Possession

Possession by Elena Johnson

(From Amazon)

Vi knows the rule: Girls don’t walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the rules more than Zenn…and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi’s future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.

But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they’re set on convincing Vi to become one of them…starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can’t leave Zenn in the Thinkers’ hands, but she’s wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous—everything Zenn’s not. Vi can’t quite trust Jag and can’t quite resist him, but she also can’t give up on Zenn.
This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

I met Elena Johnson at a writing conference last year, and found her to be hilarious. So I bought her book. Her spunky and snarky personality come through loud and clear in Possession.

Why did I read this book again?

The premise sounds cool, and when I read the query letter at the writing conference last year, I was ready to buy the book right there. (It was better than the above blurb.)

3 out of 5

Characters

Vi (the heroin) straddles the line between being tough as nails and fragile as glass. The two boys (yes, love triangle...you all know how I feel about the love triangle...hate them) are okay. Zenn is the dependable one and Jag is the sexy, more alive one. The set up for the characters is good, but by the end I wasn't as impressed as I wanted to be by them.

3 out of 5

Did I care what happened?

I really wanted to cheer for these characters, but when it came down to it I found the leads annoying. Everyone is lying to everyone, and they flip fop about how they feel about each other and what's going on around them so much that I felt like I had emotional whiplash by the time I finished the book. And not in a good way. And since it took me a LONG time to actually finish the novel, I have to say I didn't care as much as I could have.

2 out of 5

Plot Holes

There are a lot of awesome things going on in the world: mass destruction followed by people who control everyone so everyone is good, Goodies, Baddies, lots of cool technology and a slew of ridiculous rules that are just begging to be broken.

However, there were way too many things that happened through or by “coincidence” for my taste. Also, I sill have no idea what is really going on. This concept works for some books, but not usually for me. It was like watching Anime—they never seem to explain anything.

2 out of 5

How many times did I yawn?

The novel was never un-exciting, but I had a hard time caring as much as I wanted to. And I rolled my eyes a lot at Vi and Jag. Really you two, just figure out what you want. Don't have an emotional fight every single 5-page chapter

2 out of 5

Cool Factor

With as much as she packed into this first novel, I'd say the cool factor was pretty high. Teenager girls will love it, I think.

4 out of 5

The End

This book does not have a happy ending. I was warned, and wasn't expecting one. The end itself was a great hook into book 2 (which comes out pretty quick if I remember right) and I thought it was okay. Not great, but okay.

3 out of 5

Overall Enjoyment

Liked the premise and the voice for the main character.

I've been trying to figure out why this book didn't grab me. And I came up with this...Did you see the Hunger Games? Remember how the whole dang thing was filmed? Kind of jerky and never really focusing on the point of the shot for more than a fraction of a second? That's how I felt this book was written. Everything felt short and jerky, and as I reader I never got to settle down into story enough to enjoy the journey.

That might not make sense to anyone else. I wouldn't be surprised.

Seriously, angsty, teenage girls will love this. I'm not the book's audience, so my judgment may be a bit harsh.

Because I really like Elena Johnson, I'm going to add an extra point to this one.

3 out of 5

Score=22

That's a Purple Belt!