REVIEW: Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder #2) by Kimberly Derting

 Author: Kimberly Derting

Pages: 336

Genre: YA

Publisher: Harper Collins

AMAZON: Desires of the Dead (Body Finder)

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.

As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.

REVIEW: 4 out of 5 stars

‘Desires of the Dead’ is the second installment in ‘The Body Finder’ series by Kimberly Derting and follows on approximately 3 month after ‘The Body Finder’.

After a day trip to Seattle with her close friend Chelsea where she gets the scent of an echo; Violet is drawn back to the shipping docks to try and locate what she has found and to seek help in putting it to rest. Not knowing whether it is an animal or human, she places an anonymous call to the authorities; little does she know she has found the young victim of a brutal murder and her call has placed her in the sights of the FBI after being caught on camera.

In ‘Desires of the Dead’ we see Violet struggling through the emotional turmoil of trying to hide her morbid ability; keeping secrets from her family and best friend turned boyfriend Jay Heaton, there is also the appearance and unusual questions being asked by the FBI as well as a mystery surrounding the newcomers to town, Mike & Megan.

As with ‘The Body Finder’, this book also had the POV from the bad guy/girl, although you pretty much knew who it was, it was interesting to see how it all played out and why. There were a number of twists and turns which certainly held my interest; there was also the introduction of new characters, Sara Priest and the broodingly mysterious Rafe, I am curious to know more about their ‘not so normal’ organization and abilities and what role they will play in future installments.

I absolutely love the relationship between Jay and Violet, it is sweet, tender, loving and there are still a number of sigh worthy moments that had me gushing like a teen. Their relationship has progressed to a more mature level but they also hit a rough patch with Violet questioning Jay’s loyalty, it broke my heart reading about them being apart but I am glad they were able to get past their differences. 

I am really hoping that Rafe hasn’t been introduced as a potential love interest.

The secondary cast of characters were as wonderful as usual with her friends playing a more prominent role, her parents are still forever present and supportive with her ability; I enjoy the relationship she shares with them.

‘Desires of the Dead’ was another intense, suspense filled romantic thriller that kept me riveted. Ms Derting certainly knows how to write an intriguing mystery that is still filled with a loving romance.

What I didn’t like: There were a few things Violet did that had me rolling my eyes, I put it down to her being young and at times immature and insecure. The first thing was her OTT reaction to Jay questioning and believing what she thought was an echo on a friend which inevitably led to their ‘break-up’, there was also her jealousy over the friendship he had with new student Mike, I admired the way they were usually able to communicate so this part was a tad frustrating and her inability to share what was going on with those she loved and trusted I found to be out of character for her, she had a close support network who she didn’t seem to want to rely on as she had done in book 1. I also found her recklessness to be too much (I touched on this in my ‘The Body Finder’ review as well), I think she put herself in harms way too often.

All in all, an enjoyable read; it is well written and engaging and I am looking forward to reading ‘The Last Echo’ which has an anticipated release date of 17^th April 2012.