Glimmer by Phoebe Kitanidis

Glimmer

Author: Phoebe Kitanidis

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Pages: 352

Rating: 4 Stars!

What if you forgot your identity and had to rely on other people to tell you who you were?

And what if to discover your true self, you first had to unravel a mystery so big and terrifying you were not sure you’d survive solving it?

When Marshall and Elyse wake up in each other’s arms with zero memory of how they got there or who they are, it’s the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future.

Terrified by their amnesia, the two make a pact to work together to find the answers that could jog their missing memories. As they piece together clues, they discover they’re in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls, where everyone seems mysteriously happy, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town’s perfect facade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything—not the death of Marshall’s mom, not the hidden shame in Elyse’s family, not even the day-to-day anguish of high school.

Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marsh and Elyse fall into an intense relationship...but the secrets they uncover could be the death of this growing love—and the death of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls.~Goodreads

Glimmer starts off with Him and Her (identities yet to be identified) waking up in bed together. Naked. Without clothes. Completely nude. And completely confused as to how it happened. Talk about a captivating opener! (Also, I totally fell in love with this book the moment I read THIS LINE.)

The story follows these two as they try and figure out who they are and how they ended up together, naked (member that part!?), with their memories a blank slate. May i just say that i loved that they were both totally confused and didn’t know a damn thing that was going on, because I didn’t either! For over half of the book I was like, “What in the HELL is happening?!” (in a good way!)

I really liked learning about Elyse and Marshall little by little. In one chapter a piece of her life would fall into place and the next chapter a piece of his. And, OF COURSE, I LOVED that the story was told in duel perspective! (because that = heaven!) I liked seeing not only how they felt about themselves, but also how they felt about each other! Elyse and Marshall were thrown into this crazy situation that made them both really vulnerable and they had to learn to trust each other completely. I think that helped their relationship to build up slowly and it just felt totally natural. It was pretty darn adorable to watch too!

So! Elyse and Marshall are ultimately stuck in the town of Summer Falls, and let's just say it's a pretty interesting town. Creepy, but interesting! Not only does the town itself have a very eerie vibe to it but the towns-people themselves are also a bit...disturbed, shall I say? Everyone is exceptionally happy doodles and they seem to not have a care in the world—they’re kinda like a robot zombie mash-up. And there’s also this thing called a “heat nap” that tends to hit the townsfolk at extremely convenient times. Once Elyse and Marshall find out that it’s not exactly the weather causing the naps...you’ll understand why I say the town is a tad bit creepy.

Learning the town's insane secrets through Elyse and Marshall made it that much more freaky. You guys, THIS TOWN!!! Let's just say i will NOT be vacationing in Summer Falls any time soon! Ghosts and dark magic and cover ups and asylums and a weird homeless lady all add up to one crazy conclusion. 

Overall, Glimmer is a mysterious, magical, mind-bender. Action packed and full of menacing entities, it’s sure to keep you on edge! I would most definitely recommend it!