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iamivan91tx 's review for:
Pivot Point
by Kasie West
The premise of this book is one of the things that drew me to it. A young woman who can “see” the outcomes of her decisions before taking them? That power is cool! Most of us would like to be invisible or super strong, but Addison “Addie” Coleman’s gift is so useful. Wouldn’t you wish you had it?
At the start of Pivot Point, Addie’s parents drop a bomb on her: they’re getting divorced. Not only that, her father is moving away. So, Addie has to choose whom she wants to live with. In a normal world, the decision would already be difficult to make. Addie lives in the Compound, a closed-off town where only people with special abilities reside. That’s one thing that surprised me at the start. I thought Addie would be the only character with a gift. The abilities in this book are all mind-based. Addie is mostly referred to as a Searcher. Her gift is a special type of Clairvoyance, which allows Addie to see only her future. Laila, Addie’s best friend, has the ability to Erase memories. Other abilities in Pivot Point include telekinesis, lie-detecting, and even phasing.
If Addie chooses to live with her father, then she’ll have to adapt to life in the outer world. To help her choose, Addie Searches her future to see which one would be better. The rest of the chapters in the book alternate between two timelines. In one timeline, Addie stays with her mother and lives life as she’s always known it. Only, Addie is pursued by her school’s popular quarterback, Duke. In the other timeline, Addie moves with her father. She attends a Norm (that’s what they call people without powers) high school. Soon enough, Addie makes new friends. One of them is Trevor, a laid-back but cute boy who Addie's drawn to. At first glance, both of the possible futures seem all right. Addie has no idea what awaits her, though.
Keeping track of the two timelines seemed challenging at first. I thought it would be like reading two books at once. I’ve never done that to avoid losing track of either story. In Pivot Point, the dual timelines worked well, though. I was never confused when I continued reading. You may notice that every chapter starts with a word definition. They’re not there just for decoration. Starting with chapter three, you’ll find that those definitions give you a clue as to which timeline the chapter belongs to. The definitions are also loosely related to the events in that chapter. I thought those were clever additions, and quite helpful.
As the events unfold, Addie is drawn into a murder investigation in both of the timelines. Simultaneously, she falls for both of her love interests. Addie seemed to grow closer to Trevor, though. I thought they made a better couple than Addie and Duke. There’s the obstacle of Trevor having an ex-girlfriend, but he isn’t interested. In the end, Addie’s decision turns out to be much harder to make than I expected. Both futures end with awful consequences, and Addie must choose the future she’s more willing to live with. The synopsis tells you that Addie needs to decide who she’s willing to live without. Will it be Duke, or Trevor? The answer may surprise you.
As marvelous as Pivot Point was, some things were just plain silly. It appears that the author took a leaf off J.K. Rowling’s book, and the results were rather embarrassing. You know how wizards are all but helpless in the Muggle world? They suck at picking an outfit, for instance. Kasie West tried to do the same with her gifted people. There was a scene with Addie and Duke in which the latter gets stuck in a bathroom in the normal world. He has no idea how to unlock a door with a knob, as all doors in the Compound are automatic. I mean, seriously? A dog could figure out how to open a door, given enough time. The people of the Compound are said to be able to use 100% of their brain (that’s the reason why they have gifts). Getting bested by a door? Unbelievable.
Should you pass up this book? I say definitely not. If you’re a fan of romantic paranormal fantasy with really likable characters, you’ll enjoy Pivot Point. Just forgive the author for the gaffe I mentioned above. Other than that, this book is a gem. It was riveting.
My rating: ★★★★
4 stars - Definitely enjoyed it!
At the start of Pivot Point, Addie’s parents drop a bomb on her: they’re getting divorced. Not only that, her father is moving away. So, Addie has to choose whom she wants to live with. In a normal world, the decision would already be difficult to make. Addie lives in the Compound, a closed-off town where only people with special abilities reside. That’s one thing that surprised me at the start. I thought Addie would be the only character with a gift. The abilities in this book are all mind-based. Addie is mostly referred to as a Searcher. Her gift is a special type of Clairvoyance, which allows Addie to see only her future. Laila, Addie’s best friend, has the ability to Erase memories. Other abilities in Pivot Point include telekinesis, lie-detecting, and even phasing.
If Addie chooses to live with her father, then she’ll have to adapt to life in the outer world. To help her choose, Addie Searches her future to see which one would be better. The rest of the chapters in the book alternate between two timelines. In one timeline, Addie stays with her mother and lives life as she’s always known it. Only, Addie is pursued by her school’s popular quarterback, Duke. In the other timeline, Addie moves with her father. She attends a Norm (that’s what they call people without powers) high school. Soon enough, Addie makes new friends. One of them is Trevor, a laid-back but cute boy who Addie's drawn to. At first glance, both of the possible futures seem all right. Addie has no idea what awaits her, though.
Keeping track of the two timelines seemed challenging at first. I thought it would be like reading two books at once. I’ve never done that to avoid losing track of either story. In Pivot Point, the dual timelines worked well, though. I was never confused when I continued reading. You may notice that every chapter starts with a word definition. They’re not there just for decoration. Starting with chapter three, you’ll find that those definitions give you a clue as to which timeline the chapter belongs to. The definitions are also loosely related to the events in that chapter. I thought those were clever additions, and quite helpful.
As the events unfold, Addie is drawn into a murder investigation in both of the timelines. Simultaneously, she falls for both of her love interests. Addie seemed to grow closer to Trevor, though. I thought they made a better couple than Addie and Duke. There’s the obstacle of Trevor having an ex-girlfriend, but he isn’t interested. In the end, Addie’s decision turns out to be much harder to make than I expected. Both futures end with awful consequences, and Addie must choose the future she’s more willing to live with. The synopsis tells you that Addie needs to decide who she’s willing to live without. Will it be Duke, or Trevor? The answer may surprise you.
As marvelous as Pivot Point was, some things were just plain silly. It appears that the author took a leaf off J.K. Rowling’s book, and the results were rather embarrassing. You know how wizards are all but helpless in the Muggle world? They suck at picking an outfit, for instance. Kasie West tried to do the same with her gifted people. There was a scene with Addie and Duke in which the latter gets stuck in a bathroom in the normal world. He has no idea how to unlock a door with a knob, as all doors in the Compound are automatic. I mean, seriously? A dog could figure out how to open a door, given enough time. The people of the Compound are said to be able to use 100% of their brain (that’s the reason why they have gifts). Getting bested by a door? Unbelievable.
Should you pass up this book? I say definitely not. If you’re a fan of romantic paranormal fantasy with really likable characters, you’ll enjoy Pivot Point. Just forgive the author for the gaffe I mentioned above. Other than that, this book is a gem. It was riveting.
My rating: ★★★★
4 stars - Definitely enjoyed it!