Imaginary Girls review

Chloe's older sister, Ruby, is the girl everyone looks to and longs for, who can't be captured or caged. When a night with Ruby's friends goes horribly wrong and Chloe discovers the dead body of her classmate London Hayes left floating in the reservoir, Chloe is sent away from town and away from Ruby. But Ruby will do anything to get her sister back, and when Chloe returns to town two years later, deadly surprises await. As Chloe flirts with the truth that Ruby has hidden deeply away, the fragile line between life and death is redrawn by the complex bonds of sisterhood.(goodreads summary)

Ruby and Chloe are separated when the tragic death of a classmate is questioned and she moves in with her distant father miles away. The reservoir is a place where kids would go for parties and swimming but there are also many other secrets that it holds. Two years after the discovery of London's dead body, Ruby finds Chloe and insists she returns to her hometown to be reunited so she can take care of and protect her just like before. Ruby and Chloe share the same mother who was non existent in their lives growing up.  Ruby was always the popular, daring and outrageous sister. All the girls want to be like her and all the boys want to be with her. Upon her return, Chloe now finds things are more different than usual with Ruby.  She seems to hold an unexplainable power over the small community and the people around her.  She is manipulative and will use others as a pawn to get what she wants whenever she wants, especially with ex-boyfriends.  Being influenced by Ruby's unnatural force, some almost seem to be in a trance like state at times in her presence. Both sisters also have an incredible needy bond but hold a strong love and trust for each other.  Ruby is very protective of Chloe and insists that she does not go near the reservoir or leave the outskirts of town.  Ruby would tell Chloe stories of the flooded Town of Olive that was laying underneath the reservoir giving it a ghostlike quality. As Chloe adjusts to the many unusual changes around her, she unfolds answers to the secrets that lay at the bottom of the mysterious watering hole which determines what is real and what is not.

When I first started reading this book, I had a hard time getting into it. I wasn't sure what direction this story was taking. I found myself confused in the beginning and almost gave up on it.  It took me until the first 80 pages to realize this was becoming more exciting and I was liking it.  I picked up on the beautiful writing talents of the author and ended up surprisingly captivated by this supernatural story after all. I found myself eager to read into the next chapter to see what was going to happen. The haunting words flowed so easily and they gave me such an eerie visualization that I had the heebie jeebie's for a couple of days.  Good writing is suppose to do this for the reader and I found myself hooked on the spookiness.  The relationship of the two sisters seemed quite strange but it was a story about the strong bond of sisterhood and how far someone would go for the one they loved.  What Chloe had to figure out was the truth behind Ruby's powerful force and how it connected with the death of London which turned out to be a surprise as well.  I enjoyed the twists and turns at each new chapter keeping my attention until the very end. I admit I was left with questions lingering in the end  but I suppose that was the author's intent, so I would reflect on what I just read.  There is drinking and Chloe does have a sexual encounter but is not written in too much detail and is brief.  This book may not be for the reader looking for a wrapped up plot in the end but I was glad I gave it a chance with an open mind.  It will make for a good supernatural story to curl up with now that the chilly fall nights are fast approaching.  I think this is a "just right book" for ages 16 and up.~

Title: Imaginary Girls
Author: Nova Ren Suma
Genre: young adult, paranormal
Pub: Date: June 2011, Dutton Books
Hardcover,  348 pgs.