Monday, October 17, 2011

Review of Need by Carrie Jones

Title: Need
Author: Carrie Jones
Published by: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books
Pages: 306
Source: Library
Format: Audiobook
Rating: ★★★★

Summary From Goodreads: Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane...but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now. She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right - not human - in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

One of the nice things about my job is that when I'm doing pure data analysis it's a fairly mind numbing process so I can listen to a book on my ipod while I'm doing it.  I listened to Need in two days.  The story seems to pull you in because of all the mystery that surrounds the town.

I've never been through something like Zara has so I can't imagine totally shutting down and being sent to Maine just to restart my life.  That being said, at least for Zara, I'm not sure if that was a good decision or a bad decision.  She's in this new town and meets these new boys to get her out of her funk, but at the same time trouble follows her...in the form of a stalker guy. 

I do like Zara as a character.  I think she is not necessarily the strong, fierce, heroine type, but she's got a good head on her shoulders and doesn't back down when times get a little tough.  The best thing about this novel has to be the side characters.  Her grandmother has to be one of my favorite characters; she's spunky and feisty and everything you don't expect from a grandmother.  Zara's new friends are also fun and quirky.  They add so much life to the story that you can't help but love them.     

The storyline is a little different than anything I've read before, but at the same time there were a lot of common themes to other popular YA books on the market.  That is not a bad thing and it wasn't overdone in any obvious ways, it's just that when you read enough most novels have common elements as I'm sure you've all noticed. 

The story, however, did capture me and I was intrigued to find out the mystery of the town, the people, and this crazy stalker guy. 

11 comments:

  1. Great review, I still haven't read this series yet. Hopefully soon :)

    Book Addict

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  2. Ha! I can do the same thing at my job when I'm checking number or even filing. Though my filing system probably only makes sense to me. LOL

    So... different but familiar. I know what you mean. After a while it all sort of becomes a type of comfort food. No?

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  3. The audio book must be tons better than the actual book. Zara came across as so whiny and irritating in my mind. Maybe that was book 2. I dunno. They all blur together. Glad you liked it, but it drove me crazy!

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  4. Great review! I read this last year, and enjoyed it for the most part. I love the grandma! She's awesome!

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  5. I've heard some really good things about this book. I love it when the side characters are so awesome! The grandma sounds amazing!

    Thanks for the review! I'll have to get to this book someday.

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  6. I loved this book SO much! I can't wait for the final book next year to see where the story goes. I loved Grandma Betty! She rocks.

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  7. I kinda found the book a bit cliche. I loved the first couple of chapters were Zara comes across as a total nutcase but after that I thought it was a bit dodgy. I didn't think any of the characters were very realistic and there wasn't much substance to any of them. That being said I thought it was a fun read, but I wouldn't be able to revisit it.

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  8. cute romanceful book

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  9. I kinda found the book a bit cliche. I loved the first couple of chapters were Zara comes across as a total nutcase but after that I thought it was a bit dodgy. I didn't think any of the characters were very realistic and there wasn't much substance to any of them. That being said I thought it was a fun read, but I wouldn't be able to revisit it.

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  10. Who is the stalker please can someone tell me xxxx thnx

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  11. Is the stalker devyn ? I think it is x

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