Thursday, January 05, 2012

Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Every other day, Kali D'Angelo is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to public high school. She attends pep rallies. She's human. And then every day in between . . .She's something else entirely.
Though she still looks like herself, every twenty-four hours predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon-hunter with the undeniable urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other supernatural creatures. Kali has no idea why she is the way she is, but she gives in to instinct anyway. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism.
When Kali notices a mark on the lower back of a popular girl at school, she knows instantly that the girl is marked for death by one of these creatures. Kali has twenty-four hours to save her and, unfortunately, she'll have to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk that her human body might not survive. . .and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition in the process.

I love the premise of this story. A girl who is invincible one day, and a normal human the next? Just plain awesome. I was predisposed to like this story before I started reading it. :) And the cover? Amazing!

The beginning chapters are a bit slow as we learn about Kali and her world, and the characters weren’t as clear as I wanted them to be, but the premise had hooked me so strongly that I didn’t mind. I kept reading simply because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. The plot does some really interesting twists and turns and kept me interested.

I really liked Kali from the start. Her compulsion to save others trumps everything else, even her own well-being. Some people seem to find it a bit cliché, but I liked it—that’s an attribute of a true hero. I thought she dealt with her need to hunt and her time as a weak human quite well. And I loved her internal conflict around the chupacabra.

The end didn’t come together as well as I would have liked. It seemed a bit too easy, and the connection to Zev wasn’t as strong as I wanted it to be. I like the direction the story is going at the end, but it felt a little bit clunky getting there. I’m also a bit torn as to whether I want the story to continue. The main story was resolved well, but with a few open ends that could turn into a sequel. I’m interested in where it might lead, and nervous as to where it’s going to go at the same time. So, if there’s a sequel, I’ll be picking it up and will probably read it the way some people watch a scary movie. :)

4 comments:

Anne E. Johnson said...

Thanks for the interesting review. It's such a struggle to tie up a plot and not have it seem too smooth or convenient. I read books like that, too, but try not to write them! I think the job of catching that problem often falls to a really good editor.

angel011 said...

Thanks for the review, the book seems interesting! Now, if only the day was ten times longer, so I could read everything I wanted to. :)

Kelly Hashway said...

I really want to read this, and as always I appreciate your honest review. I like to be warned about things (like the ending) that might not pan out the way I expect or want.

Tabitha said...

Anne - it sure is a struggle, and it's so hard to see it objectively when it's your own story. A good editor comes in real handy there, plus your crit partners!

Angel011 - I feel your pain. :) There are so many good books and not enough time to read them!!

Kelly - thanks!! I enjoyed this book a lot, even with the issues I had. I do hope there is another one coming. :)