Friday, October 11, 2013

Book Review: The Art of Disappearing by Elena Perez

Delia can see the future . . . but can she change it?

All Delia wants is to be popular. She has the perfect plan: join the cheerleading squad with her best friend, Ava, and rule the school from the coolest table in the cafeteria. But everything changes the day she watches a boy die—before it actually happens.

After dreaming about a classmate’s demise, she’s shocked when she witnesses his last breath—just like she dreamt it. Ava insists Delia stop acting so strange, but Delia worries her abilities are beyond her control.

Torn between who she is and who she wants to be, Delia wishes she could simply disappear. She doesn’t get her wish, but when someone close to her vanishes, Delia must use her gift to solve the mystery, before it’s too late.


Best Bits: I really liked how this one ended. It was a very understated, non-cliffhanger ending (so refreshing!). Even if this is the start to a series, I'm just so grateful that it didn't feel like 'Book 1 in the ______ series.' How often does that happen these day? It says quite a bit about Perez's style that after everything had basically wrapped itself up I was still interested how Delia is dealing with her abilities. I also liked that the mystery in the book was creepy without being too dramatic. I will say that the book focused more on friendships than it did on supernatural powers, but I didn't mind. It showed how hard it was for Delia when there was an adjustment to the hierarchy of the popular girls in school. Plus, it also has a great depiction about how jealousy and feelings of worthlessness can lead to bad friendships. It just takes Delia some time to figure out who her friends are, and what she really wants from them. 

Nit Picks: The reader doesn't get a lot of background on Delia's powers. I suppose that's realistic, but there were a couple of things that weren't explained enough for me to be fully satisfied. The book also uses the word "retarded." It's only used once, but it's a word that I really detest. So, that pulled me directly out of the story.

The Art of Disappearing
By Elena Perez
Published by Alloy Entertainment
391 Pages
Received for Review
 

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