Wow. This was NOT what I expected AT ALL! I almost put it down when the first pages offered up a six year old girl being taught to murder…
Thankfully I gave it a longer look than that (I am usually turned off pretty quickly by children and violence, particularly since I HAVE a six year old girl), because this turned out to be a unique, bizarre, cool story that thoroughly engaged me (even when I occasionally felt like I was reading through half-closed eyes). It’s NOT for the faint of heart. In addition to the opening scene I mentioned, there are numerous other instances of what seem to be gratuitous violence involving death, torture, children and animals, and they are brutal to read. But fairly quickly you come to realize there IS a point to all of the violence, and it couldn’t be farther from gratuitous. It’s still tough to swallow, but easier once you realize that – or at least was for me.
Jack’s story is unbelievable and wild and horrifying and touching and weird and utterly original. I was thoroughly engaged by her development and relationships, and the magical/supernatural underpinning was painted in with just enough detail provided – and deliberately withheld – to keep me guessing where things were going from the early pages through to the end.
This has been billed as a trilogy; I for one cannot wait to see where things go next. I think this one felt like a full story in itself. There are clearly loose ends that will be fun to watch unravel in future installments, but there is a definite story arc that comes to completion in this book also, which I enjoyed. I hate when an author stops a story abruptly, emotionally blackmailing readers into buying the next book just to know how the one they already have ends. This book doesn’t do that to you at all, and I appreciated that.
If you like your tales dark – VERY dark – and twisty and have a good stomach for violence and bizarre goings on that defy logic, this would be a great choice. The writing is strong and held my attention throughout and the pace kept things moving along at a solid speed, with occasional bursts of sharp zig-zagging that hit at just the right moments. I thoroughly enjoyed my trip into Jack’s world and am looking forward to visiting (with every light on in the room at the time) again!
My review copy was provided by NetGalley.
[…] is such a fabulous, dark, surprising series! I loved Pivot, the first book – from the opening salvo in which Jack learns to kill as a 6 year old girl, to her growth […]