made me fall for her imperfect demeanor. Moony, on the other hand, is the only funny, adorable and positive character in the book, who is way too sweet and caring towards Summer, in fact he protects her too and tries to save her from her depression. Kurt, is the guy whom you would hate to love him. Not only Summer is attracted towards his darkness, in fact I too got pulled towards his brooding and evil demeanor. The supporting cast is also quite skillfully developed and makes their presence worthwhile in the story.

The climax is way too perfect and yeah a seasoned reader like me could not predict that terrifying ending. The thrill and the darkness in the book is too strong, as suicide is the theme of the story line, so I would recommend the mature readers to read it. The story is way too alluring and kept me hooked on it till the very last page.

The setting of Paris is also perfect and vividly projected and highlighted in the story line. From the cafes to the streets to the subway to the dark alleys of the Paris, everything have been captured and painted by the author strikingly. Yes, of course, while reading, I felt like standing under the Eiffel Tower and breathing in the Parisian air.

Verdict: Definitely a must-read YA thriller.

Courtesy: Thanks to the author, Ann Jacobus, for giving me an opportunity to read and review her book.
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Author Info:
Ann Jacobus writes children’s and YA fiction, blogs and tweets about it, and teaches writing. She has a B.S. from Dartmouth College and an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. In her spare time she volunteers on a suicide crisis line, attends her kids' soccer games, and reads. Her debut YA thriller is Romancing the Dark in the City of Light, out from Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press October 6. 2015. San Francisco is home to her and her family.
Visit her here


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