Sunday 30 January 2011

Review: Calling for Angels by Alex Smith

Title: Calling for Angels

Author: Alex Smith

Publisher: The Red Telephone

Publication date: 15/11/2010

Book source: Received from publisher

My Rating: 6/10 (a good read)

Buy the book


Summary:

Em tries to avoid the annoying clones – the girls in her year at Philiton Comprehensive who spend all their time thinking about clothes, make-up and boys. She worries about her aging grandparents and her older brother Ollie, who seems to be behaving in a distinctly odd way.

Then three new people come into her life: the mysterious woman who gives her a beautifully carved figurine, Kai whose own story has a touch of sadness, and Zak, the new guy who causes a stir amongst the girls.

And she discovers she needs to call for angels.


My thoughts:

I was intrigued when I heard about this story. It sounded different and it immediately caught my attention – as well as the cover of course which is unlike anything I’ve seen before (in a good way).

I have to admit though, this book wasn’t entirely for me. I did like it for the most part, but I felt that the plot didn’t grab hold of me as much as I wanted it to.

I did like the idea of the story, but I thought there were too many things missing for me that should have been included. I did think maybe there could be a sequel where these things could be brought back to light but I found it too vital for the plot for it not to be included in the first book. For example, who was the woman who gave Em the figurine that lead to the drastic change in her life? And what did Kai do to warrant him being thrown into hell?

These questions were what kept me reading and kept me interested. But then I got to the end of the book and they still weren’t answered which I found a bit disappointing.

However, I did love the characters. Em was a sweetie and took me right back to high school (which wasn’t that long ago I don’t know why I’m exaggerating). High school, especially towards the end, is not just about getting those crucial qualifications for later life, but for finding yourself, who you want to become and maybe how to change to achieve that. Em goes through all those things throughout the book which I found refreshing. She grew up and took responsibility for her own actions.

Em’s former best friend, Caitlyn, was a great character in that she was so unlikeable which was made obvious to be the author’s intention. She was the girl to find popularity more important than true friendship and the one to abandon Em completely. She was refreshing to read about. The only problem I had with Caitlyn and Em’s relationship was that I would have loved to see how they interacted before things became awkward and they became distanced.

Zak was a cutie! I loved Zak I really did. He was so realistic and such a good representation of a high school boy. Kai was great too. I loved how torn he was in what to do and how to help. I only wish I found out more about him at the end of the book!

That’s more or less the only problem I had with the book. The ending. It was too fast and not enough vital questions were answered. But I did enjoy reading the story, it was a cute, fast read.

I also have to mention that the author was 14 when she finished writing this book. Reading it, I can see so much potential for the future and I seriously think that she will write many great reads! Hats off to Alex Smith!


This book counts as:

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

It sounds interesting. The author was 14 when she wrote this? Wow!

Shy said...

I love the premise of this book, but I totally understand how you feel when the book didn't manage to keep you attach to the storyline. I've recently read a book that makes me feel the same way. While it keeps my curiousity up high, the way some things stay hidden kept me highly unsatisfied.

I'm here from the comment exchange program. Hope you have a pleasant week!