Jessica (HDB)

Bravo! Seriously, this book was excellent. I made it evident that I wasn't a huge fan of Rin Chupeco's first book, The Girl From the Well. It started out strong, but it just didn't hold up the way I wanted it to. I wanted terror. I wanted ghosts. I'm happy to say that The Suffering offered all of that, and more. You know that feeling you get when a creepy story is getting to you? The feeling where spiders crawl up your back, and unseen eyes are watching you. That, is this book. It's glorious.

See, this book is entirely from Tark's point of view. That's the first thing that sold me. Seeing Okiku through his eyes, living her endless existence of revenge as a part of Tark's life, was something beautiful. It really pushed home the idea that these two are irrevocably linked. Plus, Tark was so much stronger this time around. The way this book begins, with a terrifying game of tag, shows that immediately. I can't deny, I think I love Tark as much as Okiku does now.

Better still, the main setting of this particular book is in the dense forests of Aokigahara. The "suicide forest" is a 35-square-kilometer death trap in real life. In this story, it's even more horrible than that. For a boy who can see ghosts, or more accurately for a boy whom ghosts can see like a beacon of light, Aokigahara isn't the safest place to be. I'll admit, this part of the book stole my breath away. The balance between tension, and all out terror, was right on point. I warn you, it's not for the faint of heart.

Rin Chupeco wholly impressed me, and I'm kind of hoping that there are more books coming in this series! I'll follow Tark and Okiku anywhere.