Title: 7 Souls
Author: Barnabas Miller & Jordan Orlando
Publication (dd/mm/yy): 28/03/11
Publisher: Penguin Australia
Source: For review (Publisher)
Age: 16+ (sexual references, heavy violence)
Pages: 360
Summary:
Mary expected her seventeenth birthday to be a blow-out to remember. Instead, she wakes up naked and scratched, in a mortifyingly public place, with no memory of how she got there. As her life spins out of control, Mary begins to think that someone is out to get her. But isn't she the popular girl everyone loves?
I was so excited to read this book, but no amount of expectations could have prepared me for what I was getting myself into. I tentatively give this book a 4, because it fits somewhere from a 3.5 to a 4.5, depending on how I want to go about it.
7 Souls was incredibly interesting and a lot of the time, ESPECIALLY AT THE BEGINNING, I had no idea what was happening. The authors cleverly dispense little pockets of information as the story progresses, which kept me engaged and raring to continue flipping the pages (once I got past the 150~ page mark).
That all sounds pretty good, but I can't just ignore the fact that I was really confused and not at all really bothered to continue reading. The beginning was painful to sit through. Perhaps it was just a shock of culture difference--the third person perspective and just the writing style in general really did throw me off base. Which is why I said in the beginning how unsure I am where this book stands. Considering this is not a book I can see reading again anytime soon . . . .
I really don't want to describe how the story plays out, because the whole story IS what made 7 Souls a really good book overall. I loved trying to figure out who was "in on it", why things happened and, just trying to make sense of it all. I failed miserably across the board, but still, it was a hell of a ride, this book.
There wasn't that much engagement with the characters, but I feel that it didn't matter that I didn't feel any really attachment to most of them. I liked Dylan and Ellen and Amy, and I found it really clever how the authors incorporated an ancient Egyptian prophecy, with an exuberant amount of complexity, and only after reading this book did I finally understand what the title alluded to, as well as all the details of the book (such as the eye featured on the inside cover!)
Overall, 7 Souls was much worth the wait. An invigorating and stimulating read that will have readers clenching their jaws and turning the pages--especially fans of novels involving murders and mystery (or M&M).
Thanks to Penguin Australia for the review copy.
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