Saturday, April 05, 2014

Book Review: Pivot Point (Pivot Point #1)

Saturday, April 05, 2014
Title: Pivot Point (Pivot Point #1)
Author: Kasie West
Genre/s: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Released Date: February 12, 2013
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Synopsis:

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

My Thoughts:

Addie is a Searcher, she can see the outcome of her choices before she even decide. With ability like that, she should have seen that her parents were getting a divorce but she didn’t. And now she is faced with a choice on who she wanted to live with; her mother who will stay in the Compound or her father who will leave the Compound, to live in the Normal world. Her decisions should have been easy; one Search is all it takes for her to know the answer. But, after six weeks of Search into the future, making a decision proved to be more difficult than she expected. Which future will she choose and which one will she Erase? Find out.

I’m very picky when it comes to popular books because I sometimes find them unworthy of all the hype. I only read a few popular ones every year and I am glad that this year, Pivot Point was one of them. I have to say, it definitely deserved its popularity. 

I’m lying if I say I didn’t envy Addie’s ability to see her future. I mean, how cool would that be! Every result of your decision will be as expected and you will not have regrets or mistakes (unless, of course, you decided to make one). I really thought having this ability will have an easy life but here, in Pivot Point, we will see how making choices are not always as easy as it is even to someone like Addie who can see both outcomes.

Addie was such a cool character to read, not just because she loves books and comics as much as I do, but because she’s realistically flawed and it was easy for me to empathize with her. That is saying a lot because I can only sympathize, most of the time, with fictional characters. Also her sense of humor was amusing and if Laila wasn’t in the picture, I will nominate myself as her best friend. 

And oh, my! TREVOR! Falling in love with him is like a meteor entering earth’s atmosphere. It’s fast yet natural and leaves a streak of beautiful light that people wishes upon. He was funny, talented, caring, and he understood Addie like he was her soul mate. Call me cheesy and hopeless romantic all you want, but that’s how I pictured them. The contest on who’s more perfect for Addie is a mismatch. I didn’t think twice on who to root for because it wasn’t even close.

Plot-wise, the story was well-balanced with romance and suspense mystery. The writing was easy to get into and the paranormal and normal aspects of the setting were unique and fascinating. The only thing that stopped me from giving this a 5 star is the transition of chapters from the two choices. I was confused in the fourth to sixth chapter on what was happening because I didn’t know that the search has already begun. Maybe, I’m just unobservant unlike others, that I didn’t realize until later that the word with definition in every chapter was the clue in which choice she was in. But nonetheless, I blame the formatting.

Overall, Pivot Point was a pretty impressive debut which I will recommend to everyone who likes suspense and romance that revolves around people with extraordinary ability.

My Rating

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