A Season of Eden by J.M. Warwick

He’s my teacher. I shouldn’t be alone with him. But I can’t help that he’s irresistible. I let the door silently close at my back. He stared at me, and a taut quiet stretched between us. “I like hearing you play,” I said, moving toward him. He turned, in sync with my slow approach. He looked up at me but didn’t say anything. I rested my clammy hand on the cold, slick body of the baby grand. “May I?” The muscles in his throat shifted, then he swallowed. “Eden.” My knees weakened, like a soft tickling kiss had just been blown against the backs of them. “Is it okay?” I asked. His gaze held mine like two hands joined. He understood what I was really asking. “Let me stay,” I said. “Please.” “You’re going to get me in trouble,” he said.

J.M. Warwick is the author of An Open Vein, and she has produced another interesting YA read. Eden is portrayed as a very popular member of her school, with friends and boys flocking around her. Whilst at the same time, she is trying to deal with the loss of her mother, and her strained relationship with her father.

Mr Christian is her new, young, music teacher, to whom she feels a powerful attraction. As they build their  relationship, they have to stay aware of their boundaries. As Eden learns to deal with this new type of relationship, and her own changing feelings, she grows and matures – and it was this development that I found most intriguing.

How will the relationship end up? You’ll have to read to find out. 😉

An Open Vein by JM Warwick

Synopsis from Official Site:
Imagine being locked in a room alone. You have no food, and the only water to drink comes from a nearby tap. You’ve been told this will help you to bond and you believe it, because your father has told you this. He’s a doctor.

You find out everything you once thought was real and true, is a lie.

I will say from the outset that I think this book is rather outstanding. It’s dark and powerful, keeps you reading, and stays with you long after you put it down.

The story starts with John, a rather intelligent, yet protected sixteen year old, going to stay with his ‘uncle’ in New York for the summer. Kane is a close family friend, who John has looked up to all his life.

First Kane informs John that he is in fact his father, then he tells him that there have been threats against him, and he must stay in the apartment. From here, things spiral out of control, and take a very dark turn.

The author takes us through the confusion and fear that the teenage John is feeling, and slowly unwraps the true Kane – she makes you feel that you’re there with John, experiencing all that he does.

I was also impressed with the ending.. instead of the ‘Hollywood ending’ that would have been so easy, the darkness and confusion continues.

An impressive book, leaving me wanting more.

Reviewed by Michelle