REVIEW: Ashwood by CJ Malarsky

BLURB:

 

When sixteen-year-old Willow goes urban exploring in an abandoned asylum she expects the dark halls, creepy echoes, and ominous atmosphere. But she doesn't expect it to follow her home. After the trip, Willow becomes haunted by nightmares in which she never left Ashwood Asylum. Nightmares where she is pursued by grotesque, mind-infesting horrors called the Mora who feed off the fear of mortals. Unfortunately for squeamish Willow, they are hungry. And she is their perfect meal.

Upon waking, Willow recalls only fleeting memories of dead butterflies, hollow eyes and discordant whispers. But slowly these phantasms begin to bleed into her daily life, making Willow question her own sanity. She soon realizes that the solution lies solely within the decrepit walls of Ashwood. As the boundary between dreams and reality disintegrates, Willow must find the courage to defeat the leader of the Mora before he traps her soul in the nightmare forever.

 

 MY REVIEW:

Where do I even start with this book, I suppose I should mention I received this book through a giveaway on Goodreads which was held by the lovely author herself.

 First of all the plot of this book from the very beginning intrigued me, not just because I am a huge fan of stories based on abandoned buildings or "Urban exploring" as its known as but also because I love the whole paranormal/ supernatural. I think its fascinating to see how a building looks years after it had become desolate and the stories that go along with it.

The story starts off creepy enough: a visit to a decrepit Ashwood Asylum with a cousin and a few friends. An event occurs whilst at the asylum and when Willow leaves she begins to be haunted by nightmares where she encounters horrors called the Mora. I found there to be great research on the Mora. The scariest thing about Ashwood is that throughout the book the author does not tell who where Willow's reality ends and nightmare begins.

 This made the reading of the book to be more creepy and suspenseful which made reading it at night a bit difficult for me being a little baby with things like that. At certain points I would shake the book in anticipation hoping that all the things would work out for little Willow and she would find the courage and overcome her fears.

To me that means I am invested and you have me hooked and I need some resolution for this unsettling read that I couldn't help but love! And once finished I immediately needed to get my hands on the next book which I will be eagerly anticipating.

Overall, Good Debut and two big thumbs up from me.

20 Questions About Me Tag

This is something fun that I thought I would do so you all could get to know me a little bit more. Twenty questions ...Lets Go!

        ·     1. A Thing you cannot leave the house without?

A thing I can’t leave the house without would have to be my mobile phone simply for the fact I need music to function throughout the day.

·         2. Favorite brand of makeup?

I honestly don’t believe I have a favourite brand of makeup because I don’t find myself wearing make-up all that often.

·         3. Favorite Flowers?

My favourite flowers would have to roses or blue-eyed-grass(probably tell based on my blog name).

·         4. Favourite Clothing Stores?

The ultimate shops in which I find myself drawn to would Primark/Pennys or even Forever 21.

·         5. Favourite Perfume?

I don’t have a favourite too many to choose. 

·         6. Heels or Flats?

I’m definitely a flats kind of person especially runners/ trainers.

·         7. Do you make good grades?

I believe I get pretty decent grades hasn’t been terrrible and I hope it continues to stay that way.

·         8. Favourite colours?

My top favourite colours would have to be purple, blue and green. I especially love purple and green together as a colour combination gives me some Joker vibes. 

·         9. Do you drink energy drinks?

I find when Ive had a long week or an intense gaming session that involves no sleep. I feel it is then one of my most important requirements for making it through the day.

·         10. Do you drink juice?

Yes, I do drink juice my favourite is freshly squeezed orange juice in the morning. 

·         11. Do you like swimming?

I love to go swimming and I especially love sitting along the beach for hours and read a book. I also love having a campfire with my friends during the last few days of Summer.

·         12. Do you eat fries with a fork?

I tend to sometimes just depending on whether I have some sort of sauce or not which I typically do so therefore I eat fries with a fork.

·         13. Whats your favoutite moisturizer?

I think my favourite would be E45 or Clinique mostly because I have super dry skin which is a nightmare.

·         14. Do you want to get married later on in life? 

     I'm not sure, I believe I do but then again a lot of marriages I have seen don’t end well and at the end of the day it’s a piece of paper. I mean you never know maybe my words will be irrelevant by the time that comes around.

·         15. Do you get mad easily?

I do tend to get mad pretty easily and I feel like that is something I should work more on over time because it could be over the simplest things.

·         16. Are you into ghost hunting?

No, I am not into ghost hunting mostly because that kind of stuff I find really creepy. I believe in them as much as I don’t want to.

·         17. Any phobias?

I have a fear of spiders which is a nightmare in the winter since they all want to come inside from the cold, I mean little ones I can probably handle but that’s not the case these days. I also get pretty freaked out and claustrophobic by small spaces which I find if I feel cramped it is a huge anxiety trigger which sucks a lot.

·         18. Do you bite your nails?

No, I don't bite my nails I have just never done it. I actually think it is pretty gross but I am not going to knock on anyone that does if you do that is fine me personally I am not a fan.

·         19. Have you ever had a near death experience?

On my 18^th birthday I was an inch from getting hit by a car that ran a red light at quite some speed. I wonder how some people get their driver license.

·         20. Do you drink coffee? 

No, I am not a fan of coffee I personally dislike the smell and taste of it. I much prefer tea!

 

Welcome to blue-eyed-grass and books : An Introduction

Here is a little introduction to me and what my blog is about:

My name is Kayleigh Marie and I am a eighteen year old girl,(nineteen in February) from Ireland. I have been the person who has a multitude of blogs and have never found my strive for keeping them but now that is going to change. I make videos about books on Youtube in a community of lovely people known as Booktube on my channel Kayleighmariieee.

The reason behind my blog name is quite simple blue-eyed-grassandbooks is based on the fact that blue-eyed-grass flowers are one of my favourite flowers which can be found in Ireland and the books part of the name is because.. you guessed it! I LIKE BOOKS!

For me this blog will basically will be about all of my interests: all things book related, travelling and my other odd and peculiar obsessions.

I see this as a place that I can share a lot of things with people other than myself and the four walls which is something I tend to do very often.

Well that's really it I hope this all told you a little bit more about me and what I plan to do in the future. Thank you so much for joining in this hopefully permanent journey.

best wishes
 Kayleigh x