Postcard For Reader

Guest Review: Starcrossed

Starcrossed
Author: Josephine Angelini
Series: Starcrossed (#1)
Publisher: HarperTeen
How Received: bought

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it's getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she's haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they're destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

I have to admit that it took me quite a while to get into this book. I had a couple of problems with it. The beginning reminded me a lot of a book that I read earlier in the year; Unearthly by Cynthia Hand (which I LOVED). And in some respects, this book was a lot like that one. A female character in high school who is clearly different from everyone else and there is that one guy who catches her eye, who also happens to be different...but he's just like her.

I think one of the reasons I felt this way for about the first 100 pages is because Angelini doesn't really give us a lot of information about what Helen really is. The reader has no idea until Helen finds out...which takes a while. At first, this really made me frustrated because I felt a little lost, but as I got more and more into the book I liked the fact that the I got to make my own theories about things before I was given the whole story.

I ended up reading this book at a really interesting time. I found the subject of Greek Gods popping up all over my life. I'm taking an Ancient Greek Philosophy course this semester and of course the first readings we had for the class were all about the Greek Gods. I ended up doing those readings and finishing Starcrossed the weekend Hurricane Irene hit and I felt like my entire life was completely focused on that subject. It's funny how things work out like that sometimes.

My favorite part was definitely learning some of the myths about the Gods. I'm kind of a mythology freak as it is and while this book clearly did not give the whole story, I felt like it explained the war between the Gods really nicely. It was easy to understand and I could actually see this book being read for fun as part of a Greek Mythology class. The cliffhanger at the end was definitely infuriating and exciting all at the same time. While I love books that tease me and leave me hanging, it sucks to know that I have to wait A WHOLE YEAR before I get to find out what happens next.

Beverly is an activist, an obsessive Harry Potter fan, and a junior in college majoring in English. She also happens to go to school with Nicole.