So Bookalicious!: Review: The Holders (Holders #1) by Julianna Scott

Thursday, 30 January 2014

Review: The Holders (Holders #1) by Julianna Scott

Synopsis

17 year-old Becca spent her whole life protecting her brother from, well, everything. The abandonment of their father, the so called 'experts' who insist that voices in his head are unnatural and must be dealt with, and the constant threat of being taken away to some hospital and studied like an animal. When two representatives appear claiming to have the answers to Ryland's perceived problem, Becca doesn't buy it for one second; That is until they seem to know things about Ryland and about Becca and Ryland's family, that forces Becca to concede that there may be more to these people than meets the eye. Thought still highly skeptical, Becca agrees to do what's best for Ryland.

What they find at St. Brigid's is a world beyond their imaginatiion. Little by little they piece together the information of their family's heritage, their estranged Father, and the legend of the Holder race that decrees Ryland is the one they've been waiting for. However, they are al - especially Becca - in for a surprise that will change what they thought they knew about themselves and their kind.

She meets Alex, a Holder who is fiercely loyal to their race, and for some reason, Becca and Ryland. There's an attraction between Becca and Alex that can't be denied, but her true nature seems destined to keep them apart. However, certain destinies may not be as clear cut as everyone has always believed them to be.

Becca is lots, but found at the same time. Can she bring herself to leave Ryland now that he's settled and can clearly see his future? Will she be able to put the feelings she has for Alex aside and head back to the US? And can Becca and Ryland ever forgive their father for what he's done?

- Goodreads -

Opinion

When I started to read The Holders I would have never guessed that I would love it so much. This book blew me away, I couldn’t put it down.

Rebecca is the main protagonist in this book, we first get to meet her when she’s protecting her little brother when again people are trying to take him away because he hears voices inside of his head. But Becca believes that there is nothing wrong with Ryland at least not in the way psychiatrists think. So she does everything to protect the best she can. And from that very moment I liked her. She thinks first of others before she thinks of herself, she’s one of the most selfless people that I’ve ever met. At the same time she’s strong, smart, sassy and she doesn’t mind getting into trouble if that means she can help the ones she loves.
And then we got Alex, just like with Becca I liked him from the first moment got to meet him. He knows that trust can’t be given but has to be earned. And he does everything to earn Becca’s trust so that she will believe that he only wants the best for her little brother and for herself. He’s a very sweet person and if it’s possible even more selfless than Becca.

When Becca and Ryland arrive at the school in Ireland (bonus point ‘cause it’s not set in America :)) they get thrown into a whole new world, the world of the Holders. And their arrival is more important than anyone could ever have imagined. Some events that happened in this book were rather predictable, but the way the book worked up to the revelation of these events was great. And in the end there were a lot of things that I never saw coming, my mouth literally dropped open a few times.

I can’t describe well enough how much I loved this book, it had been quiet a long time since I read such a great Young Adult paranormal book. And I would highly recommend it to anyone!