Review: Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

Unspoken

Sarah Rees Brennan

(The Lynburn Legacy #1)

Publication Date: September 10, 2013

Paperback, 434 pages, Random House Books

Genres: YA, Paranormal

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Kami Glass loves someone she's never met . . . a boy she's talked to in her head ever since she was born. She didn't spend her childhood silent about her imaginary friend, and is thus a bit of an outsider in the sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Still, she has a best friend, runs the popular school newspaper, and is only occasionally caught talking to herself. Her life is in order, just the way she likes it, despite the voice in her head.

But all that changes when the Lynburns return . . .

My Review

Oh the feels. Kami and Jared are just made for each other. I know it. There’s no way they could not end up together, right, Sarah? Right?

This story is very different from Sarah’s Demon Lexicon trilogy. Unspoken has a lighter air to it and it’s more of a romance than an action-y paranormal page-turner. But that’s totally okay, I really enjoyed it because of this. I’m getting a little tired of this giant plot-based in fantasy and paranormal books. Sometimes I like reading a light, paranormal romance with thought-out characters and good dialog. That’s exactly what this book is.

Kami is a spunky character who knows exactly what she wants in life—a successful high school (secondary school?) newspaper career. Although Kami’s one-liners and light-heartedness are ridiculously cute for the most part, at times, they are a little repetitive and eye-roll-worthy. Don’t get me wrong, she’s a great character, she’s just a little too perky every once in a while.

Now Jared, the American (Did I forget to mention that this book takes place in the U.K.? Well, it does.) bad boy who talks to Kami in her mind, had me drooling. I haven’t read about a good bad boy since I read Gena Showalter’s A Mad Zombie Party. Despite getting his viewpoint sometimes, I still never really knew what he was going to do/say, like the whole punching someone in the face thing. (You’ll see what I mean once you start reading.) The two of them together are just a combination of awkward, ship-worthy, and fantastic!

I must say, though, that the third person point-of-view left me wanting. I really like to get into the character’s heads, and third person with dual povs doesn’t allow that. While the book managed to have me liking the characters, if it was a first-person pov book, I’d probably be loving them.

Learning about the paranormal aspects of the book is a constant surprise. I still don’t know exactly how the rules of their paranormal world work, but you can bet I’ll be finding out in book #2!

All in all, this book is a delightfully fun piece of literature. If you’re in a reading slump, I’d suggest checking this baby out. You’ll be out of that slump quicker than you can say “Breaking and entering.”

*Note: I purchased a copy of this book for myself. This in no way affected my review.