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Friday, April 11, 2014

Novel Review: Storm (Elemental, #1) by Brigid Kemmerer



Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Publisher: K Teen (Kensington Publishing)
Release Date: April, 2012
Spoilers?: No.

Goodreads Synopsis:


Earth, Fire, Air, Water – they have more power than you dream.

Ever since her ex-boyfriend spread those lies about her, Becca Chandler is suddenly getting all the guys—all the ones she doesn't want. Then she saves Chris Merrick from a beating in the school parking lot. Chris is different. Way different: he can control water—just like his brothers can control fire, wind, and earth. They’re powerful. Dangerous. Marked for death.

And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.

Secrets are hard to keep when your life’s at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who’s hiding the most dangerous truth of all.

The storm is coming . . .


The Cover:

I don't mind the covers. I like that the boys on the cover actually represent the brothers (although, the twins are shown as one person only...), with the main boy for that book in front, along with the color of their element. As I mention in my review, though, I don't like that it gives the idea that this is going to be high in romance (at least, that's what it looks like to me), when that's not really the case. It's also pretty high in the embarrassing factor. Otherwise, though, I don't mind it, and I don't think it does too bad of a job of representing the book, either.

Quotes:


  • "'My mother believes everything in existence has a consciousness,’ he said. ‘An awareness. As in, maybe it’s not what you like.’ […] ‘Maybe it’s what favors you.’” (Paperback, pg. 101)
  • "Touch was funny like that. How one movement could choke and kill you, but another meant nothing more than a caress and an invitation. How sex and rape were just a few motions apart.” (Pg. 191)
  • ·         "'You’re beautiful,’ he said softly. ‘Innocent.’
    The word made her flinch. ‘I’m not—‘
    ‘Yes,’ he said, feeling anger leak into his voice. ‘You are. Just because a few idiots treat you like…like that—don’t mean you have any idea what it’s supposed to be like.’” (Pg. 288)


Review:

I rather enjoyed this, although it was not what I was expecting.
First, I like the concept. I like the Merrick brothers’ powers, their controlling of the elements. I like how that works and how they’re able to grow strength through it. I like the imagery and the thought behind that.
I liked Becca, and understood her feelings behind pushing people away. And I liked where she was by the end of the book, and believe she’ll be getting better after all this. I liked her mother and friend, Quinn, too. I’m not sure about her father, and am interested in if we’ll get to see more of that in future books. And I was rather surprised (at least for a good while into the book), but really excited, by what happened to her regarding the elemental thing, but I don’t want to spoil that.
I liked Hunter a lot, and his dog Casper, and am a little upset with what happened to him by the end of the book. I’m looking forward to seeing more of him in future books.
I did really like Chris. Most of the time I just liked him, although a few times he was a bit of a jerk, but he also had a few lonely moments where I just wanted to hug him. I guess that made me like him more. I liked his relationship with his brothers, especially where they all were by the end of the book. And I have hope for that.
But then there’s the fact that a lot of the characters seem like jerks to everyone else. Becca didn’t seem that bad from Chris’ point of view, but Chris, and his brothers, seemed like jerks and really distant from hers. That bothered me, maybe because I didn’t think they needed to be. But especially because that caused problems between Becca and Chris when they were thinking very different thoughts. I think it was just a little too conflicting for me, and that bothered me. I hope that gets a little better in the next book.
For some reason, I was expecting some more steamy stuff in this book. I’m not sure why. I don’t think I heard that there was. I think mostly because of the covers and the multiple book set-up and how it reminded me of adult romance series. So I was expecting lots of kissing. And there is much closer to none at all. Which was disappointing, but mainly because I’m a romance-junkie. 
I already have the next book, and plan to get to it soon. I hope there’s more steamy stuff. But I’m mostly just looking forward to seeing what happens next.

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