Harbinger

Mar 20, 2012 Maja rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: cover-lust, debut-author, dystopia, huge-disappointment, incredibly-stupid-choices, moments-of-great-frustration, reviewed-in-2012

”Whether you know it or not, each one of you is at a critical turning point. If you are willing, there is still time to turn back from the terminal paths you have chosen. But Holbrook is your last chance. In the peace of these woods, we can lead you back to society, show you how to assimilate, nurture appropriate behavior. But if you turn your back on this final opportunity, the rest of the world will not be so kind.”

Well, they weren’t exactly kind either. Faye Robson has been fighting with vis...more ”Whether you know it or not, each one of you is at a critical turning point. If you are willing, there is still time to turn back from the terminal paths you have chosen. But Holbrook is your last chance. In the peace of these woods, we can lead you back to society, show you how to assimilate, nurture appropriate behavior. But if you turn your back on this final opportunity, the rest of the world will not be so kind.”

Well, they weren’t exactly kind either. Faye Robson has been fighting with visions and nightmares for years. Instead of trying to find ways to help her at home, or simply listen to her, her father brought her to Holbrook Academy, a glorified mental institution, and just left her in the not-so-gentle hands of Dr. Murdoch. At Holbrook, Dr. Murdoch maintains order with the help of her vicious Caretakers, armed with Tasers and pepper spray. They punish and degrade students at the slightest provocation, but Faye’s group is targeted even more often than the others, and something is happening to them at night while they’re under the influence of sleeping pills.

There are authors who write descriptively and atmospherically like it’s the easiest thing in the world because it comes naturally to them, and some of those authors are among my favorites. However, there are also authors who’d like to belong to that group but can’t quite pull it off. Sarah Wilson Etienne is one of them. Her prose screams that she was trying too hard. I’m not sure what she was aiming to accomplish with the first three or four chapters of Harbinger, but I can tell you that she failed spectacularly. As much as she tried to make her descriptions of Holbrook and the surrounding woods stunning and memorable, her sentences simply lack colorfulness and depth. She doesn’t even have a distinctive style like Tahereh Mafi, for example. (Hey, you can like Mafi or not, but you can’t deny that her writing is different.) As far as I can tell, she tried to find her voice and failed.

The worldbuilding was also a mess. (Wow, I’m being especially eloquent today.) In the not-so-distant future, people don’t live in cities anymore, they are organized in Cooperatives. What are these Cooperatives? Who runs them? If not in the big cities, where do they live? What caused the society to move and reorganize in such a radical way? Etienne mentions something about oil, and then around 25% she mentions Peak War, but the real explanation doesn’t come until later, and even then it’s a lot of telling and no showing, and I just couldn’t see the point. Why would she set her story in a dystopian world if she wasn’t going to develop it properly? Halbrook Academy could have existed in today’s world with a few minor adjustments. In fact, that would have been so much better because the focus needed to remain on the institution alone. I really don’t see the point of throwing your characters in a world that you leave unexplained until the very end. Bits and pieces of information were thrown in randomly, but it was too little and much too late.
The second part of the book was even more confusing and it showed that en excess of ambition can be a very dangerous thing indeed. I’m sure the story about the Red Paint People sounded fascinating in theory, but the end result was confusing and… well, I was trying not to use the word terrible, but it seems that I have no choice. It was a disaster.

In case all this wasn’t enough to keep you away, there’s also the small matter of instalove. Faye and Kel meet and they instantly know that they’re special to each other. Her powers work differently on him and he isn’t at all uncomfortable around her like everyone else seems to be. At one point, she suspects him of spying, but she’s drawn to him nevertheless. She doesn’t really trust him or confide in him, but of course he’s gorgeous so they must be made for each other.

In my opinion, Harbinger isn’t worth your time. If it were a self-published book, I’d say it’s one of those that gives self-publishing a bad name. I struggled to finish it, and I had trouble keeping up with the abrupt changes in pacing. Sarah Wilson Etienne has great imagination, but her writing needs more work.

Also posted at The Nocturnal Library

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Aug 24, 2011 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars

A dark, mysterious, disturbing, disturbing, disturbing, and beautifully written masterpiece. If you start it, you won't be able to finish it until you find out what the hell is going on at Holbrook Academy.

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Feb 10, 2012 ✿ℎazℯℓ✿ rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: woahthatsitquestionamark, bad-ending

I can honestly say that i tried hard to like this book.. I even tried to like Kel (i always tend to like the main guys so what? ).. i tried, but i failed miserably. There's just nothing in the story that i can relate to. Their world was a messed up one, which made me feel like this one is a mixture of dystopian and paranormal... I usually like those types.. but now.. errm.. i just feel awkward.

I don't feel good after reading it. I feel weirded out and i admit that i did not exactly get the point...more

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Aug 22, 2011 Lisa rated it 5 of 5 stars

I'm so glad I got to read this early. I loved it so much I blurbed it. Don't you just love the cover?

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Jun 17, 2012 Bernardo rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: People who liked Lost. Or people who TRIED to like lost, whichever.

Shelves: coverlust, hey-there-sexy-title, bad-for-your-health, 2012, so-many-mixed-feelings, paranormal-stuff, keyword-eh, ya, pukeworthy-writing

I... I really have no idea of what to say to this.

I had this whole speech planned out about how buried deep within Harbinger, there was a good book - great even - dying to come out, but clunky writing, choppy sentences and pandemic insta-love made sure it didn't.

But that was before I read the last hundred pages of... this and now I'm like...

Because I don't. I have seriously no idea of what happened here. This book was headed on a clear path to disaster and then it suddenly morphed into this...more

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Oct 13, 2012 jo mo rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of l.j. smith's dark visions

Shelves: 2012, fantasy, paranormal, thriller, young-adult, boarding-school, dark-fantasy, horror, family, school-life, artsy-character, non-caucasian-character, call-me-crazy, 1-star, reviews

1.5/5

(c) andrea offermann

a story along the lines of l.j. smith's deliciously creepy dark vision series.

actually it reads as if the author wanted to pay homage to smith and wrote this book, to do so. a mysterious thriller, complete with eerie happenings in this school for 'special' children.

plot:
the protagonist, faye is sent to a reform school run by dr. mordoch, because she's different. each morning faye and her group (called "family") wake up with red-stained hands from the night before. wth

...more

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Sep 04, 2011 Mary Peterson rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya

A highly original, edge of your seat, page turner. Not for one second did I suspect how it would end--nice work Ms. Etienne. Keep those combat boot wearing kick ass girls coming and I'll keep reading.

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Feb 05, 2012 Ferdy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: decent-heroine, boring-crap-hero

3.5 stars - Some spoilers

Harbinger introduces us to Faye, a troubled sixteen year old who's parents enrol her at the newly opened Holbrook Academy. Holbrook Academy is a school for disturbed and unruly teenagers. Faye is distressed when she finds out her parents have betrayed her and abandoned her at Holbrook so she can get the 'help' she needs. From a young age, Faye has had strange and frightening visions of the sea. On top of that, Faye has never had any friends and is very much alone due to...more 3.5 stars - Some spoilers

Harbinger introduces us to Faye, a troubled sixteen year old who's parents enrol her at the newly opened Holbrook Academy. Holbrook Academy is a school for disturbed and unruly teenagers. Faye is distressed when she finds out her parents have betrayed her and abandoned her at Holbrook so she can get the 'help' she needs. From a young age, Faye has had strange and frightening visions of the sea. On top of that, Faye has never had any friends and is very much alone due to unintentionally unnerving those around her as she has the power to see a person's fear and make them relive it just by looking in their eyes. Faye was not the usual YA heroine, she was peculiar, detached and freaky. She embraced her visions just as much as she dreaded them, she had moments of complete craziness but she was also introverted and like all teenagers wante dto fit in.
Holbook Academy is more a prison than a school, with locked gates and 'caretakers' who use pepper spray and tasers to ensure compliance. The students are divided into 'Families', there are six students in each 'Family' and each 'Family' have lessons together.
Holbrook is a truly bleak place, which is run by the sadistic Dr Mordoch. The students are expected to obey the rules or risk being puinshed. There is no escape and no way for the students to contact anyone for help. They were not allowed any of their belongings and had to wear hideous jumpsuits and communal underwear. They were only granted 2 minute showers, forced to take sleeping pills at night, given disgusting food and were locked in solitary if they didn't adhere to the rules. The harsh rules and the ruthless caretakers painted the feelings of helplessness, desperation and hopelessness of the students perfectly. There was definitely a dystopian vibe to Holbrook Academy.
When Faye and her new Family wake up to find their hands stained red and mysterious drawings painted on their room floors, they are bound together to uncover the truth. Faye investigates the strange drawings and the more she discovers, the more she realises that her visions and dreams are somehow connected to Holbrook and her new Family.
Kel, who is a member of Faye's new family serves as the mandatory YA love interest. The romance isn't central though and thankfully there's minimal angst and stupidity. The character of Kel was lacking in personality and I felt that he was underdevloped and flat. Some of his past was explored but even then I was largely unaffected by the character and I couldn't bring myself to care about what would happen to him.
Faye's other Family members are depicted fairly well. Her roomate, Maya was passionate, vulnerable and stood up for what she believed in - her past was depressing but she never gave up. Daimon and Nami's flirtation was more exciting than Faye and Kel's reltionship, they had a lot of funny and cute moments together. Nami was a strong, larger than life character and there were times that I thought she would have been the better narrater.
The first 60% of the book has a different feel to the last 40%, the tone changes from a dystopian, mystery, fighting against the powers that be, school vibe to an end of the world, prophecies, ancient civiliztions, sacrifices, reincarnation-esque vibe. Though the change in tone was sudden and odd it was still enjoyable and made the book that much more unique and original. (less)

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Oct 29, 2011 Amber rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc, own, past-life, romance, ya

4 1/2 stars

Yes yes yes, "never judge a book by its cover," I know, I know. But can we just PLEASE sit here for a minute and appreciate that AMAZING artwork. LOOK AT IT.

Sara Etienne's debut novel will knock your socks off. I'm serious. Etienne's mastery of storytelling and remarkable characters will not allow you to put this book down, and if you do, you're stuck wondering how it's all going to end.

Faye is tricked by her parents into enrolling into Holbrook Academy which caters to students who...more 4 1/2 stars

Yes yes yes, "never judge a book by its cover," I know, I know. But can we just PLEASE sit here for a minute and appreciate that AMAZING artwork. LOOK AT IT.

Sara Etienne's debut novel will knock your socks off. I'm serious. Etienne's mastery of storytelling and remarkable characters will not allow you to put this book down, and if you do, you're stuck wondering how it's all going to end.

Faye is tricked by her parents into enrolling into Holbrook Academy which caters to students who are "special." Faye's talent is that she has visions. She can see into your past just by making eye contact which causes people to grow nervous around her. At Holbrook, she is able to find a group of peers who accept her as they struggle to figure out the mystery behind their crimson strained hands.

This plot will have you reading until you get closure. There is no guessing what is going to happen next, you think you know what's going on and then the author throws you for a loop which is just fine with me. While the "finding comfort in dead animal bones" is not as prominent in the plot as the blurb makes it out to be, the plot is still interesting and confusing, but a good confusing.

Sara captures Faye's voice perfectly through the use of the first person narrative. The readers are able to understand her desire to rebel, the feelings she has for the mysterious Kel, and how her visions are affecting her. Faye often experiences the feeling of being taken over by tidal waves which is portrayed so vividly that the action does not sound imaginary at all. There are other instances where you the reader are right along Faye as she comes to terms between what is right and what is wrong, and you're just as distraught as she is.

About 60 pages into the novel, I had this fear that Sara would gloss over the secondary characters in this novel, thankfully she doesn't. We get background information on nearly on all of the characters, even the ones that play the antagonist role, which really makes the reader see this world in shades of gray instead of black and white. Faye's group of friends are interesting and they each have a distinct voice whether it is vegetarian Maya or Comic-Con enthusiast Zach.

The romance wasn't overbearing, it did not steal from the overall plot. Kel was an engaging and mysterious character who excites Faye and scares her at the same time because he is hiding something as well. Their romance is very secondary to the mystery of Holbrook but still ever present.

During my read, I did find myself confused at times, not because of the plot but rather the writing style. I felt that some of the connecting dots were missing. There was instances where I had to flip back a page or two to make sure I didn't miss anything, and then infer what happened between actions. Also the entire novel takes place in one week which is a LOT of action to occur in such a short period of time. When I was reading I assumed that the novel took place over at least a month. I feel like that was entirely way too much action to jam into one short week.

Overall Harbinger was refreshingly unique with a plot that will captivate you. I strongly urge you all to look for this novel when it hits shelves in February. Many thanks to Sara for sending me a copy, it was a great read!

I recommend this novel for fans of young adult mysteries, and those who enjoy stories told in a school setting.

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Jan 09, 2012 Edith rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-novels

Teenage Faye finds herself at the creepy Holbrook Academy where she struggles to maintain her sanity, while unraveling her true destiny. Not since the Grandmother in Flowers in the Attic has there been a villain so villainous as Holbrook's headmistress, Dr. Mordock. "Fear is an illusion," Faye repeats to herself as Holbrook's bone-chilling happenings go from strange to life-threatening.

For the reader, Fear is *not* an illusion. Be afraid, be very afraid. Do not read this book during a hurricane...more

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Mar 12, 2012 Rebecca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

I really really liked this. I wasn't sure what to expect going in and I'd been back and forth about whether or not I wanted to read it, but it ended up being pretty awesome. Totally creepy, dark, weird, and kind of unsettling, but awesome. It reminded me a lot of Shutter Island in that you have no idea what the hell is going on the entire time, with little pieces plinking into place along the way, and then it's all just one big mind fuck. I hate seeing everything coming in a book like this, but...more

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Feb 27, 2012 Ta§chima Cullen rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, 3-star-shelf, all-books-to-trade-non-arcs

You can find more reviews @BloodyBookaholic

This book is just plain weird. In a good way? I am still on the fence on that. I saw so many excellent reviews on the book, so I thought "ugh, maybe this book will be kick ass (even though the cover isn't my favorite)" but after reading it, I was more looking for the 3-4 star reviews, because to be completely honest I was confused for the most part of the story, with the story line and how the things, like the hallucinations, were taking place, and I ju...more You can find more reviews @BloodyBookaholic

This book is just plain weird. In a good way? I am still on the fence on that. I saw so many excellent reviews on the book, so I thought "ugh, maybe this book will be kick ass (even though the cover isn't my favorite)" but after reading it, I was more looking for the 3-4 star reviews, because to be completely honest I was confused for the most part of the story, with the story line and how the things, like the hallucinations, were taking place, and I just didn't seem to take full enjoyment out of the book.

It has some very good qualities to be sure, but it also has some very annoying and potentially unpleasant features. Let's start with the good and work our way to the bad.

The good: The ending is pretty exciting, and getting to learn what the hell was going with the story was my favorite part (even though after all the explanation I was still a little confused on the particulars, but oh well). I also liked the major twist at the end of the story involving the main two characters, that was interesting. The dangerous sort of connection between the main two characters was exciting to read about, though...

The Bad: I didn't connect with the characters. I didn't connect with Faye, the main girl character, because her thoughts were so fragmented and I just didn't get what the hell was going on in her head or why. There is a line between keeping things hidden and mysterious and keeping them so hidden that you can't connect with your main girl because of it. The guy, Kel, was made to be the bad ass character, but he seemed to have more than 5 personalities at the same time. His past and his present didn't seem to connect that well, and at some point was even discarded and forgotten about (actually, this happened with every character's past). As to the rest of the supporting characters, I liked Nami (the rebel girl) and Damion (the Marine guy with issues and the hots for Nami), they seemed super interesting, too bad we don't get to hang out with them that much. Another interesting character was Rita, a young girl who seems to hang out around Holbrook Academy, but we get to see too little of her at the beginning and then she comes back and she is all changed. So, character disconnect. As I said before, I also had trouble with the plot line. I understood the main point of the story, I just got a bit lost in getting there. There was just so much happening at the same time that I guess getting to the end was like a battle, and not a battle I enjoyed.

All in all, I finished it, but it wasn't a fave. The whole story seemed to work for a lot of readers, just not this reader. (less)

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Feb 08, 2013 Amanda (Pearl the Book Girl) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, february, 2012-release, debut-2012, bir-2012, cover-love, dystopia-apocalyptic, ghosts, mystery-suspense

Harbinger had a lot of things going on. I mean a LOT. There were elements that were dystopian, paranormal, psychological thriller, or romance. Unfortunately these ideas were not strung together well and gave Harbinger a disorderly and confusing plot.

Harbinger is set in a post apocalyptic type world, but because Faye is secluded in an institution type place, we only get hints at the dystopian world around her. This would be ok if the action was only in Holbrook Academy, but the story eventually...more Harbinger had a lot of things going on. I mean a LOT. There were elements that were dystopian, paranormal, psychological thriller, or romance. Unfortunately these ideas were not strung together well and gave Harbinger a disorderly and confusing plot.

Harbinger is set in a post apocalyptic type world, but because Faye is secluded in an institution type place, we only get hints at the dystopian world around her. This would be ok if the action was only in Holbrook Academy, but the story eventually stretches to a world wide problem. Because of the scope of the issues presented by the end of the book I really needed more information about the current government and social structure. We just don't get enough information about what went wrong and what changed from today to bring the world to such a drastic situation. I felt like there was a lot of interesting things there, but it was treated as common knowledge, which in a made up world doesn't really work. Honestly I would have just shifted the setting to today's world because the story is about what is happening at the academy and all of this post apocalyptic stuff was just distracting.

I also found the characters to be really confusing. There's some really unfortunate insta-love with Faye and this guy she meets named Kel. It's that common trope of two people instantly knowing they are super special snowflakes the first time they meet. I really don't like relationships like that in books, I much prefer the slow burn of a relationship that takes a whole book to develop. I find the payoff much more satisfying. (Plus it's never a good sign when the romance happening between two side characters is more charming than the main love interests.)

I felt like there was a lot of potential with Harbinger. The mystery was intriguing and suspense was built well throughout the first half of the novel. However there are just too many different story threads that aren't pulled together neatly. Harbinger would have definitely benefited from a stronger editor who could have narrowed down the scope of the book to just the elements that are essential to the plot and cut the rest out. (less)

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Nov 20, 2012 Rayne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, magic, mystery, mythology, paranormal, post-apocalyptic, school-life, there-s-romance-in-there-somewhere, young-adult, 2012-favorites

Review originally posted at http://www.mycutebookshelf.com/2012/0...

I was prepared for weirdness when I ventured into this one. Weird is my kind of thing, but I was uncertain about Harbinger. As it turns out, I had nothing to worry about. Harbinger is tightly plotted, almost impossible to unravel until the end and, best of all, told from the perspective of one of the most unreliable narrators I've read in quite a while, which greatly helped this book to become a brilliant psychological thriller....more Review originally posted at http://www.mycutebookshelf.com/2012/0...

I was prepared for weirdness when I ventured into this one. Weird is my kind of thing, but I was uncertain about Harbinger. As it turns out, I had nothing to worry about. Harbinger is tightly plotted, almost impossible to unravel until the end and, best of all, told from the perspective of one of the most unreliable narrators I've read in quite a while, which greatly helped this book to become a brilliant psychological thriller.

In her debut novel, Sarah Wilson Etienne built a tantalizing new world, a dystopia of sorts, very different from what we are used to. The world is dying. There are dead animals everywhere, entire species are going extinct and the rivers and oceans are contaminated. Food, gas and other basic necessities are scarce and, in a attempt to survive and still carry on the normal style of living humanity is used to, people have decide to unite in small communities. And then there's the whole new world at Hollbrook Academy. She created a stark juxtaposition of realities, from the desperation of a world that is reaching its end that everyone is pretending not to notice out there, to the relative calm of the Academy that really feels like a ticking bomb just waiting to explode. The world building is great, if somewhat lacking in some aspects since not much is told of the world out of the Academy once Faye is imprisoned at Hollbrook, but still, original and thought-provoking.

The characters are interesting, but my only complaint is that they weren't give enough time and space to fully develop, particularly the other four members of the family. Each has their own distinct personality and marvelous insight is given from time to time, but, for characters that play such an important role in the story, they were mostly left untouched. Faye and Kel are another matter entirely. They are wonderfully played out, and, in their case, the fact that not much is told about them works with the mystery magnificently. I enjoyed seeing the world through Faye. She is complicated and frustrating in some occasions, but deeply human. While I was not swooning and sighing over Kel, I think he really is a fantastic love interest and male lead.

The pace of the story is somewhat erratic, in a good way. It rushes and stops and races and slows according to what is happening and it helps to create those feelings of being in a rollercoaster. But despite having some slow parts, the book is not boring at all, since we are always left with that desperate need to understand what's going on, which is not easy at all. The book had some confusing parts that were difficult to figure out and some sentences that felt disjointed, but, overall, the book is nicely written and sort of hauntingly beautiful.

The mystery and the interesting mythology in the novel are played out magnificently. I loved every minute of it and it builds up to a fascinating, original and breath-taking finale that I'm still thinking about. It's a pity this one is a standalone novel, but the author wrapped this story satisfactorily and with a surprising ending that will stay with you long after you read the last sentence.

This book is hard to recommend. I can see why a lot of people wouldn't like it all, since it might be too weird and confusing. But if you want an original, nicely-plotted mystery with different characters and a complicated setting, this is the book for you.
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Dec 01, 2011 Rebecca rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review, from-author

I loved this book so much I don’t know where to start. Yes, I have said I loved a book before but you don’t understand I want to write the Harbinger sonnets, sing it love songs, and woo it until, Harbinger loves me back. Take another look at that cover, amazing right? You know how I am about covers! Harbinger totally lives up to its cover.

Once I started reading Harbinger I became so enveloped in the world that Ms. Wilson Etienne created. (Like to the point of being late for picking my kid up fro...more I loved this book so much I don’t know where to start. Yes, I have said I loved a book before but you don’t understand I want to write the Harbinger sonnets, sing it love songs, and woo it until, Harbinger loves me back. Take another look at that cover, amazing right? You know how I am about covers! Harbinger totally lives up to its cover.

Once I started reading Harbinger I became so enveloped in the world that Ms. Wilson Etienne created. (Like to the point of being late for picking my kid up from school!) Holbrook Academy is a scary place! I don’t think I would have made it there. I could feel a treacherous doom building in the atmosphere from the start, keeping my intrigue peeked until the last page was tuned.

Faye is dropped off at Holbrook by her father to be rehabilitated, so that she can act like everyone else in society. At least that is the reason everyone has given her. I think anyone who has ever felt alone will enjoy Faye’s character. Faye is smart and kind, but she has this great fear that if she were to open up and show who she really is to anyone she will be left alone. Faye stole my heart while I was reading Harbinger, all the pain she had to feel was completely palpable to me.

The person that Faye wants to trust the most and is also the most confused by is Kel. Faye isn't the only one he had confused—Kel had me guessing too, whether he was good or evil, until toward the end of the book. Kel drove me crazy in the best kind of way because I wanted to love his character but I couldn’t decide if it was safe to. I so enjoyed all the things that Faye would discover about herself through her interactions with Kel.

I think what I liked best about Harbinger is that there were no skimable parts, every word had meaning. I was so wrapped-up in the suspense, I hung on to every word fearful I would miss something. I did not see the ending coming it was very much a surprise. That almost never happens to me!

Happy Reading,
Rebecca
www.bendingthespine.blogspot.com (less)

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Nov 27, 2011 Caitlings rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-debut, dystopian, paranormal, read-in-2011, romance, ya, own

I’m not sure what about this book made me want to read it. It certainly wasn’t the cover. This is one of those books that I had to make myself read despite the cover. Possibly I had the impression from a description that it took place at a boarding school and was about kids with powers. Kids with powers at a boarding school is one of my all time favourite tropes I will read almost anything with this set up.

Plus there’s that random line, “her only comfort the bones of dead animals.” Like…what???...more I’m not sure what about this book made me want to read it. It certainly wasn’t the cover. This is one of those books that I had to make myself read despite the cover. Possibly I had the impression from a description that it took place at a boarding school and was about kids with powers. Kids with powers at a boarding school is one of my all time favourite tropes I will read almost anything with this set up.

Plus there’s that random line, “her only comfort the bones of dead animals.” Like…what??? So, yeah, I needed this book. And the very nice people at Penguin Canada were awesome enough to pass it along.

So, first of all Holbrook Academy is not a boarding school. It’s more like an asylum. For troubled teenagers. With guards and strict teachers that make you call them Uncle and Aunt. And there’s solitary confinement. Basically it’s a place run by crazy people that think they are helping crazy people who aren’t actually crazy.

Plus, outside of the “school” is basically a dystopian setting. Like, really. People live in locked communities, and there’s all these shortages and basically everyone is trying to delude themselves into thinking that the world isn’t ending. This was my favourite thing about the setting. I loved that it had this almost typical dystopian setting and somewhere else you could imagine a group of kids getting together to fight some sort of evil overlord, but that’s not what this story was about. All that dystopia was in the background. It was a nice change from a lot of books that I’ve been reading lately.

Also, there was a lot of mystery and distrust between all the characters. You never quite knew who was doing what or why. Or what was up with this crazy trail of clues there were following. The mystery was well done, and I liked how it was all solved in the end.

I liked the main character, Faye, she definitely had problems and didn’t have any idea what she was doing or what was going on but just kept trying to struggle through it. I liked that she didn’t just take everything lying down. That she was actively trying to solve the mystery of her past and why there was so much attention on her.

The other characters I found were a little flat, or not all there. I wish we’d had more of them at any rate. Especially Kel. I liked him, but I feel like we didn’t get to know him as well as I wanted to.

Other than that, I really enjoyed this book. So, even if the cover completely turns you off, like it does me, I urge you to give it a try anyway. The cover makes sense with the story. I promise.(less)

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Nov 24, 2011 Leah (Jane Speare) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Faye is going crazy, seeing things that aren’t there. Since she can remember, she’s had a weird connection to death and the ocean. When she is sent to Holbrook Academy to ‘get better’, everything only gets worse. Faye and her friends wake up every morning with blood on their hands, and mysterious symbols written on the floor. She knows it’s her causing this, but how? Working with her friend Kel, she starts to unravel an age old prophecy foretelling madness and death, and soon no one can be trust...more

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May 17, 2013 Eskana rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book had NO idea what it wanted to be.
From the very beginning, from when I opened it, it had changed my expectations. There were so many genres it wanted to hit, but like in life, if you try to do a hundred things, you end up doing none of them well.

It was about a (never fully explained) dystopic future United States. So there's that genre.
It was about a girl having trouble with visions, thinking she's crazy. It's about a girl who never fits in and almost kills herself (without meaning to.)...more

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Mar 15, 2013 Navi rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: disappointing, dystopian, romance, stop-lecturing-me, supernatural, young-adult

I'm not exactly sure what I just read but I'm pretty sure I didn't like it.

I feel as though this is one of the most confusing books I've ever actually read, and it's not a good thing that it's confusing either. I don't expect all my questions to be answered by the end of every book - that's fine.

But this answered absolutely nothing.

Why exactly was it dystopian in the first place?

Why was it praised for having a great dystopian world, because none of it was even well developed?

This could have ea...more

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Jul 22, 2012 Pricky rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1st-person, 2012-debut-author, apocalypse, could-ve-been-but-wasn-t, creepy, dazed-and-confused, disappointing-covers, female-lead, ghosts, magic, multicultural, mystery, painful, paranormal, psyche, read-in-2012, reincarnation, reviewed, strange, ya

As seen on Zombie Mommies.

I really really wanted to like this one: Mind Games, Visions, Sleepwalking, A Boarding School, A Mystery, A Dark and Handsome Mysterious Boy? All the perfect ingredients for a great story...

...that fell flat like a homemade souffle.

The main problem with Harbinger were too many lose ends. With thrillers, I am completely prepared for unanswered questions that compel me to turn the page, eager to find the answer. But with this one, when i finally got to the end, all the lo...more

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Jun 19, 2012 BAYA Librarian rated it 4 of 5 stars

Faye thinks that her father is taking her to visit Holbrook Academy, not abandoning her in what amounts to juvenile detention run by sadistic creeps armed with Tasers and pepper spray. Each night before bed the school nurse dispenses medication to the student body. Each morning Faye, her roommate and their friends wake up covered in red clay the color of dried blood. It is as if they have been digging in the earth with their bare hands. Even more terrifying are the visions of the end of the worl...more

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May 20, 2012 Jeci rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone willing to ignore inconsistencies and spotty plotting

Well, this book isn't fire-worthy. But it's not shelf-worthy either, and it's not money-worthy, and it definitely isn't time-worthy. It was a senseless mess of narrative that kind of hurt me on the inside.

This story is about Faye, a strange girl with odd waking visions and a fascination with dead things. That's what turned me on to this book; she seemed like an interesting character that I'd like to follow around. Well, it was tolerable, at least.

Oh, and then the obligatory love interest. I have...more

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May 07, 2012 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: youth-mg-ya

Great pacing and nice sinister ambiance. I like the author's writing style, a lot of 'flavor' there. She uses a lot of fragments and has a way of really making her character's observations visceral and unique (without being ostentatious). I also really liked how unapologetically dark the work is. I was not so much into all the smooching and love-interest focus, romance is just not my genre, but if you like romantic thrillers this may well be a book you will heart.
I do wish there had been a bit...more

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Apr 02, 2012 Krysta Mathews rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: american-humanities

This story was about a girl named Faye, she was constantly found weird by not only her parents but everyone around, people wouldn't look her in the eye. She collected weird things and worse was the visions, whenever things got bad, she felt as if she was REALLY being surrounded by water. As a last resort her parents send her to Holbrook Academy, which is basically an institution. As soon as she's there things go from worse to complete hell. Terrible dream, the medication, dried blood. everythin...more

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Mar 20, 2012 Whatchyareading added it

Shelves: debut-author, caitlin, dystopian, young-adult

I’m not sure what about this book made me want to read it. It certainly wasn’t the cover. This is one of those books that I had to make myself read despite the cover. Possibly I had the impression from a description that it took place at a boarding school and was about kids with powers. Kids with powers at a boarding school is one of my all time favourite tropes I will read almost anything with this set up.

Plus there’s that random line, “her only comfort the bones of dead animals.” Like…what???...more I’m not sure what about this book made me want to read it. It certainly wasn’t the cover. This is one of those books that I had to make myself read despite the cover. Possibly I had the impression from a description that it took place at a boarding school and was about kids with powers. Kids with powers at a boarding school is one of my all time favourite tropes I will read almost anything with this set up.

Plus there’s that random line, “her only comfort the bones of dead animals.” Like…what??? So, yeah, I needed this book. And the very nice people at Penguin Canada were awesome enough to pass it along.

So, first of all Holbrook Academy is not a boarding school. It’s more like an asylum. For troubled teenagers. With guards and strict teachers that make you call them Uncle and Aunt. And there’s solitary confinement. Basically it’s a place run by crazy people that think they are helping crazy people who aren’t actually crazy.

Plus, outside of the “school” is basically a dystopian setting. Like, really. People live in locked communities, and there’s all these shortages and basically everyone is trying to delude themselves into thinking that the world isn’t ending. This was my favourite thing about the setting. I loved that it had this almost typical dystopian setting and somewhere else you could imagine a group of kids getting together to fight some sort of evil overlord, but that’s not what this story was about. All that dystopia was in the background. It was a nice change from a lot of books that I’ve been reading lately.

Also, there was a lot of mystery and distrust between all the characters. You never quite knew who was doing what or why. Or what was up with this crazy trail of clues there were following. The mystery was well done, and I liked how it was all solved in the end.

I liked the main character, Faye, she definitely had problems and didn’t have any idea what she was doing or what was going on but just kept trying to struggle through it. I liked that she didn’t just take everything lying down. That she was actively trying to solve the mystery of her past and why there was so much attention on her.

The other characters I found were a little flat, or not all there. I wish we’d had more of them at any rate. Especially Kel. I liked him, but I feel like we didn’t get to know him as well as I wanted to.

Other than that, I really enjoyed this book. So, even if the cover completely turns you off, like it does me, I urge you to give it a try anyway. The cover makes sense with the story. I promise.

Reviewed at WhatchYAreading on February 1, 2012.(less)

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Mar 16, 2012 Carina Olsen rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm unsure about how I feel about this book. The first 150 pages or so it was a clear 5 star book. It was just so good. Then the main character got unlikable, and I got confused a lot. But I still loved it. Mostly :D And the ending is good, although there better be a sequel; because a lot of things went by unexplained.

I first wanted this book because of the pretty cover, then I read the summary. And I wanted it even more. Then yesterday I was bored, and I wanted to try this book. And I loved it...more I'm unsure about how I feel about this book. The first 150 pages or so it was a clear 5 star book. It was just so good. Then the main character got unlikable, and I got confused a lot. But I still loved it. Mostly :D And the ending is good, although there better be a sequel; because a lot of things went by unexplained.

I first wanted this book because of the pretty cover, then I read the summary. And I wanted it even more. Then yesterday I was bored, and I wanted to try this book. And I loved it right away. It's like an asylum/prison, and it is creepy and evil and I loved it. Most suprising, though, is that I liked the writing as well :) Found it to be really good.

The plot in this book is really exciting; I liked it the most in the beginning. It was a bit too much near the end, I think. But it is still really good. I don't want to say too much about it, because I liked the mystery of the plot. So I'll just say that it's good, and interesting :)

The characters I mostly liked. I really liked Faye at first. She was an awesome broken character. And I adored her. I adored Kel even more. He was a great love interest; and I loved him a lot. Liked the romance in this book, but hated what happened in the last half of the book. Faye sort of fucked up.

And I lost a lot of interest. Because many things didn't make sense. And I hated how Faye distrusted Kel so easily. It just happened too fast, I think. The first she likes him, which happened perfectly, but then she suddenly hated him and wanted to kill him. With not really any real proof that he had done anything. So. Yeah. I didn't liked that.

But still, I really enjoyed this book. There is a lot more characters in this book, and I liked them all. They were all interesting to read about, some good, some bad. What I really loved though was how horrible it was at Holbrook Academy. I just love those things. Although it was bad. And scary.

One of the reasons why I want a sequel is because I want more romance. But also because I want to know what happens next. Considering it ended without us knowing anything about what would happen. And I want to know more about the world; because it is a dystopia or post-apocalyptic world. And it sounded really interesting to learn about. Want more of that.

Anyway, this is a great book, and you really should read it :)(less)

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Feb 29, 2012 Kale rated it 4 of 5 stars

Faye is haunted by visions of a coming tide. The solemn solo teen sees things in the people around her, her strangeness strangling her social status. Faye doesn't fit anywhere in the ruined world she exists in.

Faye finds herself exiled to a remote reform school in Maine, where torture is the preferred treatment. She meets her fellow "family" of students, including Kel, a boy she has an instant attraction too. But there is something strange about their new surroundings. Every morning they awake o...more

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Feb 24, 2012 Jenny rated it 4 of 5 stars

Actual Rating: 3.5/5

Harbinger is a tale full of dark corners teeming with shadowy secrets that hide from our searching gaze, forcing us to look harder and deeper for brief glances of their flickering forms before they once again dart out of our line of sight and leave us wondering how what we just saw will fit into the overall story. The title alone has us on edge, knowing the connotations associated with such a word are typically negative in nature, and we peel back the first page with our puls...more Actual Rating: 3.5/5

Harbinger is a tale full of dark corners teeming with shadowy secrets that hide from our searching gaze, forcing us to look harder and deeper for brief glances of their flickering forms before they once again dart out of our line of sight and leave us wondering how what we just saw will fit into the overall story. The title alone has us on edge, knowing the connotations associated with such a word are typically negative in nature, and we peel back the first page with our pulses beating a little faster and anticipation leaking from our pores as Faye is rather unceremoniously abandoned at Holbrook Academy. The mystery surrounding the school itself and Faye in particular is decadently thick, layer after layer created and stacked with careful crafting as it waits for us to find the beauty and intrigue in dismantling such a intricate construction.

Faye is a young woman who has our complete support instantaneously as she's deserted by her father, left to deal with the strange terror of her hallucinations on her own with no one but a doctor who places power above concern and instills hatred and fear instead of encouraging trust to help guide her. She and the six other members of her Family have an invisible seventh member in us readers, our blood burning along with theirs at what they're forced to endure, and our rage practically wafting from our bodies as those who are supposed to be helping them seek only to tear them down and crush them under the heels of their boots. Despite their treatment, all six of them stay strong and band together, and we can't help but smile as they are forced to bend but never allow themselves to break.

While Faye and her new friends are characters with whom our connection is a live wire pulsing with the full emotional spectrum, the story itself is a bit confusing at times. The first half beautifully builds the suspense while giving us time to really get to know Faye and company, clues uncovered slowly, though not so tediously as to bore us with filler content while waiting for the next revelation, but the second half seems to shift the story into a completely new gear and we find ourselves desperately trying to catch up. It's almost as though we've been driving through the plot on a clear day at a nice, even pace, only to reach the halfway point and have the heavens open up and pour down on us—we still know where we are and what direction we're headed, but now the details of our journey are blurred and a liquid filter has distorted what we once recognized and understood. Everything exists for us then in shades of muted grays with fuzzy edges, and we can't quite grasp the clarity we need to help us fully appreciate what's happening.

Harbinger is a solid debut from Ms. Wilson overall, with an engaging story and easy-to-love characters, the difference between the first half and the second half is just a touch more prominent than expected. The cruelty of Dr. Mordoch and the Holbrook staff is what initially yanks us into the story and has us flipping the pages with shocking rapidity, however, their vile behavior is never linked to the mystery of the harbinger and all that is brought to light in the second half, so we experience an unfortunate disconnect between what drew us in and where we end up on the last page. Even with those few flaws, it's clear Ms. Wilson is a talented writer and storyteller, and she will be one to watch as her career moves forward.

Rating 3.5/5(less)

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Dec 18, 2012 Catherine rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Oct 19, 2012 Kate rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: dystopian-postapocalyptic, ecology, fantasy, fiction, futuristic, romance-romantic, speculative, young-adult

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Good?	2	5	Mar 07, 2013 01:12pm
Good?	1	1	Mar 06, 2013 07:32pm
Good?	1	1	Mar 06, 2013 07:32pm
Good?	1	1	Mar 06, 2013 07:32pm
Book cover	1	2	Jan 30, 2013 06:37pm
Book cover	1	1	Jan 30, 2013 06:36pm

title link	preview: Harbinger
avg rating	preview: Harbinger Goodreads rating: 3.25 (966 ratings)
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