Dead Time by Anne CassidyAuthor Website Amazon (UK) Amazon.com Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books (ebook), 2012
352 Pages
What It's About
Rose and Joshua first met when Joshua and his dad came to live with Rose and her mum. Then their world turns upside down when their mother and father go out for dinner one evening and never return. With police inquiries going nowhere, Rose is dispatched to live with her chilly, unfriendly grandmother and Joshua is sent to live with his uncle. Then Joshua comes to London to study and Rose is witness to not one, but two murders. Why is this happening to Rose? Can it be anything to do with the investigations Joshua has been doing into the disappearance of their parents?
Opening Paragraph
Rose looked at the blood on her arm. She held it under her bedside light and saw pinpricks of red across her skin. She blotted them with a tissue, the watched as the shape emerged: tiny ruby bubbles that looked like jewels and formed a raw outline of gossamer wings. Rose carefully unrolled the sleeve of her shirt and covered the wound, letting the cuff hang. She hoped the blood would dry soon. Tonight, of all nights, she didn't want any trouble with her grandmother.
What I Thought
I enjoyed Dead Time. As a crime novel for teenagers, it's obviously much lighter than adult crime fiction I enjoy but still a good read.
I wasn't overly enthusiastic about the characters but I'd like to see them developed in further books in the series. I couldn't warm to Rose. I thought she was very unpleasant at times and shared a similar opinion to the girl's at boarding school and college. However, she started to change a little towards the end so I'd like to see how she develops.
The main strength of the book is the plot and pacing. I liked all the mystery and suspense. The novel is paced really well - not too fast so I couldn't keep up with what was happening and not to slow I was bored. The pacing was spot on and held my attention from start to finish.
There are a lot of unanswered questions at the end of Dead Time so I sort of need to read the other books in the series to find out what happens. I did find a few surprises which impressed me. I hate it when I can see what's coming a mile away.
Dead Time is a promising start to a series and I look forward to reading the rest and finding out what happens.
