The Awakening of Sunshine Girl

The Awakening of Sunshine Girl is the second book of Paige McKenize and Alyssa B. Sheinmel's The Haunting of Sunshine Girl series.

Having passed her test in Book One, Sunshine's Luiseach powers are not fully awakened: for months now, Sunshine has felt spirits everywhere: heard voices, felt emotions- intense and sometimes overwhelming.  She tries to ignore then, but it is impossible.  Hoping to get her powers under control- and hoping for answers to her never-ending questions- she agrees to undergo training with her Luiseach mentor, even though she still hopes to give up her powers someday.

She and her mentor clash left and right; he doesn't understand or approve of her attachment to humans in her life; and she can't understand how he could give her up so many years ago, only to endanger her mother's life as part of a test.

Sunshine's training is every bit as terrifying and creepy as her test was, and along the way she meets and befriends another young Luiseach, forcing her to confront her feelings for Nolan.  Though her mentor is reluctant to answer her many questions, she finally learns more about her lineage, as well as the rift that threatens the future Luiseach and the human race... and the crucial part she has to play in repairing it.

The Breakdown:
1.  In this book, McKenzie and Sheinmel, answer a lot of the questions that the last book left me wondering about.  Everything from why Sunshine's father gave her up to the reason for the rift in the Luiseach community.  Compared to the first book, this book felt more like information gathering and backgrounding, and less action.

2. In this book, the authors really start fleshing out the character of Sunshine's mentor/father, Aidan. I honestly had a very hard time liking him.  There are moments that it appears he really cares for her, but he comes off very cold and clinical most of the time.  Plus, there is the fact that he is not only keeping information from Sunshine, but took her away from everyone she knows and loves to train her.

3. I did enjoy the addition of Lucio, the other Luiseach that Aidan is mentoring. He is a much lighter character than Aidan.  He helps to remind Sunshine why being a Luiseach is important when she gets discouraged.

4.  I was disappointed on how little Sunshine and Nolan interactions there were.  Their relationship was a big part of the reason why I enjoyed the first book. I get why the authors did it, but it does not mean I have to like it.

5. Like I said before, this book spends a lot of time answering questions.  The main action really takes place in the last third of the book, but it is quite the game changer when it happens.

To Read or Not to Read:
Read