The Awakening, Kelley Armstrong

Book: The Awakening

Author: Kelley Armstrong Her Site

Series: Darkest Powers (#2)
Genre: Supernatural/Ya Fiction
Rating: 5/5
Moral: 4/5

If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl — someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I’m as far away from normal as it gets. I’m a living science experiment — not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a sinister organization call the Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters. I'm a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control: I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever. Now I’m running for my life with three of my supernatural friends - a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch - and we have to find someone who can help us before the Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.

I simply adored The Awakening!

The Plot:

It was flawless and epic. Not only was there more action then The Summoning, but it was amazingly better. The Edison Group proved to be a worthy enemy, continually manipulating the kids. Than you have werewolf packs, new powers and secret societies. Kelley Armstrong is a more than capable author with inspiring talent. After the werewolves, you have the scary woods scenes and a whole bunch of mystery. 

The Characters:

In book one, Chloe proved to be strong willed and curious. In The Awakening, she grew into a leader. Her powers were substantially developed throughout the book, and I loved the woven in doubt. It made me positive Chloe wouldn't turn into some power dependent crazy person. Her anti romance with Simon made me happy. Personally, I can't stand the guy. He treats Chloe like a baby, and she was smart enough to see that. Liz and Chloe's friendship improved, despite Liz being dead. Than you have Rachelle, and the mysterious Derek. I loved them all, along with the rest of the cast. Some of my favorite fictional characters ever.

The Setting:
So after getting away from the Edison Group, the teens are mostly on the run. A lot of time is spent on buses and in alleys. Unlike most runaway novels, they aren't tramping through giant cities and famous buildings. It felt very realistic. The buses seemed to work really well in this story, they weren't elaborated or overused. They were simply a mode of transportation that ended up being a substantial thing to keep the plot flowing. Very unique and realistic.

The Standout:

Oh, this was indeed a hard one. So much stood out to me, but I decided on the Edison Group. They might not seem like much, but there is tons below the surface. So maybe they are evil, or maybe they are trying to just fix the past, but they make for some interesting people. You can tell that most of them are on the fringe of crazy. They lock the kids up ad shoot at them all in the name of their better good. I love the sense of controlled hate between all of them. It's like they can't stand the horrible decisions the other makes, but they are doing the same thing. So, I loved the Edison Group just as much as I was annoyed by them.

The Moral:
Chloe didn't have an addiction to power. She wasn't obsessed with her abilities and she really didn't want to use them. She didn't think it was important to have the spotlight, and I think that is something good to think about. It really isn't the most important thing to be in the spotlight. There wasn't much swearing, if any, and no sex. I loved it!!!