Thorn Abbey

by Nancy Ohlin

[inlibrisveritas]

3.5 Stars

I have never read Rebecca so I didn’t really know what I was getting into when I sat down to read Thorn Abbey. I think when I saw infatuation and possession I assumed it was an overbearing lover and I saw the ghost element but didn’t expect much of it. However I ended up really enjoying how creepy an atmospheric this novel was.

It’s a slow moving book until about two thirds of the way through, where the pace becomes break neck. Tess is on a scholarship to Thorn Abbey, but finds herself way out of her element as she’s surrounded by privileged and rich kids who have very little in common with her. I can’t say she was the best main character though because at times she’s entirely too insecure and as a result puts up with some ridiculous crap from her roommate Devon. I understand that she wanted to fit in more but there is a limit I think. Devon is a mean girl…both in the literal sense and in the clique sense. She’s entitled and opinionated, and at times she goes from zero to creepy. She’s a bully and I just wanted Tess to tell her to shove it. Going with the tone of the novel we have a broody male character named Max, with whom Tess has become invested in. She finds herself entranced by him and while her swooning got a bit irksome I was pretty interested in his character myself. He’s really moody and his past with Becca is a mystery, so I enjoyed seeing every bit of that come to light.

I think this book’s saving grace is the overall creep factor and that I wasn’t really expecting it. I loved how once things are established as being a bit eery the whole place begins to feel that way. Add that to the fact that the book actually managed to surprise me and I ended up forgiving the fact that I wasn’t in love with the characters. I know a lot of people have a problem with the ending, but I actually liked it. Considering that tone of the novel is supposed to be kind of creepy and kind of depressing I don’t think it would have been right to end on a high note.

This is a book that benefited from my mood at the time. I can see me disliking this if I ever tried to re-read it at the wrong time, but I can see me loving it if I ever wanted a light novel for a spooky night.