*REVIEW* Melody Burning by Whitley Strieber

Beresford doesn’t remember much about his past or how he came to live in the chutes and crawl spaces of the posh high-rise that shares his name. But when rock star and teen sensation Melody McGrath moves to an apartment on the fiftieth floor, he knows he has to be near her. Although she doesn’t realize it, Melody is threatened by more dangerous forces than her manipulative stage mom and the pressures of life in the spotlight. The owner of the glamorous building has been hiding a fatal secret within its walls, and Beresford puts all his plans at risk. Will Beresford and Melody be able to escape with their lives (and love) intact?

  With this one I was surprised.  Very surprised to say the least!  I picked this one up thinking I was getting myself into a paranormal type of read and yet it wasn't.  However I ended up really enjoying this dark and at times tragic read.  There was a very quick start that kind of pulled you in and got you interested.  Murder can do that though and the fact that it left a little boy so very alone kept me glued because lets face it you need to know what happens to him.  This doesn't happen right away but gives way into another story completely and then manages to intertwine the two.

  The main character Melody was confusing at times and to be honest I didn't really ever connect with her but that isn't to say I didn't like her.  I did because much of her still felt real and believable and even the bits that had me questioning her still weren't that outrageous.  Melody is a rising start and has a mother that pushes her beyond the limit and seems to only care about the money.  Maybe this is where Melody's sadness comes from, I really don't know.  She seems to have a grip on things and then **BAM** we have lost our grip.  I had this feeling like I missed something and maybe I did but once I seen how tortured she really felt a lot of things became much more clear to me.

  Beresford is a lost soul it seems.  Remembering nothing of who he was or where he came from.  Although it is painfully clear who he really is no one else knows.  This poor boy knows nothing of friends or family yet still manages to have a gentle and beautiful soul that you can see ever so clearly through his amazing eyes.  He fell for Melody watching her on t.v. and I know that sounds cheesy but his affections seem genuine.  The problem is he is not only people shy but crawls around in the shafts, crawl spaces and chutes.  The time he spends listening to Melody though her wall... Well lets just say as endearing as he feels it is it kind of has a creepy feel to it, even knowing his sweet reasons.

  Once Melody gets over how creepy the entire behind your walls thing she is comforted by Beresford.  I mean when she first sees him she freaks, looses it but when confronted with him in her room she is oddly intrigued by him. Ya, you heard me she finds him in her room uninvited and instead of screaming she gives him a chance.  This is the start of something and not just something small.  She falls for him and I mean really falls but their dream seems to be ripped away from them before they really have a chance.  So basically I am saying the love is instant but in another way it isn't.  Hard to explain but their attraction and feelings really pulled at me.  Parts of this book with their romance just pulled me right apart and at one point my eyes even watered!! Ya, I was that worked up over what they were going through.

  Now to be honest I finished this book really fast.  I didn't want to put it down because I was so involved in finding out how things worked out.  Problem is I felt that this novel could have been a little bit longer than what it was.  With a little more depth this book could have gone from good to amazing!  The action came later in the book but that left the start open for character development but looking back there really wasn't much depth to the characters.  It feels like I know them but I don't.  This wasn't something I noticed right away but more upon reflection of the novel.

  Overall this was a quick and easy read.  I found myself pulled right in and reading from start to finish faster than I expected!!  Despite the lack of depth this book kicks it with emotion and intrigue.  I just can't focus on anything horribly negative when overall I felt that this was a worthy read.  Pick this up if you are in the mood for something that is an easy yet interesting read.

Quotes & Bits that I Loved

As time passed, he forgot where he came from, how old he was, Mom and Dad'snames, even his own name.

She smiled at him, which caused him to think again of the meaning of the wordlove.  This was love.  That was what he felt.

His face is an open window.  His eyes are wide and blue-grey.  He looks like everythingsurprises him.

He didn't have it thought out, he just wanted it to happen. It has to happen. Love deserves to live- it's good and it's right.  He needed her with him always, and she needed him.