Welcome to the Official Blog Tour for The Dusty Chronicles by B.J. Sheldon! On my tour stop, I will be posting my thoughts on both books, Haunting and Imprint!
Genre:
Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Series:
The Dusty Chronicles, #1
Publish Date:
April 29, 2013
Publisher:
Wandering in the Woods Press
Blurb:
After a family tragedy, 15-year-old Dusty Vermeer has to start her sophomore year in a new town and a new school. Rural Iowa introduces her to Mark, a charming football player. Dusty can hardly believe her heart. Then, to her surprise Dusty meets another guy.
The chemistry between Dusty and Jack could spark a prairie fire on a rainy day. The only problem? Jack's dead. The handsome soldier comes to Dusty in her dreams and introduces her to the horrors of a foreign battlefield and the enchantments of first love.
While Dusty tries to balance her feelings for the two new guys in her life, Jack steps out of Dusty's dreams and into her reality. And he wants something. Jack has no memory of how he died more than half a century ago. Dusty vows to uncover the mystery, but her quest for justice puts her in the path of evil, a force that won't stop until she's silenced.
*Excerpt*
He continued to stare out the window.
“I’ve been gone a long time. Funny thing is, it only feels like a few days. It’s like I fell asleep and woke up from a bad dream.” He finally turned to face me, releasing a long sigh. “Are you doing any better? Not so scary, am I?”
“I wasn’t scared. Well, maybe just a little. It’s not every day a ghost shows up in your bedroom and starts a conversation with you when you’re half asleep.” I sat on the edge of my bed. “Jack? Why are you here? And I don’t just mean like this. Why are you here - with me - in my house?”
“Not sure. Something about this place seems familiar, I think. You seem familiar to me, too. But that’s not possible, right?”
“Well, Alice used to live here when you were still alive. That’s probably why the farm’s familiar.”
I studied Jack’s handsome face. He must have been a popular guy back in the day. I couldn’t get past the despondency in his eyes. I was so busy trying to wrap my own head around everything I’d been going through that I hadn’t stopped to think about how difficult the whole situation must be for him. One moment he’s young, alive, and fighting for his country. The next, he’s waking up to a strange and morbid reality.
“What do you remember?” I asked.
“Korea. That’s it. I don’t remember shipping out. Actually, I can’t even remember my life before that.” He closed his eyes. “Don’t remember dying either. Out of everything, you’d think I’d remember my own death, wouldn’t you?”
~~~~~
*My Thoughts*
Note: This review contains NO spoilers
Interesting romantic ghost story. Haunting had elements of suspense, mystery, action, and romance. Being of the paranormal theme, the story was fascinating in how the two main characters interacted, especially since one is a ghost. B.J. Sheldon delivered a believable love story between a young girl and a ghost with her well developed and realistic characters and her descriptive rural setting.
I had a hard time putting the book down! I was completely immersed in Dusty and Jack's journey in finding the truth and their growing attraction to each other. Definitely, this was a page turner. Even the elements of a ghostly presence made my skin crawl...as if I was watching a horror movie. Yah...there was no way I was going to continue reading in silence! Haha! It was great! I love the horror genre, and B.J. Sheldon definitely had that element present in this ghost love story!
My rating:
~~~~~
Genre:
Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Series:
The Dusty Chronicles, #2
Publish Date:
June 4, 2014
Publisher:
Wandering in the Woods Press
Blurb:
Imprint is Book 2 of The Dusty Chronicles, the sequel to B.J. Sheldon's award-winning debut novel, Haunting. Imprint follows Dusty and Jack through the next stage of their doomed romance.
Sixteen-year-old Dusty Vermeer starts off another school year as Mark Schutt's girlfriend. At the same time, she continues to hide her feelings for Jack Olson, the ghost who haunts her heart. Other entities make an appearance, and Dusty begins to wonder if seeing ghosts has become a permanent part of her future. Tragic past events resurface and imprint themselves in Dusty's world. When Jack is ripped from her arms and imprisoned in a dark void, his absence is more than she can bear.
An invisible enemy grows increasingly violent, and Dusty's health begins to deteriorate. When she tries to discover what it is that hides in the shadows, Dusty must turn to her family for help and convince her loved ones that she is not insane. Ultimately, she must battle evil, accept her fate and grieve for a love she was never allowed to keep.
*Excerpt*
When Jack wasn’t around, all I could think about was having his arms around me. I remembered past encounters when we were together in my dreams and felt his lips on mine. I would have given anything for him to be real—flesh and blood. To know that the only way I could feel his breath on my cheek or his heartbeat through his chest was to be fast asleep weighed on my mind.
Our timing in life—and death—was horrible. I was constantly pushing those feelings aside as I tried not to think about the inevitable end. I seemed to be in denial, but it was so much easier than dealing with the reality of the situation…Jack would never age and would always be intangible, and I would get older. There was no growing old together. There was no ’til death do us part. He was already dead.
Yet there he was in my kitchen. And there was no more avoiding that something—besides being in love with a ghost—was very odd.
“I’ve felt something,” I said. “Whatever it is seems to be hell-bent on keeping me from getting any sleep. Do you have any idea who it is?”
“I’m not positive it is a who.” Jack’s eyes glowed with worry.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m just saying that I’m not exactly sure what we’re dealing with here. There’s definitely something hanging around, but I can’t be sure of anything. I haven’t seen any other entities hanging around. Trust me, I would have if there were. But, I can feel a disruption of some kind. Whatever - whoever - it is doesn’t belong.” Jack started to pace back and forth in the kitchen. “I don’t like it.”
“Well, I’m not exactly thrilled about any of it, either, you know.” My sarcasm hung in the air. “It was strange. The minute I stayed over at Kristi’s the other night, I slept like a baby. For the first time in weeks, I actually felt like myself. It’s almost like whatever it is doesn’t follow me. It stays here.”
“For now.”
I didn’t like the tone in Jack’s voice.
~~~~~
*My Thoughts*
Note: This review contains NO spoilers
Well... I'm still getting chills after reading this book. Where Haunting introduced us to an unusual and doomed romance and its characters, Imprint takes it further and deeper into the supernatural. This unusual relationship between Dusty and Jack takes a turn for the worse as dark occurrences plague Dusty. No wonder it is a doomed relationship...it's just not natural. Besides, how real can a relationship be between a ghost and a living person.
I loved how in this second book in the series, takes a dark turn towards creepy and horror. B.J. Sheldon did an amazing job in creating the suspense and chilling feeling of this mystery-filled story, and creating these simple, yet complex, characters. From dream state to waking state, B.J. intricately created a story flow that gave depth to the mysteries that these characters had to face, especially Dusty. Just when you think you know what's behind all of it, all the twists just kept the mystery even more intense and creepy. And...THAT ending!!! Oh-My-Goodness! There's more!! Even after solving the mystery, there is something even more sinister that haunts Dusty!
What does that mean... a book three!?! Well, I definitely want to read it! Imprint reminded me of the television series Ghost Whisperer... and even that show had episodes that made the "hairs on my arm stand on end!"
Imprint is a suspense-filled, horror mystery filled with an abundance of supernatural elements that will give you chills.
My rating:
~~~~~
**About the Author**
B.J. Sheldon lives near Rapid City, South Dakota with her husband, a veteran of the U.S. military. She is the mover to 3 beautiful daughters, 2 of whom are still living at home and making her crazy.
Most days, she can be found in front of her laptop or reading a good book when she isn't trying to keep her dog and 3 cats from taking over the world. Her hobbies include cuticle care, fighting off zombies, and traveling through space and time with a mad man in a blue box.
In 2011, B.J. was awarded a silver medal in the Reader's Favorite Award Contest in the Young Adult/Fantasy category for Haunting. Her first series, The Dusty Chronicles, is a paranormal trilogy that takes a different spin on "paranormal". Future projects include Sci-fi, fantasy, and contemporary romance.
Her favorite authors include Nicholas Sparks, Isaac Marion, Hugh Howey, Suzanne Collins, J.K. Rowling, and Guy De'Maupassant.
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