Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Above by, Isla Morley

Above is going to be a really hard book to write a review on without spoilers, so I apologize if this review contains spoilers.  I will do my best not to ruin anything.  Above is a story about a teenage girl, Blythe, who is kidnapped and kept in a silo underground by her kidnapper.  This story is similar to those we have heard of on the news, where a young girl is kidnapped and kept prisoner for many years.  Blythe is unable to escape and has to adapt to her surroundings, learning to depend on her captor for survival.  I didn't enjoy this book as an overall package, it was like two different books wrapped into one.  The writing style isn't to blame, I connected with Blythe, I cared about her, but something was just off when the 'two books' were melded together. I really liked the first part of the book and the last part of the book, but the middle was difficult for me to get through, I almost didn't finish because I didn't like the shock I felt between the first and second part of the book.  I really like the idea behind the book, and feel like Morley intended for the reader to feel the same shock that Blythe did, which she did an excellent job of doing.  The change just made me feel cheated, just like in a book or a movie, where you go through a bunch of drama/action only to have the author say, "Surprise!  It's just a dream!"  (This is not what happens, the dream bit, in this book.)  The second part of the book is well thought out and I really liked it.  Maybe if there had been more clues about what was about to happen the transition would have worked better for me?  I also question the message the author is attempting to convey with the kidnapper.  (Which I can't go into without spoilers.)  Overall I give the book 3 out of 5 stars, if you do read this book please push through the middle section, it really does get better. 

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