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laurenswaurus 's review for:
Paranormalcy
by Kiersten White
The first thing I noticed was how it feels like I’m dropped in the middle of something. It feels like you accidentally started a new show on episode 3 and didn’t realize your mistake until you’re half way through. The second thing is quite irritating-Evie calls her taser Tasey and this drives me absolutely crazy. I understand that our main character, Evie, has not been integrated into the real world. She’s spent over half of her life working for IPCA and the only teenage interactions she sees are from a made up show that sounds like every high school drama on television. That is, over exaggerated and with themes real high schoolers never face.
I digress. Evie’s immaturity is off-putting. Instead of using profanity, she uses “bleep.” She actually says bleep in real sentences and in conversations. At least this one has an explanation-her best friend, Lish, curses and the electronic voice translator doesn’t pick up profanity. It’s a habit and an inside joke, we’re told. But it still feels too childish for a sixteen year old.
White does a wonderful job of not falling into paranormal stereotypes. We get to see a different side of faeries, they aren’t as beautiful and perfect as many portray them. I hope to see more of what dichotomy White alluded to between the different courts of the faeries. All vampires are not cold killers, all werewolves are not horrible creatures, all mermaids are not half human… The descriptions are visual enough to shatter the traditional images we hold, but vague enough to leave you wondering what everything looks like.
The relationship between Evie and her boyfriend, Lend, is cliche. Lend is the only other teenager we’re introduced to until well over halfway through the story. So, of course, they’re going to “fall in love.” Evie admits she’s in love with him before she knows what he is. Lend is in love with her without knowing anything personal about her. It’s annoying and overdone. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at every personal interaction they had. Simply put, while White’s paranormal creatures are interesting, her character development is lacking. I don’t feel attached to any of these characters.
White likes to write in gray–I do like how everything is not black and white. Throughout most of the novel, we think Reth is a vile creature but there’s more to him than meets the eye. He doesn’t turn out to be a knight by any means, but he’s not solely evil. Evie also questions the IPCA and what they stand for. Is it better to bag and tag every paranormal being and know their whereabouts or is it best to let each creature go their own way? Does the IPCA care about protecting humanity or controlling the paranormal? Evie goes back and forth on whether to despise the organization that raised her or defend them. I think this is important. The more Evie learns, the more she is not sure whether she put her faith in the wrong hands. This is the only growing up that Evie does throughout the first novel.
I digress. Evie’s immaturity is off-putting. Instead of using profanity, she uses “bleep.” She actually says bleep in real sentences and in conversations. At least this one has an explanation-her best friend, Lish, curses and the electronic voice translator doesn’t pick up profanity. It’s a habit and an inside joke, we’re told. But it still feels too childish for a sixteen year old.
White does a wonderful job of not falling into paranormal stereotypes. We get to see a different side of faeries, they aren’t as beautiful and perfect as many portray them. I hope to see more of what dichotomy White alluded to between the different courts of the faeries. All vampires are not cold killers, all werewolves are not horrible creatures, all mermaids are not half human… The descriptions are visual enough to shatter the traditional images we hold, but vague enough to leave you wondering what everything looks like.
The relationship between Evie and her boyfriend, Lend, is cliche. Lend is the only other teenager we’re introduced to until well over halfway through the story. So, of course, they’re going to “fall in love.” Evie admits she’s in love with him before she knows what he is. Lend is in love with her without knowing anything personal about her. It’s annoying and overdone. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at every personal interaction they had. Simply put, while White’s paranormal creatures are interesting, her character development is lacking. I don’t feel attached to any of these characters.
White likes to write in gray–I do like how everything is not black and white. Throughout most of the novel, we think Reth is a vile creature but there’s more to him than meets the eye. He doesn’t turn out to be a knight by any means, but he’s not solely evil. Evie also questions the IPCA and what they stand for. Is it better to bag and tag every paranormal being and know their whereabouts or is it best to let each creature go their own way? Does the IPCA care about protecting humanity or controlling the paranormal? Evie goes back and forth on whether to despise the organization that raised her or defend them. I think this is important. The more Evie learns, the more she is not sure whether she put her faith in the wrong hands. This is the only growing up that Evie does throughout the first novel.