Where to begin. Well, when I started this book, I thought it was just one book. When I kept reading to no end, I realized that it was actually 3 books put together. It does make for a VERY long read that way, however, as a person that really dislikes a cliff hangar without being able to jump right into the next part of the story, I appreciated being able to read all of it together. It was well written, detailed. As having lived in the area that the story line is based out of, I could see the places that author was describing. There wasn't a singular main character but there were a few and then supporting characters, of course. Dubya, the recovering alcoholic cop who returned home with his tail between his legs and trying to hang on to his sobriety and sanity, is presented with a once in a lifetime opportunity. He is asked to head up a new division for the police department, a cold case division. Annie, the eternal mother of the children on the train, is trying to hold it all together even though she knows her time is coming to an end. Lidya and Daniel are young cops finding their way through the ropes and get pushed into Ol' Dubya's path. As the story progresses, Dubya (real name Willow) is trying to teach his two new recruits how to work the cold cases and they are drawn to one in particular. One that Dubya has a personal attachment to. As they stack the blocks to solve what is happening, Dubya is trying to figure out his dreams about the train and the blue children he keeps seeing on the train. Without giving too much away, to summarize what is happening, a person (usually an adult) dies suddenly and a child that has been murdered comes through and reanimates that body. Both persons reside there as "landlord and tennent". It is up to the tennent (the child) to find their killer and seek their "moment of balance" in order to board the train one last time and finally cross over. The person that leads the children by offering support and support groups is the Porter (Annie). It's a race against time and when things start to go "haywire", everyone becomes concern that not all will be revealed.

Awful, Awful ,Awful

Oh my god this book is awful, it was so bad I could not read it. The start of the book was not good. There was not a proper start to the book and I did not like the main characters if he was the main character. I just gave up which is a shame maybe the book got better but if the first few pages don't grip you then I cant keep reading sorry.

unfortunately not a book i enjoyed, it fell short on me in every way which was sincerely unfortunate for me since i was so excited. rtc

A new take on how we move on from horrible acts. This book follows a pair of siblings who were murdered, as well as the detective who always wondered what happens. What if the souls of murdered innocents are given a chance to come back and try to right the wrong, to seek justice? This story has many poignant moments, and though it is an unconventional twist, brings to mind "The Lovely Bones". I highly recommend this one.

A page-turner from start to finish... Highly recommended.

Creepy, thrilling, endearing and gripping. A great read and concept, not for the feint of heart!

I abandoned the book; it was a difficult read. It’s not for me, but I’m sure other people will enjoy it.

I'll admit, I was drawn to this book based just on the title. And then I read the synopsis. A book about murdered children returning to Earth through a recently deceased adult to exact revenge? Sign me up! The first few chapters were actually really difficult to follow. I thought about giving up, but the premise was too enticing. I'm glad I stuck with it, because once I was able to figure out who was who and what was what, it was one heck of a roller coaster! Some of the subject matter was pretty heavy (it IS a book about murdered children, after all) but nothing was overly gruesome. It was one of the most imaginative books I've ever read!

I'm not a huge reader of the mystery / thriller genre, but the premise of this book was so intriguing that I found myself really wanting to read it anyway. And I wasn't disappointed! A Guide for Murdered Children shifts between many perspectives as it tells the story of the spirits of murdered children who come back to co-inhabit the recently deceased (think less zombie and more magical life extension) as they try to discover the identity of their murderer and achieve their mysterious “moment of balance.” 

My one real complaint with the book is that it started quite slow and began by introducing the story and characters in such a sporadic and confusing way that it almost felt impenetrable to me at first. Fortunately, one I was able to dig a little deeper into the book the story started to take a more coherent shape and as I got to know the characters a little more (particularly Detective Willow Wylde and his two cold case protégés Lydia and Daniel) I was hooked. The idea of murdered children getting a second chance at justice / revenge is such a strange and fascinating concept and was very well executed in the book. Sparrow didn’t get too bogged down in the details of how or why it was happening and instead just focused on the story and the fact that it was. It’s probably fairly obvious from the premise, but it is also worth noting that the book gets incredibly dark at points—we’re talking murder and rape of both adults and children. It generally cuts away before showing anything too explicit, but it definitely skirts right up to the point of showing and doesn’t shy away from the horror aspect. Though unlike some books that use that kind of violence for shock factor, these issues felt more central and necessary to this book because of the plot—and they’re never brushed off or dismissed. 

Overall, a really fascinating and well-written book. I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone because of the subject matter and degree of violence, but for people who enjoy mysteries / thrillers or crime novels, this would probably be a great read.

A very unique read. The premise was new to me, as I have not read anything like this before. It was a great idea and drew me in. Sometimes I had to re read to check which character I was learning about but otherwise I found this book quite engaging.

I had a really hard time getting into this book, so much so that I didn't finish it. The story just didn't grab me, and the characters weren't that unique. I'm sure there is an audience for this. It's just not for me.

I would understand if people didn't like this book. It took me past the character introductions to start figuring things out. Once I understood how weird this book was going to be, I was spellbound. It's about murdered children who cohabit another body until they get their revenge. The other body belongs to another person who had died and came back to life for the purpose to help the child get revenge and once that happens, they both die. There are some decent twists. Throughout the whole book I didn't like the main character. Yet that didn't hamper my enjoyment of the book.

The title caught my attention, I mean, how horrible. The concept of the story is interesting, once I figured it out, the transfer of spirits of children that are killed into the bodies of adults who technically have died- prolonging the adults physical life and sharing consciousness in some weird ways.  The idea is that the living dead have a chance to to 'balance' the crimes.
It was hard to follow the story and narration, it took a while to figure out what was what. Things go awry, of course and the plan is in jeopardy, 
While I really do like the idea of murdered child having  some way to right such a heinous wrong, there might be a better way.

Wonderfully inventive!  A lustrous, bittersweet novel, here are children who carry tremendous burdens.  Their voices will echo for a long time.

I'm just going to take a moment to admire the cover, it's amazing. The retro feel really caught my eye, and then when I read the synopses I was hooked. 
The premise of the book is that murdered children can be reincarnated into the bodies of the recently deceased (so recent that no-one knows they have dies) and seek revenge against the perpetrator of their crime. The process isn't as straight forward as it sounds though, and the children, in the body of their "caretakers" must go to a group meeting led by the "porter", Annie, and be guided through their adventure.  Unfortunately Annie is terminally ill, and this means that the usually straight forward process has become erratic and she needs to find a new porter before everything goes "haywire" .

The book deals with dark themes, and is in turns heartbreaking and scary. The characters are all so well drawn. None of then are perfect, and are more likeable because of this. The killers are genuinely creepy (as they should be!) and the book is full of horrors. 

Despite the nature of the book I really, really enjoyed it, as there is also an uplifting thread of hope running through the book. My only complaint would be that it was difficult to keep track of all the characters that the book introduces and at times the writing was a little confusing (maybe this will be amended before the book is released?) 

I received an advanced copy for review courtesy of the publishers and net galley.

Siiiiiiiiigh

Don't get me wrong, I was really excited about this book. I love dark books with a hint of mystery and fantasy. And the contrast on the cover between the title and the pink background with stickers really set my hopes high. I was imaging a more modern version of the Lovely Bones. What I got was something very strange and sad... and not in a good way.

Going through some of the other reviews I noticed some people had problems with the narrative. It's told out of order and bounces around between a few of the characters. It reminded me a little of Cloud Atlas where I just pushed through and things started coming together. What bothered me the most was the constant reference dropping. The author would mention a Katy Perry song or some other pop culture reference, but it just started taking me out of the story. At one point, the author started going into so much detail about setting up a Casper mattress I'm still slightly convinced they paid her to mention the brand.

Overall, the book was okay. While not terrible, this book could be improved. I thought about how to rate this book in a couple ways. The crime/mystery aspect of it wasn't bad at all. I was interested in the characters and how the situation would pan out. But the fantasy aspect was confusing and felt forced. It seemed like the author set up a set of elaborate rules that she then bent to get the story to work. While fast-paced, the writing could be confusing at times. The concept at its core has promise but the execution left a lot to be desired.

The title of this book seemed intriguing but I think I could only get about five pages in before I was just so annoyed with it. The lingo used was very immature and I just couldn't connect at all.

The interesting and quirky title first caught my eye, which led me to requesting this book. It was quite and enjoyable read! The author did a great job in setting up the plot and following through. Would recommend!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  I loved the premise of murdered children returning in the bodies of adult 'landlords' to exact their revenge on their murderers.  Really well written.