Marc, the main character, and his assistants were an interesting bunch, bringing craftiness, humor, and brawn to this colorful story. The writing was done well and flowed smoothly. I was able to coast through this read fairly quick.

I found the love aspect to be lacking as I thought there might have been some magic behind the attraction as it happened so quickly. Brenwyn had many secrets that she could not/would not share, making certain situations harder than they should have been.

While there was nothing really "wrong" with this read, I just didn't find myself doing back-flips. Maybe I just don't get horror with a comedic edge. Well, that's not true either because I love bizarro and you can find some wacky stuff there.

Camp Arcanum is a paranormal playground of magic. Give it a try and tell me what you think.

*I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

Some wild variation in quality, here; there were a couple of pieces that made me wince to read them, and a few dark, creepy, really quite clever ones. On balance more good than bad--particularly appreciated "Hallowed Ground", the scene-setting of "Visions of Parin", the actual examining of what non-Euclidian might mean of "Delta Pi", and the ending of "Ankor Sabat".

My 2 Cents:

Talk about an interesting read, this is it! Avery was a sweet girl whom anyone would love to have as a daughter. Paul, Avery's boyfriend and best friend, wanted to help Avery. He knew her mom was strange and could not understand why she hated him so much. Natalie, Avery's sister, was at a nice school away from home and never visited long. She arrived for Avery's 13th birthday party. One of the gifts that was given to the birthday girl was her mom's garden. She had come of the age that her mom thought it would be a good idea. Natalie was horrified and warned Avery that she herself could not take care of it well and was sent away. As the weeks went by Avery was getting more concerned about her mother. With Paul's help they hid inside Avery's mother's car. After a long drive they eased out to follow were the mother was going and what the kids saw was unthinkable. Avery was grounded after slipping out of the house. She went to tend the garden and stumbled upon a scene that would terrify her and send her away for good.

I loved the book for the characters. Everyone in the story has their part and played it well. Jessica does a wonderful job with her descriptions. I could picture the Asylum and what the kids there went through or watching Avery's mom throw her under the bus so to speak. Paul really comes through for avery after all the years she has to spend in the asylum before she is helped by one of the insiders. I also liked the fact anyone could really put themselves in Avery's shoes and feel the same way she did. It is a wonder that Avery is sane at all.

A wonderful scary, mysterious read that sucks you in.