ARC Review: Uninvited (Uninvited #1) by Sophie Jordan

Uninvited

Author: Sophie Jordan

Series: Uninvited

Pages: 384

Release date: 28^th January 2014

Genre: Young Adult

Publisher: HarperTeen

Amazon

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

The Scarlet Letter meets Minority Report in bestselling author Sophie Jordan's chilling new novel about a teenage girl who is ostracized when her genetic test proves she's destined to become a murderer.

When Davy Hamilton's tests come back positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS)-aka the kill gene-she loses everything. Her boyfriend ditches her, her parents are scared of her, and she can forget about her bright future at Juilliard. Davy doesn't feel any different, but genes don't lie. One day she will kill someone.

Only Sean, a fellow HTS carrier, can relate to her new life. Davy wants to trust him; maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

The first in a two-book series, Uninvited tackles intriguing questions about free will, identity, and human nature. Steeped in New York Times bestselling author Sophie Jordan's trademark mix of gripping action and breathless romance, this suspenseful tale is perfect for fans of James Patterson, Michelle Hodkin, and Lisa McMann

Review: 4 out of 5 stars

I recently read Sophie Jordan’s New Adult title Foreplay and thoroughly enjoyed her style of writing so I was more than eager to start on Uninvited which is the first book in the Uninvited duology.

Our main protagonist is seventeen year old music prodigy Davina ‘Davy’ Hamilton who had a promising future ahead of her at Juilliard but when her results for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome ‘HTS’ show that she is positive for the kill gene her life is instantaneously changed - her parents fear her, she has lost her boyfriend and friends and her future career is gone all over the possibility that one day she would kill.

Davy was an interesting character, strong when she needed to be but also showed innocence at other times; she was a character I completely sympathised with and felt for, her whole life had pretty much been ripped away from her but she adapted as well as she could despite the grim future she now had.

People who have HTS are feared, hated and separated from the rest of society, treated as criminals before they have committed a crime – Davy is uninvited from her prestigious school and sent to a public school, still isolated from the other students and placed in a cage with other carriers, it is here where she most notices Sean, a carrier himself and marked with a tattoo to show he is a criminal.

I don’t feel we truly got to know Sean fully but what we do learn I liked. He was a mystery and despite his tough exterior he was really quite sweet. I can't wait to learn more about him.

Sophie Jordan has included the perfect blend of action, violence, death and gritty details that kept the pacing flowing well but there seemed to be little follow through on occasion which gave me many more questions and not enough answers. I feel that the world-building was lacking in the depth required with this sort of book, background details about the virus wasn’t freely given but in saying that the concept was simplistic and easy to grasp. The plot itself was enjoyable and with more and more people showing positive for the virus and being sent off to detention camps, the future for carriers is looking bleak. It is a promising start to the series and with the way things ended I am definitely eager to read the sequel.

The romance wasn’t strong or at the forefront of the story but I did find myself liking their slow to build relationship and the way Sean protected Davy and gave her hope; the ending showed how close they had become; it started off with Davy being quite wary and her fear of Sean but she came to trust him and the feeling was mutual which was sweet, nothing was rushed.

Overall, Uninvited is a wonderful start to the series and is a captivating and engrossing read; with a fascinating concept, wonderful writing and likeable characters it is a great addition to the dystopian genre.

About the author:

Pseudonym: Sharie Kohler

Sophie Jordan took her adolescent daydreaming one step further and penned her first historical romance in the back of her high school Spanish class. This passion led her to pursue a degree in English and History.

A brief stint in law school taught her that case law was not nearly as interesting as literature - teaching English seemed the natural recourse. After several years teaching high school students to love Antigone, Sophie resigned with the birth of her first child and decided it was time to pursue the long-held dream of writing.

In less than three years, her first book, Once Upon A Wedding Night, a 2006 Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Nominee for Best First Historical, hit book shelves. Her second novel,Too Wicked To Tame, released in March 2007 with a bang, landing on the USA Today Bestseller's List.