Desires of the Dead

Desires of the Dead by Kimberley Derting
(Book 2, The Body Finder series)
Published: February 15, 2011 by HarperCollins


The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found. Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered-and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.
As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.

       I really enjoyed Kimberley Derting's 1st book, The Body Finder. It was just the right amount of creepy and romantic, even though that sounds weird. So I was looking forward to reading the sequel, which pretty much lived up to expectations. My only problem is with Violet and the fact that she doesn't seem to have learned anything from her scary encounter in the 1st book.

Why I love this book:

• Rafe- A new character with a secret and maybe a secret ability? Yes, please. As long as this never becomes a love triangle because there are more than enough of those out there.
• FBI- Sara Priest throws a huge blockade into Violet's attempt at a normal life, but her reasons for contacting Violet presents some interesting possibilities and moral questions for Violet.
• 7 deadly sins- Each brief alternate voice chapter is titled with one of the 7 deadly sins, adding another layer of eeriness to the mystery person's strange confessions. This is very cool and I don't pay attention to chapter titles usually so I only caught this when I flipped back through the book.

Huh, what?:

• Violet- Violet has a problem with listening to Jay or anyone else with good advice. Why does she have to have such a stubborn 'I have to do this by myself' streak? Her uncle is a cop and her family and boyfriend are always encouraging her to let them know if anything's going on with an echo. But. Violet repeatedly refuses to tell Jay that she's gonna go hunt down a dead body in the middle of the night because she doesn't want him to worry. Um, no Violet. You are the girl in the horror movie that dies because she went into the woods alone aren't you? You'd think she'd have learned to trust Jay and her family with such important info after the events of The Body Finder.
• Chelsea- Violet's best friend is the typical, over-sexed annoying sidekick to your average inverted teen heroine. She got on my nerves. By page 5 I was sick of her. I admit, everyone seems to have a friend like this in high school so I guess it's realistic, but that doesn't make it any less irritating.
• SPOILERS! NASTY BAD SPOILERS! Violet deciding that she and Jay were broken up just because they had a disagreement was infuriating. It's like she chose for both of them to suffer because she was too stubborn to listen to someone else's opinion.

Favorite Quotes:

• Violet had only been six when her teacher had come to school carrying the shadowy aura that she hadn't worn the day before. The dark air that clung to her skin like heavy black smoke had terrified Violet, and she'd run from the classroom, forcing the school nurse to call her parents. By the time her mother had finished picking up Violet's class work from Mrs. Webber, the teacher had confided to her that she'd run over a raccoon on her way to school that morning.   - pg. 208
• Violet clumsily shot to her feet, inhaling sharply as she clasped her fingers to her chest. When she felt someone grab her from behind, strong fingers gripping her shoulders, she gasped, choking on her own breath. Her heart pounded viciously, violently. How could she have been so foolish? Why hadn't she waited?      - pg. 283

4 robots

Still an interesting concept, a great mystery story, but suffers from Violet not learning from past mistakes

Acquired: bought