Review: Dreaming of Amelia by Jaclyn Moriarty

Title: Dreaming of Amelia
Author: Jaclyn Moriarty
Published: MacMillian (2nd April 2010)
No. of Pages: 576
Grade Rating: B+

Amelia and Riley have transferred to Ashbury for their final year of school, and everyone is completely obsessed with them. Glamorous, talented and totally devoted to one another, the two of them drift through school in their own world. But there's more to the couple than meets the eye - they have secrets. And some of them are dangerous to share. As Riley starts to lose his grip on Amelia, the repercussions affect everyone around them. It is a spellbinding story about ghosts, secrets, madness, passion, locked doors, femme fatales, and that terrifying moment in the final year of high school when you realise that the future's coming to get you.

This was a unique and slightly kooky mystery for fans of light-hearted contemporary novels. The cryptic premise sets the scene perfectly back at the loveable Ashbury High featuring my favourite protagonists: Lydia, Emily and Cass. This is yet another spin-off from Moriarty's previous books and yet again she manages to do it brilliantly!

I'm a huge fan of Moriarty's novels. Ever since reading Finding Cassie Crazy, I've been hooked. Her novels are modern yet edgy with a certain charm which just makes the readers fall in love with the characters. This book, like her others, was written in many typefaces such as letters, emails and exam answers which took a different yet fun approach to a book of it's size. It's easy humour and sarcasm were executed perfectly, especially taking into account the different tones and personalities of the characters. My only critiscm (and the reason I didn't give it five stars) was the fact that it was a very long book, without the need of it being that long. I felt the beginning dragged on a very long time and it was all I could do but lose concentration. On the brighter side, once you get to the climax, it is well worth it.

The main reason I loved this book so much was because of it's characters. There's Cassie, a shy girl with a sprinter's body and the voice of an angel. Lydia, a very smart girl who aspires to be a writer. And Emily, an airhead with the dream of being a lawyer who frequently misuses words at her own expense. They are all brilliant, hilarious and engaging characters with bold, bright personalities. I feel that if they weren't included in the book, it would not run as smoothly as it did or be as interesting. To be honest, I was slightly dissapointed that Cassie wasn't featured more often. Riley and Amelia were also interesting additions to this story. Riddled and elusive, it was enthralling as their mystery was uncovered.

I also liked how the humour and language used by the characters was updated. Finding Cassie Crazy was written almost seven years ago, so I felt the new cover and text was a much-needed revamp! I would suggest reading Finding Cassie Crazy first as you become more familiar with the characters and their stories.

This is a fresh, original novel that will appeal to contemporary fans today. It wasn't as good as it's previous spin-offs but definitely well worth a read!