Author: Meg Cabot
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal Fantasy
Publication: April 26th 2011, Point
Pages: 204 pages, Hardcover
Source: Library book
Rating: 4/5 Cupcakes!
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.
I have been a fan of Meg Cabot's books since I read the first few Princess Diaries books. I absolutely love the way she writes and I will probably be a fan of hers forever.
When I saw Abandon sitting on the shelf at the library, I was hesitant to pick it up let alone check it out and read it. Every book I've read by Meg Cabot (not all of them, but quite a few) have been contemporaries, and seeing that Abandon was a paranormal fantasy, I wasn't sure if it would live up to Meg's other books. But I needn't have worried, because I loved Abandon, and it might be one of my new favourites written by her.
Abandon is about seventeen-year old Pierce, who died 2 years ago after an accident. And came back alive shortly after. When her and her mom move to Isla Huestos, her mom's birthplace, she hopes they can make a new start, and that Pierce can get away from the guy she met in the Underworld who keeps popping up when she's in danger. But the new place where she was hoping to have a new start, might very well be the centre of danger itself.
I LOVED Abandon! I wasn't sure if Meg would pull off writing a paranormal fantasy novel opposed to the usual contemporary she writes, but I shouldn't have feared because it was every bit as amazing as her other novels! It had amazing writing, a spunky main character and an interesting love interest.
I absolutely adored Pierce. What stood out most about her (other from the fact that she had been to the Underworld and back) is that she cared about others more than she did about herself and was a selfless person. I don't know about you guys, but I haven't actually read a YA book where the main character cares so much about the well-being of others, humans AND animals. So that was a refreshing change from the usual YA character that don't generally care about other people or animals.
I also felt sorry for Pierce because she couldn't tell anyone about what was happening in her life, if she told people that she had died and gone to the Underworld and the guy she met when she was 7 and the same guy who she spent with in the Underworld was popping up here and there creating havoc, they would most definitely have thought, and told her, that she was crazy. Whilst reading Abandon you can certainly feel the frustration and helplessness in her voice, because to her it seems that there is no one to turn to.
John is the love interest. Dark, brooding, tortured and ruler of the Underworld. A lot of people think that John was creepy and stalkerish, I didn't really think so. Sure he held Pierce in the Underworld against her will and got into a temper tantrum and threw a necklace across the cemetery...BUT he also bailed her out of danger on numerous occasions and the reason for keeping her in the Underworld was because it was going to protect her from the Furies who were out for her blood...so it kinda evens out, right? And even if you do find John incredibly stalkerish (which I hope you won't because I quite liked him) he is just a person who has had a tough life and has been betrayed in many ways, and you can hear how he detests how he has to be ruler of the Underworld, it's not like he had a choice directing souls where to go after death. And maybe he is so protective of Pierce and wants to keep her by him is because he doesn't want to risk losing someone else he loves, meanwhile he is pushing her away...*sigh*
When I saw Abandon sitting on the shelf at the library, I was hesitant to pick it up let alone check it out and read it. Every book I've read by Meg Cabot (not all of them, but quite a few) have been contemporaries, and seeing that Abandon was a paranormal fantasy, I wasn't sure if it would live up to Meg's other books. But I needn't have worried, because I loved Abandon, and it might be one of my new favourites written by her.
Abandon is about seventeen-year old Pierce, who died 2 years ago after an accident. And came back alive shortly after. When her and her mom move to Isla Huestos, her mom's birthplace, she hopes they can make a new start, and that Pierce can get away from the guy she met in the Underworld who keeps popping up when she's in danger. But the new place where she was hoping to have a new start, might very well be the centre of danger itself.
I LOVED Abandon! I wasn't sure if Meg would pull off writing a paranormal fantasy novel opposed to the usual contemporary she writes, but I shouldn't have feared because it was every bit as amazing as her other novels! It had amazing writing, a spunky main character and an interesting love interest.
I absolutely adored Pierce. What stood out most about her (other from the fact that she had been to the Underworld and back) is that she cared about others more than she did about herself and was a selfless person. I don't know about you guys, but I haven't actually read a YA book where the main character cares so much about the well-being of others, humans AND animals. So that was a refreshing change from the usual YA character that don't generally care about other people or animals.
I also felt sorry for Pierce because she couldn't tell anyone about what was happening in her life, if she told people that she had died and gone to the Underworld and the guy she met when she was 7 and the same guy who she spent with in the Underworld was popping up here and there creating havoc, they would most definitely have thought, and told her, that she was crazy. Whilst reading Abandon you can certainly feel the frustration and helplessness in her voice, because to her it seems that there is no one to turn to.
John is the love interest. Dark, brooding, tortured and ruler of the Underworld. A lot of people think that John was creepy and stalkerish, I didn't really think so. Sure he held Pierce in the Underworld against her will and got into a temper tantrum and threw a necklace across the cemetery...BUT he also bailed her out of danger on numerous occasions and the reason for keeping her in the Underworld was because it was going to protect her from the Furies who were out for her blood...so it kinda evens out, right? And even if you do find John incredibly stalkerish (which I hope you won't because I quite liked him) he is just a person who has had a tough life and has been betrayed in many ways, and you can hear how he detests how he has to be ruler of the Underworld, it's not like he had a choice directing souls where to go after death. And maybe he is so protective of Pierce and wants to keep her by him is because he doesn't want to risk losing someone else he loves, meanwhile he is pushing her away...*sigh*
The plot was great! I was constantly intrigued, constantly wondering what was going to happen next and the ending caught me off guard. It was really interesting seeing the way the plot developed and I was completely surprised but the turning of events.
The only issue I have with Abandon, is that the romance felt too rushed and was basically insta-love in disguise. Pierce seemingly hated John, but towards the end they declared their love for each other in like five minutes, and they actually didn't really know each other, whenever they saw each other they have like a conversation that was only twenty minutes long, so they in total, have only spoken for about an hour. But it wasn't that bad, and I've read lots of way worse romances.
Abandon was another great novel from one of my favourite authors. With realistic characters, a surprising plot and wonderful, intriguing writing, Abandon surprised me - and in a good way. It also makes you think about life after death and how to spend your life. I eagerly await the next instalment and Abandon is definitely a book I could re-read!
I give it: 5/5 CUPCAKES!
Quotes:
"Anything can happen in the blink of an eye. Anything at all. One. Two. Three. Blink." - page 1
"So take my advice: Whatever you do -Don't blink." - page 2
"Once, I died." - page 3
"But really, the term "forgive and forget" doesn't make sense to me. Forgiving does allow us to stop dwelling on an issue, which isn't always healthy (just look at my parents).But if we forget, we don't learn from our mistakes.And that can be deadly. Who knows this better than me?so forgive? Sure, Dad.But forget?Even if I wanted to, I can't.Because there's someone who won't let me." - page 9
"It shouldn't have been like watching him throw my heart away.But it was." - page 39
"And then I blinked. Because that's what human beings do, especially when they've been crying.But when I opened my eyes again, I wasn't home. I wasn't standing on the shore of the lake any more either.And what I'd been hoping was the end of the nightmare I'd been going through turned out to be just the beginning." - page 51
"He went right on talking as if nothing were wrong. It was entirely possible, considering that the only company he was apparently used to keeping was horses, huge tattooed bouncers and seven-year-olds, he didn't know anything was wrong." - page 60
"Which is good because true evil often wears the most innocent of guises. Sometimes our closest friends can turn out not to have our best interests at heart. And we never have the remotest suspicion...not until it's too late." - page 60
"Dead. I was dead.So many things made sense now. That's why no one's cellphone had worked. Their cellphones were dead.Just like we were." - page 62
"Why wouldn't you call someone who says she can see evil - and has the ability to protect people from it - crazy? Especially when she later failed so spectacularly to do so." - page 84
"It's only in fairy tales that princesses can afford to wait for the handsome prince to save them. In real life, they have to bust out of their own coffins and do the saving themselves." - page 84
"You can't escape death." - page 98
"Dead will come for you, eventually." - page 98
"I already knew what it was like to sink.I decided I might as well swim." - page 105
"I'd stared down at my phone, my eyes narrowed. I might look like a honey-eyed schoolgirl on the outside, in my skit with its regulation four-inch-above-the-knee hem. But I'll rip those tassels off your shoes, old man. Just try Googling me." - page 192
"Don't do that," Uncle Chris said. "Don't ever do that."I widened my eyes at him. "Excuse me?" I said."Don't put yourself down." - page 194