Enchanting Review: Highway To Hell

HIGHWAY TO HELL
ROSEMARY CLEMENT-MOORE
Paranormal YA
Delacorte Books
ISBN# 978-0385734639
368 Pages
$16.99
Hardcover--Available Now

Rating: 4.5 Enchantments

It's time for more Maggie Quinn fun in the third book of the series, HIGHWAY TO HELL. This time, trouble finds Maggie and best friend Lisa on the way to Spring Break, the one time the two friends hope to just be normal and leave their paranormal abilities behind. But normal is soon quickly thrown out the window when Maggie's Jeep hits something in the middle of the dark Texas highway and they find themselves investigating something that definitely isn't human. Half the town believes its only coyotes or some other animal that's terrorizing and killing their livestock, but the other half of town, they believe something a little more sinister is behind the attacks, something that shouldn't exist outside nightmares. It's up to Maggie and Lisa to figure out the truth, but can Maggie figure it out before she gets in its way?

Well paced and full of the same great mix of paranormal and humor as the first two in the series, HIGHWAY TO HELL is an addicting read that pulled me in from the first page and never let me go. The setting is a bit unusual, especially compared to previous books, and I liked how Maggie and Lisa were a bit of the outsiders in the small town, under the microscope at times by the locals as they threw their ideas out into the conversations about what was happening around them. The supporting characters were great, from Teresa who runs the restaurant/bar at the small motel to the slightly mysterious Hector, who seems to be looking out for the girls and the fun addition of Justin's best friend Henry to the mix. Ms. Clement-Moore does a fabulous job with the supporting characters in this one, with Dave being a personal favorite of mine. Absolutely loved the scene with him and Maggie out in the pick-up truck where they make their first frightening contact with the supposed mythological creature that's traumatizing the small Texas town. One of the best scenes is when the girls find out about a local museum a short drive away that's supposed to have an actual skeleton of the beast, and Maggie and Lisa head out to see this creature. The museum itself is odd and creepy enough, but the rattlesnake that seems to hiss every time Maggie is near is one of the creepiest parts of all. With a heart pounding last few chapters that will have you desperately flipping the pages, HIGHWAY TO HELL is one of my favorite reads of the year.

Rosemary Clement-Moore lives and writes in Arlington, Texas. Visit Rosemary online at www.readrosemary.com

Lisa
Enchanting Reviews
September 2009