Anna Dressed in Blood introduces Cal, a teen who has inherited his father’s grueling profession as a ghost hunter. Along with his mother and treasured cat, Cal travels around the US, dispatching lingering spirits just in time to move along to the next job. Despite the shocking nature of his work, it almost becomes mundane. Until he meets Anna.
Anna is lovely, and rageful, and sweet, and complicated. She is also dead. Killed in 1958, Anna is Cal’s next job, but something about her is different, and it’s not just what she makes him feel. Her brutality is not typical for ghosts like her, and Cal’s normal methods of dispatching a spirit aren’t cutting it (pun intended). For the life of him, Cal can’t get to the bottom of why Anna is trapped in her house with the ghosts of every life she has ended, especially when killing seems to bother her so much.
Even though I’m not the biggest horror fan, this book has inexplicably become one of my comfort reads. I adore it for so many reasons. First of all, while Cal definitely has an older soul, as reflected in his narration and actions, there are enough characters to show the range of typical teenage personalities throughout the plot. This, juxtaposed against the few adults who play main roles, makes the world feel real without the snappy dialogue that often accompanies teens written by adults. Additionally, there is a perfectly balanced mix of legitimate horrific suspense and gentle rising action. The book is never boring but rarely makes you scream. The reveals are shocking without being jump scares. And the characters are incredibly fleshed out (still, pun intended) despite being part of an action-filled plot. The romance is slight, barely a whisper, but sweet and a perfect compliment to the serious events, past and present.
I recommend this book to anyone who loved the witchy-ghosty shows of old (Buffy, Charmed, Supernatural, Vampire Diaries) or young adult books with a solid romance subplot. I have this on my shelf with books like Evil Librarian by Michelle Knudsen and Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson.
If you love it as much as I do, you’ll be delighted to know there is a sequel, Anna Girl of Nightmares.