Sarah Dalton

I received this book as a LibraryThing give away for review.
There are two types of books that I rarely read: Dystopian future histories and Young Adult novels. Nonetheless, I really, really enjoyed reading The Blemished by Sarah Dalton!
The Blemished projects a horrid and disturbing future view of Great Britain. It displays an antiquated caste system using hereditarily enhanced children who are forced from the circumstances of their birth to be either genetically perfect clones (GEM) or show more naturally conceived children (BLEMISHED). The GEM’s are given everything they desire. They live in mansions and garishly prance around like medieval royalty throwing tantrums whenever they wish to belittle the downtrodden BLEMISHED. The BLEMISHED are poorly dressed in doleful rags and are told from birth that they are worthless and flawed, with genes so imperfect that they should be killed at birth. They live in poverty with their sole purpose in life to serve the every wish of the GEMs. The thought of such a world makes me shudder, but the compelling storyline that Sarah Dalton weaves is astonishingly enthralling.
Mina Hart may be BLEMISHED, but her budding secret power and her in-your-face spirit fuel a wonderful battle that’s ripped from our magical medieval history. Just like the peasants of old, she knows she is worthy of a better life, but her uncontrolled powers are expanding and her impulsive attitude keeps her in constant trouble. Her secretive father moves them to a new district to protect her from certain harm at the hands of the Ministry. Once there, her only support at school comes from an unlikely source in Sebastian; a GEM boy who mysteriously stands up for her against the taunting rage from GEM beauty Elena. Her new-found BLEMISHED friends Angela and Daniel protect their own secrets and help Mina survive. This quartet forms a relationship that propels all of them into an intriguing adventure filled with the hint of romance, the impulse to escape their forced-upon lives, and the ever growing danger of imminent discovery.
The story is fast paced, easy to follow, and quickly pulls you into Mina’s world. You laugh at her antics with the GEM. You cry at the misery she lives day-to-day. Then you quickly turn the page to see what she will do next. It was an extraordinary story of right versus wrong perseverance. I look forward to reading the next act in Mina’s life. show less

'At 2am, a veil lifts. But what happens when you don't know the time? What happens when the light never goes off? That's what it's like, in the white room. It's limbo. It's neither real nor fantasy. It's not life and it's not death. Time doesn't matter here. I'm not sure what does, really.'

Plot

Mary Hades has never been afraid of the dark. Mary's fears are very real things; illness, physical pain, death. Before long, Mary discovers that the dark makes everything worse. Mary's psychiatrist show more advises her to have a short stay in a psychiatric ward, but how can she get better in a place that fills her with dread?

Something sinister is stalking the hospital corridors, and the death toll is rising beyond explanation. If Mary wants to survive her stay, and save the other patients too, she must confront the Things that she sees; it's the only way to uncover the truth.

My thoughts

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for a review, and I read it as part of a Halloween horror book challenge. I found this book to be incredibly interesting, as I've never read a book set in a psychiatric hospital before. I recently watched a horror film set in an old psychiatric hospital,and this was fresh in my mind when I read this, which definitely added to the creepy atmosphere. The descriptions of the hospital and characters are very vivid; I was able to imagine everything, and again, this added to the eerie feeling I got from this book.

Although this only a short book, there's a lot packed into the pages. The pacing is great; it's fast paced without giving away too much too soon. When I've read novellas before, I've found that there didn't seem to be enough time to get to know the characters and get a feel for the setting before the book ended. However, this wasn't the case with this book; the pacing of the book allowed enough time to really get a good image of the setting and characters.

The characters were great in this book. Mary is incredibly brave, she's dealing with a lot of her own problems, but she still feels the need to help the other patients in the hospital. I loved this about her, since she could have just kept her head down until she left the hospital and forget all about the other patients. I also loved the character of Lacey, Marys' roommate. The relationship that they develop over a few short days is great, they laugh and joke together which is incredible, given the situation that they're in.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. For such a short story, the Author has really created something special. The only downside for me is that I want there to be a sequel so I can see what happens to Mary. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a quick and enjoyable read. show less

I have read my share of books set in insane asylums. Heaven knows I don’t want to go there, but I can definitely see its use as a setting; particularly when you want to scare the crap out your readers. That’s what Sarah Dalton does in My Daylight Monsters, a novella that starts the Mary Hades series.

Mary is a typical English teen, except for her ability to see ghosts. Except that isn’t what they are, exactly. They are frightening visions that come to her as harbingers of bad luck. She show more sees one before a fire at her school kills a girl.

Either way, what makes them so scary is that Ms. Dalton does not really tell us what they are. We see them through Mary’s eyes, and what she sees has scared her so much that she agrees to be committed to the psych ward of the local hospital. There she meets her fellow inmates, who are all well-drawn, particularly Mo and Lacey, who become her best friends. Instead of getting better, however things get progressively worse. Mary’s meds are taking their toll, and the patients at the Terminal Care ward next door are dropping like flies, so much so that the staff is getting worried. Mary and her fellow inmate know that something is wrong, but who is going to believe them? Not only is their sanity questionable, but they are teenagers. All of this works wonderfully. The atmosphere is constantly tense, and scary, as Mary decides that she has to take matters into her own hands, for the people that are dying as well as herself.

One of the real strengths of the story is the balance between the real-world terrors of the psych ward, and the supernatural ones that only Mary can see. It’s a fine line that Ms. Dalton rides masterfully. There are some terrific plot twists that my role prevents me from spilling, and Ms. Dalton does an excellent job in making Mary, and the terrors she has to face, very real. An imposing sense of the weight of things unseen, and definitely malign, hangs over this book. It’s a tricky thing to pull off, but Ms. Dalton does, giving up enough hope to keep the story moving, but reminding us that things don’t always, or even often, turn out all right. Mary comes out at the end scared, scarred, but strong, and definitely sane.

Review by: Mark Palm
Full Reviews Available at: http://www.thebookendfamily.weebly.com show less

First I will state that you probably want to read My Daylight Monsters first before reading Mary Hades, though it's not necessary. This book is absolutely beautiful and brilliant. Ms. Dalton's endings are always heart-wrenching, and I'm left screaming at her books at the end -- this is all that I'll say about it.

This is a continuation of My Daylight monsters, following the main character, Mary Hades, naturally, throughout her camping holiday away from home with her parents. She goes to the show more tiny town of Nettleby for a bit of rest and relaxation after her ordeal at Magdelena with her "ethereally challenged" friend, Lacey. Once there, she meets up with a guy named Seth who works at the local carnival and has a confusing attraction to him. Unfortunately, someone else has found them and isn't happy with Seth, leading Mary, Seth, Lacey, a gothic couple and a ghost hunter on the chase.

Mary Hades is written in a style that only Sarah Dalton can get away with, leaving the main heroine tortured throughout the story and me on the edge of my seat. Her characters are a mix of deeply troubled teens and young adults that are richly detailed, described in as much detail as necessary for you to get attached while leaving a bit of mystery to their motives. Each has their own voice, and I love it. Sometimes authors get attached to a certain character style and will not deviate -- you won't find that with this author. The only unfortunate thing about Mary Hades is that I cannot tell much about the story without riddling this review with spoilers as the pace is quick, and I hate to spoil the mystery for anyone. Though this story is fairly short, it has as much heart as a full novel and will not leave you disappointed for having read it. Although, it could seem short because I devoured it very quickly!

I received this book directly from the author in exchange for my honest and fair review. I was not compensated monetarily, and all opinions expressed are my own. show less