By: Jennifer Bosworth
Published: May 8, 2012
Published By: Farrar, Straus and Giroux BYR
Description: Mia Price is a lightning addict. She’s survived countless strikes, but her craving to connect to the energy in storms endangers her life and the lives of those around her.
Los Angeles, where lightning rarely strikes, is one of the few places Mia feels safe from her addiction. But when an earthquake devastates the city, her haven is transformed into a minefield of chaos and danger. The beaches become massive tent cities. Downtown is a crumbling wasteland, where a traveling party moves to a different empty building each night, the revelers drawn to the destruction by a force they cannot deny. Two warring cults rise to power, and both see Mia as the key to their opposing doomsday prophecies. They believe she has a connection to the freak electrical storm that caused the quake, and to the far more devastating storm that is yet to come.
Mia wants to trust the enigmatic and alluring Jeremy when he promises to protect her, but she fears he isn’t who he claims to be. In the end, the passion and power that brought them together could be their downfall. When the final disaster strikes, Mia must risk unleashing the full horror of her strength to save the people she loves, or lose everything.
My Thoughts: Due to NaNoWriMo, it took me longer than necessary to finish this book. I started it the day before NaNo, (stupid right) read a few pages, and then didn't read another for the entire month. I picked it back up on December 1st with hesitance. I couldn't remember why I wasn't obsessed with the book so I figured something had to be wrong with it or something. I couldn't have been more wrong.
We follow Mia Price. She lives in LA with her mother and brother. She's a little upset due to an "issue" she had where she used to live and for that reason, she has to control her moods and stay away from other people. She's a lightning addict and for that reason, she holds this, energy, inside her that can be released if she doesn't control herself. After an earthquake hits LA, the city is a mess. Her mother is going through PTSD, the town has gone pretty crazy, and things just aren't the way they should be. To top it off, there's these two cults that have risen up. The followers, and the Seekers.
The followers are those who follow a False Prophet who believes God speaks through him and tells everyone that the world is going to end soon and that they need to follow him. They wear all white and are pretty brainless happy go lucky people who are like spreading God's word to the WORST EXTREME POSSIBLE!!! In their mind's, if you don't follow Prophet and take his word as God's, you're a sinner and you will certainly die in a few days. They say it to your face and become a bit abusive to those that don't want to accept Prophet's word. There's not much I know about the Seekers except that they are opposite the Followers, wearing mostly red, and focus on stopping the Followers and Prophet at all costs.
Mia is at the center of it all. She's the key to both cult's success, and she doesn't want to help. Meanwhile, there's this guy who intrigues her. He can see the future for some reason. He's been struck by lightning too, and he tells her to stay away from both cult's at all costs. It's hard to do when you're wanted by them though, and eventually some things come to a head.
The story was actually pretty darn great. I loved the idea behind it. I loved the impending deadline of the storm, the way it affected Mia. I loved a lot about it, even though I must admit, I could anticipate much of the big events and especially the conclusion. Speaking of the conclusion, it seemed too good. Sometimes I want for things to end on a bad note. Everything cant end the way you want it to in your head. You shouldn't get everything you want. I would have preferred to have some sort of loss or something that hurt me and made me believe this could be real instead of just a book. I hope you understand what I mean when I say that.
Any who, it was a great book. I loved it and it was written nicely. I'm sure this review may not lead you to believe it was good based upon the things I said I didn't like but honestly, it was great. It makes sense in the face of an earthquake for the people to become lost, looking for a leader the way they were. I loved how thought out it was. 4.5 Stars.
6 comments:
I almost commented on Girl Possessed and then thought…why bother, although I must say that review was kind of comical. “Draw all the conclusions you want. They’re probably right” (Hahaha).
Okay, anyways back to this book. As usual I thought this review to be a good read; aaand also, as usual I have not read this book. While it didn’t seem as much of a must read as Into the Hollow (which I am definitely going to purchase after I finish Storm of Swords) but it does seem to be interesting. I was a bit surprised / saddened you didn’t comment that much on the two characters personalities. I guess I’ve grown accustom to seeing how you might relate the characters, whether you love’em, hate’em or aren’t quite sure but still find something really interesting about them. It could be their positive aspects to their natures or possibly something about their own flaws or idiosyncrasies, especially when it comes to the relationship element. A story about a girl addicted to lightening strikes is alone; interesting enough though to send up my antenna, plus the rest of the story seems really cool. I like the fact that the book is set in Cali too; I find reading books about people in other places that are actually real and not just in some fantasy world, to be kind of more interesting in some ways. Reading about other states or countries gives me some insight into some other cultures, or at least that author’s take on that culture. I’m from Maryland and have never really left here for longer than a week so…yeah, kinda sad I know but this isn’t about me. Lol…
As I am thinking now though, leaving out some of that detail about Mia and this intriguing dude is well…intriguing, so in actuality what you really have done is wet my appetite…clever woman; that kind of, could boost the possibility of me actually buys the book. In the end I’m at least just glad that both books didn’t suck, because it would have been hard to read to reviews of bad books back-to-back; and I’m sure I would have been even harder on you to be forced to write them, so…Yay for you.
-YSA
Yeeeah so, proof reading isn't really that helpful after you have already posted the comment. Lol...I notice a bunch of spelling / grammatical errors that might have made that a bit hard to swallow. It's been a long day. My bad! But Happy Friday anyways!
- Your (I promise I'm not not really that illiterate)Secret Admirer
Is this one a standalone? That would explain the happier ending. I've seen this one around and been pretty curious about it. I just can't seem to figure out if it's meant to be set in our timeline or an alternate universe.Regardless, it sounds like a great read.
Oh wow!!
Well, even when a book is good, that doesnt mean its perfect!
and I know what you mean about wanting the ending to not be PERFECT!
nothing is really perfect in the end!!
Great review
-Theresa Jones
YSA: It's good to know people care about how I feel about the characters. I'll make sure to include that next time
Lan: I'm not quite sure. they have come out with a Prequel, and theres definately the possibility of a sequel with the way it ended, but it also could be a standalone. I wish I could find something conclusive.
Ms. Jones: You're right. Nothing is ever perfect. I wanted a realistic ending.
It's been a long time since I've read a book that was the complete package, and Struck has it all. More intelligent and powerful than the average YA novel, Struck is an electrifying debut that hits all the right buttons.
Mariz
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