When tragedy strikes, Derry is drawn into a deadly battle of wits with the only person whom her abilities don’t affect. Driven by guilt and an obsession with bringing the killer to justice, Derry finds herself in danger from a vindictive murderer, a sadistic deviant who preys on the weak, and trapped in the middle of a treacherous triangle of attraction between two brothers whose abilities rival her own. Derry must trust her instincts to guide her to the truth and bring her enemies to justice even as she fights for her own survival.
INSTINCT focuses on a gifted, intelligent, and loyal heroine who must contend not only with the inherent dangers of high school bullying and backstabbing, but with loss, grief, and guilt. Against issues of sexual abuse, teenage suicide, and destructive relationships, the heroine learns to cherish the strength of real friendship, understand accountability, and experiences the healing touch of first love.
About the Author:
Mattie Dunman is a lifelong resident of "Wild & Wonderful" West Virginia, and has dreamed of being a writer since she first held a pen in hand. Mattie has pursued several useless degrees to support this dream, and presently enjoys teaching (or tormenting, as the case may be) college students the dying art of public speaking. She spends most of her free time writing, but also indulges in reading and traveling. She is the proud owner of an adorably insane American Eskimo named Finn, and a tyrant cat named Bella, who take up more of her attention than they probably should.
Please visit Mattie's website
My Review
This book… Wow, loved it! It’s been a long time since I have been able to read a book in just two days, ESPECIALLY with a new baby but this one had me completely at its mercy. I was hooked as soon as Derry met Cole!
It’s about a young girl named Derry with an unusual ‘talent’ as she calls it. She can hear a person’s hidden truth, or secret upon first word. This can make it a little hard as the reader to follow in the beginning as you’re trying to fill in what the initial person really did say to Derry, but I found it made it possible to relate with the character as she’s struggled all her life to fulfill a regular conversation with a stranger rather than hear their biggest personal secret. She also has this physical hum or tickle that comes when the person she’s speaking with openly lies, or deviates from the truth. Reading any form of literature is another difficult challenge as she always see’s the writers true knowledge and feelings rather than their edited version.
While voluntarily attending high school during its last semester before graduation, she befriends some great characters, and immediately follows her instincts to become a heroin I truly enjoyed following. Yes, I said voluntarily. Due to Derry’s unique talent, attending regular school was difficult for her so she was homeschooled all her life, and had already collected her grades and early acceptance to college. She was attending this high school to obtain the real high school experience she so often read in books, and seen on TV. That real experience she received, and much much more than she expected.
In her short attendance to high school she deals with more than any one person should ever experience in their lifetime. She makes her first friend, discovers the reality of social cliques and school bullys, and shortly after must deal with grief of a close loved one, and then finds in it in her to use her talent and be the one to find the killer and bring them to justice. She meets her first love, and discovers she is not alone in having unique abilities.
Dunman does a terrific job writing a paranormal novel without using the already known and seemingly overused characters we have read about in the past. I found Derry and her new friends to be refreshing, and at the end I really wished I got to know more about her new friends and their skills, and what was next.
I would give this book a 4.
Written by Cheryl
~*Disclaimer: This post was written by Cheryl. A copy of this book was received in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.*~
Great review...thank you so much for sharing!
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