Review: A great mix of quirkiness and emotion
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 9, 2013
UF is often either snarky but without real depth, or intense action with no breaks. Monster in My Closet was different. I found it to be the perfect mix of quirky characters and emotional depth. There was plenty of action to move the plot along and it never dragged, yet the characters were sweet and quirky. Zoey, the lead, is an empath who has always been able to read others' emotions, yet never understood that was what she was doing, and didn't realize that those emotions were the reason why she was always getting migraines. She thought everyone could read emotions and she relies on it for her interactions with others. Once she realizes it, and starts to put up shields, her migraines go away, but so does her ability to understand other people. Meanwhile, she is being thrown headfirst into the world of the Hidden - all those creatures from myths and stories that exist side by side with our world. Her introduction is through the appearance of a closet monster named Maurice, who lived in her closet when she was a child, and is now separated from his wife (a gargoyle) and needs a place to stay. It turns out that he's not a scary creature, but rather an amazing cook and housekeeper who just wants someone to take care of. From there, Zoey gets pulled farther and farther into this hidden world as various creatures show up needing her help.In addition, to this main plot, Zoey is being stalked by an incubus, a scary demon who is feeding on her emotions. When she cuts the tie to him, he then starts preying on her customers (she's a wedding planner). The incubus plot was quite intense and was an almost jarring juxtaposition of a thriller plot on top of a sweet, quirky, and gently humorous story about a woman learning about her new abilities. I thought the two sides to this story were balanced together perfectly. I never knew what to expect when I turned the page, which made for a solid, unpredictable read. Did I mention also how imaginative the various creatures were and how well-executed the world-building was? You really felt like this world could exist, hidden in plain sight. I also loved the setting in Marin County, CA since it's local to me and definitely a place where magical creatures could live and would just be accepted as a little odd. All in all, a great debut, and I'm looking forward to the next one.