A Touch Morbid by Leah Clifford

A Touch Morbid
Leah Clifford
Publisher: Greenwillow
Release Date: February 28, 2012
Pages: 336

Rating: 5 stars

Eden won the battle-she saved her true love from the darkest evil. But the war has only just begun. With secrets swirling around her, powerful allies unraveling, and life-and death-as she knows it eroding, Eden and those she loves tread dangerous ground. Can she trust anyone? Will her unearthly powers be her salvation or her downfall? A sweeping, dark, and sexy paranormal romance that will haunt readers with an inventive mythology and a cinematic New York City filled with shadows and longing.

It is rare that I like a second book in a trilogy more than the first, but Leah Clifford raised the stakes in A Touch Morbid and I was absolutely captivated. Once I started, I simply could not put it down, and I read straight through in just over 2 hours. What is big and awesome in A Touch Mortal only gets better in this installment of the characters' story.

I love the characters. The characters of this trilogy are so unique, and they all are very different from one another. Eden was one character that really grew on me in this book. She was a good character in A Touch Mortal, but I definitely felt she grew a lot and was a character I genuinely liked with this book. I super loved Gabe in this one, he was already a great character, but oh my gosh, his character was just marvelous in this one. Despite the fact I think I'm supposed to hate Luke, I found myself falling hard for him in this one. Kristen is one of the best written characters I've read in a long time.

Leah Clifford doesn't leave a single dull moment. The entire book is fast paced and action packed. Everything that goes down is simply fascinating, and I loved every moment of it. While there is never a slow moment, Leah Clifford still manages to have this perfect pacing; nothing is ever too much or too little. Michael was an interesting guy. I felt like he was a complete creeper, but every scene with him in it were some of the most intense in the books. They were the ones where I was flipped pages at a crazy speed. In addition to everything else going down, there were also lots of sexy times in A Touch Morbid, which I wholeheartedly approved of.

A lot of questions are answered, yet Leah Clifford raises about a dozen more in the process. The plot just kept layering deeper and deeper, and I am so intrigued to see where it goes in the last installment. The whole idea of the Siders is so intriguing by itself, but when you add in all the other details of the story line, it is just brilliant.

Your emotions will be in shambles by the end of this book. You also never know who to trust, Leah Clifford plays with your emotions to make you think so and so is behind something, then flips the switch and then you suspect someone else. It is absolute torture. In addition to that, just everything that happens is completely emotionally draining. I was happy, then clueless, then worried about this character or that character, all paired with these absolutely heart-wrenching moments.

My one complaint? That is was not longer, as I know I have to wait out the long months before book 3 is out. The ending was an absolute killer! Everything builds and builds to this crazy peak and Leah Clifford just leaves readers hanging.

This series is one of those must reads. I loved book 1 and book gets bigger and better. Basically I think all of this could be summed up with the statement of I hate Leah Clifford for being a genius. She's a genius this series is just SO good and that makes the wait between books so agonizing. There is no other way to put it, but that A Touch Morbid was simply brilliant.