Monday, October 13, 2014

Review: Chasing Power

CHASING POWER
Sarah Beth Durst
Paranormal Young Adult
376 pages
Bloomsbury
Available October 14th
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Sixteen-year-old Kayla was born with the ability to move things with her mind-things like credit cards and buttons on cash registers-and she has become a master shoplifter. She steals to build up enough money for her and her mom to be able to flee if her dad finds them again . . . which would mean grave danger for them both.

When she's caught stealing by a boy named Daniel-a boy with the ability to teleport-he needs her help and is willing to blackmail her to get it. Together, they embark on a quest to find and steal an ancient incantation, written on three indestructible stones and hidden millennia ago, all to rescue Daniel's kidnapped mother. But Kayla has no idea that this rescue mission will lead back to her own family-and to betrayals that she may not be able to forgive . . . or survive.


MY THOUGHTS
Chasing Power is a fun, fast adventure, quite literally (given Daniel is a teleporter) jumping us from one place to the next as he and Kayla try and beat those responsible for his mother’s kidnapping to a series of ancient artifacts. While not the type of story to wrap our hearts in a vise-like grip and squeeze them until we hemorrhage feelings, our time with Kayla and Daniel is memorable in its sheer entertainment value, and we find ourselves happily flipping the pages to see how everything will work out for the two of them.

Kayla is a young woman gifted in the art of sarcasm, her banter with best friend Selena bringing tears of laughter to our eyes thanks to the dry delivery and their shared ability to introduce impressively random conversational tangents. She also, despite finding herself in increasingly precarious physical and emotional situations, lacks a flair for the dramatic, instead approaching revealed secrets and lies with the type of straightforward honesty that brings a smile to our faces. The calmness with which she accepts various truths once they’re all out in the open could be due in part to her tendency to keep her own motivations close to her chest, repeatedly lying to her mother about where she’s going and what’s she’s doing with Daniel. While we want to shake her a time or two and tell her to trust her mother with what’s happening, the fact that she doesn’t is understandable based on what we know about her past, and it’s not frustrating enough to noticeably detract from our overall enjoyment.

The romance with Daniel is sweet and subtle, the two of them partners in crime first and foremost as they try and thwart those pursuing them, and only ever-so slowly does their relationship change from antagonism and distrust to attraction and affection. Daniel manages to hold his own against Kayla’s smart mouth, and like her, isn’t prone to emotional overreaction or melodrama. Overall, the romance adds a nice touch without being overdone, allowing the humor and the mystery to be the elements that truly shine, and we reach a last page free of cliffhangers and unanswered questions and full of satisfaction instead.

Rating: 4/5



Find Sarah:



This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review
I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

34 comments:

  1. And I STILL have one book by her that I have not read

    ReplyDelete
  2. oh a teleporter? It's been a while since I read about someone like that, it's so fun! I didn't really know about the book but it sounds like a good one. I shoukd try!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What I wouldn't give to be able to teleport Melliane! It would be so fantastic:)

      Delete
  3. I love the sound of this! I think I'm going to love Kayla (who doesn't love a sarcastic heroine who can keep her head on straight in the face of danger?) Lovely review Jenny, I'm definitely going to check this out! :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do love a girl with some sarcasm Lauren! Her friendship with Selena just made me smile (and snort).

      Delete
  4. I've read two of Durst's previous novels and have liked both, Jenny. This sounds like another one that I'll enjoy. It's nice to hear that neither Kayla or Daniel are prone to melodrama and the romance sounds sweet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was a nice angst-free story Z! It was definitely more action/mystery based, with just that touch of romantic tension:)

      Delete
  5. Kayla and Daniel sound like trouble, which naturally means they sound like fun. Also, their powers are pretty sweet. Who wouldn't want to be able to teleport?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I very, very much want to be able to teleport Amanda.

      Delete
  6. The only book that I've read so far by Durst is Conjured, which I loved - so atmospheric! This sounds just as wonderful, Jenny - and one that I would like with its romance, paranormal and adventure :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was such a fun read Kim! A nice break from some of the darker books I'd been reading:)

      Delete
  7. I'm happy to hear you enjoyed this book, Jenny. I've been curious about it ever since I saw it on someone's WoW, but I've been waiting for some of my favorite bloggers to review it so I can decide if I want to read it or not. I guess the decision has been made. :)
    I love the sound of Kayla's character. Honesty and sarcasm? Although I can tell I would probably be a bit frustrated with her constant lying.
    The romance sounds sweet too. I have to check this out. :)
    Lovely review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. YES! I do wish she had been honest with her mother, but I liked that she was at least honest with Daniel and Selena, and always made sure they were in the loop:)

      Delete
  8. This was a fun read. I didn't quite like it as much as I liked her Lost book but I do love how all her books seem to be pretty unique in concept and design.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I enjoyed it Ali! It was a quick, fun escape-type read:)

      Delete
  9. I've seen so many great reviews for this book and I can't wait to read it. The humour and Kayla and Selena remind me of the current series I'm reading Charley Davidson, with her and her friend Cookie and I'm absolutely loving it! It just puts me in a fit of laughter. Great review Jenny! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yes, I think Kayla and Charley would get along perfectly. I would pay good money to read something with them both!

      Delete
  10. I don't think I'd even heard of this one yet! I love the sound of the banter. Another one I need to consider reading!

    ReplyDelete
  11. You had me at teleporter Jenny! This sounds fun and perfect for Fall.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I want to be a teleporter in my next life ;-)

      Delete
  12. I love teleporting that would be my super power pick if I had one. I like the sound of the romance and lots of snark.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm such a sucker for snark Heidi. I want Kayla and Selena as friends:)

      Delete
  13. I love that most of her books are standalones and you don't have to worry about cliffies. I have this one coming up for review and I now can't wait to dive in! Humor? Teleportation? Beam me up! ;D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. It was so nice to get to the end and not have someone lying dead or horrifically betrayed:) It was just a fun read Melissa!

      Delete
  14. Oh, how I love a character with the gift of sarcasm. :D And teleportation is up there with time travel for me - win! This totally sounds like my kind of book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes to teleportation and time travel. I would like both, please ;-)

      Delete
  15. This sounds kind of cool. I'm not sure I would like the plot, but the characters sound really good.

    ReplyDelete
  16. The no hemorrhage feelings thing is a plus for me. Entertaining and fun is what I want in a book right now. And it has sarcasm too! And a sweet slow romance! I have to read this book! Nice review! :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. This sounds like a very good and fun book. I'm liking the cover of the book. Awesome review Jenny.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I think you liked this a bit more than I did, but I agree that it's a fun adventure and I liked the way the romance developed. It was fun to see Daniel and Kayla work together and slowly fall for each other as they did. Also, I've decided that if I was going to have one supernatural talent, it would be the ability to teleport. I'm extremely jealous that Daniel can pop anywhere he wants in the world!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. This one sounds as fun as Drink Slay Love and I absolutely adored that one!
    I love slow developing romances and sarcastic friends that can jump from one topic to another randomly!
    Adding this on to the wish list right now!

    ReplyDelete