Need by Carrie Jones

Need by Carrie Jones

Source: Library
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 306

Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane...but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now.

She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right - not human - in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

In this creepy, compelling breakout novel, Carrie Jones delivers romance, suspense, and a creature you never thought you'd have to fear.

Need is a novel that started off a little predictable to me but ultimately turned out to be something that I enjoyed reading. I liked the second half of the book a lot more than the first, so I have high hopes for the sequel!

So, I'll start off with the main character, Zara. I liked her, she seems like the kind of girl I'd want to hang out with. She collects phobia names like you wouldn't believe (more on that later) and spends her free time writing out urgent action letters for Amnesty International. The only real problem I had with Zara, and other characters as well, was that I felt like there was so much more to her character that could be explored and was just left untouched.

Zara's (step)father has just died and although we're told that she is inconsolably upset about this, I couldn't feel her anguish or pain at it. It is something that is supposed to have died down, but still. I know that if it was my dad, I wouldn't be getting over it that quickly. I think that's the main issue I had with this novel. I wanted to know more about everything - the characters, the pixies, the weres - all of it.

One of the coolest things for me in this book were the phobias. Essentially, the phobias make up the chapter titles and frequently make their way into Zara's thoughts. She obsessively memorizes them and being the huge nerd I am, I found it pretty awesome to read through them all and go tell other people about them (they didn't care, but thanks for asking).

Like I said earlier, the second half of the book was a lot better for me. The pacing was quicker and I felt like it started getting really interesting. I did end up liking the book in the end, I just felt like it had the potential to be better. Hopefully the second book will do the concept justice!

Cover Comments: I don't know... when I saw it online, I thought it looked really pretty. The physical copy I had looked a little weird though. It might have just been the library copy though, which was pretty old and worn. It bugs me that it's a shot of Zara's neck! When I see necks on covers, I automatically think "vampires," not pixies and weres. I do like the sparkle though (seriously, someone should just do a plain black cover with words and sparkles and I will be pleased).