From the Book Stack: The Diviners by Libba Bray

 The Diviners by Libba Bray

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608 pages

Published: September 18, 2012 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

 

Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."

 

When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.

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Speakeasies, flappers and demons, oh my!

 

The Diviners is the story of Evie, a girl who got in trouble at her hometown in Ohio and is punished by being sent to New York City (how that’s really a punishment, I don’t really know). It turns out Evie has a secret that comes in handy when she gets to New York where a mysterious serial killer begins using a “Brethren” text as his instruction manual and her Uncle is asked to assist in the investigation. With historical fiction, religious undertones and paranormal aspects, this book has a little something for everyone (and had everything I enjoy reading).

 

When I first heard about this book, I knew that I had to read it. I mean come on a book set in the 1920’s at the beginning of prohibition with flappers and Ouija boards, how do I not pick it up? And the best thing about it, it surpassed all my expectations. I think this comes in a very close second to my favorite book of the year and let me tell you why.

 

The first thing that really puts it over the top for me was the “language” of this book. I could tell that Libba Bray did quite a bit of research on the time period. The way she made Evie, a true flapper, sound was exactly like I would expect a girl at that time by using popular phrases like “cat’s meow.” And the banters between Evie and another character, Sam were quite hilarious; chock full of great 1920’s lingo.

 

Speaking of Sam and Evie, I have to say that their relationship to each other is my favorite although all of the characters and their relationships and how everyone is connected to each other were wonderful. Just the way Sam and Evie met as well as how much they don’t like each other/get along, mainly because their personalities are quite similar in my opinion. I mean when the two of them get going, watch out.

 

And I have to say, I think this book increased my heart rate quite a bit while reading it. I don’t think I have been that freaked out by a bad guy in quite some time. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s really not that bad and for a lot of people it’s probably nothing. But for me (a girl who believes in ghosts/spirits) it got a little nerve racking to where I would be looking over my shoulder constantly. Basically, if you read this book and get spooked by demons and such, don’t read this at night unless you are prepared to lose sleep.

 

The one thing that didn’t do it for me was the ending to The Diviners. I understand that this the first book in the series but I was just expecting a little bit more of a “dun dun dun” moment. Really it’s minor and not a huge deal it was just half way through I was hoping for a couple of things but Ms. Bray saw it differently and I really wasn’t a fan of one of the conclusions, for now anyway (maybe that will change with the next book).

 

All in all The Diviners by Libba Bray is the cat’s pajamas with just enough creepy crawlies to be on the trolley and I am recommending it to everyone. Seriously, move this one to the top of your “to be read” list and get your hands on it as soon as you can! I cannot wait to continue this series and see where it goes.

 

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 checkers: