Review: The Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco

Title: The Girl From the Well 

Author: Rin Chupeco

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publishing Date: August 5th, 2014

Pages: 267
Audio Length: 6 Hours and 43 Minutes

Genre: Young Adult Horror

Series: The Girl From the Well

Source: Audio

 

You may think me biased, being murdered myself. But my state of being has nothing to do with the curiosity toward my own species, if we can be called such. We do not go gentle, as your poet encourages, into that good night.

A dead girl walks the streets.
She hunts murderers. Child killers, much like the man who threw her body down a well three hundred years ago.
And when a strange boy bearing stranger tattoos moves into the neighborhood so, she discovers, does something else. And soon both will be drawn into the world of eerie doll rituals and dark Shinto exorcisms that will take them from American suburbia to the remote valleys and shrines of Aomori, Japan.
Because the boy has a terrifying secret - one that would just killto get out.

The Girl from the Well is A YA Horror novel pitched as "Dexter" meets "The Grudge", based on a well-loved Japanese ghost story.

What made me pick this book up: 

I originally saw it at Barnes and Noble and the book looked so creepy. I love all things creepy and this one definitely looked it.

What did I like about the cover: 

I really like the other cover better, actually. But that's okay. For this cover I love the colors and the crows still look ominous and kind of creepy. Have you ever had that many birds staring down at you? Definitely creepy.

What made me read this book: 

I had started it a while back, I had the physical book and I kind of lost it (When we packed up to move I swear I lost a bunch of books. I know I had more and they're just... gone) So I noticed Jenn had it on audio and it matched for a task. So I decided to go ahead and read it. 

What did I like the most: 

I liked hearing about the story of the girl from the well. I also liked the main characters, even the ghost girl. She was actually pretty nice. You know, to people who don't kill children. She just kills those people. The main guy and girl are both pretty great. And it did have me pretty immersed in the story at some points.

What didn't I like: 

It's not nearly as creepy or scary as I thought it would be. It was a bit of a let down when it came to that. It had some creep factors. But honestly I wasn't scared or anything at all. I feel like there was more the author could have added to make it that way. I also felt a bit lost at parts. It was kind of confusing.

Would I read the rest of the series/more from this author?
Yes.

It was an okay book. I'll read more and it was interesting. But not nearly as interesting as I hoped.

“And yet she feels no pain and watches placidly as the Smiling Man is enveloped in a mass of hair that tears him into pieces.” 
― Rin Chupeco, The Girl from the Well

Despite an unsettling resemblance to Japanese revenants, Rin always maintains her sense of hummus. Born and raised in Manila, Philippines, she keeps four pets: a dog, two birds, and a husband. Dances like the neighbors are watching.

She is represented by Rebecca Podos of the Helen Rees Agency. She is also fond of speaking in the third person, and may as well finish this short bio in this manner. While she does not always get to check her Goodreads page, she does answer questions posed to her here as promptly as she is able to. Find her at the following places instead:

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