Book Review: Possessed by Kate Cann

Possessed (Rayne #1)

Kate Cann

Publication Date: July 7th 2008

Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

Pages: 336

Genre: Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Young Adult

Rayne can't wait to start her summer job at a remote country mansion, far from the crowded, noisy London she so desperately wants to escape. But the retreat soon turns into a nightmare -- the mansion is creepy, the legends of ghosts keep Rayne up at night, and she doesn't feel safe anywhere.

Can Rayne figure out why she's so freaked -- before she becomes a ghost story herself?

Possessed was a hard book to get a hold of, but sure am I glad I did. I love a good horror story (which is odd because I can't watch horror movies at all) and this is a good horror story. Rayne is a great heroine, not perfect in any way, and filled with feelings that I know all too well. I found myself connecting with her need to just get out to someplace different. She's also original as a character. She grew up in a poorer area of London and feels like no one understands her feelings hatred towards the cramp-ness and din of the city. Going to the country for her is pure escape and she starts to come into her own.

The setting is thoroughly creepy and I love it. You never quite know who to trust at any given moment, until perhaps the end. The story keeps you reading until the end (It was another one of those books I ended reading in one go, oops).

Another thing I like is that the book summary does not give away too much of the plot, yet doesn't lead you to thinking it'll be about something completely different. I love how the twists ended up in this tale.

The voice of this book is different then what people are used to in Young Adult novels I believe. Rayne has a very strong voice that is very personalized to who she is as a person. As she talks I can see her in my mind's eyes and I really like that, though I know some people who aren't as fond of powerful voices in books.

St. John is a fantastic villain, one of my favourite kinds, seductive and powerful, not there to save. So many stories nowadays are filled with characters like him who can be saved, but he's very old-fashion-vampire-like. He's there to get what he wants and he will manipulate in every way he can. I was swept away by him along with Rayne and felt her horror and humiliation when she realized he had been using her. She had tried her best, whenever he got creepy or obviously two timing her she got mad at him and didn't let him take advantage of her at those moments. I can't wait to see something happen between her and Ethan though, sounds likely to happen in the sequel.

I love the pagan mythology wrapped in the ghost mystery of it all and the feeling of evil. There's a feeling of secret societies and small town problems. This is a book I would reread again, I feel like good horror novels are hard to come by lately.

I recommend this book to lovers of good horror mysteries and ghost stories, to people who enjoy strong British voices and dark mysterious settings with horrid pasts. I also recommend to read it in one go, I personally liked it a lot reading it that way.

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