Review: The Taking by Kimberly Derting

The Taking (The Taking #1)
Author: Kimberly Derting
Release Date: April 29, 2014
Publisher: Harper TEEN
Source: Edelweiss
Review by: Jenn

A flash of white light . . . and then . . . nothing.

When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?

3.5 stars out of 5 stars

*I received an eARC of this book from the publisher but it did not influence this review in any way.*

I have to be honest, what originally caught my attention to this book was the cover. I read the synopsis and and I was sold. Right from the beginning, I was hooked and I was curious to find out what happened to Kyra. I really enjoyed the story and the pacing of it. I'm not much of a sci-fi girl but even I can appreciate some of the theories that were thrown around. And I'll even admit that the sci-fi part of the book was a little light but I'm not complaining.

My only complaint was how it was a little weird that Kyra and Tyler get together. Tyler was 12 when Kyra first disappears and now he's 17. Although she didn't age, it a still a little weird for me to wrap my head around it. However, it very easy to forget about that part because Tyler is the best. He's very attentive towards Kyra and can see how difficult it is for Kyra to adjust to her life and how he doesn't expect her to just jump right in to her old life.

While I really enjoyed getting to know these characters, there's something about it that I just can't love about the story. I think it may just be that it missing that spark of interest and excitement for it. The ending, though, OMG I need book two ASAP. How could it have just ended that way?? I have a couple of theories as to what may be happening and I want to know if I'll be proven right or wrong.

The Taking was a good read, and while it not a favorite, I can't wait to see what happens to these characters.