THE AWAKENING

Author: Kelley Armstrong ISBN: 9780061662768 5/2009 YOUNG ADULT Publisher: HARPER TEEN

If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl—someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I’m as far away from normal as it gets. A living science experiment—not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a group of people who call themselves The Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters, I’m a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control: I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever. I’m running for my life with three of my supernatural friends—a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch—and we have to find someone who can help us gain our freedom back before The Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Poor Chloe—with her escape plan failed, the news that her beloved Aunt is in on it the whole time and her love interest far, far away, things are just plain sucky. I don’t blame her for wanting to have a pity party. She learns, however, from her previous mistakes at least, and plots a bit more privately.

The book picks up pretty much right where THE SUMMONING left off, and from there it picks up momentum for a while, slows down a little for more character development and then picks right back up again. Surprisingly, Tori, who is a supreme prima donna and witch, has some of the more (or less) shocking developments. Somehow, while still being a prima donna she makes herself useful to the others (Simon, Chloe, Derek) and isn’t quite as annoying. Or maybe it's because we see less of her for a stretch of the book.

The friendship between Derek and Chloe grows deeper in this book, as does the tension it causes between Derek and Simon. I honestly cannot say if there is tension because the boys are jealous of the time Chloe spends with one or the other, or if Derek is really worried that Chloe will hurt Simon and is too inept at handling the situation. Personality quirks of Derek’s are explained in better detail—for instance, he sees Simon and their dad as his ’pack’ and doesn’t see much use for anyone else most of the time. As a werewolf his ’pack’ would mean everything to him, so it's natural for him to be wary of what Simon’s growing feelings for Chloe could possibly mean.

We learn more about the backstory of the characters as well. Even though this is a first person narrative from Chloe’s perspective, we learn about Derek’s back story (in an offhanded way), and Tori’s and Simon’s as well.

Most unsettling, however, is the repercussions of Chloe’s power and the Edison Group’s tampering with it. Without details, let’s just say that Chloe learns that being a necromancer is dangerous while awake or asleep.

Some of the developments are predictable and others are perhaps too stereotypical to really be surprised by, but overall, this will keep fans entertained and guessing.

Alexandra Cenni