*something between 3.5 and 4 stars*

I first found out about this book through Instagram and the author M.L. Harveland itself, only because she liked one of my pictures and I then checked out her account. I was instantly intrigued by the creepy cover but also the blurb and commented telling her exactly that and adding it to my TBR list without a second thought. I was so happy when I received an email from her husband asking me if I wanted to read the book in exchange for an honest review - of course, I said yes! That was the best decision I could've made. Seriously? This book is GREAT. I actually wanted to read it in October, with Halloween and all but haven't had time to get to it sooner.

When I first met the main character, Lenora Kelley, I immediately liked her! She's funny and sarcastic and despite what she's been through, she's still strong and determinded. I liked that a lot about her. Okay, sometimes she acted like a little girl - always whiny and scared, which was annoying but at least she pulled herself together in the end. I couldn't help but like Ian Roberts from the first moment. He's intriguing, fascinating and even though a little weird sometimes, I like him a lot!

"My world would be colorless without you."

His relationship with Lenora was a bit ... well, I'm not sure what it was. I shipped them right from the beginning but as the story progressed and Lenora found out a lot more about the entity haunting her as well as her abilities, well, let's just say that it wasn't what I hoped it would be. I definitely expected more of these two. He treated her like a child and when other people were around (scratch that, even when they were alone!) acted like she was his "little sister" and that didn't only disturb Lenora but also me. Then again there were times where he was different and you could ACTUALLY think he cares about her more than he showed. I WAS CONFUSED AND DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK! I guess he just wanted to keep his distance because he didn't think he's good enough for her - there were definitely moments where I internally screamed "JUST UGH!!! KISS HER ALREADY!".

Nicholas is another love interest of Lenora but to me it didn't feel like a love triangle. While they had some sweet moments, I never really shipped them ... maybe because I always thought something's off with him and I already shipped Lenora & Ian. Oh well, I won't complain.

"He was just a human thirsting for love and affection from someone ... anyone."

There's a lot of stuff to process. Lots of information about spirits and auras which I found very interesting and cool. M.L. Harveland explained everything as detailed as possible so it made sense but wasn't too much or boring. The background story of the entity, Bartholomew Booth, was very interesting! The author included chapters entirely about his past and how things started which gave a great insight in HOW he became such an evil spirit and WHY he did all those terrible things.

There were some "time jumps" that bothered me. For example, in one sentence Ian & Lenora plan on eating pizza and in the next she's already getting ready for bed and reflects how these past hours were - I wasn't a huge fan of this and was mostly confused.

"Her eyes shifted to the box that contained the charm and saw a note sitting within. It was from Ian: "So that I can be near you, no matter where you go in the world."

I was pleasantly surprised with the writing and found it to be really easy to get into. The author described everything very detailed, so I had no problem picturing everything perfectly. I hope - for the second book - that there'll be lots of character development. I just need Lenora to act like a 17 - almost 18 - year old WOMAN and not like a scared little girl that wants to be treated like an adult. And Ian? Well, he has to man up a bit and finally decide what he wants, for the love of god. Oh, and everyone should stop crying so much! Not only Lenora but also some other characters ... I couldn't even count how many times they all had tears in their eyes, sobbed or cried over "stupid" things. *sigh*

All in all it was a REALLY good book. I couldn't get enough of the story and even though the characters sometimes annoyed me - which is totally normal, I get that with most books -, I cared and thought about them even when I wasn't reading. It's a page-turner and Bartholomew's background story as well as some other added extras made this really exciting to read. Fans of the Paranormal genre should definitely check out this great debut!

www.aworldbetweenfoldedpages.blogspot.com
________________________________

November 10th:
I had a few little issues with this but all in all I HIGHLY enjoyed it! Very well written with a background story of Bartholomew & some added extras that made everything very exciting. Wouldn't have minded if it was a bit shorter but I already can't wait to read the second book. Me likey! :D

*e-copy received in exchange for an honest review*