Haven by Kristi Cook
Published by Simon Pulse
Source: Bought from Amazon
One month into her junior year, sixteen-year-old Violet McKenna transfers to the Winterhaven School in New York’s Hudson Valley, inexplicably drawn to the boarding school with high hopes. Leaving Atlanta behind, she’s looking forward to a fresh start--a new school, and new classmates who will not know her deepest, darkest secret, the one she’s tried to hide all her life: strange, foreboding visions of the future.
But Winterhaven has secrets of its own, secrets that run far deeper than Violet’s. Everyone there--every student, every teacher--has psychic abilities, 'gifts and talents,' they like to call them. Once the initial shock of discovery wears off, Violet realizes that the school is a safe haven for people like her. Soon, Violet has a new circle of friends, a new life, and maybe even a boyfriend--Aidan Gray, perhaps the smartest, hottest guy at Winterhaven.
Only there’s more to Aidan than meets the eye--much, much more. And once she learns the horrible truth, there’s no turning back from her destiny. Their destiny. Together, Violet and Aidan must face a common enemy--if only they can do so without destroying each other first.
I'm going to start this review by saying that in someways my review is a little unfair but I think in someways quite justified. I didn't actually finish the book. Those of you who follow my reviews know it is rare for me to review a book I didn't finish but I in this case I decided to put my thoughts into a review of sorts
To start in the book's defence I would argue that it is actually nicely written and the characters are engaging. What I did read I did quite enjoy to a certain extent in one of those guilty pleasure kind of ways
However there are a few resons why I stopped reading the book half way through (there are spoilers from here on out). Whilst I was reading this book I got this feeling that I had read this book before. That was because every single idea in this book was taken from somewhere else e.g:
I don't think the author is bad at writing as such and would be certainly interested in reading some else of her work in the future which is her own original workk because I am not interested in reading the same book again and again and again.
Published by Simon Pulse
Source: Bought from Amazon
But Winterhaven has secrets of its own, secrets that run far deeper than Violet’s. Everyone there--every student, every teacher--has psychic abilities, 'gifts and talents,' they like to call them. Once the initial shock of discovery wears off, Violet realizes that the school is a safe haven for people like her. Soon, Violet has a new circle of friends, a new life, and maybe even a boyfriend--Aidan Gray, perhaps the smartest, hottest guy at Winterhaven.
Only there’s more to Aidan than meets the eye--much, much more. And once she learns the horrible truth, there’s no turning back from her destiny. Their destiny. Together, Violet and Aidan must face a common enemy--if only they can do so without destroying each other first.
***
To start in the book's defence I would argue that it is actually nicely written and the characters are engaging. What I did read I did quite enjoy to a certain extent in one of those guilty pleasure kind of ways
However there are a few resons why I stopped reading the book half way through (there are spoilers from here on out). Whilst I was reading this book I got this feeling that I had read this book before. That was because every single idea in this book was taken from somewhere else e.g:
- Boarding school for kids with special powers = The Candidates by Inara Scott
- Girl falls for brooding dark stranger who is hot and cold with her all the time = twilight
- Boy turns out to be a vampire = twilight
- vampire has lived for 100s of years and wants to be good = buffy
- girl turns out to be a once in generation vampire slayer (I had to skip ahead for this bit once I decided to give up and skim to the end) = buffy
I don't think the author is bad at writing as such and would be certainly interested in reading some else of her work in the future which is her own original workk because I am not interested in reading the same book again and again and again.
Comments
I've only ever read one other review for this book and the blogger just gushed about it. Nice to have some differing opinions