Review: A powerhouse of phenomenal writing
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 15, 2014
The writing is superb.So superb that I didn’t notice it until well into the novel, merely enjoying the ride. It is the essence of simplicity, with beautiful lines carefully wrought to accomplish what is so hard to accomplish – conveying the complex in ten words or less. The novel is a powerhouse of phenomenal writing, funny, subtle and – when called for – poignant. There was much subtext . . . Ah, subtext! So rare in YA. Rare in paranormal. All but nonexistent where the two genres meet.I swear, even if I had hated the story, I would read anything Ms. Todd produces, just for the pleasure of reading her writing.But I liked the story. A lot.The clean writing underscored a plot that was neither derivative nor particularly original, lending freshness to an oft-told situation: A teenage girl finds out there are people in the world who have special powers . . . and she is one of them. So, not new, but so many clichés are broken that it feels new. [By way of explanation for this odd compliment: Anne Rice did not invent vampires . . . but she gave them a hell of a makeover. So too has Ms. Todd given new life to the tortured/lonely/gifted teen.]The pacing was even and steady without plodding. The reader moves through Allison’s world, getting to know her [without the dreadful angst-y inner ramblings that normally plague the genre], her friends, and the weird knot of specially gifted Baileys. The voices of the teens are authentic, expressing ideas and suffering misconceptions in the way teens do. But they’re smart; just inexperienced, which is entirely appropriate. And not once did they bore me. [I read a review of this novel that decried the lack of interesting bits until the end . . . I didn’t understand the comment, as the entire book is a layering on of interesting things to exciting climax. But to each their own.]Allison is sometimes a bit prissy, but it comes from her general lack of self-confidence. Not that she’s a shrinking violet in any sense – merely a not-terribly popular teen who doesn’t get too twisty about it. What a relief!My standard formal style notes, which are shockingly few: A couple comma splices; ellipsis formatting was incorrect; and there should be italics on movie titles and the like.I reco this book to anyone who likes the genre; and to anyone who loves solid writing. Furthermore, every YA and YA-paranormal writer needs to read this book.