Review: Anna Dressed In Blood

Title: Anna Dressed In Blood
Author: Kendare Blake
Release Date: August 30th 2011
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 316
Source: Purchased 

Summary:

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead. 
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.

My Thoughts: 

The first impression I had of this book was cover lust. I LOVED the cover and how totally creepy it was. Never had I seen a cover so pretty and disturbing at the same time and that made me really want to at least see what the book was about.

When I first began reading, I really enjoyed how I was reminded of the show Supernatural (huge fan)! It set the whole mood of the book for me and I just knew I was gonna love this book (and I did).

The mood of this story was fantastic, it was creepy, intense and foreboding with huge amounts of suspense and vivid detail strewn through out the story. It had everything I love in a creepy novel. Not many books can give me chills but Anna Dressed in Blood definitely did, especially during the violent parts which were super gory and intense! Even the characters were enjoyable in this YA horror novel.

Cas (the main character) is extremely snarky and sarcastic and hilarious protagonist, while his new friends Thomas (the psychic) and Carmel (bearable popular girl) served as great companions on the hunt for Anna (ghost bust team)! Speaking of Anna, she was my favorite character of all. Anna was one kick-ass anti-hero. I love characters that have depth, and Anna had that. There was so much more to her than a demonic killer ghost. Awful things happened to her that caused her to become what she is now. Anna was a complex character that added a lot to the reader experience. 

The action scenes in this book were great and kept me reading all night. The romance between Anna and Cas was sweet and tragic. It warmed yet broke your heart at the same time. The ending of the book left me craving more!

Overall this book is great for Halloween and horror lovers! I can't wait to pick up the second book Girl of Nightmares and continue on with Anna and Cas's story! Highly recommend! 

Rating: 4.5/5