Wednesday 27 March 2013

Hidden Among Us - Katy Moran


Pages: 293
Publisher: Walker Books
Release Date: 7th March 2013
Edition: UK proof, review copy

Other Titles by this Author: Bloodline, Bloodline Rising, Spirit Hunter, Dangerous to Know You

When Lissy meets a mysterious and strangely wonderful boy on her way to Hopesay Edge, she is deeply unsettled by their encounter.

She discovers that the boy, Larkspur, is a member of the Hidden, an ancient group of elven people, whose secrets lie buried at Hopesay Reach. Before long, Lissy and her brother Rafe find themselves caught b a powerful magic and fighting to escape a bargain that can never be broken...

I have pretty mixed feelings about Hidden Among Us and I’m not get sure whether the positives outweigh the negatives so I’m hoping I’ll make up my mind in the duration of this review!

I really enjoyed the different approach to writing about the fae. I mean, they’re not even called fae, they are the Hidden for a start! Their world is also very different; it’s dank, dark and damp instead of the usual setting of a bright and magical space full of magic and wonder. It nicely reflected the fact that most of the Hidden we met were pretty evil and that the love interest wasn’t one of them.

The multiple perspectives in Hidden Among Us was a surprise to me and while I enjoyed seeing the events of the novel from all angles, I found it confusing at first. I wasn’t sure who anybody was or their relevance to the story as it wasn’t really explained or clearly hinted at, especially Joe – he seemed completely out of place at first. I actually came to prefer any narratives that weren’t Lissy. She irritated me and I thought she was whiny and a little selfish.

I think I could have handled the confusion and Lissy if it was executed a little differently. The prose was often clucky and clichéd which really put me off. It was frustrating as the story is so unique and I love the idea and every so often I stumbled in to a really beautiful phrase and they two extremes just didn’t mesh very well.

Regardless of the problems I had with Hidden Among Us, the novel maintained a creepy and unsettling atmosphere and it’ a really brilliant idea.


Thanks to Walker for sending me a copy to review.

Sophie 

1 comment:

  1. I really like the look of this one, but if I manage to get hold of a copy, Looks like I'll have to be careful! Nice balanced review though :)

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