Friday, December 27, 2013

Review: Impostors by Susanne Winnacker

Impostor

Author: Susanne Winnacker
Series: Variants #1
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: YA Science Fiction/Thriller
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 28, 2013
Source: Received from publisher via NetGalley
Rating: 3.5 Stars
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***I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. This has in no way changed my opinion of the book. The review below is my open and honest opinion.***


Synopsis from Goodreads:

Can Tessa pose as Madison…and stop a killer before it’s too late?

Tessa is a Variant, able to absorb the DNA of anyone she touches and mimic their appearance. Shunned by her family, she’s spent the last two years training with the Forces with Extraordinary Abilities, a secret branch of the FBI. When a serial killer rocks a small town in Oregon, Tessa is given a mission: she must impersonate Madison, a local teen, to find the killer before he strikes again.

Tessa hates everything about being an impostor—the stress, the danger, the deceit—but loves playing the role of a normal girl. As Madison, she finds friends, romance, and the kind of loving family she’d do anything to keep. Amid action, suspense, and a ticking clock, this super-human comes to a very human conclusion: even a girl who can look like anyone struggles the most with being herself.

My Review:

Impostors is about a group of extraordinary people, Variants, that have special powers. One girl has the gift of invisibility, another has super strength, another can read minds, and our main character can shape-shift. They work for a sector of the FBI solving crimes involving other Variants. This book reminded me of the X-Men movies. A bunch of young kids in an academy learning how to control and use their special and unique abilities.

The main character, Tessa, who can shape-shift (sound familiar? Hint, hint: Infernal Devices) is sent to solve a serial murder case. Tessa’s job is to pose as a dead girl, lie to the girl’s parents and friends, and find the killer before he strikes again. This book was an interesting thriller mixed with the perfect amount of scifi that held my attention the entire time.

Throughout the novel Tessa struggles with lying to Madison’s amazing family, but at the same time she loves it. Tessa has never had her own family and she clings to the feeling of having people who love and care about her. Tessa was such an interesting and dynamic character. She was brave and strong, yet also real and flawed. Things don’t happen easily for Tessa and I loved that. She had to fight to overcome the obstacles put before her and she fought like a true champion.

The plot was interesting, but I also felt like it could have been so much more. I didn’t figure out who the killer was, but it also didn’t completely surprise me either. I was kind of disappointed with whom the killer ended up being and it honestly felt a little anticlimactic and I never fully understood the person’s motives. I mean, I understood, but I didn’t feel it. My heart wasn’t pounding at the climax and it wasn’t quite as “thrilling” as I wanted it to be.

Another thing I didn’t like was the romance. It was kind of blah to me. I didn’t really like Alec and I didn’t like that he couldn’t be honest with Tessa. There was very obviously something more to his relationship with Kate and he never told Tessa the truth. I hated that Tessa was so obsessed with Alec and I think it made her blind to his lies.

Overall though, I enjoyed this one. I really liked watching Tessa unravel the truth about Madison’s life. There was a lot of mystery and it was a constant guessing game trying to figure out Madison’s secrets. The author successfully tackled a couple of really tough issues and she did a pretty good job of it. There was only one issue that I think could have been handled a bit better. There was also another problem that Tessa encountered that was never fully explained. I guess I just wanted answers to some other things besides the main plot of finding the killer. But even with all those negative points, I did truly enjoy this one. It was a quick and exciting read and I will probably be checking out the sequels. Happy reading all! 

Have you read this one? Did you also think of X-Men and The Infernal Devices? What did you think of Alec? 

2 comments:

  1. I liked this one too, it was a fun, fast read. I didn't get the whole Alec and Kate thing either, there was definitely something suspicious about their relationship. Why were they together when it was obvious he had feelings for Tessa? I did like the fact that the main storyline was wrapped up so there was not a cliffhanger. Glad you enjoyed it! ~Pam

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know right? And then we never found out. That was disappointing. Me too! Glad you liked it as well. :)

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