(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
Ideally, I’d give this book 3.5 stars. Although it was an entertaining read, I felt it got kind of bogged down with the details about the camping… and there wasn’t a whole lot of mystery in this book.
The book did start out really well. I liked the fact that it went straight into the action and it was really easy to understand why Kit was scared and hiding, despite not having much background to her character or the situation. I found her someone who was easy to relate to… I recognise a lot of how I might respond to things in her.
It was good to see the friendships that struck up between the campers and between them and Kit. I did feel sorry for Frankie. It kind of seemed like Mrs. Stillwater and Bob didn’t really care about the campers… only about getting the money; at least in Bob’s case. I did find it a bit irritating that his personality seemed to match his apparently unattractive appearance at first… though it was good to see Kit acknowledge all of the work he did do.
Many of the adults in this book seemed incompetent at best… and outright uncaring at worst. Porter creeped me out with how he kept driving by. Not so much at first… but definitely towards the end, where I felt he came across as a prize jerk. I did feel sorry for Anna-A, though, especially with how much responsibility Kit kept putting on her. Responsible she might be… but she’s still a camper and not one of the leaders.
It was a bit disappointing not to see more paranormal aspects in this book, since I was expecting there to be more. I did like seeing the insects interacting with Kit, though it was strange no one else commented on the amount that just seemed to follow her around. It was hilarious when the insects were mimicking the campers. I don’t think a bear was Kit’s totem at all… I think it’s a dragonfly.
I’m not sure if I’d read more books by this author in the future. I’ll have to wait and read the blurb before I make that decision.
Ink of Blood 