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Sky Cove #1
Once Again
Reincarnation sucks! Unless it comes with a cute guy. That’s what sixteen year-old Layla Bradford discovers when she moves to Sky Cove, Maine, a small-town she thought was ordinary, but turns out to be an episode of “Cold Case” on steroids. Layla doesn’t want to fit in; she wants to blend in and stay out of the spotlight. But the spotlight is where she winds up when she catches the eye of school cross-country star and all-around-nice-guy Lucas Ellis. She quickly learns there’s more at stake than high school reputations when she and Lucas discover they are the reincarnations of a young married couple from the mid-1800s who suffered a horrible tragedy at the hands of a madman who was never brought to justice. After a series of frightening visions show Layla and Lucas glimpses of their past-lives, they realize that the villain of their previous existence has also been reincarnated, in the form of a fellow high school student who targets them with teenage pranks that soon turn dangerous. As they grow closer, will Layla and Lucas be able to uncover the truth in time to stop the same tragedy from unfolding once again?
286 pages, Paperback
First published January 24, 2012
15 people are currently reading
376 people want to read
About the author
Amy Durham
19 books155 followersAfter spending every work day with classrooms full of tweens and teens, then going home to three boys of her own, two of whom fall into the tween/teen category, you’d think that Amy Durham might like to leave the world of teenagers and young adults behind. Not so!
Instead, she spends her spare moments – which sometimes consist of waiting twenty minutes for her oldest kiddo to get out of band practice – with her laptop and a multitude of teenage characters trying to navigate their way through the twisted, difficult road of adolescence.
You might ask… “Why Young/New Adult Fiction”? Well, because it’s what she knows. As a teacher and a parent, Amy is around teens on an almost constant basis. And while it’s true they can be – ahem – challenging, they are also full of life, vision, and dreams. And that’s a really cool place to be.
Young Adult and New Adult Fiction allows young readers the opportunity to find hope for the situations they find themselves in, find determination to keep on going, and courage to pursue their dreams. It also allows adult readers the chance to revisit the exuberance of youth, remember the joy and poignancy of first love, and recall how it felt to dream with abandon.
Amy Durham is a wife and mother, an author, a teacher, an avid reader, and a musician. If she weren’t writing books, she’d be a celebrity chef!
Instead, she spends her spare moments – which sometimes consist of waiting twenty minutes for her oldest kiddo to get out of band practice – with her laptop and a multitude of teenage characters trying to navigate their way through the twisted, difficult road of adolescence.
You might ask… “Why Young/New Adult Fiction”? Well, because it’s what she knows. As a teacher and a parent, Amy is around teens on an almost constant basis. And while it’s true they can be – ahem – challenging, they are also full of life, vision, and dreams. And that’s a really cool place to be.
Young Adult and New Adult Fiction allows young readers the opportunity to find hope for the situations they find themselves in, find determination to keep on going, and courage to pursue their dreams. It also allows adult readers the chance to revisit the exuberance of youth, remember the joy and poignancy of first love, and recall how it felt to dream with abandon.
Amy Durham is a wife and mother, an author, a teacher, an avid reader, and a musician. If she weren’t writing books, she’d be a celebrity chef!
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
February 25, 2013
At first I thought that this would be the perfect book for me to read, a mix of contemporary and supernatural is just my thing. But then I-just being my typical self-started to have second thoughts. What if I don't like it? What if it disappoints? I'm uptight like that.
I'm glad to report that I haven't been disappointed at all. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
The plot was really interesting and unique, although the mystery part of it focused more on what happened in Layla and Lucas's past life than on finding the reincarnation of their murderer.
I immediately connected with Layla. I found her thoughts and actions very realistic-sweet and sarcastic at the same time. I loved how she didn't push Luke into being with her and left things to develop naturally. That didn't mean that she was the "I don't care what happens" type, and then was totally in love with him when they got together even though she didn't care an ounce about him at first. She had her insecurities, but she knew who she was. You've gotta admire that.
Each time I reminded myself that Lucas and I were just friends, a little voice inside me responded with, “Yeah, right.”
Lucas is Sky Cove's golden boy. Honor student, on the track team, popular, takes good care of his mom, respectful towards girls and overall a good guy. Normally I don't like this type of guy because he turns out to be kind of a wuss. Lucas threw those thoughts out of the window. I fell hard for him. He always surprises me more with his acts of chivalry and romantic gestures. He's also level headed and sensible, the stuff he said made sense. Plus, he had this boyish charm that sooooo worked for him.
“Yes. My mom thinks you hung the moon.” “That’s good,” he said. “Though it’s not your mom I’m most interested in impressing.”
"I turned him down, gently, of course.” “You should’ve slapped him.” he said
“Do you think,” he began, moving to stand right in front of me, “that for a few minutes, we can just be Luke and Layla, happy to be together?”
Layla's parents and Luke's mom are the coolest parents ever. They were there constantly for their kids, but weren't nosy and knew when to give them space.
Characters like Jessie, Phoebe, Marsha, Will and Lance added some reality to the book. Because we see Lucas and Layla interacting with other characters instead of being glued together for the whole book.
I though more thought should've been put into finding out who was the incarceration of Amelia and Leo's (Lucas and Layla's past selves) murderer was. Plus, I felt that the big reveal was really rushed and lacked some action.
All in all it was really enjoyable and I look forward to reading Once and For All.
Review on The Booklicker
I'm glad to report that I haven't been disappointed at all. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
The plot was really interesting and unique, although the mystery part of it focused more on what happened in Layla and Lucas's past life than on finding the reincarnation of their murderer.
I immediately connected with Layla. I found her thoughts and actions very realistic-sweet and sarcastic at the same time. I loved how she didn't push Luke into being with her and left things to develop naturally. That didn't mean that she was the "I don't care what happens" type, and then was totally in love with him when they got together even though she didn't care an ounce about him at first. She had her insecurities, but she knew who she was. You've gotta admire that.
Each time I reminded myself that Lucas and I were just friends, a little voice inside me responded with, “Yeah, right.”
Lucas is Sky Cove's golden boy. Honor student, on the track team, popular, takes good care of his mom, respectful towards girls and overall a good guy. Normally I don't like this type of guy because he turns out to be kind of a wuss. Lucas threw those thoughts out of the window. I fell hard for him. He always surprises me more with his acts of chivalry and romantic gestures. He's also level headed and sensible, the stuff he said made sense. Plus, he had this boyish charm that sooooo worked for him.
“Yes. My mom thinks you hung the moon.” “That’s good,” he said. “Though it’s not your mom I’m most interested in impressing.”
"I turned him down, gently, of course.” “You should’ve slapped him.” he said
“Do you think,” he began, moving to stand right in front of me, “that for a few minutes, we can just be Luke and Layla, happy to be together?”
Layla's parents and Luke's mom are the coolest parents ever. They were there constantly for their kids, but weren't nosy and knew when to give them space.
Characters like Jessie, Phoebe, Marsha, Will and Lance added some reality to the book. Because we see Lucas and Layla interacting with other characters instead of being glued together for the whole book.
I though more thought should've been put into finding out who was the incarceration of Amelia and Leo's (Lucas and Layla's past selves) murderer was. Plus, I felt that the big reveal was really rushed and lacked some action.
All in all it was really enjoyable and I look forward to reading Once and For All.
Review on The Booklicker
March 12, 2013
I was really looking forward to this book as I thought it will be funny and quirky. Alas! I was wrong, this is a heavy laden drama and suspense that will somewhat grip you till the end.
You have Layla, an average student who just moved in the small town; Lucas, typical jock who is of course popular, brainy and great looking and the villains of the story e.g. jealous ex-girlfriend, would-be dates, unknown forces, etc...! They are the reincarnated souls of a married couple that has gone missing almost a century ago. They have recurring dreams simultaneously and can actually talk to their previous selves in their dreams.
Ok here is where it gets really weird for me.I'm all for the paranormal crap theme, sexy werewolves or even sexier vampires but this book made me rethink about the genre that I love to read. Reincarnation theme (check), talking to your previous self in your dreams (somewhat check), acquiring super human powers , speed and mind reading (so NOT check). I cannot comprehend of why would they get those powers when they are just ordinary people who dreamt of their previous self?? Sure it was explained as the Gifting, but come on they haven't been bitten nor are they the descendants of were-blood! Just doesn't make sense!
Another thing that turns me off with this book is throwing Corey, best friend of Lucas/Luke (really make up your mind which name is it you want to use),under the bus. The villain in the old couples lives is reincarnated in Corey. Why should Corey suffer and take the blame for something that he didn't actually do because the old soul made him do it? It seems the author just wants to justify the reincarnation theme by sacrificing Corey in the story when he is not to blame. It just fell short for me. There are also some unresolved issues with her biological mom that wasn't addressed in the ending.
I give this a 3.24 star, for the effort and theme. Would I read the series, yes. Would I recommend this, yeah ok.
You have Layla, an average student who just moved in the small town; Lucas, typical jock who is of course popular, brainy and great looking and the villains of the story e.g. jealous ex-girlfriend, would-be dates, unknown forces, etc...! They are the reincarnated souls of a married couple that has gone missing almost a century ago. They have recurring dreams simultaneously and can actually talk to their previous selves in their dreams.
Ok here is where it gets really weird for me.I'm all for the paranormal crap theme, sexy werewolves or even sexier vampires but this book made me rethink about the genre that I love to read. Reincarnation theme (check), talking to your previous self in your dreams (somewhat check), acquiring super human powers , speed and mind reading (so NOT check). I cannot comprehend of why would they get those powers when they are just ordinary people who dreamt of their previous self?? Sure it was explained as the Gifting, but come on they haven't been bitten nor are they the descendants of were-blood! Just doesn't make sense!
Another thing that turns me off with this book is throwing Corey, best friend of Lucas/Luke (really make up your mind which name is it you want to use),under the bus. The villain in the old couples lives is reincarnated in Corey. Why should Corey suffer and take the blame for something that he didn't actually do because the old soul made him do it? It seems the author just wants to justify the reincarnation theme by sacrificing Corey in the story when he is not to blame. It just fell short for me. There are also some unresolved issues with her biological mom that wasn't addressed in the ending.
I give this a 3.24 star, for the effort and theme. Would I read the series, yes. Would I recommend this, yeah ok.
September 23, 2012
i think i've read a similar book before but nevertheless, this book has an interesting story. i like how the author was able to weave the stories of layla and lucas and lilian and leo together. i also liked how the mystery was slowly unraveled - through dreams, research and interviews with different people - and it wasn't confusing at all.
the bad guy was someone i didnt expect - which is a good thing because it led to the nice twist at the end, but then the author didnt explain much about him - the last couple of chapters were all about slowly building up the impending danger but the whole incident happened in just one chapter and it was solved easily - so it was a letdown to me because they spent so many weeks piecing out the story and yet they were able to find the culprit in an instant. also, the author didn't explain the aftermath except for a couple of paragraphs - like why he was doing it (im talking about the reincarnated bad guy) other than because he was the reincarnation. so after finishing the book im still left with a couple of questions (eg. is he a nice guy? are they one and the same? or was he just "possessed"?.
overall, great story, very quick read and fast paced. i'm looking forward for book 2 (which i think will be about phoebe who was introduced very briefly).
the bad guy was someone i didnt expect - which is a good thing because it led to the nice twist at the end, but then the author didnt explain much about him - the last couple of chapters were all about slowly building up the impending danger but the whole incident happened in just one chapter and it was solved easily - so it was a letdown to me because they spent so many weeks piecing out the story and yet they were able to find the culprit in an instant. also, the author didn't explain the aftermath except for a couple of paragraphs - like why he was doing it (im talking about the reincarnated bad guy) other than because he was the reincarnation. so after finishing the book im still left with a couple of questions (eg. is he a nice guy? are they one and the same? or was he just "possessed"?.
overall, great story, very quick read and fast paced. i'm looking forward for book 2 (which i think will be about phoebe who was introduced very briefly).
January 3, 2013
Link to my review:
http://romancing-the-book.com/2012/12...
Check it out!
http://romancing-the-book.com/2012/12...
Check it out!
November 25, 2012
Not a bad read for my first paranormal young adult fiction.
So tragic what happened in the past.
So tragic what happened in the past.
Read
July 14, 2013http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0071NT... Free on Kindle 7/15
March 5, 2018
Short review: Lucas is so 'perfect' that he's utterly boring, Layla is judgemental and thinks she's got the world all figured out, and the entire book is so seeped in sexism:
That's just a random example.
Their romance led me to writing notes like "Oh please" and "Oh come on" - to give you an example, when Layla asks Lucas what he was thinking about while running, he says:
Pretty standard stuff, right? Not when you're Layla:
The book could also have done with another round of editing (some sentence structures made no sense, a couple of typos, stuff like that).
That said, I did like the world-building - hence the two stars. The idea was great, and without giving anything away, I felt like the conflict that arose in Layla's head because of their past selves was the only interesting (and realistic) part of their relationship.
Friday the school buzzed with activity and excitement about the football game. In the hallways, it was all anyone talked about. The girls talked about what they were wearing, and guys talked about washing their cars and their plans for after the game.
That's just a random example.
Their romance led me to writing notes like "Oh please" and "Oh come on" - to give you an example, when Layla asks Lucas what he was thinking about while running, he says:
I wondered what you were doing, how you were feelings, what you'd look like tonight."
Pretty standard stuff, right? Not when you're Layla:
Breath became difficult to draw. Was there another guy who was this good with words?
The book could also have done with another round of editing (some sentence structures made no sense, a couple of typos, stuff like that).
That said, I did like the world-building - hence the two stars. The idea was great, and without giving anything away, I felt like the conflict that arose in Layla's head because of their past selves was the only interesting (and realistic) part of their relationship.
May 31, 2017
A good, quick read. However, the grammatical errors throughout the book were distracting and the ending was very anticlimactic, which kept me from rating it 4 stars.
August 4, 2017
Good book
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
July 24, 2013
There's just something about books involving past lives that I find fascinating. I was sucked into this book from the start mainly because I have an obsession with the state of Maine, I think.
I found this book to be very similar to "Dreadful Sorry" by Kathryn Reiss, although much less in depth. Not a whole lot of back story is given even when the main characters go searching for it. A few questions I had about the story were whether Lucas and Layla were actually Leo and Lillian in past lives or were they just related? How come Lucas had all these visions about his past life from an early age and it be because he's always lived in Sky Cove, however all the other reincarnated kids who lived there didn't?
Although I found it hard to put down, I was left with a sort of meh feeling at the end. It was a quick short read that I wish was much more involved and longer, but that may be because I'm in my early 20's reading a story about high school students. I also didn't really like that there were multiple other reincarnated kids from the same time period, it just sort of made the book harder to believe. I'd much rather Lucas and Layla figure things out on their own than involve so many other people.
All in all, a good quick read, but I'd definitely recommend "Dreadful Sorry" to anyone before "Once Again".
I found this book to be very similar to "Dreadful Sorry" by Kathryn Reiss, although much less in depth. Not a whole lot of back story is given even when the main characters go searching for it. A few questions I had about the story were whether Lucas and Layla were actually Leo and Lillian in past lives or were they just related? How come Lucas had all these visions about his past life from an early age and it be because he's always lived in Sky Cove, however all the other reincarnated kids who lived there didn't?
Although I found it hard to put down, I was left with a sort of meh feeling at the end. It was a quick short read that I wish was much more involved and longer, but that may be because I'm in my early 20's reading a story about high school students. I also didn't really like that there were multiple other reincarnated kids from the same time period, it just sort of made the book harder to believe. I'd much rather Lucas and Layla figure things out on their own than involve so many other people.
All in all, a good quick read, but I'd definitely recommend "Dreadful Sorry" to anyone before "Once Again".
January 18, 2013
Reviewed by: Karina
Book provided by: Author
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
Once Again is a nice mix of fantasy and romance. It showed how unconditional love lasts even in another life.
The main characters are very likable. But I think they’re both too good to be true. I just wish they weren’t perfect; that they should have something to improve on. I know it’s a fantasy novel but I just wanted some unpredictability. They were just TOO perfect. How the romance started was too fast but a bit understandable as to why. It took me sometime to be convinced that their feelings, especially that Lucas’ feelings are genuine.
Another issue I had is that the building of suspense was so long that it took 90% of the book and when it came down to the revelation part, it went in a blur. My reaction was, “That was it?”
Despite those, I still liked the flow of the story, it wasn’t confusing at all. Another good thing about it is that the mystery part was very intriguing which made me eager to finish the book. I already had an idea who was the “bad” guy, and I was right!
Overall, I enjoyed the book! It has a good story and I’m glad I have taken a journey with Layla and Lucas.
Book provided by: Author
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
Once Again is a nice mix of fantasy and romance. It showed how unconditional love lasts even in another life.
The main characters are very likable. But I think they’re both too good to be true. I just wish they weren’t perfect; that they should have something to improve on. I know it’s a fantasy novel but I just wanted some unpredictability. They were just TOO perfect. How the romance started was too fast but a bit understandable as to why. It took me sometime to be convinced that their feelings, especially that Lucas’ feelings are genuine.
Another issue I had is that the building of suspense was so long that it took 90% of the book and when it came down to the revelation part, it went in a blur. My reaction was, “That was it?”
Despite those, I still liked the flow of the story, it wasn’t confusing at all. Another good thing about it is that the mystery part was very intriguing which made me eager to finish the book. I already had an idea who was the “bad” guy, and I was right!
Overall, I enjoyed the book! It has a good story and I’m glad I have taken a journey with Layla and Lucas.
July 22, 2013
Have you ever watched a tv show called Past Life ? If so then you know that the show was canceled due to its rating of 1.1. I would definitely recommend this book having a very short shelf life. It was kind of slow paced in the beginning and after the halfway point it became a little better. I like reading about books dealing with Reincarnation but it is kind of hard to find any good ones available. Readers first learn about Layla moving to Sky Cove, Maine and then are told all about the dreams that she has been having about a married couple. She eventually discovers that she is the reincarnation of this women and has to try and find out more information on her. Then she becomes friends with Lucas and they work together to try and find out who there past selves were. This book could have been a lot shorter than it was because the first half just focuses on Layla going to school and studying for all of these tests with her friend Jessie. I don't think that there was a lot of mystery in this book.I am so glad that this was a free ebook on Amazon for a limited time. P.S The author is great just not the book. This ebook or paperback is not worth any money. For more book reviews check out my blog http://pandabooklover1995.weebly.com/...
July 3, 2014
Pros: Romantic story, good YA romance without the YA sex.
Cons: I didn't like that the synopsis on here tells you they're reincarnations but then the book doesn't get to that until about 30% in. Seemed silly. Also, I am glad I read a few reviews before I started reading the book because it's true that it's very dark and brooding throughout, with a very insecure teen girl as the main character (though not entirely unrealistically so). Like I mean there are ZERO laugh-out-loud funny parts at all. Not even really *smirk*-worthy parts. But since I knew that going into it, it was tolerable. It seemed to wrap up with the bad guy a little too easily for me. There's a brief struggle, it's over, good wins! Wait, what? A few typos throughout but nothing awful. Not at all a bad in-between "filler" read, and I got it for free on Amazon.
Cons: I didn't like that the synopsis on here tells you they're reincarnations but then the book doesn't get to that until about 30% in. Seemed silly. Also, I am glad I read a few reviews before I started reading the book because it's true that it's very dark and brooding throughout, with a very insecure teen girl as the main character (though not entirely unrealistically so). Like I mean there are ZERO laugh-out-loud funny parts at all. Not even really *smirk*-worthy parts. But since I knew that going into it, it was tolerable. It seemed to wrap up with the bad guy a little too easily for me. There's a brief struggle, it's over, good wins! Wait, what? A few typos throughout but nothing awful. Not at all a bad in-between "filler" read, and I got it for free on Amazon.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 9, 2013
The story is well-written and it flows at a good pace. My only issue is the language, the prose. It does not sound like a teenager's voice, and neither of the main characters have flaws. I don't know if their behavior and speech, including internal dialogue, is in homage to their past selves or not. If so, it makes sense, but it just bothered me that it just did not seem like teenagers. Good story, well written, interesting plotline
August 8, 2013
I don't believe in reincarnation but I liked the way the author used it in this book. How weird would it be to have the same dreams as your boyfriend? I wish the characters were older. Their connection created a very serious relationship for high school kids. Kinda young for that.
I liked the book. It didn't change me life. I keep giving 3 stars and then the star system doesn't really mean anything to me.
I liked the book. It didn't change me life. I keep giving 3 stars and then the star system doesn't really mean anything to me.
April 7, 2015
A light, fluffy, quick read. The writing style sucked me in at first, and I was totally into it (I changed schools in high school and the description of her first day of school nailed it for me) until about 80% of the way when it started to get a little strange. It was a pretty cut-and-dried paranormal (very light) mystery. Definitely a young adult novel, but a clean one, probably intended more for late tweens/early teens. It's more of a 3 than a 4 for me, but I enjoyed the diversion.
September 13, 2017
I really enjoyed reading this. It wasn't really anything that unusual, but it was written really well, and it made you believe in it! I guess you could maybe call it reincarnation fiction, but it wasn't actually reincarnation, just the dispensing of rules allowed in fantasy.
October 11, 2015
I liked this book when it first started but as events started to occur, I was more confused then anything. I just didn't understand what the author was trying to tell me.
July 17, 2013
Could not continue to read this book. It was too bland and the storyline became predictable. Lost interest in it.
July 15, 2013
i just loved the layla/luke scences. it was pretty cute and well written.
but the end was not mine. too much fairy tale.
but the end was not mine. too much fairy tale.
July 15, 2013
I read this book because it somewhat kept my interest, overall, however, as much as I loved the concept of paranormal romance and the characters, the story hit a a plateau and never quite took off.
December 25, 2013
Well, Micaela was right and I cried, too! Good story of young love and reincarnation with a few jewels of wisdom for teens today.
July 3, 2016
Great premise and very interesting to read. Finished it in one afternoon.
September 13, 2015
I became involved in the character's struggle and immensely enjoyed how Amy kept me guessing on the outcome. The characters were likable and I could 'see' the location perfectly.
October 5, 2013
I enjoyed the story, but hated the number of errors.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews