Title: Blackbird
Author: Anna Carey
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: September 2014
Genre: Young Adult Fiction/Contemporary
Series or Stand Alone: Duology; Book One
Synopsis can be found here.
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Review:
A girl wakes up, about to be hit by a train. Though she narrowly escapes, it doesn’t take long for her to realize that someone is after her. More than one. And she has to use her wits to stay alive. Who is she? Where does she come from? Why is she being followed? And what is that mysterious tattoo on her wrist of numbers and letters and of a blackbird?
Different.
The entire book is written in second person so it reads fast, reminding me of a Choose Your Own Adventure book from my youth. The plot is fast paced and starts of running. The main girl, we call her Sunny, is “you” and you’re running for your life through modern day Los Angeles. Seeing as how I live in Southern California, it’s always fun to imagine the characters in a setting I know so this added enjoyment for me.
A lot of things work because it’s in second person. The story moves quickly, more like an action movie than a book. The danger is heightened, the character is always moving strategically, making split second decisions. That said, because it’s so fast, there’s not a whole lot of character development. I didn’t mind Sunny, but she wasn’t someone I liked. I didn’t know her very well. Granted, she lost her memory and doesn’t seem to know herself well, but I think I should have gotten a better sense of her character besides that she’s on the run. Same with Ben, this boy she meets in the supermarket and helps her along the way. I didn’t really have a good grasp on him either. They’re superficial characters and while they didn’t bother me, they’re unforgettable.
I did really like the plot. If you can get past the second person narration, Carey does a good job of surprising the reader a couple of times. It’s a fast, easy read that I think a lot of fans of Gretchen McNeil might like. I will be reading the second book (this is a duology) because I’m anxious to find out how she’s going to tie everything up.
Overall, Blackbird is entertaining. It reads like a film script, filled with settings and action.
Rating 7 Would Recommend
Kimberly majored in Songwriting and currently works full time in the music industry. When she's not listening to music, knitting or writing, you can find her outside reading her favorite genres: Young Adult, Adult Fiction, Mystery, and Romance.
this looks and sounds awesome!! I haven’t read any of this author’s other works but she’s very high on my want list 😉 Thanks for the great review!
Awesome review, love the cover on this one. That might draw me in alone, but good to know that it has a high rating as well 😀
Great review! I saw the blurb for this book and was intrigued but a little wary, but after reading your review I’m really excited to read it.
This ones been on my TBR and your reviews making it bump up to Reading Stat. 🙂
I recently heard about this one, but didn’t really know what it was about. Sounds like something I definitely want to read!
Even though I don’t really like mystery novel, I’m super excited to read Blackbird. Mostly because it’s in second person! I’ve never read a book in second person so I’m really curious to see how it goes. I’m glad to see that you still enjoyed it! I hope it doesn’t disappoint!
I haven’t read many books that are written in second person. It sounds very interesting.