Rate this book

Girl Who Never Was: Otherworld Book One (2014)

by Skylar Dorset(Favorite Author)

3.7 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

130678414X (ISBN13: 9781306784146)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Sourcebooks Fire

series

Otherworld

review 1: I first saw this one sitting at the Sourcebooks booth at BEA and after seeing the pretty cover and finding out it involved the fae, I knew I was in. I love books about the fae and even more so when they incorporate the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. The two Courts are fascinating to me, so I was looking forward to seeing how Dorset would put her own spin on the lore. Despite my issues with this one, I did end up liking it overall and am interested in the sequel. I wasn't wowed by this book. In fact even at 31% I felt pretty meh about the book. If I didn't have the sequel to read, I probably would have thrown in the towel then. I have to say, I'm glad I didn't. I was bored for a good portion of the book, as it took so long to get to the good stuff. I understand world building ... moreis important, but I almost felt it wasn't the right kind. Yes, it's important to see how Boston is the hotspot to get to the Otherworld, but I could have done without a lot of the history we received. I would have rather Dorset really build up the Otherworld. The story does pick up however, and I found myself wondering how Selkie would get to the Otherworld to save Ben and face off against the mother she's never known... and wants her dead. There is a prophecy that states Selkie is one of four who will bring down the Seelie Court, so that added twist really helped beef up the story also.While the storyline ended up becoming more enjoyable, unfortunately the characterization did not. I found it a bit hard to believe that Selkie just accepts who she is and this new world without a second thought. That always bothers me because if you're going to write a story set during modern times and disrupt a normal life, surely there should be a little freaking out and disbelief that another world with mythic creatures exists! I also wasn't crazy about the romance. I would have preferred more development there to make it believable. Ben is a guy Selkie has been crushing on and is one of her few friends that she looks forward to seeing in Boston Commons. I can understand a crush, but for her to declare feelings of love seemed a bit off, especially since we readers didn't see their interactions prior to the book starting. It was just hard to buy for me. I would have rather seen her falling for Ben. This book didn't quite reach the balance between character and plot development. I felt Dorset was more invested in telling the story than giving the characters' voice. They fell flat for me and where I should have been swooning over Ben, I just didn't. We can see he cares for Selkie, as he has been protecting her and would even risk captivity to do so, but the spark wasn't quite there.While I wasn't blow away by this book, it did intrigue me enough to want to read the sequel. I really liked that Dorset included the lore that names have power and knowing one's full name could destroy their very being. The fae are a very clever and deceitful race, so I am curious as to whether or not Selkie will fulfill the prophecy or if she will be thwarted by someone close to her....
review 2: I didn't know what this book was about when I first started it. I normally don't read what books are about beforehand, I like the challenge of figuring it out when reading. Such a rebel. Haha...not. Really, there wasn't a lot hidden things. Once things were known, you knew who people were and what was going on. A plus for me. No frustrating guesswork. I was a little confused in the beginning, but I blame lack of sleep while trying to get into it. The time keeping and the otherworld characters didn't help at that moment. But once I had a full night's sleep and went at it again, it was cool. I like the concept of the prophecy, the characters were okay, and I did like what happened when she meet mommy dearest.I liked that things were explained when needed and not left hanging. I do wonder about what happened with Brody in the novella and it not mentioned by Selkie nor Kelsey when weird things started happening. Minor curiosity on my part. Oh, well.Can't wait to read the next book. Hope it's just as fun and crazy as this one. less

Download links for: Girl Who Never Was: Otherworld Book One

Advertising