Ghost Town (Morganville Vampires, #9)

by Rachel Caine

While developing a new system to maintain defenses in Morganville, Texas, seventeen-year-old Claire Danvers discovers a way to amplify vampire mental powers which has an unexpected side-effect of causing residents--both human and vampire--to forget who they are.

• ISBN10: 0451231619
• ISBN13: 9780451231611
• Publish Date: 26 October 2010 (first published 1 October 2010)
• Publish Status: Remaindered
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: New American Library
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 338
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

10/17/15: Rereading!!!

After the nice, tidy ending of Kiss of Death, I wasn't sure what direction the series would take. It was obvious things were going to be very different when Claire and Co returned to Morganville, but what exactly would happen was anybody's guess. Of course, we know that Claire is going to manage to get herself into major trouble involving the vampires in town, which she does. But it ends badly. Claire has been found (some-what) guilty of the highest crime in Morganville: murder of a vampire! Her punishment? Work nonstop on fixing the machine that keeps Morganville citizens in and outsiders out. Claire's smart, she fixes it, but then the real trouble starts.

I was not expecting what went wrong to be what went wrong. Things in Morganville got a whole lot stranger and more complicated. Myrnin doesn't see the extent of the problem, which is a problem for Claire since she needs his help to fix it. Gosh, I adore Myrnin, but I wanted to grab him by his ruffled shirt and shake him! Then steal his vampire bunny slippers! But really, I loved him even more in this book. It's clear that he's not 100% better, but he was so sweet and helpful to Claire when she needed it. It's nice to see him out of his manic zone....until he isn't anymore.

How big is Morganville?! This time around we got to visit some new locations like an all-night diner and drive-in theater. We also run into some characters we haven't met before, and some we have who don't seem to know where or when they are. This makes thing down right scary for Claire, since essentially no one knows her and she's the only one who can fix this. She ends up finding help in the most unlikely of places.

Ghost Town is another wonderful addition to the series. This one has some heart breaking moments as our favorite Morganvillers forget who they are and the past comes back to haunt them, but there's also plenty of fun and action to keep you flipping pages. This series is still getting better and better with each book. I just hope it doesn't stall out after this one!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[nitzan_schwarz]

2013 cleaning my shelves challenge

[Jo]

This title includes a brand new and exclusive Morganville short story. When Claire is ordered to repair the systems that protect Morganville, it's not just cutting into her study time, it's a life-threatening problem. If there's one thing this vampire-infested town is serious about, it's security. But achieving the impossible only brings a whole new set of problems, and the upgrades have unexpected consequences: people inside the town are slowly beginning to forget who they are, even the vampires. Soon, the town's little memory problem has turned into a full-on epidemic. Now Claire needs to figure out a way to pull the plug on her experiment - before she forgets how to save Morganville... From Amazon UK

Oh my god, there are no words to describe the awesomeness that is Rachel Caine and her Morganville Vampires series. I've said it before, and I'll say it again; Rachel Caine is, quite simply, a genius. Fact. Every single time I read one of these books, I am blown away by this woman's imagination and how far it stretches. It seems there is no end to what Rachel Caine can think up to put our wonderful Claire, Eve, Shane and Michael through. It is amazing to me that these characters are still alive, let alone sane. Caine sure lands them in a lot of crazy, but, man, you've got to love the crazy that is Morganville!

In Carpe Corpus, Ada - the human turned vampire turned vampire brain controlling the computer/machine that keeps the town running - died, leaving the computer without a brain to control. The boundries that stop people leaving Morganville and the memory loss that effects people who are allowed to leave Morganville aren't working. Amelie is tired of the town being at risk, so she gets Claire and Myrnin to fix it. And they do. Sort of.

But then strange things start happening. People start to get confused and forget things. They try to go to work in places that no longer exist. They go home to houses they no longer live at. They think they're back at school. They think relatives who have died are still around. They lost three years of their lives over the course of a few days. And it's not just the humans, vampires are forgetting too. Not so great for a human when they turn up to see a vampire who now has no recollection of who they are and why they are intruding. Those who were once assistants now become snacks. And because of the machine.

What follows is the crazy I have mentioned before. Seriously, crazy crazy. If you didn't think Morganville was safe before, think again. You have vampires being the kind of vampires we would expect them to be; terrifying, fast, strong hunters who want nothing more than your blood. Which is even worse when one of those vampires happens to be Myrnin, who was never really sane to begin with. Myrnin becomes the most terrifying monster; crazy, mad scientist who likes to play with his food.

Claire has to race against time to get the machine sorted before she forgets herself. And with more and more people around you not knowing who the hell you are, it becomes much more difficult. Not to mention lonely. I can't really say much more without causing lots and lots of spoilers, but this book is quite literally... mad. But amazing. And just completely genius!

There is the amazingly awesome action that you come to expect from a Morganville Vampire novel; fast paced, seriously dangerous, and leaving you on the edge of your seat. There is also a lot of emotion flying all over from everyone; hearts break and people go almost half mad. It's just too brilliant!

This really is an amazing yet unbelievable story from Caine. My jaw was literally dropping when I read the last page, and I'm dying for the next book! The stories just get better and better. If my review isn't enough to make you want to pick this book up, the fact that Ghost Town made the Number One Children's Bestseller List in the UK should!

There is also an exclusive to the UK short story at the back of this book called Worth Living For, which happens between Fade Out and Kiss of Death. Following Shane, it's about the possibility of Michael helping a fugitive, and it's awesome. It's Shane. It's Michael. It's amazing.

And I am so, so, so glad there are three more books before the end of this series, though I would much rather it went on and on. Bring on Bite Club, which is coming out in May 2011!

From Once Upon a Bookcase - YA book blog

[Linda]

WOW! Another excellent Morganville story! And Claire really had to step up here, even more so than in other books. What a total roller coaster! I felt so sorry for her at times, and cheered her on, but I was always thinking that she would make it in the end. She's a strong girl, and can figure out almost anything, and everything.
I loved the plot in this book, very different, and very plausible, thinking of who the characters involved were. Now, I'm already wanting more...