Not Alone
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4.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $4.99
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
Blue DuBois wants the world to leave her alone, but the world has other plans.
It's summer, 2011, and for four and a half years, all Blue has been looking for is a normal life after losing her family in a suspicious fire. But what is normal for a fourteen-year-old that can hear what no one else can? And what should she do when she hears something that presents a tantalizing opportunity to avenge her family? With an unexpected new friend and ally, she comes up with a slam-dunk plan. All she has to do is risk everything, including both of their lives.
Whether you like coming-of-age or teen thrillers or mystery (and just a touch of paranormal/sci-fi), you will find an enticing blend of all these elements in this first book of a unique YA series set in down-to-earth rural Vermont. With just a touch of maybe-this-could-be-real scientific conjecture as an intriguing element, this is a story more about friendships and those magical bonds created by shared terrifying experiences during a formative time of life.
"Extraordinary and unforgettable ... Martin blends elements of thriller, science fiction, and teenage drama into a taut YA coming-of-age tale about a young girl struggling to find her bearing in the cozy town of Westbury, Vermont. Martin's keen understanding of adolescent psyche, sharp observations, and lively imagination command steady attention. A dazzling blend of thriller and SF, this is a knockout." -- The Prairies Book Review
"The author's ingenuity in masterminding [the] genetic trait upon which much of his narrative is crafted is truly brilliant. It adds depth to those who possess it and greatly enhances the overall storyline. All who read it will be enthralled by the twists and turns that ensue and will wait with arms wide open for its sequel to be published."-- San Francisco Book Review
"While stories of teen characters with exceptional abilities are abundant, Martin offers an alluring blend of the paranormal with a more grounded, realistic storyline ..." --The BookLife Prize
"This book was totally unexpected. I really enjoyed it. It's a YA thriller with sci-fi elements ... very well written." -- Isabella Wilson, London Book Trio
"The first half of the book is set up ... the second half of the book is a blur of flipping pages ... I found the character Martin wrote to make the villain oddly fascinating ..." -- Carolina Herdegen, Kiss the Book
Customer Reviews
Give me more!
I’m not normally a reader of YA fiction, although I do read a good amount of sci-fi-fi and fantasy novels, but when this book was recommended to me I thought I’d give it a go. I’m glad I did. The first half of the book is a steady (not slow) introduction of characters and their extra abilities. It’s not trying to be a Marvel Universe of super-powers; just one shared ability amongst a small group in a small town. I liked the fact that you got the feel of a small town through the personalities of the characters. They weren’t jaded or ultra-sophisticated, and that worked well with the plot development. The second half of the book was a true page-turner with some somewhat unexpected turns (not too many, it is a YA book, after all). Although the main villan seemed, in some ways, too smart/“nice”/slick for his role in this first episode, the upcoming sequels promise more of a charater development for him, so we’ll have to see how that goes. And, since this is Book 1 of a series, we are left with an ending that is satisfying yet also with a good number of loose ends. I look forward to the next books.