The Messengers

Book Title: The Messengers

Author: Edward Hogan

Date Started: July 5th 2014

Date Completed: July 8th 2014

Genres: Fantasy, Contemporary, Mystery

Rating: Four stars

Review:

I enjoyed The Messengers a lot more than I first expected. Though I was intrigued by the concept and interested in reading something a little different to my usual selection, I didn't think I'd fall in love with the characters and have a little bit of me broken inside by the end.

When Frances is sent down to the sea when her brother goes on the run and their mother needs some space, she expects a few months filled with awkward interactions with her cousin's friends. But then she bumps into a man with a postcard depicting a death she witnesses later, and he tells her she is like him. Before she knows it, Frances is given a terrible choice: deliver the message of death to the people she draws, or let someone close to her die instead.

I really liked the simple, but detailed style of Hogan's writing. There's a lovely flow to the words, and the dialogue fits in nicely with the narrative. The speech itself was realistic and humorous enough to make me smile at a times. But the best part was the communication of emotions. There's a specific part towards the end where Frances really loses her control, and at that point I felt so much for her and I empathised with the character, despite clearly not really knowing how it would feel in that position.

The plot for this novel is a nice break from the typical Young Adult story lines, and takes a great concept that I haven't really seen before and questions it as soon as the reader's been told it. I loved the fact that Frances was constantly trying to find ways around her gift, and then going on to follow them, because it's what I feel I'd probably do in her situation. There's so many stories out there where the protagonist complains about the situation they're in, but doesn't do anything about it. Frances takes the circumstances as they are, but won't let them stop her from trying to do the right thing.

My favourite part of the book were the relationships between our protagonist and the people around her. It’s fairly obvious that, while Frances isn’t particularly shy, she still doesn’t reveal everything about herself to the people she meets. I really enjoyed the way Frances was shown around the other people because it told us a lot about her and the type of people she trusts. I also loved the issues brought to light in this context, especially her brother’s actions and consequences. I’m always interested in the brother-sister bond, but Frances and Johnny were among my favourites.

The only issue I have with the plot of this book is the fact that everything new became a little too comfortable too quickly. Until towards the end, nothing ever seemed to fight back when Frances or Peter tried to change things. I would’ve liked it if something had gone seriously wrong near the beginning, and had then frightened Frances off or pushed her to work harder.

However, I can’t really complain after the ending. I loved the foreshadowing earlier in the book, but also it’s twist. You might predict what happens, but there’s something a little different thrown in to catch you off guard. Though I can’t explain why (no spoilers) the finishing climax was a perfect end to the book, and, while it broke me, I don’t think it could’ve ended with the required outcome otherwise.

(And then the very ending with Sam broke me even more - read it and you’ll understand.)

Though characters are one of the main driving plots for this book, I felt there were only really two that developed throughout the story. I did still love a lot of the minor characters, and thought their relationships primarily with Frances were well-orchestrated, but they were sidelined where further information could have deepened the plot.

I absolutely adore Frances' character. At the start of the book, I immediately loved her sarcastic, half-interested attitude. It told half of her story even before she started explaining it. I also loved the way she acted around the other characters (namely Max and Johnny), where she was affectionate, but still partly detached, like she didn't kept to herself mostly. As the story carried on, I feel more and more in love with Frances, and the progression of her emotions and actions made her such a realistic character.

I also really liked Peter's character. Aside from the interesting sub-plot of his controversial relationship with Frances, he himself was a person that developed a great deal throughout the story. He's a very different person by the last chapter than the first.

For me, this book was too short. I wanted so much more time to explore the concept and learn about the characters. Having said that, the length works well for the story: it lets things move along at a good pace and doesn't drag parts out.

I recommend The Messengers to anyone who likes contemporary reads with a twist or paranormal or fantasy in them. There's controversial issues, great climaxes and realistic characters. This is a great story with a unique concept that I found really enjoyable and interesting to read. I'm looking forward to reading Hogan's other works.

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