Clarity
Clarity
Kim Harrington
Published by Point
Published on March 2011
Source: Bought
Summary taken from Goodreads:
When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?
This paranormal murder mystery will have teens reading on the edge of their seats.
Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.
And a curse.
When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother - who has supernatural gifts of his own - becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?
This paranormal murder mystery will have teens reading on the edge of their seats.
Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.
And a curse.
When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother - who has supernatural gifts of his own - becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?
I have had this book on my TBR shelf for quite awhile. I hadn't heard much about it, but picked it up when Borders was going out of business. I was offered an ARC of Perception (the second book in the series), so I finally had a chance to pick this one up.
The Cover: The cover gives me mixed feelings. I love how she looks not quite human, but to be honest- how skinny she is freaks me out. Seriously- the cover creeps me out. I love the colors and the birds (but after reading the story, I'm not entirely sure what the purpose of the birds are other than "ocean" decoration).
The Characters: I liked that the story started with Clare having already had a relationship with one of the main male characters. Although there is a love triangle- I wouldn't consider it a typical one. Justin and Gabriel absolutely kept a backseat in the novel. We really don't find out much about either until the end of the story, and it is not an incredible amount at that point. The romance is absolutely not a central focus in the story, but it really did work with the plot. I enjoyed Clare's mom and brother, and the personalities of some of the very minor characters.
The Story: The story was honestly much better than I anticipated. It was a good mix of the paranormal with a straight mystery. It reminded me of the shows on TV like "The Mentalist", "Medium", or "Ghost Whisperer". The story flowed well and kept me engaged- I didn't get bored with this one! The author weaved the story with twists and turns and I spent a majority of the book having absolutely no idea who the killer was. That is where the book really did well- I had absolutely no idea who the killer was until the end (this is very rare in mysteries).
If you enjoy a good mystery without the gore or enjoy the TV shows I mentioned above- give Clarity a try, it was an excellent and fast read!
The Cover: The cover gives me mixed feelings. I love how she looks not quite human, but to be honest- how skinny she is freaks me out. Seriously- the cover creeps me out. I love the colors and the birds (but after reading the story, I'm not entirely sure what the purpose of the birds are other than "ocean" decoration).
The Characters: I liked that the story started with Clare having already had a relationship with one of the main male characters. Although there is a love triangle- I wouldn't consider it a typical one. Justin and Gabriel absolutely kept a backseat in the novel. We really don't find out much about either until the end of the story, and it is not an incredible amount at that point. The romance is absolutely not a central focus in the story, but it really did work with the plot. I enjoyed Clare's mom and brother, and the personalities of some of the very minor characters.
The Story: The story was honestly much better than I anticipated. It was a good mix of the paranormal with a straight mystery. It reminded me of the shows on TV like "The Mentalist", "Medium", or "Ghost Whisperer". The story flowed well and kept me engaged- I didn't get bored with this one! The author weaved the story with twists and turns and I spent a majority of the book having absolutely no idea who the killer was. That is where the book really did well- I had absolutely no idea who the killer was until the end (this is very rare in mysteries).
If you enjoy a good mystery without the gore or enjoy the TV shows I mentioned above- give Clarity a try, it was an excellent and fast read!
