Review: The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies #2) by Pittacus Lore

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together? 

They caught Number One in Malaysia. 

Number Two in England. 

And Number Three in Kenya. 

They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed. 

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive. 

And I'm ready to fight. (YA)

Note: This is a guest review written by Alex.

Review:
The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore is a great improvement on the first book. The story picks up just about where it left off and also begins the story of Marina, another of the nine lorics destined to retake Lorien. I much preferred this book to the last, probably because what I liked about the last book is more focused on in this book (Loric History and the Legacies).

John Smith’s (Four’s) story is kind of like last time, except this time with a lot more running around. In hindsight, I don’t think a lot happened, but the Sam, John and Six had a lot of heart to hearts that were interesting and helped to keep things moving. Sometimes though, they ‘bantered’ in the car, which I found a bit painful to read. Not much to say other than John acts like a lovestruck fool, Sam is quirky and Six is a badass heroine that I really love. Needless to say I liked that she became more of a heroine than Sarah ever was.

Marina (Seven) is in a convent where she has been for 11 years, despite the rule to keep moving in order to stay safe. The Cêpan, Adelina, is a full nun and appears to have forgotten their true reason for being there. The story is kind of predictable and similar to John’s in book one, and you can guess what happens with Adelina. I liked Marina because she seemed quite driven and without the stupid distraction of romance, she was usually clear headed. He story is interwoven with that of Ella’s (a young girl who joins the convent that I knew was more important than she seemed) and focuses mainly on eventually eloping and finding the other nine.

When I think about the nine, one word always comes to mind: badass. It’s not a word I really like or use, but it is the best word to describe them. The nine are powerful and can do things that will amaze you, but I can’t escape the fact they seem just a bit too powerful. John was captured at one point and I thought “Really? You can’t escape?” The Mogadorians were a challenge in the last book, but now they seem more like a minor annoyance- only their numbers seem like a challenge. Especially at the end with Six.

Though there is no romance with Marina’s story, John can’t go a chapter without mentioning his longing for Sarah but (thank Pittacus!) it no longer as straightforward as one love for life. He is in two love triangles (John/Six/Sarah and John/Sam/Six) which despite my usual dislike of them, I thought were rather well done, but I think I was just pleased such blinkered monogamy was gone. I’m not a bigamist but love at first sight puts me in fits of laughter. The second triangle- with Sam and Six- actually made me laugh because Six just said, “I like you and Sam. Deal with it.” It just made me laugh to see such frankness.

Besides seeing what Marina can do, there are no new powers in the book which was a bit of a disappointment. Her powers were nice, but we were told them all rather consecutively and there was none of that blissful feeling of discovery like in I am Number Four. I can see this continuing and, though understandable, it is kind of disappointing. The other thing I liked in book one was the history and there wasn’t a great deal of that either. Yet, I was satisfied with the things I learnt about Six’s Cêpan and Marina’s. And John visited Mogadore in a vision so you get a peek at Mogadorian culture.

It’s hard to say what I think of this. I know that the flatness of a lot of it should mean I dislike it, but I just can’t. I think I love the concept and the perfect realisation of the kind of Urban Fantasy I like. It’s not perfect but it’s easy to be drawn in and to love it.

Rating: 3.5 out of 4 - a fun Urban Fantasy where you can suspend some reader snobbery.

Buy the Book! The Power of Six (lorien Legacies Book 2)

**Alex has his own blog now! Visit him over at Eclectic Insprirations.
Thank you for taking the time to still do a little reviewing in my little corner of the blogosphere.