Author: Pittacus Lore
Format: Uncorrected Proof
Pages: 332
Genre: Science fiction, YA
Published:
I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.
Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?
They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.
I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.
After battling against the Mogadorians at their school, John (Number Four) and his friend Sam have fled the town of Paradise with a price on their heads - the police believing them to be terrorists. In tow is chimera, Bernie Kosar, and the second Lorian we have met, Six.
Over in Spain, we also pick up the story of Number Seven, also known as Marina. She's currently living in a convent/orphanage, waiting for her legacies to develop and the right time to find the others.
The story switches between John and Marina's points of view and while in one way I liked this (mostly because John is the dullest protagonist ever and it meant we get less of him), it was sometimes confusing at the start of the switch as to who it was. Also Marina became annoying after a while as well. While we mostly got to see what was happening with Six through John's point of view, I think I'd have preferred this part of the story to be hers. Six was the most interesting of the main characters by far and it was a shame that her back story was crammed into a quick recap of her telling it to the others.
A couple of chapters into the book, my thoughts were that this installment was better than the first one. It is, but that's not really enough to make me love it. Towards the end (and I'm talking last twenty or so pages) I still hadn't decided if I liked it or not. I didn't really care what happened to the characters and for me that's an essential part of a book.
I still like the over all concept of the story but for me it was one of those plots where there's lots of action but nothing seems to be actually happening. It also bugged me that the characters made so many silly mistakes - like John insisting on going to see Sarah even though it clearly wasn't a good idea. Then there's a completely pointless and totally forced love triangle thing going on.
All in all, there were parts that I enjoyed and I'll probably read the third book, just to see what happens, it just isn't one I'll be making a special effort to get hold of.
