Still (Still, #1)

by Camilla Monk

[stacey_is_sassy]

Camilla Monk creates magic...with a blind hobo hero.

***4.5 stars***

I picture Camilla Monk having a cackling laugh. She’s an evil genius who likes to mess with her readers. In the Spotless series we have an extremely intelligent heroine who steps up to save the world. She’s matched with an extremely obsessive clean freak who’s also a hired killer. In the Still series we have a high school dropout heroine who is forced to save the world and doesn’t really get a choice whether she wants to or not. Her hero, well, he’s a blind hobo. She can write a whole series and each book is completely different. She can start a new series and it is nothing like the first if anything it’s almost the complete opposite.

I never know what to expect when I pick up a book by Camilla Monk. Her imagination is extraordinary, her humour original and her avoidance of writing sexy times, somewhat of a standing joke. Here’s the amazing part…her books don’t need them. Yes, you read that right, HER BOOKS DON’T NEED SEX IN THEM to be bloody brilliant.

Could you imagine spending your life disappointed in everyone and everything? For Emma, she has a mother who prefers her step-daughter to her own flesh and blood. A weekend father who after six years decided even that was too hard and leaves. A life where if you expect nothing, you’re not surprised when nothing is all you have. She also has a secret that no one can know about that even she doesn't believe.

At 20 years old, completely on her own after cutting ties with her mother and her mother’s new family, Emma decides to track down her dad. She’s hoping for a hallmark moment but is scared that it will be another nothing in her life. Taking a risk, she hops on a plane. Instead of knocking on his door, she comes face to face with her evil step-sister…who’s actually not evil, just everything Emma’s not. Lilly, Emma’s step-sister, is sweet, kind, pretty and intelligent…who wouldn’t hate her?

What follows is something you would have to read to believe. Time stops, faces freeze, magic resurfaces and gods, titans and protectors are all vying for power, control or to save the world. Funny thing is, Emma is at the heart of it. She was destined to be here and it’s her job to help save the world…with a blind hobo.

It’s so hard to explain a Camilla Monk story and the feelings she provokes. I can tell you that I laughed, cried, sighed and smirked. It’s as if time stopped as I read some of the fast-paced, action-packed and brain swirling scenes. Those particular scenes always seem to fly by as I read, and at the end, I sit back, take a deep breath, look around and I’m surprised that the world kept going on around me. That, is the magic of Camilla Monk.

A new series and I’m a fan. Still is like nothing I've read before. I didn't expect to be saved by a swearing, disrespectful and unhappy heroine. I'm gobsmacked that I've fallen for a blind hobo who sees better than most. The main characters were easy to fall in love with and the additional characters were interesting and helped the story flow. I loved that I was so surprised with the storyline and I was sad but content with how it ended. I'm still waiting for a sex scene, though...