Review: SPECTACULAR!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 5, 2011
Wow!  And I do mean, WOW!  This was a fabulous novel that sucked me in and made it impossible for me to set down until I'd read every word.  Kirkpatrick is a phenomenal writer and she blew me away with her debut novel Into the Shadows!  I was on pins and needles throughout most of the book, worried about Paivi and her family--the similarities between this novel and the Red Scare were chilling.  Part of the reason I love this novel so much is because it has aspects of our history intermingled within it.  As it's a YA novel, it helps remind young people about the atrocities our own country, and many others, have committed when scared--such as stripping people of their human rights, arresting them without providence, ruining careers/lives due to paranoia, and forcing people to wear badges identifying themselves as enemies of the state.  This is a very real offence that has happened in many countries, and Kirkpatrick does a phenomenal job showing the reader the errors of our past through this fictitious novel, while also making it very clear that human panic and the mob mentality can easily overtake a nation; it could easily happen again if we aren't careful.What happens to Paivi and her family is atrocious, but so captivating that you will not be able to put the novel down.  Instead of looking at communism or ethnicity, this novel looks at the war on terror, rounding up those believed to be aiding terrorists and blacklisting them as the country runs scared--stripping them of all their human rights, though no evidence if available to convict.  But, in actuality, it seems those blacklisted by fictional Senator Stevens have been declared enemies of the state solely because they have special abilities, such as being able to see the future, like Paivi and her parents, or being able to read minds, like Christian.This novel drudged up many feelings for me, in terms of the atrocities of the Holocaust, which started off with Jews being forced to wear badges (like Paivi, her family, and everyone else blacklisted as enemies of the state).  This made me nervous, and angry, as I read, especially since we all know that the Holocaust rapidly became much worse than only having to wear badges.  As the story progresses, Into the Shadows begins to show how much worse it can get, and though it does end abruptly, leaving the reader antsy for more, I can only imagine that the sequel, hopefully releasing late this summer, will go further into its scary similarities of the Holocaust and the Red Scare.  It can only get much, much worse for Paivi and her family before it begins to get better.  I LOVE this story, and cannot wait for the sequel.  I highly suggest picking up this novel!  Five stars!