The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong

Title: The Awakening
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Price: $17.99 U.S. (Hardcover), $16.96 CAN (Paperback)
Publisher: Doubleday (Canada), Harper Teen (U.S.) and Little Brown (U.K.)
Publication Date: May 2009
Number of Pages: 360

Warning: Do not read this review if you have not read the first book in the Darkest Powers series - The Summoning.

If you had met me a few weeks ago, you probably would have described me as an average teenage girl—someone normal. Now my life has changed forever and I'm as far away from normal as it gets. A living science experiment—not only can I see ghosts, but I was genetically altered by a sinister organization called the Edison Group. What does that mean? For starters, I'm a teenage necromancer whose powers are out of control; I raise the dead without even trying. Trust me, that is not a power you want to have. Ever.

Now I'm running for my life with three of my supernatural friends—a charming sorcerer, a cynical werewolf, and a disgruntled witch—and we have to find someone who can help us before the Edison Group finds us first. Or die trying.


When I first started reading The Awakening I was pleasantly surprised. The previous book in this series - The Summoning - had a two-faced beginning so I was kind of wary to begin reading this novel. However, The Awakening showed not only a promising start with the always lovable Chloe, but there was also some Nancy Drew sleuthing going on which immediately had me smile.

After Chloe found out some dark secrets about the Edison group and escaped with Tori following a plan that can only be declared as "genius", I was sure that some exciting times were bound to follow. And I was right . . . kind of.

You see, while The Awakening contained some pretty cool fight scenes and you could sense a little romance in the air, it all just seemed very repetitive. Chloe along with the other supernaturals just always seemed to be doing the same thing: either running or hiding. Even though that made sense with the Edison group trying to find them, I was more then ready for a change of scenery.

Like The Awakening, I also found that there were some scenes that were a little too descriptive (read: scary parts). You can decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing. But, besides that, I really enjoyed this book.

The Bottom Line: A little repetitive, but a good novel overall. A definite must of those of you who have read The Summoning. I believe fans of Twilight will like this book. A-.

I just have one question: Does anyone else find it odd that the protagonist's name, Chloe, isn't mentioned on the blurb? I checked on my Canadian copy of the book and it doesn't mention Chloe's name on the cover or inside flap anywhere.