Book Review: Possessed by Niki Valentine

To say that this book 'possessed' me is putting it mildly. I usually read 2 books at a time, but my fascination for this story completely overtook my night... Because I had to finish it in one night. At the centre of the story is Emma, a musical prodigy who has just entered an elite boarding school for musicians called The Conservatoire. On her first day, she meets wealthy twins Sophie and Matilde. Sophie is outgoing and incredibly possessive of her sister, while Matilde is the calmer, quieter sort, to whom Emma is drawn to as a friend. After her relationship with another student ends abruptly due to the machinations of her twin, Matilde suffers a meltdown. It is so bad that Sophie takes her twin away to recover. When school returns, only one twin is back. Depressed, Matilde has taken her own life, a revelation that leaves Emma reeling and wondering how well she knew her friend. As Emma mourns the loss of her friend, she starts to black out, losing track of time. There are times when she believes that she sees her dead friend, only to realise that her mind is playing tricks on her. As she keeps questioning her sanity, Emma comes to realise that the surviving twin is becoming more unbalanced, caught in the delusion that her sister is possessing Emma. Emma plays along, caught between wanting to know more and thinking that she might be able to help her friend, until the final revelation that will make the reader question everything that they've read. I kept on coming up with theories about what was going on between the three girls, including drawing a likeness from the book to the short-lived TV series, Ringer. Definitely worth a look into. Rating 4.5/5