sstaley
Written on Feb 2, 2011
When your world is paranormal, be glad that you’re human… Exciting new author brings a fresh sassy take on paranormal romance, loved by Becca Fitzpatrick, author of HUSH, HUSH.
Sixteen-year-old Evie has always taken comfort in the fact that she is normal, even though her best friend is a mermaid and her ex-boyfriend is a lunatic – and a faery.
In a world where paranormals are monitored and controlled, Evie works for the International Paranormal Containment Agency because of her unique ability to see through glamours. But someone – or something – starts killing vampires, werewolves and other paranormals, and Evie must figure out what’s happening before they all disappear.Then a shapeshifter named Lend breaks into the agency, and Evie is irresistibly drawn to him, even though he makes her aware that the IPCA is not as noble as she once thought. With everything Evie believes suddenly called into question, the IPCA is attacked and she must choose who she can really trust.
And when Evie discovers she’s part of a faerie prophecy of death and destruction… so much for normal.
- ISBN13 9780007390113
- Publish Date 6 January 2011 (first published 31 August 2010)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers Inc
- Imprint HarperCollins
- Format Paperback
- Pages 352
- Language English
- URL http://harpercollins.co.uk
Reviews
Linda
Written on Dec 2, 2010
ladygrey
Written on Oct 29, 2010
But I liked Evie and she doesn't make dumb-ass-ending-the-world-because-I'm-stubborn-or-short-sighted choices. The reasons she does things those in authority don't want her to do makes sense and they don't end horribly.
And then the mystery begins to emerge and I got curious which means I got interested. Then the boy got all charming and Evie was completely endearing in her naivete. Those moments when Lend is sweet and Evie is playful and beautifully innocent totally hooked me and pushed it to 4 stars.
It's a self contained story so I don't need a sequel. But I'd most definitely read the next one.
Leah
Written on Oct 6, 2010
It's such an interesting and complex plot and I found myself swept up in the book almost immediately. Evie is such a fun and feisty heroine - she captures paranormals for a living and she's only 16! - and her narrative is so enticing that I found myself finding it hard to put the book down. The book speeds along at a great pace at the beginning but once the paranormals start dying - something the IPCA specifically do not do - it all kicks off and Evie suddenly begins questioning everything she's ever known about her life. Throw in a very questionable faerie, a boy, Lend, able to shape-shift into anyone he pleases and Evie's life is definitely anything but normal.
As I said, Evie is a fantastic character, I loved her immediately and she's the kinda girl it's easy to get on with and one you'd love to be friends with. The life with the IPCA is the only one she's ever known after being put into foster care at a young age and she barely lets it get her down. I totally admired her. As for Lend, I loved him! The banter between himself and Evie made for fantastic reading and he was a fabulous character in his own right. I loved the fact he could shape-shift into anybody he pleased, and his story was so fascinating. As far as I can tell from other reviews, Reth, a very possessive faerie and Evie's ex-boyfriend of sorts, has a lot of fans but I personally didn't see the appeal. I found him a bit strange and not at all likeable and I'd be sad if in future books Evie debates getting back together with him in any way! I do find him interesting, though, because he definitely adds spice to the book! The only other standout character for me, was Lish, Evie's best friend. She's a mermaid but works for the IPCA and I found her bleeping hilarious!
Paranormalcy is very well written, and I finished the book in record time - I just didn't want to stop reading and every chapter led nicely into the next making it easy for me to continue. There are some sad parts, I was almost in tears during one particular moment, and the ending was incredibly fast-paced! We built and built up to that moment and I didn't feel let down at all. I didn't know what to expect from the book, whether I'd like it or not, but I definitely did. I loved the setting of the IPCA, I thought that was very well done, the characters and chemistry between them was fantastic, particularly between Lend and Evie and I just thought the book was very unique. I can't wait for Supernaturally which is out next year to continue Evie and Lend's story and I can't wait to see who comes back with them and what trouble Evie will find herself in next time!
Amber
Written on Oct 1, 2010
Anyway, moving on from the gorgeousness that is the Paranormalcy book cover, I just wanted to say that I loved reading this book. For starters, the plot was a great one. Evie is a unique paranormal hunter who can see past the paranormal creatures’ glamours. Meaning, they cannot disguise themselves from her. Of course, being as unique as Evie is, IPCA had to sweep in an employ her. IPCA is the International Paranormal Containment Agency, which hires both humans and paranormals to bag and tag rogue paranormals. There is a huge variety of creatures in this book, ranging from vampires to hags, and their mythology is explained very well, even though their kind is not among the main characters of the book. Everything seems to be running smoothly until there’s a break in in the IPCA headquarters, and then of course Evie has to get caught in the middle of the trouble with a certain shape shifter named Lend.
There’s also a romantic subplot to this story which does not take over from the main storyline which I LOVE. I love that the focus is on the paranormal side of things rather than the main character’s love interest(s).
This leads me nicely onto talking about the characters. Evie, our main protagonist, is a good choice for the lead role of this novel. She is headstrong, brave, witty and sarcastic - which, for me, adds a lot to her character - but she is also girly and she has a big interest in the normal human world. She is not content with her life in IPCA and she wants to go to a normal high school like what is shown on her favourite TV show. She even is interested in the lockers!
Lend, the shape shifter Evie befriends, is a lovely character. I won’t say too much about him in case I spoil anything, he is witty and has some very sarcastic comebacks but he is very sweet and, at times, comes across as quite innocent. This just proves that you do not need a bad boy character to love a book.
The faerie, Reth, on the other hand, is one creepy SOB and I did not like him at all. However, he was a good character to have as one of the antagonists. He is a character that you’ll love to hate.
Kiersten White has made Paranormalcy a very interesting read. The writing flows well which makes the book very easy to read. The descriptions of the paranormal creatures and also of Evie’s job is excellent, and I really do love it. However, I did find that the descriptions were lacking at times, when talking about certain places in the book. This didn’t take much away from the book for me, because Evie’s voice and dialogue more than made up for it.