New York City, 1882. Seventeen-year-old Natalie Stewart's latest obsession is a painting of the handsome British Lord Denbury. Something in his striking blue eyes calls to her. As his incredibly life-like gaze seems to follow her, Natalie gets the uneasy feeling that details of the painting keep changing...
Jonathan Denbury's soul is trapped in the gilded painting by dark magic while his possessed body commits unspeakable crimes in the city slums. He must lure Natalie into the painting, for only together can they reverse the curse and free his damaged soul.
Goodreads Summary
A perfect novel for Halloween, this book will interest the reader till the very end. Natalie is mute, not to be confused with "dumb or deaf." Otherwise, she is a very pretty, smart young woman. She will be likable to the reader. Right when her life appears to have turned around slightly, she is worried her father will send her to a convent and doesn't know what to do about her inability to speak, Natalie stumbles onto a painting of a shockingly handsome man. The portrait, however, is not normal and may have been created by evil. Natalie must find a way to save Jonathan, the man in the painting, without losing her life and while guarding her heart.
The setting is perfect for this novel. The author managed to put in many qualities from the Victorian era. The writing is fluid and the events are fast-paced. The characters were fun, they will draw the reader into the novel. One might think it would be difficult to understand the story from the point of view of a mute character; however, Natalie was terrific, because she was mute she appears so much more observant and intuitive than the normal character. This book is highly recommended to young adult/teen readers.
4 Stars
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Being mute is actually the perfect excuse for aging a young character beyond their years. I love it. This sounds so good. Romantic, but suspenseful. I'm excited.