Amber House (The Amber House Trilogy #1) by Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed and Larkin Reed

Title: Amber House (The Amber House Trilogy #1)

Author: Kelly Moore, Tucker Reed and Larkin Reed
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Release Date: October 1, 2012
Pages: 368, Hardcover
Rating: 5 stars

Summary from Goodreads:

"I was sixteen the first time my grandmother died . . ."

Sarah Parsons has never seen Amber House, the grand Maryland estate that's been in her family for three centuries. She's never walked its hedge maze nor found its secret chambers; she's never glimpsed the shades that haunt it, nor hunted for lost diamonds in its walls.

But all of that is about to change. After her grandmother passes away, Sarah and her friend Jackson decide to search for the diamonds--and the house comes alive. She discovers that she can see visions of the house's past, like the eighteenth-century sea captain who hid the jewels, or the glamorous great-grandmother driven mad by grief. She grows closer to both Jackson and a young man named Richard Hathaway, whose family histories are each deeply entwined with her own. But when the visions start to threaten the person she holds most dear, Sarah must do everything she can to get to the bottom of the house's secrets, and stop the course of history before it is cemented forever.

I have such a huge obsession with old historic houses. I am not quite sure what it is - maybe the thought of living in the past intrigues me, or imaging all of the secrets waiting to be discovered - but the older, the bigger, and the more historic, the more giddy I get. Secret passageways, odd features, hidden treasure, creepy stories - they completely fascinate me. So it's no surprise that I was a sucker for this story. As Sarah begins to explore the house, I couldn't read fast enough. I was anxious to turn the next page and uncover another hidden staircase, sealed room, or some piece of abandoned history. Amber House came to life for me; it was in and of itself a character in the story.

But what made this story all the more better - everything in the house had "echoes" of history that Sarah discovered she can tap into. Mind you, not all echoes were pleasant, but we got to witness the good and the bad of Sarah's ancestry and I savoured every glimpse back in time. It was both haunting and wonderful.

There is never a dull moment in this book. There are constant new discoveries and plot twists and creepy moments. The plot was very engaging. BUT I had a minor feeling of disconnect in the direction of the story. It could very well have been me though. I was so absorbed in the details that I expected a somewhat obvious conclusion to the story rather than try to see a bigger picture. Therefore, the ending sort of  came out of left field for me. Reflecting back, I see the set up to the ending but I still feel like the shift was somewhat sudden. But regardless, the ending was SO GOOD (and obviously unexpected)!! The entire story was so original and captivating  and I honestly cannot wait for the next book.

I have to admit I liked the house more than the characters. But I liked the house so much that the characters probably could have been as dull as dirt and I would still have liked this story. Fortunately, they weren't dull but their personalities weren't particularly memorable either. What I will remember is the way in which Sarah connected with her autistic brother, how her mother was cold and condescending, and how Rose always seemed to know more than she was letting on.

This story was just so enjoyable and unlike any young adult book I've read before. It's not perfect, but if you are like me and will be wrapped up in the house and its story then the imperfections won't matter so much. I loved this book.