ghostly and fantastic

the other night i finished jaclyn moriarty's dreaming of amelia. (pan macmillan) at first - when i was dipping in and out of this book, trying to read others at the same time - it seemed a bit difficult to get into, a bit slow. but once i gave it my full attention...wowsers!

our favourite characters from feeling sorry for celia, finding cassie crazy and the betrayal of bindy mackenzie are back and this time they're in year 12. not only that, but they're joined by two scholarship students (mysterious, beautiful, smart, talented...aloof) amelia and riley. everyone is intrigued by the newcomers, particularly em, who follows them around and reports back with words hyperbolic and punctuated with an abundance of e!x!c!l!a!m!a!t!i!o!n! marks.

an author has really achieved something special when the story can genuinely stay one step in front of you (another great example: the messenger by markus zusak lovelovelove) and jaclyn moriarty has definitely succeeded here - while we get glimpses that offer possible conclusions, they are mostly just teasers and reading through to the end is extremely satisfying.

every different perspective was just as good as the next. i loved toby's irish convict storyline, and truly felt for him and his pain concerning his parents and black holes. being a history nerd i now want to find out about the events of castle hill some more. lydia's conversation with the ghost made me laugh! and em's fierce determination to prove the existence of the ashbury ghost was hysterical. riley's sections were moving and poetic. most of all, the minutes from the staff/teacher committee meetings were riotous.

dreaming of amelia is sophisticated writing: engaging, complex, clever and ever so funny. this is what our twilight-infested YA world needs.