Scan barcode
sng2098's review
3.0
Need by Carrie Jones
Posted by Nikki Wednesday, April 7, 2010
OK, first let me say WOW!!!
I am officially in LOVE with this series. I have the second one on hold from the library, so I can't wait to read it!
The book starts off with a girl named Zara White, who is sent to live with her grandmother in Maine from Charleston, SC. She has fallen into a deep depression after seeing her father die after coming in from a morning run. She starts school immediately and meets this boy named Nick and instantly falls for him. She also meets a girl named Megan, who hates her for no reason. She also meets the town "over-achiever" Ian, who is also interested in her.
A few days before Zara moves to Maine, a boy went missing, without a trace. The cops have no clue where he went and Zara is scared; because there is a man that has been following her since she left Charleston. Her father taught her that if she can name a fear she can overcome it, so she has memorized almost all phobias, and when she is scared she repeats them out loud.
Along the way she manages to make two friends (other than Nick), Issie and Devyn.
Zara soon learns about a new world that she had no idea existed including; pixies, were-animals, and other things.
I can not say enough that I LOVED this book, it's right up there with Twilight, Abarat, and The Devouring! It's a MUST read. Definitely 5/5!
Posted by Nikki Wednesday, April 7, 2010
OK, first let me say WOW!!!
I am officially in LOVE with this series. I have the second one on hold from the library, so I can't wait to read it!
The book starts off with a girl named Zara White, who is sent to live with her grandmother in Maine from Charleston, SC. She has fallen into a deep depression after seeing her father die after coming in from a morning run. She starts school immediately and meets this boy named Nick and instantly falls for him. She also meets a girl named Megan, who hates her for no reason. She also meets the town "over-achiever" Ian, who is also interested in her.
A few days before Zara moves to Maine, a boy went missing, without a trace. The cops have no clue where he went and Zara is scared; because there is a man that has been following her since she left Charleston. Her father taught her that if she can name a fear she can overcome it, so she has memorized almost all phobias, and when she is scared she repeats them out loud.
Along the way she manages to make two friends (other than Nick), Issie and Devyn.
Zara soon learns about a new world that she had no idea existed including; pixies, were-animals, and other things.
I can not say enough that I LOVED this book, it's right up there with Twilight, Abarat, and The Devouring! It's a MUST read. Definitely 5/5!
orihimesmom's review
1.0
the book was… interesting. i enjoy werewolf books but the werebear, weretiger, etc is pushing it and sounds straight up dumb. a lot of cringe comebacks, gave me second hand embarrassment. also i feel like everything happened so fast, like zara fell in love with nick within 2 business days smh, like BOO. but i do appreciate how there was no miscommunication trope. (about their feelings towards each other) wish the ending was better with her bio dad. felt kinda bad for him even though he was the bad guy. i felt bad for ian too cuz even though he was horrible he just needed saving and had no one there to save him
kaeliwolf's review
This book is just so... I'm at a loss for words to describe this book because it was so amazing. Beautiful description, beautiful character development. Everything about this book is beautiful! I wanted it to never end, but if it didn't I wouldn't have gotten the information that I wanted out of it either. Thank you world for blessing me with such a great book to get my mind out of the gutter.
book_concierge's review against another edition
1.0
NEGATIVE STARS
Okay I’ve found a book worse that the ZERO star books I’ve read recently.
Zara has a lot of phobias, apparently with good reason. She’s just a shell of herself since her stepdad died right before her very eyes after the two of them came home from their daily run back in Charleston SC. Now her mom has sent her to live with her stepdad’s mother in a small town in Maine. But Zara keeps seeing the same mysterious stranger around her school and home that she saw back in Charleston. Still she has to go to school and try to fit in, even though she KNOWS she’ll never fit in. Some kids are nice to her, though, and big, strong Nick is especially solicitous.
Basically this book’s plot can be summed up with these quotes:
“I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“Whatever you do don’t open the door.”
“I’m so angry I have to run out after him.”
“Why isn’t s/he here yet?”
“It’s the snow; the roads are bad.”
“Promise you’ll never do that again!”
Repeat until your head explodes.
NOTE – Several reviews of this book have compared Jones to Stephen King or Stephanie Meyer; one called her “a cross between Stephen King and Stephanie Meyer;” another referred to her book as “more Stephen King than Stephanie Meyer.” Personally, I think this is an insult to both King and Meyer (and I’m not a fan of Meyer).
Okay I’ve found a book worse that the ZERO star books I’ve read recently.
Zara has a lot of phobias, apparently with good reason. She’s just a shell of herself since her stepdad died right before her very eyes after the two of them came home from their daily run back in Charleston SC. Now her mom has sent her to live with her stepdad’s mother in a small town in Maine. But Zara keeps seeing the same mysterious stranger around her school and home that she saw back in Charleston. Still she has to go to school and try to fit in, even though she KNOWS she’ll never fit in. Some kids are nice to her, though, and big, strong Nick is especially solicitous.
Basically this book’s plot can be summed up with these quotes:
“I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“Whatever you do don’t open the door.”
“I’m so angry I have to run out after him.”
“Why isn’t s/he here yet?”
“It’s the snow; the roads are bad.”
“Promise you’ll never do that again!”
Repeat until your head explodes.
NOTE – Several reviews of this book have compared Jones to Stephen King or Stephanie Meyer; one called her “a cross between Stephen King and Stephanie Meyer;” another referred to her book as “more Stephen King than Stephanie Meyer.” Personally, I think this is an insult to both King and Meyer (and I’m not a fan of Meyer).
abaugher's review against another edition
4.0
has a Twilight-like feel to it, but the female protagonist isn't nearly as naive and clueless as Bella has always seemed to me.
great story: real world, grief, a bit of faerie stuff, Stephen King's Maine woods horror, and some basic faerie outwitting done by the locals.
good narration: almost seamless switch between North Carolina drawl and Maine accent.
great story: real world, grief, a bit of faerie stuff, Stephen King's Maine woods horror, and some basic faerie outwitting done by the locals.
good narration: almost seamless switch between North Carolina drawl and Maine accent.
heartmenot's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
shhchar's review
3.0
This book was pretty good. A few things did bother me, like how random the climax was. One moment Zara is still reacting to the whole situation, and the next she's flying out the door with her pixie-father. I don't know, but I was thinking 'whaaa?'! Also how lovey-dovey Zara & Nick were. Maybe weres are more dedicated to love. . . They just seemed REALLY in love when in reality they had met a few weeks ago. Oh well, youths. I felt like it was going to be really cheesy when I first read the bio about 'golden dust'. And I was right, it was. But it was a fun read none-the-less. Cliche, but okay. (It rhymes!) I'll be reading the rest of the series. I loved Zara's quirks!
sparksofember's review
2.0
"Need" is a tough book to review - while reading it I was totally engrossed and fascinated. It has a slightly creepy vibe that makes you want to close the curtains and stay out of dark rooms. I liked the main character's habit of quoting phobias, it was clever. I finished the book very curious to read the next one. But then as I mulled over the story in my mind, I found myself very disappointed.
The book is written in first person as always seems to be the case lately. However, instead of the usual first-person past-tense, it is present tense... This is odd and very jarring at times "I walk here. I do this. I trip. My aunt laughs." The descriptions are barely there which really works during the creepy, in-the-dark scenes but most of the time leaves you guessing. There was a scene where the main character is startled by a car and jumps into a ditch - then she's apparently all scraped up and bleeding - a much more extreme tumble than I'd imagined. There's also more than one instant where the author got mixed up and confused who was where or had a character in two physical forms at the same time. Seriously - an eagle lands on the outstretched, gloved arm of ... a werewolf in wolf form? Oops!
The main character is a little too obsessed with her causes - I got very tired of the preaching. And I had originally picked up this book because some reviews described her as "Bella with guts" - um, no - try Bella without brains. She was always either freaking out or running headlong into danger without thought.
That being said, those are minor issues. My biggest problem with "Need" ended up being the "need" behind the name. Seriously? That's the 'need'?! The correlation between the "need" and the proposed solution just didn't make sense. Neither did the temporary solution/bandaid that the enemy was forced to resort to. And I never understood why the main character (and certain others) were supposed to be important in the first place. The bits of the sequels that I have read only confirm that the niggly doubts from the first book are fanned and flamed in the sequels. I'd recommend Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston instead...
The book is written in first person as always seems to be the case lately. However, instead of the usual first-person past-tense, it is present tense... This is odd and very jarring at times "I walk here. I do this. I trip. My aunt laughs." The descriptions are barely there which really works during the creepy, in-the-dark scenes but most of the time leaves you guessing. There was a scene where the main character is startled by a car and jumps into a ditch - then she's apparently all scraped up and bleeding - a much more extreme tumble than I'd imagined. There's also more than one instant where the author got mixed up and confused who was where or had a character in two physical forms at the same time. Seriously - an eagle lands on the outstretched, gloved arm of ... a werewolf in wolf form? Oops!
The main character is a little too obsessed with her causes - I got very tired of the preaching. And I had originally picked up this book because some reviews described her as "Bella with guts" - um, no - try Bella without brains. She was always either freaking out or running headlong into danger without thought.
That being said, those are minor issues. My biggest problem with "Need" ended up being the "need" behind the name. Seriously? That's the 'need'?! The correlation between the "need" and the proposed solution just didn't make sense. Neither did the temporary solution/bandaid that the enemy was forced to resort to. And I never understood why the main character (and certain others) were supposed to be important in the first place. The bits of the sequels that I have read only confirm that the niggly doubts from the first book are fanned and flamed in the sequels. I'd recommend Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston instead...
cordiallyinvited's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
I DNF-ed at 50%.
This book is so aggressively 2009 that it hurts. The writing style and content immediately reminded me of poor-quality fanfiction I read as a preteen, and I'm not pleased by that. The protagonist flip-flops with her personality and isn't charming or endearing the way the author wants her to be. She's certifiably quirky though. Huuuge "I'm not like other girls" energy.
This book is so aggressively 2009 that it hurts. The writing style and content immediately reminded me of poor-quality fanfiction I read as a preteen, and I'm not pleased by that. The protagonist flip-flops with her personality and isn't charming or endearing the way the author wants her to be. She's certifiably quirky though. Huuuge "I'm not like other girls" energy.
sallashelves's review
2.0
Confusing beginning, plot holes in the middle, but I got to the end. Quick to read, if you want mindless paranormal, teenage drama.
Full review:
https://bookstoldmeso.blogspot.fi/2016/09/review-need.html
Full review:
https://bookstoldmeso.blogspot.fi/2016/09/review-need.html