Abandon by Meg Cabot
5:00 PM
Author: Meg Cabot
Release Date: April 26, 2011 (hardcover)
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Pages: 320
Source: ARC provided by publisher
Overall: 4 Stars
Summary:
New from #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot, a dark, fantastical story about this world . . . and the underworld.
Though she tries returning to the life she knew before the accident, Pierce can't help but feel at once a part of this world, and apart from it. Yet she's never alone . . . because someone is always watching her. Escape from the realm of the dead is impossible when someone there wants you back.
But now she's moved to a new town. Maybe at her new school, she can start fresh. Maybe she can stop feeling so afraid.
Only she can't. Because even here, he finds her. That's how desperately he wants her back. She knows he's no guardian angel, and his dark world isn't exactly heaven, yet she can't stay away . . . especially since he always appears when she least expects it, but exactly when she needs him most.
But if she lets herself fall any further, she may just find herself back in the one place she most fears: the Underworld.
My Thoughts:
I've been really looking forward to reading Abandon ever since I heard that Meg Cabot would be writing a new trilogy centered around a re-imagining of the myth of Persephone... and I was not disappointed one bit! After reading several novels by the author now, I've come to expect light and cute stories but Abandon is the complete opposite! It's darker, edgier... and well, I loved this aspect! And isn't the cover just so gorgeous? Seriously, when I could manage to tear my eyes away from the pages, I was gazing at the cover!
Abandon is very much an introduction to the trilogy as there is a lot of character development and world-building in this novel. Meg Cabot jumps to flashback scenes quickly in the beginning, eluding to past events before they've been fully revealed in the story. But while it may have taken a certain amount of time to fully understand what was occurring, it never ceased to stop my interest or curiousity. Pierce's past is a very complicated one but with some patience, the little pieces fell into place as I came to understand how these events have influenced everything in the present from her personality, her interactions with friends and family... and to the way she feels about John Hayden.
I've always liked how Meg captures the essence of youth in her characters. Pierce was very much like Meg Cabot's other heroines in that they just have this certain teen spirit with the way they talk and narrate that only Meg defines in her own way. Pierce is by no means perfect but she's willing to learn from her mistakes and she always has the best interests of everyone she cares about at heart. I really do wish there had been more of John in the novel though! He doesn't physically appear in the novel as much as I would have hoped but I still really took a shining to him... even if he was a death deity and all. His moments with Pierce were always filled with tension and angst...
Although Abandon did seem to have some inconsistencies... overall, I really did come to enjoy the novel and I absolutely think that fans will feel the same way. Meg Cabot's fun storytelling has always left me struggling to put her novels down even for a moment and it was certainly no exception this time! After learning much of Pierce's past in this one, I have a feeling we'll be seeing more action in the next novel (especially after the way the events lead off...) and I'm sure we'll somehow fall a little harder for John as well.
Now there's just a long wait for Underworld next year when, of course, all I want to do is read it right now! Dark and alluring, Abandon is everything that you've come to expect from Meg Cabot.
Thanks so much to Scholastic Canada for sending me this review copy!
6 comments
OMG!! I can't wait to read this one.
ReplyDeleteI hope I love it too. So, so glad that it didn't disappoint, :) I love Meg's books, been reading her books for a really long time and I'm glad to see you mention this one is a little different, I like that she keeps evolving.
I've never read any Cabot books but after reading The Goddess Test and not completely loving it, I'd really like to see how Abandon tells the story of Persephone. Sounds dark and alluring for sure!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait for Abandon! I haven't read many books my Meg but I love Greek mythology and the Persephone tale is one of the most interesting of all. Sounds great!
ReplyDeleteI have heard so many mixed things on this one that I'm not sure what to think. Thanks for being honest though.
ReplyDeleteI have actually never read Meg Cabot. Can you believe it? I want to read this one!
ReplyDeleteAlex- I like how her writing is evolving too! If you were to compare it to say, Avalon High, you would see how she's changed up the writing over the years...
ReplyDeleteLaura and P.E.- It's not really like the myth, but a re-telling of it definitely fits the description.
Blueicegal- I can see where the mixed reviews are coming from. I thought about how to write my review for a week to see how I would still feel after I let some time go by but I still think if you've enjoyed Meg's novels in the past, then you'll enjoy this one! If I'm ever unsure about a novel though, I find it best to lower expectations so it lessens some of the disappointment...
Kelley- What? Say it ain't so! lol, I'm glad you want to read Abandon! :)