Review: Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder #2)

Title: Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder #2)
Author: Kimberly Derting
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 368
Challenge: YA Series

My Rating: 

Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life. As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.  -summary from goodreads.com

It was very nice to start the book off with a clean start; we didn’t have any cliffhanger or lingering questions/problems from book one. Violet and Jay have a bit of a break and it was nice seeing their relationship in a drama-free zone. But I was anxious to see what new plot Ms. Derting was going to throw at us.

In the book we still get to see the “stalkers” point of view, which gives the story a major creep factor. Although I will say that I did figure out how everything was going to unfold a bit sooner than I did with The Body Finder…. But there is still plenty of excitement and suspense throughout the book. At times I found myself screaming, “Nooo! Turn around! Don’t go in there alone!” …. Lets just say that at times I felt like I was watching a horror film in which the protagonist walks straight into a trap or does something stupid. But every event is part of the bigger picture towards the end. I really like the new FBI characters that were introduced; Sarah and Rafe. Violet forms a sort-of friendship with Rafe but I'm not really looking forward to seeing more of him, I'M FOREVER TEAM JAY!

My only complaint about this book is Violet and Jay’s relationship; it was rather anti-climatic… now before you start sharpening your pitchforks, let me explain. Despite how romantic and sweet Jay is to Violet throughout the book; he does have a moment of weakness and they get into a fight and Violet definitely overreacts! She gets this horrible attitude and she pretty much lost all my “Violet is a kick ass heroine” respect. I want their relationship to succeed, but with the way Violet was acting I was afraid I wasn’t going to get my happy ending.

Will I read book 3, yes... But not a top priority.