Allison O'Malley's plan is to go to grad school so she can get a good job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She has carefully closed herself off from everything else, including a relationship with Ethan, who she's been in love with for as long as she can remember.
What is definitely not part of the plan is the return of her long-lost father, who claims he can bring Allison's mother back from the dark place her mind has gone. Allison doesn't trust her father, so why would she believe his stories about a long forgotten Irish people, the Tuatha de Danaan? But truths have a way of revealing themselves. Secrets will eventually surface. And Allison must learn to set aside her plan and work with her father if there is even a small chance it could restore her mother's sanity.
The Forgotten Ones
By: Lauren Howard
Series: The Danaan Trilogy #1
Release Date: May 15, 2013
Reviewed: eARC
Excerpt
I turned on the sink and picked up the sponge. Dinner was over, and helping to clean up was the best excuse I could think of to avoid Nicole. But Gram stopped me.
"It's a beautiful evening, and your birthday, so why don't you go enjoy it on the deck?"
I sighed. It would be no use to argue. I nodded and gave her a kiss, then took my iced tea out back and sat in a lounge chair. Nicole inevitably followed.
She leaned back on the railing and folded her arms. "All right, let's hear it."
"There's nothing to tell."
"I'm used to this sort of thing from you," Nicole began, "but I'm family, I have no choice but to accept your weirdness."
"Nic-"
"No, let me finish. You told Ethan you'd go to lunch with him. Now that I see for myself that there's no catastrophe, I don't understand why you would blow him off."
"First of all, I never agreed. And besides, I haven't been feeling well, and I just laid down for a minute and..." I trailed off, not wanting to lie but hoping Nicole would come to her own conclusions.
"This is Ethan we're talking about, Al. You have been in love with him since you were in the first grade! So, what's the deal?"
"It was a mistake, Nic," I whispered.
Nicole shook her head and stalked back in the house without another word.
I closed my eyes, and let me head fall back on my hair. The sounds of the dishes clattering in the sink began to fade.
"It's a beautiful evening, and your birthday, so why don't you go enjoy it on the deck?"
I sighed. It would be no use to argue. I nodded and gave her a kiss, then took my iced tea out back and sat in a lounge chair. Nicole inevitably followed.
She leaned back on the railing and folded her arms. "All right, let's hear it."
"There's nothing to tell."
"I'm used to this sort of thing from you," Nicole began, "but I'm family, I have no choice but to accept your weirdness."
"Nic-"
"No, let me finish. You told Ethan you'd go to lunch with him. Now that I see for myself that there's no catastrophe, I don't understand why you would blow him off."
"First of all, I never agreed. And besides, I haven't been feeling well, and I just laid down for a minute and..." I trailed off, not wanting to lie but hoping Nicole would come to her own conclusions.
"This is Ethan we're talking about, Al. You have been in love with him since you were in the first grade! So, what's the deal?"
"It was a mistake, Nic," I whispered.
Nicole shook her head and stalked back in the house without another word.
I closed my eyes, and let me head fall back on my hair. The sounds of the dishes clattering in the sink began to fade.
Review
The cover of “The Forgotten Ones” by Laura Howard is beautiful. The cover caught my attention right away and I wanted to join this book tour. I honestly I wanted to see what the book behind the beautiful cover was all about. Allison is a 21 year old woman who has grown up not knowing her father and taking care of her schizophrenic mother. Allison and her mother live with her mother’s parents, so that they can help take care of Allison’s mother.
One day Allison’s father appears out of nowhere and starts telling her about a supernatural race known as the Tuatha de Danaan and how they are after her and her mother. Allison doesn’t really believe him at first but as she begins to learn the truth when her mother goes missing, Allison goes on a journey to try to save her mother.
This story was beautifully written. The part I had a hard time with, was “The Forgotten Ones” didn’t seem to grab my attention at all. I think Laura did a great job wither her characters and the story itself, it didn’t’ have that attention getter for me. I feel like there was a lot missing too. I wanted more background information about how everyone ended up where they were at today. I think this series has some major potential. Howard already has the writing part down which is normally the most difficult. Now I recommend adding a little more fluff and background information to the story. I want to see some attention grabbers.
I think this is a great debut novel for Laura Howard. I think it is worth giving a chance. I have read a lot of debut novels and this one is very well written. I think the beginning starts out really well, but the middle needed a little more work. I could tell at the end of the book that there is going to be a sequel however there really wasn’t much of a cliffhanger. There could have been a purpose for that, I am not totally sure, but when the story didn’t capture my attention right away, I was hoping that maybe the end would.
The cover and title are beautiful. The word choice is great. The characters were great. The story was pretty decent. I hope the second book is even better. Congratulations Laura Howard on your debut novel “The Forgotten Ones.”
I give "The Forgotten Ones" three out of five bookshelves.
Author
Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.
Official Links: laurahoward78.blogspot.com | @laurahoward78
Review
I give "The Forgotten Ones" three out of five bookshelves.
Author
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Thank you for your review Ali. I appreciate your honest feedback more than you know. :D
ReplyDeleteNice review. Thanks for participating.
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