Paranormalcy - Kiersten White

This is my first review for the 2011 Debut Author Challenge hosted by The Story Siren. I've wanted to read this book for ages as it was published in the US last year but I decied to wait for it to be published in the UK before getting a copy. I am glad I waited because it was a great book to start my very first challenge with. As the challenge suggests Paranormalcy is the first novel by Kiersten White and she has done a fantastic job.

Paranormalcy is the story of 16 year old Evie. Evie lives in a world of vampires, werewolves, faeries and other paranormal creatures. And while she is not one of these creatures she is something different, she just doesn’t know what yet. Evie, being an orphan, lives at the IPCA an international organisation that attempts to control the paranormal population. Although she is only 16 she also works for them as she has a special talent - she is the only known person who can see all other paranormals, she can see past their glamour to what they truly are. There is a problem however, paranormals are being murdered and the IPCA have no idea who is doing it. Luckily Evie meets Lend an interesting young man who is also, like Evie, unique and it’s up to them to figure out what is going on. Evie’s journey is an interesting, fun ride that I can’t wait to read more of. While the subject matter is quite dark the author manages to find a perfect balance that has you smiling in all the right places and on the edge of your seat in others.

From some of the reviews I had read of this book I got the impression that there was going to be some sort of love triangle involved which had initially put me off this book. I am glad to say however that this is not what you get - well so far at least as it is the first in a trilogy. There is a secondary love interest for Evie in the form of the faerie Reth - but he was so utterly and completely repulsive I didn’t take him as serious competition for Evie’s affection and I hope it stays that way.

I liked the fact that the romance between Evie and Lend felt like a teenage romance, sometimes YA books have a tendency to go to far to fast with characters relationships and can seem completely out of proportion with their age but this was not the case with Paranormalcy. The whole prom scene was very cute and one of my favourite parts of the book.

Overall I loved this book and would recommend it to any YA fantasy lover out there. I am very much looking forward to the other two books in this trilogy the first being Supernaturally which comes out later this year.

That's all for now.