Creed by Trisha Leaver & Lindsay Currie

Publication: November 8, 2014

Publisher: Flux

Source: Publisher

Three went in. Three came out. None even a shadow of who they once were. When their car breaks down, Dee, her boyfriend Luke, and his brother Mike walk through a winter storm to take refuge in a nearby town called Purity Springs. When they arrive, the emergency sirens are blaring and the small farming town seems abandoned. With no other shelter, they spend the night in an empty house. But they soon discover that not everything in Purity Springs is as it seems. When the town's inhabitants suddenly appear the next morning, Dee, Luke, and Mike find themselves at the mercy of the charismatic leader, Elijah Hawkins, who plans to make Dee his new wife. Elijah's son, Joseph, offers to help them escape . . . but the price of his help may be more than Dee and her friends can bear.

Dee comes up with what she believes is the perfect anniversary gift for her and her boyfriend Luke; tickets to Luke’s favorite band. The only thing is she needs Mike, Luke’s brother to pull off the lie she tells Luke’s parents and her legal guardians.

The plan seems simple, make up a story to tell the parents, hit the road, see the concert, then stay overnight at a hotel and head back the next day. Unfortunately for them, things begin to take on an eerie turn when they run out of gas and have to walk to the nearest town (Purity Springs) in bad weather. What follows is a crazy fight for survival against an unbalanced religious maniac and his followers.

Dee is a fighter; she has had a rough childhood, but now she is in a better and stable home. Luke is very smart and is also a star athlete. Mike and Luke are very close. Mike likes to talk a lot of smack, which often gets him in trouble. Thankfully Luke has no problem attempting to bail him out. No matter how hard of a time these two may give each other, they have each others back.

Bits and pieces of Dee’s past life are talked about, but with not much detail.  I wished that I was able to get more information about what happened to her before.

Creed was a very interesting read. It did take a few chapters for me to really get into the story.  I was expecting it to be a lot more scarier or creepier than it actually was. I wasn’t always on the edge of my seat with anticipation, but I did find myself caring about what happened to Luke, Mike, and Dee. The ending made me think that there might be a second book. But that is probably just wishful thinking on my part.

RATING: 3-3½ out of 5.

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Waiting on Wednesday # 18

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine. The goal is to spotlight upcoming books that I am super excited for.

This week I am waiting on Creed by Trisha Leaver and Lindsay Currie.

Expected Publication: November 2014

Publisher: Flux

Dee Langley is seventeen and mere months away from total freedom and a life where state social workers, counselors, and foster parents don’t dictate her every move. She has spent years trying to eke out a normal existence, hiding from her past and walking the tenuous line between denial and self-preservation. A weekend away with her boyfriend, Luke, and his brother, Mike, seems like the perfect opportunity to forget and start over. Little does Dee know that she's just trading one hell for another. When an unexpected storm and a lack of gas force their car off the road, Dee, Luke, and Mike find themselves with no other choice but to wander into the nearby town of Purity Springs for help. But it’s not good Samaritans they find, but rather complete and utter silence, every store and every house abandoned. Forced to seek shelter in one of the deserted homes, they uncover a disturbing book with explicit instructions on how to correctly rear a child, complete with a hand written record of its use. It’s not until the next morning, however, that they discover the alarming truth – the town isn’t abandoned; it is populated by a deadly cult, and the leader, Elijah Hawkins, has plans for the three of them. The group’s only hope for survival lies in the hands of Elijah’s son, Joseph. But is Joseph really their ticket to freedom or is his game just as deadly as his father’s? Three went in, and three will come out, but not a single one will ever be a shadow of who they once were.

I've had this book on my radar for a little while and recently noticed that a cover was released for it. Thrillers are right up my alley. Creed sounds like it would be an edge of your seat thriller and I am excited to read it.

That’s what I have my eye on this week. What book are you looking forward to??

Dancing in the Dark by Robyn Bavati

Synopsis:

North American debut of the Australian award-winning drama. Ditty Cohen is passionate about ballet--she loves how it feels to stand

en-pointe, to rise and spin across the room. But her Orthodox Jewish parents want Ditty to focus on the teachings of the Torah and to marry at a young age according to their religious tradition. Although her parents forbid her to take dance lessons, Ditty secretly signs up for ballet and becomes entangled in a web of deceit. As one lie leads to another and another, Ditty knows she must stop dancing, but she can't abandon the one thing that gives her freedom. She begins to question her faith and everything her parents have taught her, realizing just how much is at stake as her two worlds collide.

****************************************************************

First I have to say that I absolutely love the cover of this book. That and the title was enough to pique my interest about it.

Ditty first falls in love with ballet, when she and her friend Sara watch it on television in secret (watching TV isn‘t allowed for them). From that very first moment she becomes mesmerized by ballet. Because of this she decides to ask her parents if she can take ballet classes a couple of times during the week and also on Saturdays. They say no due to the fact that they are Orthodox Jewish and are against dancing and Saturdays are considered the Jewish Sabbath (Shabbos).  Ditty is disappointed, but she does not let that stop her. She practices in secret and she begins to take classes without her parents knowledge.

Ditty has real promise when it comes to ballet. She shows true talent, and the classes help her to grow and improve as a dancer. She falls in love with ballet even more.  The big downside is that she is lying to her parents about what she is doing. Then before she knows it, one lie turns into another and another, until things start to spiral out of control and her lies catch up with her.

This is not the same run of the mill story about a girl who loves dancing and has to choose between a hot guy and her passion for ballet.  Dancing in the Dark is about a girl who loves her family and embraces her religious upbringing, but one day discovers something that she not only has a passion for, but is good at. And that makes her question everything, even her faith. She realizes that her dancing comes at a price. The close relationship she used to share with her family becomes strained and she has to decide if she has made the right choice. Her struggle with doing what she feels is right and living out her dream versus what her family expects her to do felt realistic and well done. The Prologue pulled me in, but the author’s fluid writing and real characters kept me reading.

Rating: 4 out of 5.  

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