The Reckoning (Darkest Powers, #3)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publication Date: 4/6/10
Publisher: Harper Collins
Blurb (GR): Only two weeks ago, life was all too predictable. But that was before I saw my first ghost. Now along with my supernatural friends Tori, Derek, and Simon, I'm on the run from the Edison Group, which genetically altered us as part of their sinister experiment. We're hiding in a safe house that might not be as safe as it seems. We'll be gone soon anyway, back to rescue those we'd left behind and take out the Edison Group . . . or so we hope.
Review:
I love Kelley Armstrong. I love her adult "Women of the Otherworld" series. I do not love her YA books, I think they are just OK reads, with overabundance of action but lacking actual plot and satisfying story resolutions. The same applies to this final book in the Chloe Saunders trilogy.
Most likely, if you enjoyed "The Summoning" and "The Awakening," I expect you will like "The Reckoning," because it's basically more of the same - the same running around scenarios with little story progression. Just like in the first two books, the majority of the story is devoted to the same hiding from the bad guys, figuring out if the good guys are actually good, trying to learn the nature of the Genesis project and... that's it. Although this book takes place mostly in the same house, there is the same going back and forth, planning and discussing escapes, just like in the previous two books. The story goes around in circles coming back to the Edison group each time. The novel is entertaining, but the constant action/walking around/scheming eventually gets tiresome. Some characters' miraculous appearances are surprising. Considering the villains are so quick to kill off kids, why some meddling adults are left alive and free is a mystery to me.
Fortunately, "The Reckoning" is more like "The Summoning" in terms of plot, there is a more defined high point/climax in the novel, where "The Awakening" was 90% running without any resolution. In addition, there is also more "meat" to the story - I enjoyed learning more about the project the kids are a part of and about everyone's powers. I also liked the budding romance between Chloe and Derek, their relationship is written well, it is healthy (unlike many portrayed in YA literature) and the teens themselves feel real and not in the least annoying. For us, fans of Armstrong's adult books, there is a nice surprise too - a tiny bridge to her "Women of the Otherworld" series.
The rest - well, the book is more entertaining than the 2nd in the trilogy, but ultimately it is not as satisfying as Armstrong's adult novels which all have definitive endings and completed story arcs. Even this final book in the trilogy leaves the story wide open for more sequels with many loose ends left unexplored (I wish to at least know why Chloe's necklace changes colors). I still believe (as I did after finishing the 1st book in the trilogy), that this trilogy has just enough story for one good YA novel, but instead is unwisely stretched into a series. I will however most likely read the next book in the Dark Powers - "The Gathering," because in spite of the flaws, Armstrong's books are better than 90% of the YA literature out there.
3/5 stars
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Publication Date: 4/6/10
Publisher: Harper Collins
Blurb (GR): Only two weeks ago, life was all too predictable. But that was before I saw my first ghost. Now along with my supernatural friends Tori, Derek, and Simon, I'm on the run from the Edison Group, which genetically altered us as part of their sinister experiment. We're hiding in a safe house that might not be as safe as it seems. We'll be gone soon anyway, back to rescue those we'd left behind and take out the Edison Group . . . or so we hope.
Review:
I love Kelley Armstrong. I love her adult "Women of the Otherworld" series. I do not love her YA books, I think they are just OK reads, with overabundance of action but lacking actual plot and satisfying story resolutions. The same applies to this final book in the Chloe Saunders trilogy.
Most likely, if you enjoyed "The Summoning" and "The Awakening," I expect you will like "The Reckoning," because it's basically more of the same - the same running around scenarios with little story progression. Just like in the first two books, the majority of the story is devoted to the same hiding from the bad guys, figuring out if the good guys are actually good, trying to learn the nature of the Genesis project and... that's it. Although this book takes place mostly in the same house, there is the same going back and forth, planning and discussing escapes, just like in the previous two books. The story goes around in circles coming back to the Edison group each time. The novel is entertaining, but the constant action/walking around/scheming eventually gets tiresome. Some characters' miraculous appearances are surprising. Considering the villains are so quick to kill off kids, why some meddling adults are left alive and free is a mystery to me.
Fortunately, "The Reckoning" is more like "The Summoning" in terms of plot, there is a more defined high point/climax in the novel, where "The Awakening" was 90% running without any resolution. In addition, there is also more "meat" to the story - I enjoyed learning more about the project the kids are a part of and about everyone's powers. I also liked the budding romance between Chloe and Derek, their relationship is written well, it is healthy (unlike many portrayed in YA literature) and the teens themselves feel real and not in the least annoying. For us, fans of Armstrong's adult books, there is a nice surprise too - a tiny bridge to her "Women of the Otherworld" series.
The rest - well, the book is more entertaining than the 2nd in the trilogy, but ultimately it is not as satisfying as Armstrong's adult novels which all have definitive endings and completed story arcs. Even this final book in the trilogy leaves the story wide open for more sequels with many loose ends left unexplored (I wish to at least know why Chloe's necklace changes colors). I still believe (as I did after finishing the 1st book in the trilogy), that this trilogy has just enough story for one good YA novel, but instead is unwisely stretched into a series. I will however most likely read the next book in the Dark Powers - "The Gathering," because in spite of the flaws, Armstrong's books are better than 90% of the YA literature out there.
3/5 stars
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