Armstrong, Kelley: The Summoning
The Summoning
Writer: Kelley Armstrong
Genre: YA/Urban Fantasy
Pages: 390
Without janicu's review***, I'm not sure I would've ever known that Kelley Armstrong was writing other books outside of her adult urban fantasy series. It's thanks to janicu that I discovered Armstrong's mystery debut, Exit Strategy, and now her YA debut, The Summoning. Having read and enjoyed Bitten, I definitely wasn't adverse to reading more of Armstrong's work (shame on me for not getting on with the rest of her current series, but hey, that's my attention for you. I mean to one of these days), I decided it wouldn't hurt to check out her YA.
The premise: Chloe thinks she's just a normal girl (who's mother died, who's father is rich, and goes to an art school--yes, I'm being evil when it comes to the definition of "normal," but don't let that alone keep you from reading) until all at once, she gets her period and sees her first ghost. Oh, and he sees her too, sending her into a screaming fit all through the school and convincing her teachers she's stark raving mad. In order to get her education back on track, Chloe has to get therapy, and she's taken to the Lyle House. There she learns she's not the only weird one around, and finding out why people want her to think otherwise becomes a matter of life-and-death, especially after her roommate is taken away.
Spoilers ahead, yo.
So let's be honest: this book is incredibly familiar to me. Rich girl, mental home, supernatural powers, ghosts, adults who don't understand and want to suppress supernatural abilities . . . it's FAMILIAR, dang it! Don't ask me what it reminds me OF, but nothing about this plot was surprising, not even the twist at the end, which was a surprise in terms of expectation, but not in terms of the whole picture.
Let's talk about what I liked: the pages FLEW. The first person voice speeds along nicely, and each chapter ends on a bit of tension that makes you want to keep going. The supporting cast, while familiar, also adds to the conflict.
There's Simon, who doesn't seem ill at all and is only there for his brother Derek, who is a giant of a freaky, anti-social dude who seems fixated on Chloe. There's the resident bitch, Tori; there's the resident down-to-earth girl Rae, whose only crime is loving fire, and then there's Liz, who claims she's stuck with a poltergeist. Everyone seems to have it pretty good, provided they take their meds and don't cause trouble. But of course, there's trouble.
Tori lets it slip that Chloe's there because she can see ghosts (the official diagnosis is schizophrenia, which Chloe, while not happy, accepts because it makes more sense than ghosts and she wants to get out), which makes Derek obsess over her, cornering in places and telling her she's a necromancer (aka, can talk to and raise the dead). This, of course, freaks Chloe out, and it's up to brother Simon to smooth the wrinkles. And then Liz gets taken away after a very violent episode with her poltergeist, (it's really not Liz doing the actions either), and soon after, Chloe sees Liz's ghosts, which scares the hell out of her. After much denial and whining and distrust, Chloe, Derek, Simon, and Rae all plan to escape the Lyle House to find Simon's dad, who'll hopefully answers.
Yeah, the casual chain, not so great.
The deal: Derek has supernatural strength, and by the end of the book, we learn he's on his way to becoming a werewolf (apparently he was born with it). Simon's got magic as in Harry Potter, but not as powerful. And Rae, with her fascination with fire and ability to burn people just with her hands alone, might be half-demon. Chloe can see ghosts and raise the dead (she learns that in a rather frightening episode in the cellar), and Liz, they believe, might've been a shaman, which would allow her to astral project and might account for the poltergeist.
So that's five kids, all dubbed mentally ill, all who just happen to be in the Lyle House for recovery. When Chloe raises the dead, she learns that there might be a connection to the House's benefactor, who did experiments on witches and whatnot, then killed them and left them for dead in the cellar. So of course, they all have to escape.
Wow, I'm feeling snarky about this review, and I really did enjoy the book. Odd. But when you consider that the book is nearly 400 pages and a lot of time is spent in denial and excuses and even the supernatural elements aren't revealed at a satisfying pace, it's easy to understand a bit of frustration. And did I mention the cliffhanger? The book totally ends on a cliffhanger. I'd gripe about that, but in the Amazon.com blog for this book Armstrong seems to feel really bad about having done it, so I figure she's paying her dues. ;)
So why the cliffhanger? Turns out, the doctors at the Lyle House knew the kids were special with special powers, but they wanted the kids to think otherwise. Or they wanted to suppress the kids' powers. Or something. I'm not entirely clear on this. And when Chloe and her friends make a run for it, Chloe's betrayed by her Aunt Lauren, who was a part of it all along, and the book ends with Chloe stuck in a real hospital with no idea what's going to happen to her or what happened to her friends. She just knows that Liz is definitely dead, and at the end of the book, she's going to fill Liz in on the truth.
I'll be honest: as much of a page-turner this was and as much as I enjoyed it, if it hadn't been for the cliffhanger, I probably wouldn't continue with the series. I grew frustrated with Chloe, and while her quirk of loving film and wanting to be a director and therefore her narrative was colored by, "If this was a movie, this would be like THIS" got really old, really fast. I think part of my problem, though I didn't realize it while reading, is that this is an already established universe--it's the same one of Armstrong's adult UF series. Since I've only read one book in that series, it makes sense I'm not, yanno, FILLED IN on all the details. Admittedly, I think this YA series is supposed to be independent of those books (it should be, if it isn't) and it just inhabits the same world, but I like to think I'd have known what was going on under the surface if I was up to date with her other stuff.
Or not. I have no way of knowing until I read the rest of Armstrong's adult series.
I was also suspicious of Armstrong's idea of a troubled home for teens. Now, on one hand, the doctors know the kids aren't really sick, so whatever pills they're pushing, it's designed to suppress the abilities (I think) and they don't need interviews and whatnot to determine just what's necessary. Maybe that was a clue that Chloe was being given random pills (including sleeping pills) before she ever met with her doctor and was given the official diagnosis, but it kind of irked me. If anything, Chloe should've said something, asked what the pills were for, you know? Mixing meds is a dangerous thing, so I was a wee bit worried.
My Rating
Buy the Paperback: it's an enjoyable, fast read, but if it hadn't been for the cliffhanger ending, I don't think I would've pursued this series, as I wasn't that attached to the world or the characters, which is ironic, since the world is the same one from Armstrong's adult UF series (which I've only read one book of, so give me a break). I'll continue to get the hardcovers since I'm already committed, but I think that unless you're a collector or just love hardcovers to pieces (or just a super big fan of any and everything Armstrong writes), you might be better off with a cheaper copy, possibly the trade.
*** = Okay, I can't find her original review for The Summoning, which makes me doubt my claim. But I know someone told me about this book. Oh yes, someone did...
Next up:
The Secret History of Moscow by Ekaterina Sedia