Name: Paranormalcy
Author: Kiersten White
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: August 31, 2010 (US)
Pages: 335, Hardcover
Source: Audiobook Library
Rating: 2.5 Teacups
Evie's always thought of herself as a normal teenager, even though she works for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she's falling for a shape-shifter, and she's the only person who can see through paranormals' glamours.
But Evie's about to realize that she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.
So much for normal.
[summary taken from Goodreads]
Jen's Review
It's ridiculous how
long I've wanted to read Paranormalcy. I've had my eye on it before I even knew
about blogging! The cover always intrigued me and I was a sucker for paranormal
YA novels at the time. 4,381,470 years later, I have finally picked it up.
However, I'm sad to say that it wasn't my cup of tea.
To start off, one of
the things I didn't like was the fact that the paranormal creature setup was
all over the place. I understand that Kiersten White made this novel unique by
having all different types of paranormal creatures, but for me, it didn't work
out very well. It felt crowded and hectic. Perhaps I'm just used to reading
about one or two paranormal creatures in a book, but the amount that is
presented in Paranormalcy was overwhelming and disorganized.
Second of all, the
characters weren't real to me, and boring. I couldn't care less what the main
character Evie did with her job at the IPCA. Evie was annoying and whiny. Her
relationship with Lend wasn't bad, but it was awkwardly developed, which made it
unbelievable. The romance wasn't anything special. I didn't feel for any of the
characters, actually. In a nutshell, the characters of Paranormalcy fell
extremely flat for me.
Not only were the
characters unentertaining, so was the plot itself. Areas where the plot was
fast-paced, I found myself not needing
to know what happened next. I was constantly thinking, "Oh. Intense part
coming. It's done? Okay, moving on then." It just kind of went along and
there wasn't much to it. I know, sadness.
All in all,
Paranormalcy just wasn't for me. It's hard for me to say that I'll continue
with the series. However, I do still recommend it because I know many readers
who enjoyed Evie's spunky, light-hearted personality. If you're a big fan of
paranormal YA novels that has different supernatural creatures involved, I do
still recommend giving Paranormalcy a try, even if I didn't enjoy it as much as
I'd hoped.
2.5 Teacups for Paranormalcy!
Posts
When I first read this one, I was blown away by its originality, but looking back, it wasn't all that great. I found this book to be the best of the trilogy, so I doubt you'd enjoy the rest of it since this wasn't too moving for you. I surprisingly liked the romance, but I can see how it would be off-putting too. Still, amazingly balanced review, dear! :)
ReplyDelete100% agree with this review! I was really excited for Paranormalcy as well but in the end it was everything you mentioned here. Evie was annoying and I remember really liking Lish and when the thing that happened to her happened, I got really mad haha :P The plot was kind of forgettable too, which didn't really help. At least the cover is pretty to look at though! Thanks for the honest review :)
ReplyDeleteI actually agree with most of your review, even though I somewhat enjoyed this when I first read it. I think I rated it 3 stars myself, mostly because Evie was the wrong character for me and dampened my enthusiasm a little overall. I didn't continue with the series in the end. Lovely review, Jen!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear you didn't like this one-I really loved all the different paranormals, it felt like a mashup but I have been disappointed by the sequels. It seems doubly awful that the narration was bad too.
ReplyDeleteI actually really liked this book. I thought Evie was fun :) All the different paranormals didn't made it feel crowded in my taste, but I can understand that it felt this way. If you didn't like it, I advice you to stop here. I don't think you will enjoy the other book, because it wasn't as good as this one in my opinion. So you will not like it at all :) Great review anyway!
ReplyDeleteAw, I'm sorry you didn't like it. I had my eye on this for a while too, but my expectations got lower. :/
ReplyDeleteSorry this didn't work out for you Jen. I remember "liking" but not loving this. I still haven't picked up the sequels. Great review. :)
ReplyDeleteLike Keertana and Sam said above, I actually really enjoyed this when I first read it. But now... I just feel... indifferent toward it? A bit meh? I've read the sequel aswell, but haven't really felt inclined toward finishing the trilogy with Endlessly. I probably will eventually, but for me it's one of those series that are enjoyable while reading, but don't make much of an impression later. Sorry that it didn't make an impression while you read! Brilliant review, though <3
ReplyDeleteLike Brodie, Keertana and Sam said above, I really liked it when I first read it! But that was like..when I started reading YA books again and it just seemed...original? I guess? But now, I don't feel like reading the sequels at all :( Apparently Evie gets even more annoying in the second book! Urghhhh!!! Oh and I didn't particularly like her romance with Lend either :/ Like you said, it felt awkward and unbelievable! Great and honest review Jen!<3
ReplyDeleteAaaw so sad to hear that a book you've been wanting to read forever didn't turn out to be that great. I get what you mean about how the book was kind of crowded due to all of the Paranormal creatures- it would be interesting to find a book with that many Paranormal aspects that's NOT crowded or overdone. Haha a nasal-y voice? That doubly sucks! -.- Great review, Jen! :)
ReplyDeleteAww I'm sad that you didn'T like this one more. I really liked Evie I found she was hilarious and fun but I can see her not being for everyone. and Ugh a nasal-y voice? And you got through the whole thing? You're a trooper! >.<
ReplyDeleteFirst off - what a gorgeous blog you have! So pretty and pink! LOVE IT! I'm in love with your rating system, too :D
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear you didn't enjoy Paranormalcy~! I haven't read it yet, though I do have it. I've heard mostly good things about it and am especially excited about the main character having the same name as me :)
I'll give it a try, maybe I'll have more luck with it :)
Great review!
I enjoyed this book. Can't say it was a great fav, FAV of mine but I still loved White's writing. Great review!
ReplyDeleteAw it's too bad you were so excited for this one and it didn't work! I have actually heard a lot of negative things about this one so I will definitely be staying away from it. I don't know how you put up with the nasaly voice throughout!
ReplyDeleteI don't enjoy paranormal books with too many different paranormal creatures either, it gets overly confusing if not pulled off well. And... An unentertaining plot? Guess this isn't for me then :/ /shifts to bottom of TBR list/ Though I like your honest opinions! :)
ReplyDelete-Alicia
Book a World
I rated this book 3 stars too Jen, so don't worry about it not working out for you, as soon as I finished it, I was like why the hype? lol And I too would totally be put off by a nasally voice on an audiobook too! I'm you find your next read a lot more enjoyable! :)
ReplyDeleteI liked the first book more than you did and I connected with the characters more easily, but the second one was such a disappointment that I didn't even bother with the third. And YES; I had it on audio too, and I disliked the narrator's voice. Very nasal, you're right.
ReplyDeleteGreat review!