Author: Nancy Werlin
I had pretty high expectations for Extraordinary, because I really enjoyed Impossible when I read it a couple of years ago and I think the cover for Extraordinary is beautiful (yes, I judged it by its cover. It happens). Unfortunately, I wasn't particularly impressed.
The premise is interesting enough, I guess, although I think the mystery would have been a lot better if not for the prologue and frequent inserts labeled "Conversation with the Faerie Queen" (that's not a spoiler - that's the first chapter heading in the book). The whole thing felt very predictable to me - I knew what was really going on the whole time, so I was just waiting for Phoebe to get it together and figure out what was going on.
My main problem with the book was the characters. I thought Phoebe was really annoying throughout most of the novel because she wouldn't stand up for herself. She had the potential to be an excellent, relatable character - her "psychological battle," as Ryland put it, about whether or not she was special, was actually quite well-done - except that she had absolutely no sense of self. She let herself be defined by what other people said. And Ryland, who was supposed to be the love interest, was an utterly detestable character. I hated him and the things he said to Phoebe. Again, because the plot was so predictable I understood why, but I still didn't like him. Mallory was okay, but like Phoebe, she didn't stand up for herself enough. The one character I really did like was Phoebe's Nantucket friend, Benjamin.
What saved Extraordinary in my eyes was the ending. In the last fifty pages or so, the plot took a turn that I had not fully expected, which was really nice; also, the characters finally started to seem real instead of a means to a plot-fulfilling end. If not for the last fifty pages, the book probably would not have merited 3 stars, but once I got to those final chapters, I discovered that I actually did not despise the book and actually did want to find out what happened.
On the whole, Extraordinary was not a favorite of mine and not one that I would glowingly recommend, but it did have its moments and the ending made it mostly worth reading. It's not one that I'd advise you to go out and buy now - but it might be worth checking out from the library sometime. (And I do recommend Nancy Werlin's other novel, Impossible.)
No comments:
Post a Comment