Friday, April 27, 2012

Review: Unraveling

UNRAVELING
Elizabeth Norris
Paranormal Young Adult
445 pages
Balzer + Bray
Available Now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn't possible, she knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life.

But her revival, and Ben's possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI agent father's files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what's right in front of her: Everything that's happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben's sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she's going to need to uncover Ben's secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process. 


MY THOUGHTS
Unraveling is a gloriously unexpected read, one where the synopsis is specific enough to pique our curiosity and inspire us to break the spine, but at the same time vague enough to have us flipping that first page with a fair amount of trepidation given we’re not exactly sure what type of paranormal or inhuman element we might be dealing with. That initial hesitancy fades away quickly as we’re immediately introduced to a female protagonist who embodies many of the characteristics we as readers love best—strength and intelligence paired with a quick wit and down-to-earth personality–and very few of the ones that have us curling our fingers into fists out of sheer frustration. Our introduction to her is the beginning of a marathon that feels much more like a sprint, Janelle’s already complicated and difficult life becoming even more so when the weight of the world is literally placed on her shoulders and the unstoppable ticking of a clock haunts her every waking moment.

Janelle is one of those rare characters who seems utterly perfect from the minute we meet her. Not so much in the sense that she’s physically flawless or a paragon of everything good and wholesome and pure, but in the sense that we feel no desire to change anything about her and can simply appreciate her faults because they’re part of a whole we can’t imagine being any other way. She absolutely makes mistakes, but she often knows she’s making them and admits them to herself before we even have the chance to open our mouths and tell her to change her course, and even though we may disagree with her on occasion, we can’t help but recognize that without the gift of outside perspective we might make the exact same choices.

Many times with young adult novels, the romantic element seems to be tossed into the overall story arc more because it’s almost a criteria that one be in place for the book to be appealing to the target market, and thus many romances come across as rather superfluous rather than intrinsic. With Unraveling however, Ms. Norris does a truly impressive job of crafting a complex plot with an otherworldly mystery that is only enhanced by the presence of a romantic relationship rather than encumbered by it. We get the distinct pleasure very early on in the story of not only seeing how Ben feels about Janelle but actually experiencing his emotions briefly as she glimpses herself through his eyes, and from that moment on we get the deliciously slow building of a relationship that was previously non-existent and completely unacknowledged become something beautifully important. There’s a special headiness to their connection, one stemming from the collision of new and old feelings as Janelle begins to truly comprehend the extent of Ben’s feelings, and nothing is more satisfying than watching what Ben never thought possible come to life.

The story itself is a perfect combination of simple and complex, giving us just enough scientific information to create genuine plausibility, but not throwing so many technical terms and complicated theories at us that we get ejected from the story due to incomprehension. Those who enjoy stories like those presented in Fringe will revel in this tale, enjoying the juxtaposition of reality and science fiction while remaining completely grounded in heartfelt human emotion.

Rating: 4.5/5

37 comments:

  1. I absolutely adored this book and I'm glad to see you enjoyed it as well. I've never read anything like this one before, the storyline just completely hooked me. I also loved the romance between Ben and Janelle. Fantastic review :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are getting me seriously excited. Janelle sounds amazing, as does this plot!! I'm so glad this is another MUST LOVE book of 2012. I may have a heart attack when this arrives in my mailbox <3 Thanks for the brilliant review!

    Lisa | Read Me Bookmark Me Love Me

    ReplyDelete
  3. Loved loooooved loved this one!! It was explosive and thrilling and it was the perfect ride and simply compelling! This book had mystery, suspense and love. But the ending? Can't we have a quite minute about the ending and how heartbreaking this was???!?!?!? *wipes away a tear*

    ReplyDelete
  4. I can't wait to read this one. I've been hearing lots and lots of amazing things!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. excellent review my deaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!!! I loved this one too! and Im so glad to see that you gave it the same rating as I! lol! I totally agree that Norris this an awesome job crafting such a great plot an enhancing it with a romantic sub-plot! The main plot still in the front and is pretty awesome! loved it!

    great review my dear! ^^

    Dazzling Reads

    ReplyDelete
  6. Tiffany - Me either! I really was not sure what to expect, but it was awesome:)

    Lisa - I loved Janelle! I really wouldn't have changed anything about her and that's rare for me. I'm hard on heroines:)

    Danny - YAY!!!! I died a little at the end. And then I scoured the internet to find a release date for book 2!

    Leanna - I was super impressed, it was not at all what I expected. In the best possible way:)

    Natalia - Thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaank you! So much to love about this book:)

    ReplyDelete
  7. I've got this one sitting on my bookshelves. And now I feel like I must read it soon! Soon!

    ReplyDelete
  8. For some reason I never really thought much about this one even though I have heard of it.. now that I actually read the description more carefully and have seen your review I definitely want to give it a chance. I love books that do characters and relationships well along with the plot.

    ReplyDelete
  9. "That initial hesitancy fades away quickly as we’re immediately introduced to a female protagonist who embodies many of the characteristics we as readers love best—strength and intelligence paired with a quick wit and down-to-earth personality–and very few of the ones that have us curling our fingers into fists out of sheer frustration." <---YES! Finally a female lead that I don't want to smack around for being feeble and useless! I'm already sold and I like the paranormal stories where I'm not sure what I'm dealing with-those are the best kinds! Really looking forward to getting this book in my hands.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Fab review Jenny! I adored Janelle she was a tough MC which I really think we need more of these days! And the ending omg it nearly killed me! I can't wait for book 2! Just wish it would hurry up already! :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Amanda - YAY! Read it, read it, read it!

    Ashley - It really wasn't on my radar either, but I was lucky enough to snag a copy and it just blew me away. Loved it.

    Rummanah - Right? I loved Janelle from page one. She definitely was flawed and made mistakes, but she was never irritating for me.

    Jasprit - YES! I agree, she was strong without being a badass necessarily - I felt like she was real.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Gah! And I didn't get this one off Amazon Vine in time--I was turned off by yet another teen-dies-and-returns-to-life-different premise. Now, I'm definitely going to have to get this one. "Gloriously unexpected" with a fab character who really speaks to you? Yes, please.

    ReplyDelete
  13. So much agreement! Especially about Janelle's character. She is fantabulous. The only thing I would have changed about her was her name, but, heck, that's not her fault. People's parents give them stupid names all the time. (the jumpah cables are for your cah, may have been a distracting thought)

    Recommend this to EVERYONE.

    ReplyDelete
  14. such a lovely review! I'm really, really excited for this book because I LOVE science fiction thrillers and am so excited that more sci-fi thrillers are being published in the YA world. hooray! :D

    I need to get some money so I can buy this book like yesterday. I have a feeling I need this book in my life and that I'll love it (like everybody else, ha!)

    Ashelynn @ Gypsy Book Reviews.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Wasn't this a suprisingly fun read? You forgot to mention who wonderful Alex is as well. I was caught off guard by the heart wrenching plot twists and the story was impressive especially for a debut author. I am excited to see what Ms. Norris offers next time. So glad you loved it as well. Have a great weekend, Jenny.

    ReplyDelete
  16. *squeeeee*

    This book is on it's way to me as we speak! (I think) And I can't wait to have it in my grubby little hands. I've looking forward to seeing myself...er I mean that other chick in Ben's eyes. LOL

    ReplyDelete
  17. Mary - I think the teen-dying-and-rescued-by-mysterious-boy aspect is what kept it off my "must have" list too, but I'm so glad I gave it a try. It's fabulous:)

    Christina - Yay! I adored Janelle:)

    Ashelynn - Thank you! I think if you're a science fiction fan you'll adore this one. I love how she made everything seem plausible:)

    Heidi - It definitely was. I can't wait to read it again:)

    Missie - YAY!!! I hope you love it:)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Yeeeeeeeeeeeay! <3 You are officially a part of the Unraveling-loving club, Jenny! You have to be initiated by writing an epic review for it (which you definitely did! <3), declaring your love for Ben Michaels (which you already did too IN your epic review!), and being awesome (which is totally a given)! x) I disagreed with Janelle sometimes too, but she was so real that I couldn't help but love her anyways!

    STUNNING REVIEW, Jenny! <3 :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. I have been so excited to read this one...I pre-ordered it so it should be coming soon.YAYAYAYAAYYYY!!! I want to read this and go see that movie with the Chimpanzees in it...LOL....

    Um that didn't make sense but oh well....:)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Beautiful review Jenny! I adored this book and I'm so glad to see you loved it too. I have to agree about the romance! The author did a brilliant job ensuring it was actually a part of the story and not just thrown in. And after that painful ending, I am dying for the next book! :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. I have my hands on a copy of this one and can't wait to read it, Jenny! I don't think I've seen a bad review for it and I love that the characters seem ordinary for the most part. The romance between Ben and Janelle is one I can get behind :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Not only do I now want to read this book, I think I'm going to look up this author and see what else she has written. You are right, much of the romance is thrown in. So nice to see it finely crafted within the story!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Mimi - YES! Club member! *does happy dance*

    Tina - AWESOME! I can't wait to see what you think! And are you talking about the Disney movie?

    Sam - Thanks! I loved how the romance worked, it felt like a part of the story but didn't overwhelm everything else:)

    Z - Love Ben and Janelle together! They're fabulous:)

    Melissa - I think this is her debut novel, though I'm not 100% positive on that. I'll certainly be reading anything and everything she writes from here on out though!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Oh what a FANTASTIC review Jenny. You're the second person I've come across who also raves about this book. You practically had me at your description of Janelle - I love characters that make you feel as if you wouldn't want to do anything to change them. I would read the book based on that alone. :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Fabulous review, Jenny! Unraveling sounds so great (and yay for sci-fi)! Janelle seems like a fantastic protagonist - strong, intelligent, down-to-earth, and somewhat flawed. I like the sound of the romance too,

    ReplyDelete
  26. The cover is so amazing and the story sounds great too. I love how you've described *everything*! The characters sound great and that is half the battle right there.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great review. I really love the sound of this book and can't wait to get it. I love reading about characters that we don't want to change!! :) We don't get a lot of those in ya books.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Yay! I'm so glad to see your review posted, Jenny. And lookie, we even gave it the same rating. :)

    I really enjoyed this one, too--it really is a great addition to the young adult sci fi genre. So looking forward to seeing where the story goes next!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Wow, great review. Sounds like a great book. I was so not interested in this one. My purse is crying right now between you and the Bewitched Bookworms and Rummanah!
    But how can I miss out???

    Heather

    ReplyDelete
  30. What more can I really say, then that it sounds freaky :) Really freaky. What is going on?

    ReplyDelete
  31. Looking forward to this one! Glad the romance doesn't overpower the story. Great review :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. Oh, I love Fringe (even if it often creeps me out) so I'm definitely curious about this one! I've actually just started it and can't wait to see how it'll turn out. I have a lot of questions already, that's for sure! So glad you enjoyed it, Jenny! Great review as always :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. Ok I'm convinced! I'm kicking myself cause I passed up the review opportunity for this. But I'll be keeping my eyes open. Great characters and romance that fits the plot sounds great to me!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Great review. I am so excited to read this book!

    ReplyDelete
  35. I love your review for this! I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed this book so much. It wasn't what I expected at all. :) I also thought that Fringe was great as well!

    ReplyDelete
  36. You explained Janelle exactly right - I loved her. And Ben. And Janelle and Ben together. And that awesome plot! Gah, can't wait for the sequel.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Totally agreed!! :D I just finished this book a couple of days ago and am still thinking about it constantly. SO. FLIPPING. GOOD. Janelle, Ben, the craaazy insane plot line that I never guessed correctly - it was perfect. Seriously crazy good. Your review totally hit at all the right points! :)

    New follower and subscriber! :)

    Sierra @ Yearning to Read
    www.yearningtoread.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete