[Review] Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore

Texas Gothic

Rosemary Clement-Moore
July 12, 2011
Delacorte Books for Young Readers                                                         

Amazon/Book Depository/B&N

Amy Goodnight's family is far from normal. She comes from a line of witches, but tries her best to stay far outside the family business. Her summer gig? Ranch-sitting for her aunt with her wacky but beautiful sister. Only the Goodnight Ranch is even less normal than it normally is. Bodies are being discovered, a ghost is on the prowl, and everywhere she turns, the hot neighbor cowboy is in her face. "From the Hardcover edition."

First off let me say that my interest in this book was spiked because I attended an event with Rosemary Clement-Moore and hearing her talk about her book Texas Gothic I knew this was a book I would have to go to the library or book store and get.  This book takes place on a ranch on in south Texas and I love books that place in Texas being a Texas girl myself.  Then this book has everything I need in a good book: romance with cute cowboys, mystery, spooky ghosts, and not to mention calamities in every other chapter.

I am glad I bought this book because I was not disappointed and finished reading it in a matter of days.  Texas Gothic is a quick fast paced and just plain fun kind of read.  The book is about Amy Goodnight who somehow gets talked in to ranch sitting for her Aunt with her scatterbrained sister.  Amy is the responsible one in a family full of witches.  She believes in magic but is too sensible to use it herself.  When she hears rumors of a ghost at the neighboring ranch and then skeletons turn up.  Amy finds herself neck deep in the mystery of the "Mad Monk."  With the the help of her sister, a motley crew of students from the university and the cute but cranky boy who runs the neighboring ranch, Amy starts piecing together the clues. 

I know the plot sounds cheesy like a cross between Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. It doesn't help when Amy finds herself in one scrape after another some hilarious and some not so hilarious.   But, trust me this book is really good.  I liked how Ms. Clement-Moore added Nancy Drew jokes into the book because even the characters could see the cheesiness of the mystery.  I liked how the mystery was tied up at the end and no there weren't any lines "I would have got away with it too if it weren't for you meddling kids."  While there was a real ghost haunting Amy there were also real humans committing crimes.  I never suspected the real criminals.  I love a good mystery that can keep me guessing and is also spooky at the same time.

I also liked how Amy grew in this book and was able to accept the magical part of herself and come to terms with that side of her family.  Texas Gothic is not only a book about discoveries of a criminal kind but also of a personal kind as Amy and her cute cowboy Ben both had to accept that is not their responsibility to take care of their whole families and just be teenagers for a while.  I give Texas Gothic four laser pistols because it was out of this world.  I will most definitely be checking out the next book in the Goodnight Family series called Spirit and Dust that comes in May.  It will feature Amy's cousin Daisy who is a physic.