Fated by Alyson Noel
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| Fated (Soul Seekers)By: Alyson Noël Published by: St. Martin’s Griffin ISBN: 0312664850 Author’s Website: Author’s Social: Twitter | Facebook Format of Review Copy: paperback Recommendable for people who enjoy:
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Synopsis (from Amazon):
The first book in a magnificent new series about a girl who can navigate between the worlds of the living and the dead by #1 New York Times bestselling author Alyson Noël.
Lately strange things have been happening to Daire Santos. Animals follow her, crows mock her, and glowing people appear out of nowhere. Worried that Daire is having a nervous breakdown, her mother packs her off to stay in the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico with a grandmother she’s never met.
There she crosses paths with Dace, a gorgeous guy with unearthly blue eyes who she’s encountered before…but only in her dreams. And she’ll get to know her grandmother—a woman who recognizes Daire’s bizarre episodes for what they are. A call to her true destiny as a Soul Seeker, one who can navigate between the worlds of the living and the dead. Her grandmother immediately begins teaching her to harness her powers—but it’s an art that must be mastered quickly. Because Dace’s brother is an evil shape-shifter who’s out to steal her powers. Now Daire must embrace her fate as a Soul Seeker and find out if Dace is one guy she’s meant to be with…or if he’s allied with the enemy she’s destined to destroy.
My Thoughts:
Lets dive into this sucker, shall we?
The World:
Fated takes place in a modern times setting and bounces from several foreign locations down to Enchantment, New Mexico, USA and “the other worlds”.
The “other worlds” consist of the Upper World, the Middle World (which is the world/plain in which we all reside), and the Lower World. These plains are not really explained, at all, as they are told to the main character in a rush. In my mind, of course I equated them with Heaven and Hell. Except, apparently, there are portals to these other worlds that only some people/beings can see/find and that can be used to transport to and from our world.
*Just as a side note: Indian mythology is something that interests me. This particular belief is based on several Indian legends, which didn’t dawn on me until I sat down to write this review *ding* so I drug out some books and the googles and had a look. 9 hours later…because I do tend to get sidetracked! According to the location – one would think the tribes referenced would be Pueblo or Apache. But I have several books on Indian Mythology and Legends and none of them discuss this belief for those tribes. I did find it in the Yuchi/Seminole/Cherokee which region is more along the Tennessee Valley, over here by me. So…I dunno. I know, I know – this is just me nit-picking I think. I just found it interesting, since Indian mythology is not generally used in YA. Or I should say, not that I have found. I drug out a few of my books because I didn’t remember this particular myth and wondered if it was real or “made up”. Not to nit-pick the author/research, just out of curiosity. Anyway, anyway…
The Characters:
The main character is Daire. Please dont ask me how to say it, I have no idea. I was calling her “Dare” as in Truth OR… haha! She is a 16 year old, traveling the world with her Mom, and begins having crazy “visions” of glowing people and ravens trying to kill her. Or are they?
Jennika, the mom. She is a makeup artist who drags her daughter all over the world for various jobs in the movie industry. When she starts to fear her daughter is cray-cray – she sends her off to live with her Gran.
Paloma, the Gran. LOVE HER. Paloma is somewhat of the local “healer” in her community. She knows what’s causing the craycray and is determined to help Daire take control of her visions and her life.
Dace – ok, at first I was rolling my eyes at his name. I mean, really? Come on. I took it as someone trying to cash in on the popularity of the Mortal Instruments series – since that young “hottie” is Jace. This is the hot guy in the new town – the guy of Daire’s dreams. Literally.
Cade – Once Cade was introduced, I got the names. Cade and Dace. Twins, complete opposites, etc. (On the side: I have a cousin named Cade – who also happens to be a twin. Guess I’ll be keepin a close eye on him at our next reunion!) Cade’s kind of the evil douchebag of our story. The bad twin.
Xotichl – School mate who becomes the trusted bestie. She may be blind, but there’s more to her than what the eyes can see. *buh-duh-bump*
The Plot:
As the synopsis says, this book is about Daire and her journey. She begins having scary visions, which lead her mother and several doctors to think she has gone crazy. As a last ditch effort to save her from having to be institutionalized, her mother sends her to live with her paternal grandmother in a small town. The town is named Enchantment, in New Mexico.
Once she is in New Mexico, she learns that her visions aren’t just visions, they are real. Or – possibly her grandmother is crazy too.
Once she realizes her visions are real – the story progresses as she rushes to learn everything she can so she can reach her destiny. Along the way, she gains a sweet bestie and a hot boyfriend. Of course there is a hot boyfriend. This is YA so there is going to be a hot boyfriend. haha.
This book has a lot going for it. There are likeable characters, bad guys and “good vs. evil” type showdowns, supernatural zombie type creatures, spirit animals, and other worlds.
In Conclusion:
Even though, according to my reading updates, I thought this book started out slow – I still enjoyed it. It did take a little while to get me “hooked”, no kidding. I am surprised I didn’t give up on it. Eventually, it did manage to hook me though. By the end, I wasn’t ready to stop reading and now I am looking forward to the next book in the series. Fated (Soul Seekers) by Alyson Noël has everything I want in a light read. Characters to care about, some drama, some suspense (if not horror), and the book itself is a “complete story” even though its book ONE in a series.
Mom Notes:
Some kissing. Contains dark elements like: demons, spirits, etc