Review: Paper Valentine

Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff
Publication date: January 8, 2013
Publisher: Razorbill

The city of Ludlow is gripped by the hottest July on record. The asphalt is melting, the birds are dying, petty crime is on the rise, and someone in Hannah Wagnor’s peaceful suburban community is killing girls.

For Hannah, the summer is a complicated one. Her best friend Lillian died six months ago, and Hannah just wants her life to go back to normal. But how can things be normal when Lillian’s ghost is haunting her bedroom, pushing her to investigate the mysterious string of murders? Hannah’s just trying to understand why her friend self-destructed, and where she fits now that Lillian isn’t there to save her a place among the social elite. And she must stop thinking about Finny Boone, the big, enigmatic delinquent whose main hobbies seem to include petty larceny and surprising acts of kindness.

With the entire city in a panic, Hannah soon finds herself drawn into a world of ghost girls and horrifying secrets. She realizes that only by confronting the Valentine Killer will she be able move on with her life—and it’s up to her to put together the pieces before he strikes again.

I had a little romance with Yovanoff's second novel THE SPACE BETWEEN and was so excited about reading PAPER VALENTINE. Now, I didn't connect with it the way I connected with Space Between, but I still enjoyed this uber creepy read.

I've decided that Yovanoff must be one of those rare authors that is still able to find ideas that no one has thought of before. Or else, she's just really good at masking overdone plots and making them her own. PAPER VALENTINE is a serial killer mystery that could have bordered on the cliche, but Yovanoff makes what I'm going to now coin a "Yovanoff."

A Yovanoff: when an author adds new elements to an old plot

She writes characters with heart and flaws, and the characters in this story are no exception. Hannah has a nice arc and her relationships with the other characters are complex and natural. I also liked that the romance took a background role and wasn't at the forefront, as it's not what the book is about. It was also super sweet!

Now on to the mystery, it isn't the most unpredictable mystery EVAR, but there are some nice twists in there to throw the reader off. You think you've got it all figured out and then something new is added to the mix. The whole thing had me on the edge of my seat from the beginning all the way through.

Once again, Brenna Yovanoff has yet to disappoint me! Though I do still need to read THE REPLACEMENT...