Pages: 308
Genre: Young Adult/Action & Adventure
I had a couple of big accomplishments today:
1. I finished reading "Sheer Power" (that means you get a review!
2. I went into town, found the library, and got myself a library card! Woot!
3. I picked up the next book up for review :)
4. A young girl complimented me on my Harry Potter shirt I wore today (See! What did I tell you about Harry Potter love passing down the generations!)
So let's talk about "Sheer Power: Crossing Paths." This book tells the story of Seisho, a recent high school grad who's just looking for a summer job to pass the time, and Juto, a well known master energy user. Energy users have the ability to harness the energy within themselves and expel it in a variety of techniques. Mostly, the practice of energy use is meant mostly for sport or self discipline. In Juto's case, it's a little more complicated--in order to complete the special tasks specifically assigned to his family, Seisho will have to learn to master energy control whether he likes it or not.
Juto is just looking for someone to help clean up around the house, but he gets a lot more than he bargained for when he hires Seisho. When Juto attempts to investigate Seisho's strange behavior, they both quickly find themselves mixed up in the beginnings of a rebellion. There are some who believe that there are too many restrictions on energy users, that energy users need to take control. They are meant for so much more than mere sport, and if you refuse to join, you will really wish you hadn't.
Can Seisho overcome his dislike of energy control and with Juto's help stop a rebellion?
My Reaction:
As you may recall from last week, one of my first impressions of this book was, "Hey, this is like Dragon Ball Z." I wouldn't actually know as I haven't seen the show...at least I don't think changing the channel whenever it was on counts as actually seeing it. But don't let that deter you. I don't think it's really like the show at all.
The reason I made the connection to Dragon Ball Z is the fact that one of the main elements with the book is the energy use. Plus, for some reason, when I read the prologue I envisioned the opening sequence to an anime show. Perhaps it's because the cover of the book is anime inspired, or perhaps it's the fact that my husband, Corey, and I have been watching a bunch of Studio Ghibli films.
But I digress.
I'll admit that I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. I wasn't sure I would like it. Part of the reason why is, well, I started to judge the book by its cover so to speak. I knew it was an independently published book, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but my experience with independently published books has been mostly poor. Mostly this is due to the fact that they don't have a publishing house backing them up and the resources that provides (like a sound copy editor). So I was kind of surprised when I found that this book had a pretty good story behind it.
Overall, I enjoyed it. There's some mystery behind it that is slowly divulged overtime, keeping the reader interested. There were a couple of things I noted that didn't seem completely resolved, but not in a bad way. It was done in a foreshadowing sort of way. There is another book in the works, so I'm sure those things will be addressed. In fact, there's one thing in particular I'd like to know about one of the characters because if you ask me, he totally had his memory wiped. Just saying. Read the book for more details.
Another good thing about this book is that the author clearly has a great understanding of the world she has created. Not only does she talk about energy users, but she mentions the different techniques of energy control. She even introduces us to a new sport played by energy users called enervipe. I also thought that Seisho's personal conflict and how he comes to terms and faces it in the end worked out well.
Now, I hate to mention negative aspects, but there were a couple things I should probably point out. For me, it wasn't enough to fully distract from the story or keep me from recommending this book to people who like this sort of thing. My main issue comes back to that "need of a copy editor thing." Even books produced by major publishing companies will have grammatical errors--I get that (I remember finding a few in the "Twilight" series, for example. It happens.). But I do think this could have used another look over. It wasn't just missing words, but some of the language was passive, and the phrase "as well" was used far too many times. So a bit of the language got repetitive, and there were moments where I really wanted the language to be more active (more show, less tell). Again, overall, I was able to look past that. I've read books where those sorts of things drive me nuts, and it's way too distracting to even be able to enjoy the story. In this case, I felt the story itself was good enough that I could look past the grammar stuff.
I think the author shows potential, and in the end I decided to give this a rating of 3.5 out of 5.
Reader Guidance:
This book does deal with physical combat (mostly in the form of shooting energy at each other), but I didn't feel that it was over the top--nothing too dramatic. There is a reference to a man being beat up so badly that he's sent to the hospital with broken bones and some burns. There is also a moment where an energy user uses her power to break someone's arm. It's basically described as the energy user grabbing the other's arm, they hear a snap, and the person screams.
Similar Books:
You know, I've never read something quite like this before, so I'm not sure what to compare it too. Anybody out there have any suggestions?
Next Book:
It was suggested that I check out Shannon Hale. I've read two of her books before, but it's been awhile. I picked up one of hers that I've been curious about, but I haven't gotten around to reading: "The Goose Girl." I just learned while I was at the library picking it up that there are also a couple of companion books that go along with it. Perhaps those will be next on the list!
I encourage you to read along and share your thoughts. I don't need to be a one person book club :P
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