Pittacus Lore
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: August 21, 2012
Source: Publisher
Until the day I met John Smith, Number Four, I'd been on the run alone, hiding and fighting to stay alive.
Together, we are much more powerful. But it could only last so long before we had to separate to find the others. . . .
I went to Spain to find Seven, and I found even more, including a tenth member of the Garde who escaped from Lorien alive. Ella is younger than the rest of us, but just as brave. Now we're looking for the others--including John.
But so are they.
They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They caught me in New York--but I escaped.
I am Number Six.
They want to finish what they started.
But they'll have to fight us first.
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CATCHALL
These books aren't perfect. They have a lot plot holes, and it kind of ticks me off how powerful the characters are. However, they're so much fun that I can forgive all of that. I mean, they give a good four, five hours of fun, and with the little amount of self-control I have there's no way I can turn that down. As for this third installment, it was fast-paced and just like its predecessors, had a ton a action packed somehow into just a few hundred pages. It's very much like a thriller in some ways, although not in others. Still, I without a doubt loved this book.
THE LORIC
FOUR
Four is, of course, the first one we met in this series, and so naturally he's the one we know the most about. I'm honestly not sure what there really is to say about him. He's compassionate and caring, that's for sure. Maybe a little crazy, and definitely willing to take some insane risks. Sometimes he can be impulsive. He doesn't always think things through before he acts, which is just irritating. Still, it's hard not to admire his loyalty, even if it's entirely possible it'll get him killed.
FIVE
We don't meet Five in this book, so moving on.
SIX
Six is really brave, and also a bit foolish, and also too impulsive. However, when she is impulsive she, like Four, really doesn't do it for selfish reasons, and so it's hard to get too angry at her for it. And anyway, she's really kind of trying to do what she's been taught to do, so, you know. It's hard to fault someone for that.
SEVEN
Seven is really mild, but she's not afraid to battle it out when she needs to. She kind of stays back on the sidelines, not a central force, but still an important one nonetheless. I like the way she lets others take charge most of the time, but when it counts, she takes a stand and doesn't back down. She tries to do what she thinks is best, and more than any of the others she seems to learn from her mistakes.
EIGHT
Eight is really calm and collected, even though he's seen things that are less than pleasant and could have lasting consequences for himself. Yet somehow he manages to remain lighthearted and doesn't let it define him. I love that. Instead, he grows above it. It is maybe a part of who he is, but it isn't all he is. And I think he's really sweet in his own way, and I also think he keeps a lot inside.
NINE
Nine is probably my favorite character in these books. Cause I mean, come on, he's hot. And yeah, he does kind of act like a jerk sometimes. But whatever. I like him because even though he can seem cold and uncaring, that's actually just his way of…caring. He wants to find the others and save the planet. And he doesn't back down from challenges. I love his interaction with Four especially, because you can tell that even though they're always ripping each other apart they actually do care for each other, and have some sort of bond.
TEN
Ten is really very sweet. She's significantly younger than the rest of them, but most of the time you wouldn't know it. She knows how to step up and fight when it's get turn, and while she's definitely older than her age, she's not so old that it's ridiculous, and she does act enough like a child that it's believable.
THE PLOT
This book was insanely full of action. There were some points where I was like,That is just stupid. That doesn't even make sense, but for the most part, I enjoyed the action. Sometimes I admit that it got excessive but honestly without action, these books really wouldn't be anything special. So even though I do think that the action pops up at the most random and yet convenient places, it's also forgivable.
And who doesn't love action? Personally I adore the anticipation of it. And it doesn't allow for any boredom, which is awesome. This book was quite literally impossible to put down, and I burned through it in one sitting.
The plot really doesn't move too far forward in this book though, honestly. Like I said earlier, too much action and not quite enough ploy development to keep me fully satisfied. I kind of felt like it didn't really go anywhere, was just kind of stagnant. There were some events and such that advanced the plot, but I still really wasn't that pleased. This is one of my main complaints about this book, because who wants to read a book that never goes anywhere?
I mean, don't get me wrong, as you can tell by my rating that I definitely enjoyed this book. Still, it was far from perfect. The plot development could definitely have been executed better.
THE ROMANCE
The romance in this book is…oh, how do I put it…rather erratic. It's just kind of random and thrown in and never developed well. Not only is it totally obvious, but it's poorly done. Pairs are just painfully clear and there's a few weak attempts at love triangles that don't really actually go anywhere. It's stupid, honestly. Sure, the romance has its good moments, but it's really hard to look past the randomness. I don't think I'd call it instalove, exactly, but I wouldn't call it true love, either. There's going to have to be some serious romantic development later on to convince me of its legitimacy.
THE WRITING
So, writing. Let's see. Our story is told in first-person by Four, Six, and Seven in this installment. It's not awful. I even like it. But it's not sparkling. It's mediocre writing, but nothing more impressive. One thing that is done well is the characters' distinctive voices. Each character has a really unique void and it's easy to recognize it, which is definitely a good thing. However, aside from that, I wasn't majorly impressed or anything. I liked it, but I wouldn't fall over myself to read it, either.
THE ENDING
Since there wasn't much plot development, as aforementioned, I feel like the ending came too soon, before much really had a chance to happen. So really, I was actually pretty disappointed here. It was so predictable. Obvious, even. It kind of attempted to be a cliffhanger, but as far as I'm concerned, it failed miserably. I didn't feel the urge to desperately read the next book or anything. It just didn't really go anywhere, so what kind of ending could there have been?
WRAPUP
I will be reading whatever's next in this series, if only because after three books there's really no reason not to, as long as I enjoy them and they don't fail horribly. Yes, this books could have been much better, but it also could have been much worse. Do I recommend this? Maybe. Do you like science-fiction and aliens? Can you overlook mediocre writing? Do you love action? Can you deal with little (very little) actual plot development? If you answered yes, give it a shot. These books are action-packed and fun, but as far as plot development goes they've actually been slowly been getting worse. Still, I do enjoy this series.
FINE.
These books aren't perfect. They have a lot plot holes, and it kind of ticks me off how powerful the characters are. However, they're so much fun that I can forgive all of that. I mean, they give a good four, five hours of fun, and with the little amount of self-control I have there's no way I can turn that down. As for this third installment, it was fast-paced and just like its predecessors, had a ton a action packed somehow into just a few hundred pages. It's very much like a thriller in some ways, although not in others. Still, I without a doubt loved this book.
THE LORIC
FOUR
Four is, of course, the first one we met in this series, and so naturally he's the one we know the most about. I'm honestly not sure what there really is to say about him. He's compassionate and caring, that's for sure. Maybe a little crazy, and definitely willing to take some insane risks. Sometimes he can be impulsive. He doesn't always think things through before he acts, which is just irritating. Still, it's hard not to admire his loyalty, even if it's entirely possible it'll get him killed.
FIVE
We don't meet Five in this book, so moving on.
SIX
Six is really brave, and also a bit foolish, and also too impulsive. However, when she is impulsive she, like Four, really doesn't do it for selfish reasons, and so it's hard to get too angry at her for it. And anyway, she's really kind of trying to do what she's been taught to do, so, you know. It's hard to fault someone for that.
SEVEN
Seven is really mild, but she's not afraid to battle it out when she needs to. She kind of stays back on the sidelines, not a central force, but still an important one nonetheless. I like the way she lets others take charge most of the time, but when it counts, she takes a stand and doesn't back down. She tries to do what she thinks is best, and more than any of the others she seems to learn from her mistakes.
EIGHT
Eight is really calm and collected, even though he's seen things that are less than pleasant and could have lasting consequences for himself. Yet somehow he manages to remain lighthearted and doesn't let it define him. I love that. Instead, he grows above it. It is maybe a part of who he is, but it isn't all he is. And I think he's really sweet in his own way, and I also think he keeps a lot inside.
NINE
Nine is probably my favorite character in these books. Cause I mean, come on, he's hot. And yeah, he does kind of act like a jerk sometimes. But whatever. I like him because even though he can seem cold and uncaring, that's actually just his way of…caring. He wants to find the others and save the planet. And he doesn't back down from challenges. I love his interaction with Four especially, because you can tell that even though they're always ripping each other apart they actually do care for each other, and have some sort of bond.
TEN
Ten is really very sweet. She's significantly younger than the rest of them, but most of the time you wouldn't know it. She knows how to step up and fight when it's get turn, and while she's definitely older than her age, she's not so old that it's ridiculous, and she does act enough like a child that it's believable.
THE PLOT
This book was insanely full of action. There were some points where I was like,That is just stupid. That doesn't even make sense, but for the most part, I enjoyed the action. Sometimes I admit that it got excessive but honestly without action, these books really wouldn't be anything special. So even though I do think that the action pops up at the most random and yet convenient places, it's also forgivable.
And who doesn't love action? Personally I adore the anticipation of it. And it doesn't allow for any boredom, which is awesome. This book was quite literally impossible to put down, and I burned through it in one sitting.
The plot really doesn't move too far forward in this book though, honestly. Like I said earlier, too much action and not quite enough ploy development to keep me fully satisfied. I kind of felt like it didn't really go anywhere, was just kind of stagnant. There were some events and such that advanced the plot, but I still really wasn't that pleased. This is one of my main complaints about this book, because who wants to read a book that never goes anywhere?
I mean, don't get me wrong, as you can tell by my rating that I definitely enjoyed this book. Still, it was far from perfect. The plot development could definitely have been executed better.
THE ROMANCE
The romance in this book is…oh, how do I put it…rather erratic. It's just kind of random and thrown in and never developed well. Not only is it totally obvious, but it's poorly done. Pairs are just painfully clear and there's a few weak attempts at love triangles that don't really actually go anywhere. It's stupid, honestly. Sure, the romance has its good moments, but it's really hard to look past the randomness. I don't think I'd call it instalove, exactly, but I wouldn't call it true love, either. There's going to have to be some serious romantic development later on to convince me of its legitimacy.
THE WRITING
So, writing. Let's see. Our story is told in first-person by Four, Six, and Seven in this installment. It's not awful. I even like it. But it's not sparkling. It's mediocre writing, but nothing more impressive. One thing that is done well is the characters' distinctive voices. Each character has a really unique void and it's easy to recognize it, which is definitely a good thing. However, aside from that, I wasn't majorly impressed or anything. I liked it, but I wouldn't fall over myself to read it, either.
THE ENDING
Since there wasn't much plot development, as aforementioned, I feel like the ending came too soon, before much really had a chance to happen. So really, I was actually pretty disappointed here. It was so predictable. Obvious, even. It kind of attempted to be a cliffhanger, but as far as I'm concerned, it failed miserably. I didn't feel the urge to desperately read the next book or anything. It just didn't really go anywhere, so what kind of ending could there have been?
WRAPUP
I will be reading whatever's next in this series, if only because after three books there's really no reason not to, as long as I enjoy them and they don't fail horribly. Yes, this books could have been much better, but it also could have been much worse. Do I recommend this? Maybe. Do you like science-fiction and aliens? Can you overlook mediocre writing? Do you love action? Can you deal with little (very little) actual plot development? If you answered yes, give it a shot. These books are action-packed and fun, but as far as plot development goes they've actually been slowly been getting worse. Still, I do enjoy this series.
FINE.
****FINAL RATING: 3.80 RED ROSES****
