By Jesi Lea Ryan
Most people who experience death don’t live to tell about it.
When sixteen year old Arcadia “Cady” Day wakes in a hospital after experiencing what can only be called a psychic episode, she finds her family in tatters. With her twin sister gone, her dad moved out, her mom’s spiraling depression and her sister’s boyfriend, Cane, barely able to look at her, the only bright spot in her life is Bryan Sullivan, the new guy in school. When Bryan’s around, Cady can almost pretend she’s a regular girl, living a regular life; when he’s not, she’s wracked with wild, inexplicable mood swings. As her home life crumbles and her emotional control slips away, Cady begins to suspect that her first psychic episode was just the beginning…
Think high school sucks? Try being an empath who has to experience everyone else’s suckage on top of your own. (Literally.)
In the months since her family life imploded and her psychic gifts began to arise, Cady has struggled to figure out how she can fit into her normal life without going crazy from the constant presence of emotional energy. Her grades have tanked. Her best friend is afraid of her. And she begins to have doubts about why her boyfriend, Bryan, is really keeping her around. But a chance meeting with another gifted girl online opens up a whole new world of possibilities. Unfortunately, this new world comes at an awful price.
My review:
I read both books back to back, which I highly recommend. I really enjoyed this series so far, I can completely relate to Cady. I have to say that what happens in the beginning of the book to trigger Cady’s empathic ability shocked and saddened me in the beginning but I’m glad I powered through it because it caused Cady to blossom and gain strength in ways that she never thought she had. In the first book Cane really irked me but he redeems himself in book 2. Bryan was there for Cady in the first book but like a lot of people, he starts to use Cady for his own personal needs, which if you know anything about magic and the paranormal, that never goes right.
One of my favorite things about the series is the growing relationship between Cady, her brother Aaron and her dad. They bond over mural tradgedy and they become Cady’s rock. She’s always been a bit of a lone wolf and I love seeing them draw her out and show her she can lean on other people. My other favorite is Jinx, Cady’s eccentric neighbor who among other things is a telepathic. She guides Cady and fill the void that Cady’s mom leaves. Jinx becomes a confidant and a guide that gives Cady that strength she needs to confront and battle obstacles along the way.
Over all a great YA read. Because of some of the content I’d say it’s a perfect book for 13+. I’d let my daughter read it.
Find The Arcadia Novels here:
Amazon (Arcadia’s Gift)/Amazon (Arcadia’s Curse)
AUDIBLE Audio Book of Arcadia’s Gift
Author Bio:
Jesi Lea Ryan grew up in the Mississippi River town of Dubuque, IA. She holds bachelor degrees in creative writing and literature
and a masters degree in business. She considers herself a well-rounded nerd who can spend hours on the internet researching things like British history, anthropology of ancient people, geography of random parts of the world, bad tattoos and the paranormal. She currently lives in Madison, WI with her husband and two exceptionally naughty kitties.
Stalk Jesi Lea here:
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Thank you so much for the lovely review! I really appreciate you taking the time to read both books. ~Jesi