Review : Paranormalcy

Posted by kay on November 5, 2010 8:56 am in 4 stars reads | 5 comments

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
Pages : 335
Genre : YA, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Series : Paranormalcy, Book 1
My Rating :

What it’s about :

The IPCA – the International Paranormal Containment Agency – is everything in Evie’s life : for as long as she can remember, it’s been the place she lived, learned and worked. She’s the only normal human girl in a bunch of paranormal creatures, although she does have one special ability : she can see through the paranormals’ glamours like no one else can.

But then paranormal creatures start dying in an alarming way, exactly as Evie starts having strange nightmares. Is there a link between the two? Would Evie be, after all, less than normal?

Paranormalcy was so much fun! I know it doesn’t look like it from the cover (I’ll get back on that in a moment), but it was such a fun, action-packed, somewhat bubbly story! I was expecting something dark, mysterious, but Paranormalcy gave me that AND had a lightness I haven’t felt in most young adult paranormal or urban fantasy novels I’ve read recently. The world building was original, mixing various creatures but in a coherent way, and the story had many twists to offer.

As a main character, I thought Evie was gold. She had such a great balance between enjoying her life, and wishing for a real, normal one. She watches teen soaps (à la Gossip Girl and 90210) with a longing for a “normal” teen life and has a really girly side (her taser in pink with rhinestones). Yet, she isn’t whiny or pessimistic. She’s fun, and she gave me a few laughs.

Of course, there’s also a romance. The chemistry between Evie and Lend was very believable without being too intense. They felt like friends first, and I liked that. Sure, there was an attraction from the beginning, but I appreciated that it wasn’t purely physical. Then there’s Rent : while he’s not exactly part of the romance side of the story, he sure likes to create trouble between the two lovebirds! I can only describe Rent as an annoying, yet fascinating character. The dynamics he created in the story were really interesting.

I wanted to take a moment to mention the cover : while it does look fantastic, it is also, sadly, not a great representation of the story. It feels way too dark to fit Evie’s personality : I would have imagined her in hot pink, in a less dark environment. Sure, the story isn’t all fun and games, and there are some serious, dark events : but the cover doesn’t translate the humor, the optimism I found between the pages.

Paranormalcy was a fun novel that differs from other of the genre. With a strong female lead and an interesting storyline that gives perspective on the theme of liberty, Paranormalcy is a strong debut. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series!

Series Reading Order :

1. Paranormalcy
2. Supernaturally (coming 2011)