Review: The Sham

The Sham by Ellen Allen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I finished reading this book in one sitting and, wow, it took me on a rollercoaster ride. I like to think that I’m good at figuring out mysteries and guessing the outcome of your average paranormal read. This book was impossible to pin down from one chapter to the next. One minute I thought I knew who the killer was and then I changed my mind completely. This book will keep you guessing until the very end!

Yes, as many reviewers have said, the book starts with a big slap in the face of some gore and some horrendous bullying. Both were disturbing and a little off-putting, but necessary to set the stage for the insanity to come. I thought that maybe this book wasn’t for me, but because I always complete books I start, I was determined to see this through. I’m glad that I did, because this book had me completely hooked after the first chapter. Trust me, you want to continue this twisty tale.

Emily is confronted with the brutality of this bullying event and ultimately saved by a mysterious stranger named Jack. He rescues the poor bullied boy and ultimately dives into Emily’s life. She’s forced to deal with the lack of consistency in Jack’s life. He speaks with a weird cadence, using no pronouns. He says he “feels” what other people are feeling. He eats constantly, to the point of being pretty weird. He also is cagey about his past and even some of his present. This wouldn’t really be too critical except for the murders that start soon after his arrival. The bullies we met in the first big event are being targeted or picked off for some reason or another. Of course, the mysterious stranger is the most likely of targets.

This book has you guessing and second guessing yourself throughout. There are no solid answers until the end, and I have to say, I’m still not completely sure about Jack’s background. Part of me wants to hold out hope that my theory might still be right, but the other part of me feels a little… betrayed. You definitely can’t say that this book doesn’t make you feel things, because I went through the full range of emotions with these characters. There’s some gritty realness thrown into this truly shocking story. The characters had me desperate for more and I was a little disappointed when the book finally ended. More, please?



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