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When Marshall King and Elyse Alton suddenly wake up tangled in each other's arms with zero memory of how they got there or even who they are, it's the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future.
Terrified by their amnesia, Marshall and Elyse make a pact to work together to find the answers that could restore their missing memories. As they piece together clues about their lives, they discover that they're in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls. Everyone seems happy there, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town's perfect facade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything—not the death of Marshall's mom, not the hidden violence in Elyse's family, not even the day-to-day anguish of being a high schooler.
Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marshall and Elyse fall into an intense relationship founded on their mutual quest for truth. But the secrets they're trying to uncover could be the death of this budding love affair—and of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls.
Phoebe Kitanidis lives in Seattle, Washington, with her husband and a big gray cat. A former language arts teacher and contributor to Discovery Girls magazine, she now writes fiction full time. She's absolutely addicted to swimming, chocolate, and Facebook. If you ever meet her, beware: It's quite possible she can read your mind.
'She' wakes up in a bed she doesn't know if it is her own. She doesn't remember what happened, what day it is, or how she got there. WAIT! She's naked and there is a boy next to her - asleep - relaxed - and.... HE'S IN HIS BIRTHDAY SUIT! Whoa!
'He' wakes up groggy, empty, and he smells peaches and sunscreen. There's a brown haired girl next to him. Wow she's pretty! Who is she? Huh, Where are my clothes!!?
Neither one knows how they got there, who each other are, forgotten every memory, and what their name is.
Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis is SO Fraking AWESOME!! It threw me into a loop! A loop of unending excitement and anxiety!
It began all 'steamy' and interesting right from the very first page! Glimmer will chew you up and won't spit you out till you're geeking out and flipping the last page!
Phoebe Kitanidis has done a marvelous job in grabbing my undivided attention. Just from the cover and its title I didn't now what to expect. Even the synopsis doesn't do the book justice. I honestly didn't know what was going to happen, who did what, who to believe, and Oh My Goodness I could not stop turning the pages at 3 o'clock in the AM. I LOVED IT!
The story was very well built, it's not hard to remember each unique character, and the descriptions of Summer Falls were not that difficult to imagine. The characters are easily pieced together that in the end I liked everyone even the 'bad guy'!
She who will not be named (just to not add any spoilers) lol is a great character. I felt her pain when she started to remember her past and her memories. Very head strong and not annoying in the least. Boy who will not be named =) is a bit of a lunk-head hahaha but still admirable in his convictions. The story was fun and amusing.
The ending was lovely and had a great closer if this is to be a stand alone.
Loved the idea, Loved the plot, LOVED Glimmer! MUST GO READ!!
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I don't know if I can put into words how much I loved this book. I am certainly going to try though! It's rare that I find a book that simply ticks all the boxes for me... And I am sure that a part of it may be timing and mood...but this book completely amazed me!
First of all I absolutely loved the two main characters as well as the narrative style. We alternate points of view with each chapter between Elyse and Marshall and as we do so we slowly get to know each of them as they in turn not only get to know each other but also strive to discover exactly who they are - we're dealing with amnesiacs here. The voices of each of these characters is completely believable.
I love Elyse... She's tough and smart, she can make hard decisions, and she can change her mind without being stubborn. She has a good heart and a surprisingly refreshing honesty for a young adult. And not once did she descend into whiny teenager mode for which I as excessively grateful! Marshall is a bit more of a complex character which we learn as he learns just who he is (and how he's changed) He's a very realistic mix of candor and deviousness, of hero and false hero and I think that makes his character ring all the more true.
The pacing and writing style are also spot on...I sped through this book in two days and would have stayed up all night to finish it if I could have!
And Glimmer's premise...it is without a doubt one of the most creative and original books that I have read in a long time. I don't know how Phoebe Kitanidis thought up all of this but I loved it all. The sweet romantic moments, the character defining moments, the whole crazy paranormal element that is Summer Falls, the secondary characters...all amazing.
And perhaps most amazing is how it leaves one thinking about what exactly defines us as individuals. How much do our experiences and our memories inform who we are?? And how possible is it for each of us to change "our signatures?"
Get this book, read this book, it really is THAT good.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 19, 2013
The story of my life
Prolouge
Somewhere, deep in the mountains, three small kits were born, all of three different species and of odd colors. One, glimmer, was a pale pink tigress. Another, spark, was a pitch black lion. The last, euphonica, was a silver and gold leopardess.
Their beautiful, dawn. Commented a panther.
The lioness sighed. I know, bramblethorn. I just have this feeling. At that moment, their fates were sealed. They just didnt know it yet.
Anonymous
Posted February 2, 2013
Is here
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 26, 2012
I really liked the world created around the small town in this story. It was well paced and there was great character development. The story alternates narrators, and the author pulls this off by seeming to completely change her writing style with each character. Because you are switching between narrators, you also get to see parts of the mystery unsolve and connect before the characters do- something I usually get to experience in TV mysteries. Loved her first book (Whisper) and was absolutely not disappointed. Can't wait to start reading her latest (Be My Yoko Ono), and I really hope she does a series sometime soon!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 4, 2012
I'm honestly not sure what people who gave this 5 stars have been reading, but I wasn't a huge fan of this book. I read A LOT, and I was pretty disappointed. This book is all over the place, foggy at times, and the story is kind of dumb. I hate when promising plots are explained away (SPOILER ALERT) by magic. I don't mind books with magic in them, but this one was so cheesy I had to struggle to finish it. Also, the characters are supposed to be high school age, but they don't act like it. The characters weren't believable, the plot was cheesy and the ending was the same as the rest of the book. Not a fan, waste of money.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Icecream18JA
Posted August 15, 2012
Author Dora Levy Mossanen will have a wide audience for this book, the
mystery behind the royal Romanov deaths is fascinating to so many. The
author weaves a captivating tale starring Darya, a woman close to the
Imperial Family. Early on, Rasputin imparts a disturbing prophecy to
Darya...one that keeps Darya on her toes for decades. Constantly in
search for Tsarevich Alexis, Darya's entire life is devoted to that one
goal. Darya's character is interesting. She isn't the normal
character one finds in books, she is intriguing to readers outside of
the story and to characters inside of the story. Darya has a special
place in her heart for Alexis as she looked after him in the Palace. She
has one opal eye that apparently sees all and appears not to have aged a
day. Darya's reasons for bringing back Alexis are not entirely selfish,
she wishes to restore Mother Russia to her former glory. Her sheer
determination and steely perseverance are traits to be admired and that
will astound the reader. The other characters on not focused upon so
much as characters in a history book, they are described and developed
very well-the reader will feel close to many of them. The events in
this book are exciting and fit together like puzzle pieces. The reader
will be surprised by the twists and surprises in this novel. This book
is recommended to young adult/adult readers.
Anonymous
Posted June 30, 2012
Please go to syfo result one join my clan and be my mate
0 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted June 29, 2012
May i be urrmate i am athletic and my name is firepaws and i am orange fur and blue eyes pls and im a warrior
0 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.JassyTellsAll
Posted June 3, 2012
So after reading all the good reviews and reading the sample, i decided to give this book a chance. You'd think that a book that starts off with two good-looking people waking up in the same bed with amnesia would be good, but it goes south real quick. Once the initial excitement wears off, the book starts becoming a drag. Now this is coming from a girl who ALWAYS gives books chances and never writes reviews for books, but i have to warn you. There are wayyyy better books out there and while the book is unique in the sense that it tells the story backward, I just think it was boring. I normally finish a book this long in less than a day, but with this i struggled. To be honest, the romance wasnt strong or powerful or intense enough for me to really be drawn away enough to fall in love with the characters and I only finished it because I paid for it. However, you should form your own opinion and Id love to hear what everyone else thought about it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.MyLittleButtercup
Posted May 16, 2012
I was so confused during the first half of this book. As the two main characters are supposed to be confused and figuring out their identity's, maybe that was the author's plan for us to be confused too, but I didn't like it. It was just back and forth constantly between the two characters. Anyway, it started to even itself out and flow around the middle and I really enjoyed it. Very unique and different. Recommended read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This was a different kind of read for me. I've been in a reading slump of some kind lately and this apparently was just the type of book to knock me right out of that slump and get me back on track. I've never been one that can turn down a mystery and when there's romance thrown into the mix as well, I'm putting my money on it being my kind of read. And I was right! This was my first experience with Kitanidis' writing, and I must say that I was impressed. She has a way with words and how she shapes her scenes that had me as the reader in a sort of panic to find out what was happening to these people, most importantly her two main characters. I was desperate to see what was going on with everyone.
Kitanidis allows her readers to take this journey she's mapped out right along with her main characters, Elyse and Marshall. They've woken up with no memory as to who they are or what happened to them that could possibly be responsible for wiping out there memories. They are forced to start with a clean slate, much like readers entering the story. It's a unique way to go through a book, but one I enjoyed. It probably was one of the main reasons I was anxious throughout most of this title because while I was wondering what would happen next, it was almost impossible not to empathize with the lead characters going through the same emotions, only for them it's their life we're talking about. How scary to wake up and not remember anything! Not something I have any wish to experience first hand.
So it all boils down to can you handle the suspense? It was touch and go for me at a few parts, but I'm glad I stuck it out and was relieved the more that was revealed throughout. It's rough not knowing what's coming next and if these characters will be able to piece together the puzzle that has become their lives. I'm getting better at handling the anxiety that comes with mysteries likes these. Definitely a wonderful addition to my bookshelf!
TheBumbleGirl1
Posted April 23, 2012
This book is definitely going on my top 12 list for 2012!
If you're looking for a very unique and different kind of story to read, this is it!!!
The writing, the characters, the story-line, the pacing - everything is spot on... even if I wanted to, tried to, forget this book, I would never be able to! Yes, it is that good!
Can you imagine waking up, not knowing where you are or who your with? But also, having absolutely no idea who you are??? Mind blowing!
And ladies and gentlemen, that is how this story begins!
We meet Her and Him, who we eventually learn are Elyse and Marshall. As scared as they are, they are able to go with their instincts to trust one another and help each other figure out what has happened to them, why they cannot remember anything and why their town, Summer Falls, and its residents are so odd and completely out of it - it's creepy. Page-turner creepy.
Their discoveries are so unpredictable and and at times sad, you cannot help but feel what these two are going through as they discover who they are/where, how they feel about it each other before and now, and you start to really fall into this odd world of theirs and really hope that things will get better for them soon.
*A bit spoiler-ish here...
There are ghosts walking about! They're not spooky scary, but if you can see one, you better run away!
I really did like the whole paranormal twist to this story and how it developed. However, my one and only wish is that I would have liked to have known more about the the 'legendary tribe' and Summer Falls guardians at the end of the story. We do get to find out as to why and the how, but will it happen again? I'm hoping that their will be some sort of short story or novella to give a little bit more detail.
*End spoiler.
I highly recommend this book!
Magic, ghosts, mystery, trust and love all mixed into one of the best paranormal books I have read in a long while!
Anonymous
Posted May 25, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 31, 2013
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
When Marshall King and Elyse Alton suddenly wake up tangled in each other's arms with zero memory of how they got there or even who they are, it's the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future.
Terrified by their amnesia, Marshall and Elyse make a pact to work together to find the answers that could restore their missing memories. As they piece together clues about their lives, they discover that they're in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer ...