Wake Unto Me Review

Wake Unto Me
Lisa Cach

Publisher: Speak, Penguin
Release Date: March 31, 2011
Series: N/A
Genre: YA, Paranormal Romance
Pages: Paperback, 304 pages
Source: ARC, Publisher
Rating: 5/5 (Avg 3.5/5)

A haunted castle, a handsome young man dead for four hundred years, one heck of a scary portrait of a witch, and a treasure hunt -- not to mention a princess for a roommate! -- all await 15 year old American girl Caitlyn Monahan when she earns a scholarship to a French boarding school.

There are secrets behind the stone walls of Chateau de la Fortune, buried for centuries along with the mystery of who killed Raphael, the charming ghost who visits Caitlyn at night. But as Caitlyn unearths the history of the castle, nothing scares her as badly as the secret she learns about herself, and the reason she was chosen to come to the Fortune School.

And nothing breaks her heart as badly as falling in love with a dead guy.

I have to give this story five stars, if not for just the love story of Caitlyn and Raphael alone. Fortunately, it's not the only reason the novel was given five stars. Wake Unto Me is one of those books that isn't perfect. It may not have the most original plot or a heroine that completely moves you into believing she is, by far, the most fantabulous female lead you have ever read about... yet, somehow for this story, those elements just kind of work out. You ignore those things that you believe may take a book's appeal down because, well, it doesn't take this book's appeal down. At least not for me, anyway.

Caitlyn is a good character. She's sweet, strong-willed and is brave in ways that may go unnoticed by some readers. She may do things that are out of character, but besides scratching your head in bewilderment, you nod and say, "I get it." To be honest, all people (characters in a story or in life) do things out of character, whether it be because of a location change or something that may change us on the inside - sometimes, there's just a moment where nothing seems rash and acting out of character seems to be the best way to deal.

And Raphael? I didn't feel the instant swoon to him that I get when reading about most main male leads. But, over time, it grew and swelled in abundance. There's something about him that just makes me want to go through and re-read the parts of the story that he's in over and over. I absolutely adore him and love the fact that we got to see glimpses of his life throughout the novel.

The story in itself has many depths and is rich with history and beautiful imagery. While reading, I felt as though I was right there beside of Caitlyn, experiencing everything with her. Cach did an awe-inspiring job at describing everything in this novel to the point that I wanted to be IN the novel. The ending was a pleasant surprise, and most unexpected. There were moments while I was reading the story, I thought there could be no good ending for the book - but it was there, and felt so incredibly right for the story. After finishing the book, I couldn't have felt more satisfied with a read.

"Is she the one?"

- Prologue

Lisa Cach: Before & After

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