Dead Sky Morning (Experiment in Terror #3) - Karina Halle

Dead Sky Morning was by far the scariest book yet and considering the creepy factor that was present in the first two books of the Experiment in Terror series that is really something. Karina Halle is a genius at creating absolutely terror-inducing plots (and I do not say this lightly - I was something of a horror aficionado when I was younger and rattled my way through many a horror novel and watched just about every scary movie I could get my hands on).

Amateur ghost hunters Perry Palomino and Dex Foray are once again off on another excursion, this time to a haunted island between British Columbia and Washington State. D'Arcy Island was once home to a leper colony but is now a destination for tourists who are looking for somewhere a little different to camp out. There have been many reports of strange sightings which makes it an ideal location for the Experiment in Terror show. Perry and Dex will be spending a secluded weekend trying to capture any ghostly sightings on film - but they are in for more than they bargained for. There is something about the island which instills fear and doubt into the pair and it soon becomes apparent that there is more to fear than just the ghosts. Both Perry and Dex become increasingly more paranoid and soon begin to turn on one another. Alongside the strange behaviour of the local wildlife and the ghostly sightings (which for some reason only Perry can see) the real danger they face is each other. Something on the island is trying to tear them apart and it may very well succeed unless they can start trusting each other again.

Wow. Yet another amazing book and my favourite entry so far. Even though there were some very uncomfortable parts (it was hard seeing Perry and Dex lose faith in each other) the overall tension kept me totally gripped. The island setting felt very claustrophobic and the rabid animals, the decaying lepers, the ghost of a young child of which there are no records of...all of this came together in a way that pretty much scared the bejesus out of me. What was worse though was the way in which Perry and Dex turned on each other. The two have been through so much together and have had to rely on each other to get them through the often strange and terrifying situations they find themselves in so for them to be at first unsure of each other then downright suspicious was hard to bear witness to.

It is just as well that there were some interesting developments in their relationship to act as a balm for all the breakdown of trust. Their relationship...takes an interesting turn (I do not want to give too much away for fear of spoilers). Although the island is messing with them, Perry and Dex do a lot of opening up to each other and some of their conversations had me even more gripped than when all the paranormal activity (lol) was going down. Their relationship certainly took a new turn and I cannot wait to see how it develops.

I was totally and utterly enthralled by Dead Sky Morning. What really makes this series stand out for me are the interactions between Perry and Dex. I still adore Perry just as much as I did in the previous novels. She is dealing with some negative public opinion as a result of the show in this book and my heart broke for her but at the same time I did want her to have some kind of epiphany and realize that the nasty comments being thrown her way were not worth getting upset over. This made her even more vulnerable to what was happening on the island. Dex is beginning to really grow on me even though at times he was acting like an arse. Don't get me wrong, once we find out the reason for his behaviour I could understand why he was having a hard time but he is too quick to take out his frustration on Perry and I would have liked her to grow a bit more of a backbone around him. Perry is hopelessly in love with Dex but she really lets him get away with far too much and I would like to see their relationship be more balanced as Dex seems to hold all the cards at present.

Overall, another thrilling installment in the Experiment in Terror series. The series just seems to be getting better and better.