And Finally...One More Review!

The third (and possibly final) book in the Darkest Powers series, The Reckoning, takes up with Chloe, our heroine, safely ensconsed in supernatural friend Andrew's house. Along with her fellow runaways Derek, Simon, and Tori, they've been on the lam from the Edison Group, the people responsible for genetically altering their supernatural genes in order to "make them better". But for once it seems as though things will slow down and allow the quartet to catch their collective breaths and form a plan on how to return to the laboratory and rescue Chloe's Aunt Lauren and their friend Rae. But things couldn't be quite so easy, could they? Of course not...especially with an evil poltergeist living in their new home, Derek's final Change into a werewolf iminent, romantic issues, a missing parent, and the ultimate betrayal by those who are supposed to be protecting them.

The Reckoning is just as well written as the previous two books in the series, yet I couldn't get over the feeling that we'd never be free from the running going on. Chloe's powers are terrifyingly shocking; the scene in the cemetery is particularly gruesome. I loved the scenes where Derek finally changes, and Tori's growing maturity is a welcome change over her bratty behavior earlier. And yet, though those pages kept turning rapidly, I can't help but feel there will be more to come with these characters since there's way too much left unexplained. I would welcome another entry in this series in order to clear up some of the mysteries left dangling (which several reviewers have enumerated far better than I could). Even with the irritations of stories left unresolved (or not resolved satisfactorily), I would still continue to read this series and recommend them to all who love young adult paranormals. Armstrong writes with a sense of urgency that made me continually say "Just one more page...just one more chapter..." until I had to force myself to put the book down. Definitely addicting.

 

~taminator40

The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong

The Awakening, the second book in the Darkest Powers series, picks up almost immediately after The Summoning ends: Chloe wakes up, basically imprisoned, at the mercy of the Edison Group. This group is responsible for the genetic engineering of several supernatural babies' DNA; now that the group has reached their teens, their powers are increasing and sometimes out of control. And if the Edison Group cannot get a handle on the teens...well, let's just say that problems are eliminated. And it's this truth that Chloe's awakened to.


The Awakening moves quickly and it's not a spoiler to say that Chloe and Tori (her nemesis) escape the supervision of the adults from the Edison Group and meet up with Simon and Derek. No one's particularly excited to have Tori along, but the other three make the best of things as they go on the run. There are no pretty surprises about running for your life, and Chloe's necromancy is a constant source of terror as she accidentally raises the dead. Unsure of even where they are headed, the foursome only want a sense of normalcy to return to their lives.

While it's clear that The Awakening is ramping up the action so we can get to the final showdown with the Edison Group, it also stands up to expectations. There is literally almost no stopping place once the escape happens, and Chloe's terror at her growing supernatural manifestation is palpable. I did wish there was less bickering among the characters, but that only makes it more realistic since they are teens. I also wondered at how Chloe could instinctively know what to do with her powers when she only recently discovered them. But in general this book is a welcome addition to the teen paranormal genre because it's different from the run of the mill love/angst/horror stories so prevalent. I'm on to the next one!

~taminator40

I'm Baaaaack...With Reviews, No Less

Well, here I am.

I really haven't been anywhere, actually; just knee-deep in marching band season with youngest dear daughter. The reading's been slow but good when I've been able to snatch a few pages, but the ability to review has been wayyyyy yonder on the backburner. But finally band season's done (we came in fifth in the state, thank you very much! Check us out at http://www.johnovertonband.org/) and we're headed off to Hawaii on November 19 for a week. I'm already plotting which books to take (definitely Elizabeth Chadwick's newest, To Defy a King, and possibly Torment by Lauren Kate). Don't look so shocked...I know you fellow book readers plot what books to take on vacation just as early as I do. I also know you take two or three extra books *just in case* you start to read something and it doesn't take. Don't look away. I know your secrets.

Anyway, I'm in the process of catching up on my reviews, and here are two of my recent reads. First up is The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong.

Things are fairly typical for Chloe Saunders; she's a regular 14 year old with her circle of friends and she's very into films. Though she misses her mother who died years earlier, she's got a father and a trusted aunt who care for her. So what if she's a bit of a late bloomer? It's all good--until the day she sees a terrifying ghost. Suddenly she's no longer normal; she's diagnosed as schizophrenic and shipped off to the Lyle House, an in-house treatment center so that she can learn to cope with her illness. The problem? It's not really an illness; it's fact, and Chloe's going to have to convince herself that she's got a special power she's going to have to learn to deal with, despite the adults who are trying to get her to believe otherwise.

The Summoning is engaging right from the opening pages and doesn't let up throughout. Once Chloe figures out she's not schizophrenic, you know she's going to have to get herself out of Lyle House, but it seems next to impossible. Her friendships with Liz, Derek, Simon, and Rae provide Chloe with the realization that perhaps she's not alone in her gift, but none of them seem to know what's going on...and it's obvious as the mystery grows that things are much darker and deeper than any of the kids had suspected.


Finding a stopping point was a big problem for me while reading The Summoning because Ms. Armstrong often ends chapters on cliffhangers. I kept thinking "just one more page...just one more chapter..." and before I knew it, fifty more pages had flown by. If at times Chloe seemed a little naive, it was understandable, given her background and the work the adults had done to ensure that she was kept in the dark. The Summoning had lingered for quite a while in my to-be-read pile, but it's a sure thing that its sequels, The Awakening and The Reckoning, certainly won't. Great fun and highly recommended.

Next up is The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller.

Ever have the feeling that you've lived before? Haven Moore has; in fact, she's been feeling that way since she was a very small child and could give details about New York City and Rome that there was no way she could have known. In her small East Tennessee town, under the scrutiny of her judgmental grandmother, Haven is seen as odd and out of place. The fact that her best friend is a gay football player who helps her sew dresses doesn't help her outsider status, and her susceptibility to "visions" which cause her to faint frequently is seen as possibly even demonic by her church. But when Haven discovers a box of notes written by her deceased father wherein he ponders the idea of Haven's having lived past lives, she knows he's right. And when she sees handsome playboy Iain Morrow's face plastered in the papers, she knows in her soul that he's the "Ethan" she's been looking for since her last life ended.

The beauty of The Eternal Ones is that you're never precisely sure what's going on, and who the good guys are. Haven's susceptible to the feelings and visions she experiences, but she also listens to just about everyone she meets, casting doubts and raising red flags constantly. She allows Iain to sweep her off her feet and then abruptly decides he's using her, but his presence and assurance that they are meant to be together throw her into even more turmoil. Iain remembers all their lives together, and while Haven believes him, she begins to wonder when it becomes obvious he's keeping big, big secrets. Then there's the Ouroboros Society, a group that tracks people who remember past lives. Just what part does the Society play in Iain's life now, and what part did it play in the deaths of Haven, once known as Constance, and Ethan, many years before?


The Eternal Ones is wonderfully layered and mysterious, and Haven and best friend Beau are vivid and believable. The biggest issue I had was the wishy-washiness Haven experiences once she follows her instincts and goes to meet Iain; should she believe in him or was he really the cause of her death in the 1920s? Come on, make a choice and stick with it! But the seamless way Miller weaves reincarnation with Christianity and the slow unveiling of Haven's past life as Constance more than makes up for any dithering she may do along the way. This one actually rates a strong 4.5 stars...and I'm hopeful there's a sequel already in the works.

~taminator40