Review - The Uninvited by Sophie Jordan

 

Title: The Uninvited (Uninvited #1)

Author:  Sophie Jordan

Teaser:  “They say she’s a killer.  One day she will be.”

Genre: YA Sci-fi Dystopian Thriller

Number of pages: 384

Released:  January 28^th, 2014 by HarperTeen

 

 

 

 

Description:

 

 

The Scarlet Letter meets Minority Report in bestselling author Sophie Jordan's chilling new novel about a teenage girl who is ostracized when her genetic test proves she's destined to become a murderer.

When Davy Hamilton's tests come back positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS)-aka the kill gene-she loses everything. Her boyfriend ditches her, her parents are scared of her, and she can forget about her bright future at Juilliard. Davy doesn't feel any different, but genes don't lie. One day she will kill someone.

Only Sean, a fellow HTS carrier, can relate to her new life. Davy wants to trust him; maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

The first in a two-book series, Uninvited tackles intriguing questions about free will, identity, and human nature. Steeped in New York Times bestselling author Sophie Jordan's trademark mix of gripping action and breathless romance, this suspenseful tale is perfect for fans of James Patterson, Michelle Hodkin, and Lisa McMann.

Positives:

-Events that happened in the last 100 pages really surprised me.  Sophie Jordan took everything a step further, which a lot of YA authors shy away from.  A lot of times YA is not true to the seriousness or violence that may occur.

-Love the premise.  The scary thing is, I could see finding a ‘homicidal’ part of your brain actually possible.  This book asks the question – Does the human race bond together or tear each other apart in times of trouble?

Negatives:

-The first 200 pages of the book were slightly hard for me to get through.  I tend to shy away from YA fiction that –takes place- in a high school setting.  The author would really have to pull off a character I connected to or have a surprising plot for me to enjoy such setting. 

-The main character, Davy, was slightly irritating.  Watching her have to get past her entitled self-image would have been a great character development, but she seems to never move past this.  Her ‘skills’ advance a bit too fast towards the end of the book.

Overview:

When I first saw the premise of this book, my eyes went wide.  Such a good idea.  Something that could possibly happen as science improves.  In that sense, it was a bit scary.  Also, one of the things I look for in a book is an actual real, thought-provoking question that the author asks through her writing.  Luckily, I did find it in this book, while others that don’t have it seem like fluff to me.  I usually can’t finish them.  For this book, as stated above, the question of what the human race is actually capable of in the face of our fear of each other’s differences is examined for the reader.

The plot itself went from ‘bleh-oh that’s sorta cool-bleh-bleh-sorta cool-unrealistic-Woot! Awesome!’.  The daring move that the author takes towards the end of the book really saved it for me.  It made me want to read the next in the series, just to see what happens to Davy.  I cross my fingers hoping that she moves past her irritating self.  Although I didn’t prefer the beginning, I could see others enjoying it.  The reality of how teenagers judge and treat each other in high school is magnified.  Sometimes I felt deja’ vu from experiences I had when I was younger.

Well, you already know how I felt about Davy.  She was readable, but slightly annoying.  She was so prideful about the ‘hottest guy in school’ picking her.  And because of this, she seemed to think she ‘deserved more’.  When this was taken away, she seemed to think ‘Oh, life isn’t always like this?  I can’t get everything I want?’.  As for Sean, I –loved- his character.  He was the typical bad-ass protector type that was labeled as ‘scary’ by his peers.  People stay away from him, and he seems to like it that way.  I know I enjoy a character when I am eager to know more and more about them and I whine when the author only gives me tiny morsels at a time.  The supporting characters seemed to fly by.  They were there and then they weren’t.  I would have liked more consistency there.

Overall, I didn’t hate the book.  I still enjoyed it, but it just didn’t make me jump up and down happy or get pissed in a good way when I finished it.  In a way, I wish the author would have taken the daring move that she did at the end of the book, and make the whole book more that way.  Surprise.  Make me go ‘oh shit, that just happened?’.  So The Uninvited is okay.  It’s worth a read, but not worth shoving it up on your list and fighting for a copy.

Rating:

 2.5 wands

 

 

Recommended to:

-Those who love the premise!

-Readers who are eager to see the question of humanities cruel judgement of each other exaggerated in an artistic way.

-Those who don’t mind high school settings.

-Readers who like bad boys.

 

Not Recommended to:

-Readers who hate entitled characters.

-Those who are sticklers for realism.