Perception by Kim Harrington

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Scholastic Point

Pages: 288pgs

The Story

When you can see things others can't, 

what do you do when someone's watching you?

Everybody knows about Clarity "Clare" Fern. She's the psychic girl in school, the one who can place her hands on something and see hidden visions from the past.

Only Clare would rather not be a celebrity. She prefers hanging back, observing. Her gift is not a game to her.

But then someone starts playing with her head . . . and heart. Messages and gifts from a secret admirer crop up everywhere Clare turns. Could they be from Gabriel, the gorgeous boy who gets Clare's pulse racing? Or from Justin, Clare's hopeful ex-boyfriend who'd do anything to win her back?

One thing is certain. Clare needs to solve this mystery, and soon. Because the messages are becoming sinister, and a girl in town has suddenly disappeared.

The Review

PERCEPTION is the sequel to Kim Harrington's debut novel Clarity and it picks up soon after the first book had ended at, where the teenage girl - aka the new teenage super sleuth - Clarity 'Clare' Fern uses her psychic abilities to solve murder mysteries and catches the killer in the end. In PERCEPTION however, Clare finds herself no longer outside the social circle and rather being one of the popular girls in high school, mostly this has happened because of her supernatural-like 'abilities', and for once in her life she actually feels like she is being included and is well . . . normal again. But normal can only last for so long since a disappearance in the town occurs (a possible murder is questioned too), and then of course there's sweet these gifts and notes that are being sent to Clare by a crazy "admirer" and whom has obviously been watching her from afar. But Clare has so much more to take under account because she also must choose between two of her boy loves - Justin, the cheating ex-boyfriend and whom saved her life and perhaps wants something more than redemption, and Gabriel, the new boy in town and whom Clare had stolen a few summer kisses from . . . so who will she choose?

There's just something intriguing about Kim Harrington's simplistic writing style. It's fast-paced, it's an exciting page turner, and it always offers a whole bunch of other little surprising things which are blended wonderfully together into this quick, super-sleuth mystery. I admit, I wasn't too thrilled with her first book, Clarity, but surprisingly I thought this new upcoming sequel was a such a vast improvement. When things finally escalate with this missing girl in the book and when other things such as Clare's secret admirer are soon to be revealed, I was pretty much glued to this book from the get-go compared to the first installment, and I love those sort of surprises for a series. For sure, I guessed who was responsible for this whole ordeal of the murder mystery thing, but I didn't care whatever because I enjoyed it so much!

The one character that surprised me the most was probably Clarity 'Clare' Fern herself. She was an alright heroine in the beginning of this series but despite her always hiding behind that feisty, spunky, and insightful personality of hers, I had actually thought she grew up a lot in this book. She had more depth in her and I actually started to take comfort in her accepting her own psychic ability, and what she can do where others can't. It was great meeting that new side of her. I even enjoyed her relationships between her friends, family and her two potential loves interests, they had definitely grounded her more and gave me a chance to know her a little better as well . . . so I appreciated that part of the book.

Like in most YA books lately, there's a love triangle and for Clare she must choose between the two boys, Gabriel and Justin, and really this situation was a no-brainer for me because we already saw this coming one our way from the first book. For Clare in this sequel, it seemed like she was really struggling with whom to choose with the boys which I can completely understand since both boys are great in their own special ways and are so different too. With Justin, she feels so familiar with and he's like her best friend in some respects, but she also feels a little too obligated around him as he saved her life and all in the first book, so he's pretty much someone you don't know whether to trust or not. Then, of course, there's Gabriel, a boy who moved to Clare's town in book one, but he was a bit of mystery to Clare and one she needed to solve. And boy do I like boys like that. Haha.

Personally though, I have to say that I was never a big fan of this particular love triangle because I didn't believe there was one to begin with nor one that would work out well. Except for one relationship. I mean, straight off the bat there's such a strong connection lying between the characters Clare and Gabriel (it's so easy to see what attracts these two together). However, I felt the relationship shared with Clare and Justin was just a past relationship and one that still needed time to heal (one that will probably never be the same again) so when it comes down to it . . . I was all for Team Gabriel in this book. Sorry Justin gals! Though, despite Justin's efforts in getting Clare back, I did feel sorry for the guy (even just a little bit) since we learn a lot more about him in this book and what secrets he still hides. Gosh, he really did try hard to win back Clare. Again poor guy!

Overall, PERCEPTION was a very surprising book. I didn't think I would love this next installment but I did. While the main heroine may do some stupid things here and there, and can 'sometimes' get herself into some sticky and yet dangerous situations that could be easily avoided, but on a whole I thought this was such a fast-paced, action-packed mystery and one I know a lot of readers will enjoy regardless of all the angst going on in the book!

The Rating

4 1/2 / 5 stars

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Release Date: 1st March, 2011

Publisher: Scholastic Point

Pages: 242pgs

The Story

Don't Close Your Eyes.

Except When The Truth Is Too Dark To Bear.

Clarity "Clare" Fern see things. Things no one else can see. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother, who has supernatural gift of his own, becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it the most.

The Review

Clarity has visions when she touches an object. To her family she's normal. To her town she'll always be known as 'The Freak'. But when a murder is committed within the town, Clare's ability is about to come in handy after all. While people doubt her family and her own supernatural abilities, she is more than determined to prove them wrong. But when her brother becomes a prime suspect of the murder, it's bound to complicate things for Clare's unusual life as she'll need her ability more than ever before. The question here is: Will it work for her?

Before I get into anything, I just have to say I love any books that have something to do with psychics because 1) I find it absolutely fascinating and 2) because I'm a sucker when it comes to psychics solving Nancy-Drew-like mysteries (a huge ND nerd right here). While there's plenty of books out there in the young adult market, dealing with this sort of genre, CLARITY was definitely a likeable read. Personally it was hard to get into at first - had a slow beginning and sometimes was predictable in terms of who the killer was etc. - but ultimately it was a pretty good read for a 242 paged book. Not a lot of short YA books do the mysteries justice.

Like the story, the main character Clare was quite likeable too. She might be a little naive at times and perhaps a little childish, however when it comes to her ability . . . she started to grow into her own and become a heroine you came to admire. But that doesn't mean she's flawless. She develops a crush on the new boy in town - the detective's son mind you - Gabriel and while she 'might' like him, she still loves her ex-cheating-boyfriend, Justin. I admit, I didn't really like Gabriel. He didn't believe in Clare as much as I wanted him too (maybe because he's a skeptic) but I don't know . . . I just didn't believe in his story and how he starts to like Clare as well. I truly want him out of the picture. As for Clare's ex-cheating-boyfriend, Justin, while he's a cheating jerk and I'm sure there's plenty of cheating jerks out there in the real world that never should be forgiven . . . but unfortunately I had a soft spot for him. While Gabriel was hesitant to trust in Clare's ability to sense things, Justin always believed in her. Plus, he's pretty cute in my imagination. Whether these two guys get the girl in the end . . . I guess we'll find out in CLARITY's sequel. Go Justin I say!

While CLARITY isn't my favourite of all favourites of psychic books, but it's a great debut novel for those who are looking for a quick book fix. It's fast-paced, has a little bit of action, a great deal of suspense, a faint romance that most will enjoy, and an ending that leaves you wanting more for its sequel. If you love the likes of Nancy Drew and Laurie Stolarz's Touch series (my favourite psychic series by the way), then CLARITY is definitely your type of read! But be warned: it'll leave you with lot's of questions!

The Rating

3 1/2 / 5 stars