Book Review: Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting

Pages: 386

Genre: YA Mystery/Paranormal

Pub. Date: February 15, 2011

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found.  When Violet Ambrose's morbid ability to sense the echoes of those who've been murdered leads her to the body of a young boy, she draws the attention of the FBI. She is reluctantly pulled into an investigation that will endanger more than just her secret...but her relationship and possibly her life as well."

Violet lives everyday with a disturbing ability-- she can sense the dead, specifically those who have been murdered.  Desires of the Dead picks up a few months after the ending of The Body Finder and Violet is trying to get her life back to normal.  She is still dating her perfect boyfriend, Jay, and still has the same reliable friends and family.  All is well until she is suddenly led to a body of a young boy who has been murdered and places what she thought was an anonymous phone call to the police about his location.  The FBI find out it was her who placed the call and now the FBI want to know how she found the body. Violet isn't sure what to tell them as this puts her in a tough place.  Kimberly Derting's Desires of the Dead will have readers on the edge of their seats and fans of The Body Finder won't be disappointed by this engrossing sequel. 


After reading The Body Finder, many readers, including myself, became fans of Violet's best friend turned boyfriend, Jay. He really is swoon-worthy in this book, too. I love how their relationship is based on friendship and how Violet can really count on him.  He's always got her back, which is rare in YA, but explains why I adore this character!


Just as in The Body Finder, the narrator switches point of view in this book as well.  Derting does a great job with this and it definitely builds suspense as readers aren't sure who the other narrator is at first.  I love how this series includes some criminal elements mixed with paranormal elements. It's the perfect combination to get me completely anxious, especially with the "stalker' like moments throughout the novel.  


Without giving too much away, I want to point out that in Desires of the Dead there are some new characters that definitely have readers curious about their history. Some are students and others are characters met through Violet's interaction with the FBI.  Either way, the new characters were engaging, especially one in particular met through the FBI.  Also, I love how in this book Violet starts to see that her "special gift" can be used for good.


My only pet peeve, and it is slight, is the fact that Violet kept putting herself in crazy situations and not telling anyone. I have issues with this often in YA.  I was confused why Violet wouldn't let Jay in on a few things and tell him what's going on. Or what about her uncle? Her parents? I kept yelling at the book wondering why Violet would travel alone to a scary location by herself without letting anyone know where she was going or why she would go outside in the middle of the night alone, especially after what happened in book one. 


All in all, Desires of the Dead was an outstanding read.  I am such a fan of this series and cannot wait to see what Derting has in store next for Violet.  This book comes out in a few weeks and if you are a fan of The Body Finder, you must get your hands on a copy!

*A BIG thank you to HarperTeen for providing me with this ARC

*Pre-order Desires of the Dead

*Buy The Body Finder

*Watch the Desires of the Dead Book Trailer