Wednesday, 13 October 2010

Finding Sky by Joss Stirling

For Review: OUP Published 7 October 2010

From Goodreads: When Sky catches a glimpse of Zed for the first time, lounging against his motorbike at school, she is drawn to him just like every other girl in Wickenridge. But Zed sees something special in her that the other girls don't have. Zed tells her they are both Savants - people with special powers like telepathy and the ability to see into the future. Not only that, she is a Savant too, and his soulfinder - meant to be together.

When a soulfinder speaks telepathically to her partner, it's like all the lights coming on in a building. You lit me up like Vegas. But for Sky it's just not that easy - she's a mystery to herself, haunted by nightmares from her past before she was adopted, and riddled with doubt and insecurity. Just when Sky is slowly coming round to the idea of being with Zed she is kidnapped by a family of criminal Savants. In a chilling twist, Sky and Zed's relationship is put to the ultimate test and the fate of those she loves lie in Sky's hands. Will Sky have the strength to embrace her power and be brave enough to control her own destiny, or will the dark demons of her past prevent her from realising her true potential?



I really enjoyed this. With so many paranormal books competing with each other, this one felt different enough to really stand out.

The story focuses on Sky, a British girl who has recently moved to the US. Having been abandoned when she was young, Sky doesn't remember much about her past - and doesn't want to. Completely drawn to Zed when she first meets him she discovers that he is a Savant, and that she is one too.

I loved Sky and found myself really drawn into her story.  She just comes across as really likeable - and very funny too!  I also really liked Zed and the whole Benedict family.  You gradually get to know them through the course of the book - at the same time as Sky - and this works really well.  The romance between Zed and Sky develops at a slow, genuine pace and as a result is particularly sweet.

I really loved the whole Savant world - that they all have their own 'powers' as well as having a Soulfinder they need to find in order to balance themselves.  It felt new and fresh, different from vampires and werewolves, and completely grabbed my attention.  I also really loved the telepathic communication  -  how it provided a connection for Sky and Zed as well as a source of humour.

The threat felt dangerous, but not as chilling as I would have liked.  Most of the conflict was provided by Sky -  in facing her past and in her accepting who she is and the role Zed plays in her life.  This was the best part of the story for me, and one I thoroughly enjoyed.  I found it really romantic and it made the whole idea of having a soul mate something I really wanted to believe in.

I really hope this is the beginning of a series - I would love to spend more time with these characters - especially those Benedict boys!.  I will be eagerly on the look-out for Joss Stirling's next book!

5 comments:

Caroline said...

I so loved this book too!!
I think we all agree of how original this book is compared to the Paranormal Genre in general!
Great review!

Tales of Whimsy said...

FAB review. I haven't heard much about this one and I love the cover.

Joey and Christine said...

Hey! I'm really glad I found this blog, I'm always looking for new books to read, and hadn't seen this one yet!

Unknown said...

Interesting. I always prefer internalised character conflict rather than external forces. But then I thought the villains weren't deep enough in this...so maybe we are not liking the same thing but using a different way to define it. Anyway, I still thought it was brill!

Jesse Owen said...

I loved this book and found it refreshingly different from other paranormal romances. Great review :)

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