ARC Review: "Haunting Violet" by Alyxandra Harvey

From Goodreads: "Violet Willoughby doesn't believe in ghosts. But they believe in her. After spending years participating in her mother's elaborate ruse as a fraudulent medium, Violet is about as skeptical as they come in all matters supernatural. Now that she is being visited by a very persistent ghost, one who suffered a violent death, Violet can no longer ignore her unique ability. She must figure out what this ghost is trying to communicate, and quickly because the killer is still on the loose.

Afraid of ruining her chance to escape her mother's scheming through an advantageous marriage, Violet must keep her ability secret. The only person who can help her is Colin, a friend she's known since childhood, and whom she has grown to love. He understands the true Violet, but helping her on this path means they might never be together. Can Violet find a way to help this ghost without ruining her own chance at a future free of lies?"

As I mentioned in my review of "Camille" by Tess Oliver Victorian Era/ historical fiction reads aren't my typical go-to books and it really is a shame because I am probably missing out on so many great reads (case in point, this book, had it not been given to me I would most likely not have read it and in doing so I would have missed out on reading about one of the most swoon-worthy boys I have read to date, oh, and a pretty great female lead as well).

And who might this swoon-worthy boy be? Why Colin of course (forget the stuffy Xavier)! I was so glad to see Alyxandra gradually develop the relationship between Violet and Colin - having them grow up together and in doing so, truly knowing and understanding one another- as opposed to having them fall instantaneously in love which seems so prevalent in YA books. Aside from Colin, my other favourite character was actually Violet's mother. She was such a beautifully developed character with all of her conniving antics and all around sleaziness- she was a character that you both wanted to knock some sense but couldn't help but respect due to her villianous-ness.

All in all this book has everything that you need, action, adventure, romance, a paranormal element, and a beauitful style of writing which transports you back to this time period. Furthermore, Alyxandra's style of writing is quite lighthearted and carefree making it an extremely easy read, when many books of this nature possess writing that is quite heavy, stuffy and difficult to plow through. It is quite unlike any ghost related book I have read to date (and lately I seem to be on a ghost kick). It truly is a superb book from Alyxandra Harvey and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us next!

Rating: 10/10

Special thanks to Rachel from Fiktshun for my ARC!