Publish Date: October 04, 2011
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 342
Series: Carrier Trilogy
Others in Series: Carrier of the Mark (2011), Dawn of the Knights (2012), Age of the Fifth (2013)
Rating: 4/5
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Their love was meant to be.
When Megan Rosenberg moves to Ireland, everything in her life seems to fall into place. After growing up in America, she's surprised to find herself feeling at home in her new school. She connects with a group of friends, and she is instantly drawn to darkly handsome Adam DeRís.
But Megan is about to discover that her feelings for Adam are tied to a fate that was sealed long ago—and that the passion and power that brought them together could be their ultimate destruction.
I heard about Leigh Fallon's Carrier of the Mark a while back, before there was even news that it would be picked up and published by HarperCollins... back when it was still The Carrier of the Mark and had a giant THE covering the girls head on the cover. The story at the time sounded so intriguing and I quickly added it to my list of books to read some day.
Well, sure enough, Leigh came out with the news that Carrier of the Mark would be a real, tangible book! Now all I had to do was wait many many months until it was published. And wait I did... while I read on Twitter about other people receiving this book for review, or seeing blogger's In My Mailbox posts containing this beauty. Finally, release day came around and I got my very own copy.
For those of you who don't know, Leigh is an Irish lass. I've watched YouTube videos of her and her cute little accent is just to die for! Now knowing the way that Leigh speaks, I was able to easily transfer that accent to Carrier of the Mark which takes place in Ireland.
Megan Rosenberg has moved quite a few times with her father since her mother's death. Most recently they've ended up in Ireland and, mysteriously, it feels like home. Megan can't explain the sudden attachment she has to Kinsale or the weird electrical current she feels coursing through her body when Adam DeRis is around... The more time she spends around the DeRis family, the more questions she has that need answers.
My main downfall with this story was how much the beginning of the book felt like a Twilight rerun. With YA novels nowadays, it's really hard to come up with something truly unique without following the same formula as other novels. The first couple of chapters really read like Twilight to me. Girl moves to strange place with single father. Girl meets dark, broody boy in school and is instantly interested. Boy has never been interested in ANY girls and continues showing no interest in new girl. Suddenly, boy can't stand to be away from girl any longer even if it is dangerous. See?
That being said, once Leigh added in the paranormal aspect the storyline picked right up and took of! I loved the mythology and the lore, the unique use of the elements (Air, Water, Earth, Fire) in the storytelling. The things that each character could do with their element and the ways they chose to use them was fascinating. I especially loved how Megan came more fully into her powers towards the end of the book, the way she harnessed them and fought to protect those she loves.
I adored the setting. I'm fascinated with stories that take place outside of the United States. I like to hear about faraway places that I will most likely never travel. After googling photos of Kinsale and Ireland, I fell in love with the lush green hills and the sparking blue sea. The small town life was charming. I was grateful to find that I wouldn't be smothered by the Irish dialect in the story, as I learned how to pronounce the words through Megan learning to pronounce them correctly.
I would have liked a little more depth to the characters, but I believe Leigh can easily build on them in her second novel. I would have loved to see Rian get a little more acknowledgement in the story. I think he could have been a real standout character had there been a little more dimension to him. I'm hoping that he will take more of a front seat in the upcoming novels. I loved the overall dynamic of the DeRis family. Their nature and spunk was just infectious.
Overall, Carrier of the Mark is a very enjoyable read. Author Leigh Fallon has graced readers with a promising premise, steamy romance and a potent setting. I look forward to seeing where Leigh and the Carrier trilogy will take readers.
Find Leigh Fallon
Buy Carrier of the Mark
2 comments:
I think you're right; it's difficult to get a completely unique story in the YA world, especially when you have a paranormal romance going on... thanks for the great review :) I look forward to reading this one!
I found this book to be truly enjoyable. It had a lot of similarities with Twilight, but I didn't find that it detracted much from the overall book.
Thanks for the review!
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