by Katy Upperman
Published on August 6, 2019 by Swoon Reads
Format: ARC
Pages: 336
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Since her sister’s tragic death, seventeen-year-old Callie Ryan has basically given up. Her grades have plummeted, she’s quit her swim team, and she barely recognizes the people her parents have become.
When she returns to her aunt’s run-down coastal Victorian one year after Chloe’s death, Callie resigns herself to a summer of guilt and home renovations. She doesn’t expect to be charmed by the tiny coastal town or by Tucker Morgan, a local boy brimming with sunshine.
But even as her days begin to brighten, Callie’s nights are crowded with chilling dreams, unanswered questions, and eerie phenomenon that have her convinced she’s being haunted. Will Callie be able to figure out what her sister is trying to communicate before it’s too late?
Sometimes, you start a book, and you realize it’s just not meant to be. I’m sure that How the Light Gets In is the right book for somebody. For lots of people, probably. It’s just not the right book for me.
I DNFed this one for a very specific reason- I don’t like contemporary ghost stories. Like, I don’t like them at all, and I don’t read them. And yes, I realize the summary for this book says something to the effect that the main character is haunted by her sister’s ghost maybe, and that maybe in my brain had me hoping that, oh I don’t know, the ghost wasn’t real and was all in her head or something. Because I was so ready to love this one, I truly enjoyed Katy Upperman’s last book and I think her writing style is just beautiful.
So yes, there’s a ghosty in this book and I didn’t finish it. From what I did read, Upperman’s writing is as gorgeous and flowing as always. She has a way of stringing together short, simple sentences to paint the most lovely pictures. Her writing brings heartache to the forefront, but does so in a way that makes me empathize with the characters and see how beautifully broken they are.
From what I read, Callie was a flawed but endearing main character. Her heartbreak over her sister’s death was palpable and gut-wrenching. I can’t speak to how well the other characters were developed because I didn’t get far enough to really get to know any of them, but I feel like if they got the same treatment as Callie then there’s nothing to fear there.
The beginning of this one was pretty decently paced. It starts off immediately showing the mental state that Callie and her family are in after her sister’s death, and moves on pretty quickly from there. There were some flashback type scenes in the beginning, and those aren’t always my thing, but they helped to set up the story so they didn’t bother me.
Overall, as I said before, I think a lot of people are going to like How the Light Gets In. Everyone has different tastes though, which is part of what makes reading so much fun. But it also means not every book is for everyone, and unfortunately, in this case, this one just wasn’t for me.
About Katie
I'm a twenty-something aspiring writer who really, really needs to get back to revisions. I've been reviewing books since 2014, and am determined to somehow make stories my day job. I truly think that every book out there contains something good and is meant for somebody.
I had a similar experience with this book. I wanted to like it too but it didn’t resonate with me in the way I hoped. I stopped early as well.
Ah shoot, I have this ARC but am also not a fan of ghost stories. Not sure I’m going to read it now. Thanks for the mini review!
I just started this book for the book tour and I am hoping I don’t have the same experience as you. I do like paranormal books so fingers crossed!