Book Review
Title: Tunnel of Bones (Cassidy Blake #2)
Author: Victoria Schwab
Genre: MG/Paranormal
Rating: ****
Review: I don’t remember much from my previous reading of Tunnel of Bones but I do remember liking it more than the first book as it had more elements that I enjoyed. I remember that we have more exploration of Cassidy’s gift and we get to see Jacob’s growing strength that Lara warned Cassidy about and it is also set in Paris this time. By the time the family arrive in Paris, Cassidy doesn’t feel it is that haunted compared to Edinburgh but her parents inform her about some of Paris’ history which is as dark as it comes. Her parents want her to be more involved in the show and given the filming locations, The Catacombs, The Jardin Du Luxembourg, The Eiffel Tower, The Pont Marie Bridge and The Cathedral of Notre-Dame I can safely say we are in for some interesting experiences especially since Jacob has developed the ability to move a lot of smaller objects now.
As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, Cassidy and her parents explore a little of Paris where she travels into the Veil to dispel a ghost but finds that they are stronger now as he also tries to steal her life but Jacob is there to help. They quickly return so that Cassidy’s parents don’t suspect anything but the next morning they meet their new guide, Pauline and her team of Anton and Annette as they head down into the Catacombs which Jacob feels is a really bad idea considering how strongly Cassidy can feel the Veil even at the entrance. Down in the Catacombs, Cassidy feels the Veil strongly but given that over six million people are buried down there she agrees with Jacob that they shouldn’t cross the Veil here but when Cassidy begins hearing the voices of the dead calling out, she gets scared and accidently falls through the Veil. Jacob obviously goes after her and when they hear someone counting in French, they high tail it out of there before they have another encounter with an unfriendly ghost but something about this encounter sticks with Cassidy and it will draw her back to the Catacombs later on in the novel.
As we cross the ¼ mark in the novel, the group stop for some lunch in a café before heading to their next shooting location, the Jardin du Luxembourg but Cassidy feels like she is being followed by something but the presence doesn’t make itself known. However, in the café something causes the awning to come loose almost smashing into Cassidy but she felt that something was off and managed to avoid it. In the gardens, Cassidy’s mother relays more stories of Paris history with death and the feeling that something is watching her only gets stronger as the day goes on. They don’t spend long in the gardens before heading to the Eiffel Tower which Cassidy tries to enjoy but Jacob warns her that something might go wrong. As strange things continue to happen throughout the day including Cassidy feeling cold spots, doors reopened and Grim the cat acting very strange she decides to call Lara for some advice. Lara explains that a poltergeist has become attracted to either Cassidy or Jacob and that they are dangerous ghosts as they can interact with the living realm and have no issues with hurting or killing people as they feed off chaos and the more chaos they create, the stronger they get. The next day while her parents are filming Cassidy decides to travel into the Veil after some disturbing dreams involving Jacob in order to get rid of the poltergeist before it can do any real damage but from what we have seen so far it is going to be a real challenge for Cassidy as she isn’t as experienced as Lara with sending the ghosts on and often sympathises with them which they can use against her as the Raven did.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, the poltergeist turns out to be a little boy but when Cassidy tries sending him on with the mirror it doesn’t work which is something she has never encountered before and he is moving really quickly into dangerous territory as he pushes Cassidy of a crypt roof. Cassidy tries again to enter the Veil and draw the poltergeist out as she has realised, he is playing a game but she ends up leaving the Veil like she was shoved out as a truck crashes and Jacob saves Cassidy from a huge falling mirror but also gets stuck in his own reflection but he manages to free himself yet more proof that he is getting stronger. They follow the boy to the entrance to the Catacombs where they realise, he is bound but they have to get back to the cinema before Cassidy’s parents arrive and they just manage to do it. Although upon returning to the hotel they learn that the fire alarm was activated from their room and Cassidy knows that the boy is to blame but everyone else believes it was Grim. As they wait for a new room Cassidy asks her father if he knows the names of the people that got lost and died in the Catacombs and she knows one of them is the boy and it turns out his name is Thomas Alain Laurent. Now she has his name she can figure out who he was and work on return his memories so she can move him on but it isn’t going to be easy since her parents are keeping a close eye on her since the events in Edinburgh.
As we cross into the second half of the novel, Cassidy is working with Lara in order to find out more about Thomas. Lara uses her deceased uncle’s paranormal contacts to get in touch with the Society of the Black Cat which send Cassidy a bunch of sage and salt as they are supposed to keep ghosts away which they do but the dreams about Jacob are getting worse for Cassidy as he gets stronger. Lara also finds out that Thomas’ brother Richard lived in Paris and his granddaughter still lives in the city, so Cassidy wants to go and visit her in order to find out more about Thomas and how to move him on. Pauline offers to take Cassidy under the guise of learning more about the Catacombs and the people that died there but Thomas is getting stronger as he stops the train and makes himself known as even Pauline is scared. However, when they arrives at the address and meet Thomas’ great-niece, she isn’t willing to talk to them and all but slams the door in Cassidy’s face but not before she meets her daughter, Adele who seems more than willing to help Cassidy in her mission. During this time Cassidy has also told Pauline everything she has experienced in Paris and while Pauline doesn’t believe she is open-minded about Cassidy believing them which is going to come in handy later on in the novel.
As we approach the ¾ mark in the novel, Adele follows Cassidy after they leave and give her some photos of Thomas and Richard when she explains that she is a ghost hunter. After making the trip to Notre Dame where Cassidy accidentally proves that she can hunt ghosts as she disappears and reappears when she enters the Veil. Cassidy moves a ghost on from Notre Dame and after returning to the hotel while her parents go for some drinks, Lara rings at which point Adele tells them the tale of how Richard and Thomas were playing hide and seek in the Catacombs with some friends and when it was Thomas’ turn to hide the other boys couldn’t find him. After Richard searched for most of the night, he told his parents what happened and they organised a search but it was too late as Thomas most likely suffocated in an alcove after some of the bones collapsed. Now they know Thomas unconsciously remembers the catacombs and the game they played down there Cassidy knows they have to go back into the catacombs to make Thomas remember and move him on. That is going to be an issue as her parents have finished their filming and they are supposed to be leaving the next afternoon so Cassidy takes the digital copy of the footage and frames Grim for the destruction of the footage realm. Thankfully, her parents call Pauline who is able to get them back into the catacombs that night to refilm the lost footage giving Cassidy the perfect opportunity to find Thomas and help him move on.
As we cross into the final section of the novel, we get to see the final confrontation between Cassidy and Thomas and how she uses Jacob to get Thomas’ memories back but this is almost in vain when Cassidy gives away her hiding position. In this moment it is Jacob who forces Thomas to stop his “game” once and for all and allow Cassidy to send him on which was nice to see as he takes a more active role in the novel which is what I really wanted from him but the question of Jacob’s growing power and the knowledge he could forget his life and death which would lead to him becoming like Thomas scares them both but they agree to rely on each other going forward. When they get back Cassidy’s parents don’t suspect anything apart from the fact, she is quite dirty which made me laugh a little. In the aftermath before they leave Paris Cassidy visits Adele and lets her know that they moved Thomas on and her parents take her the Louvre where Jacob tells her his story. It turns out he is Jacob Ellis Hale and he drowned in the river over a year before Cassidy fell in trying to retrieve his younger brother’s favourite toy and he has been with her ever since. He has decided to do this now knowing what he could become and ask Cassidy to remind him who he is if he ever start to forget. Overall, I really enjoyed Tunnel of Bones and I can’t wait to see how this series concludes with Bridge of Souls as soon as I can.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Also see: City of Ghosts
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