Katya de Becerra

When Ghosts Call Us Home is a story about a girl searching for her lost sister, one who disappeared in a house in which they lived five years earlier. I would not agree that this is a horror novel however, more along the lines of a paranormal investigative piece of work. While there were some interesting elements to it, I thought the story line was somewhat disjointed and the characters lacked some major development.

When Sophia was twelve, her older sister Layla filmed a video that has gained cult status around the world, showing Sophia being terrified out of her mind. The video and the things that happened left Sophia traumatized, developing mental and emotional problems due to the trauma she suffered. I began to actively dislike Layla quite early on in the book, which no real justification, except for the fact that Sophia goes on an on about how great a big sister she was to her through these flashbacks she has throughout the book. There was no motivation given behind the video-taping and I grew frustrated with the whole experience. There was also no reasons given as to why the video would gain such a cult following, nor how the video got out to the public to begin with. And I'll be honest, this whole follow the seven steps to reach whatever that is supposedly in the video seemed like such utter nonsense to me.

Sophia herself is such a one-dimensional character. I tried to really like her, but after going on and on about how great her older sister was and her only purpose was to find her sister, the whole plot device got old pretty fast. It actually made her seem childish and stubborn, not willing to listen to what was around her or be willing to open her eyes to what was around her. Sophia acts like she is uncomfortable doing the re-enactments of her sister's video, but she was the one who really initiated the entire thing, lied to everyone around her about her reasons for being there, and then wanted sympathy when she was asked to go through with the filming. I was sympathetic towards the trauma she experienced as as child and would have liked to explore that a bit more, but the author only gave the reader a superficial account of those moments, had Sophia be a little bit upset, and then moved on.

The overall story was actually interesting, and I liked the concept of the found-footage, but I didn't think it had Haunting of Hill House vibes at all. I did like the supernatural aspects to the story, but they weren't scary or terrifying, more in the lines of trying to incorporated something spooky because the book said it was supposed to have a paranormal element to it. The writing style was more of a telling style, meaning the author was trying to make you think a certain way about the plot, the characters, and I am not a huge fan of this type of writing as I think it is condescending, as if the reader can't figure things out on their own, or it devalues someone if their thinking is different than what the author intended. For example, I think the author was trying to make Layla seem sympathetic to the reader, and all those little nudges by telling us to think that way actually made me dislike her in the end. Because of this, I found the story somewhat disjointed and it was extremely difficult to form any connections or empathy with any of the characters.

Verdict
When Ghosts Call us Home was an interesting blend of paranormal and mystery, but it was definitely not horror. I did think the story was somewhat disjointed and the character development was non-existent, making it difficult to really empathize and connect with the characters. I did enjoy the atmosphere of the house, but I always love these types of setting, so that is always a plus. Overall, I felt this story had some really strong elements, but lacked a sense of direction as if the author wasn't sure to which genre she wanted to commit making the story feel underdeveloped.… (mer)

It is an eerie, atmospheric story of a young woman trying to reconnect with a beloved, missing sister.

When Ghosts Call Us Home is the creative brainchild of talented author Katya de Becerra and is a gem of a young adult horror story that breathes uncertainty and unease into every suspense-filled page. The inwardly focused narrative placed me in the story at the very center of the young protagonist’s frightening experiences.

The main character, Sophia Galich, had struggled for the past five years with the fame and renown of her older sister, Layla, and her starring role in Layla’s hit horror, Vermillion. Even though she knew all the terrifying images in the movie that her twelve-year-old self had encountered during the filming were special effects, they’d imprinted themselves deep and refused to release their grip on her psyche.

But after her much-loved sister disappeared without a trace two years ago, not a moment goes by that Sophia doesn’t grieve her absence. She jumps at the chance to return to the house where the film was shot to search for signs of her missing sister, even though it is for a documentary on the film in preparation for the five-year anniversary of its release.

Knowing her parents would not approve of this plan, Sophie constructs a well-planned deception to keep them in the dark, including forging their signatures and sending them pictures from her friends’ vacations. The parents have to be grieving themselves, but it appears from the story they have a long history of being distracted when it comes to their daughters, while they are trying to make a living. Note to parents: there are enough good ideas presented here to be considered a fairly good how-to guide.

The story unfolds from Sophia’s point of view, with surprise after surprise increasing the suspense. There’s a scene reminiscent of The Phantom of the Opera when a chandelier inexplicably crashes down on the exact spot Sophia was sitting moments before. The eerie goings-on, the constant sound of the ocean pounding against the rocky cliff where Cashore House sets, and the certainty of being watched by more than motion-activated cameras keep everyone, readers included, on the edge. I became unsettled by the atmosphere in the old house and began to notice every weird sound in my own as I read. The payoff, however, was well worth the unease.

I recommend WHEN GHOSTS CALL US HOME to readers of young adult horror, thrillers, mysteries, and suspense.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy through TBR and Beyond Book Tours.… (mer)

At first sight this book looked interesting. It has an interesting cover with Norse runes and seemed promising of an adventure and mystery story related to Norse mythology. The idea behind the story was even slightly interesting.
But instead it's the typical young adult romance novel with a bit of fantasy that tries to sell itself as fantasy and adventure. As per its type, it has a weak female protagonist who is too emotional and complains too much and narrates in first person, the male love interest who the main character has a crush on, is attractive and mysterious, and has no character depth. The two characters meet and have to fix some minor problem or issue that usually isn't particularly interesting or well developed and fall in love. There is some angst and the protagonist complaining. The protagonist is weak and must be saved by the male character who is so much stronger. They figure everything out that wasn't particularly difficult in the first place and the protagonist learns about the mysteries of the love interest and they end up together. Usually set in modern America by an American author.
There was too much about the protagonist's feelings and family and romance and not enough about the magic. What there was wasn't even well done. It barely even touched on Norse mythology, and what was there was painfully inaccurate and ridiculous. Hel, the goddess (actually she wasn't a goddess but that's not the point) of the Norse underworld, Hel, place of the dishonoured dead, who is half beautiful woman and half rotting corpse, was an attractive man. This really stood out to me. I just don't understand why someone would make an interesting character so boring.
I can't really remember the details, but from what I remember there wasn't much more mythology than that. There were some warriors from another world that wanted to destroy the earth. They just wanted another home, because their world had been destroyed, and the main character collapsed their world on them, killing them all. It was actually mentioned in the book, and the reader was positioned to sympathise with them at least partially.
There was not much action and no fighting. The characters were mostly bland and stereotypical, although there were some interesting details about them. The idea was slightly original and could have been alright if done a lot better, but the way it was done made it seem unoriginal and obscured by teenage romance and emotions.
I've been wanting to rant about this book since I read it, a year ago. I can't remember all the details, so I'm sorry if any of this is accurate.… (mer)