Chasing Power by Sarah Beth Durst Review

Chasing Power, by Sarah Beth Durst
Published On: October 14, 2014, by Bloomsbury
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Paranormal
Pages: 368
Format: Hardcover
Source: Borrowed
Rating: ½

Lies, secrets, and magic — three things that define Kayla's life.
Sixteen-year-old Kayla plans to spend her summer hanging out on the beach in Santa Barbara and stealing whatever she wants, whenever she wants it. Born with the ability to move things with her mind — things like credit cards, diamond rings, and buttons on cash registers — she has become a master shoplifter. She steals to build up a safety net, enough money for her and her mom to be able to flee if her dad finds them again. Well, that, and the thrill of using her secret talents.
But her summer plans change when she's caught stealing by a boy named Daniel — a boy who needs her help and is willing to blackmail her to get it. Daniel has a talent of his own. He can teleport, appearing anywhere in the world in an instant, but he lies as easily as he travels. Together, they embark on a quest to find and steal an ancient incantation, written on three indestructible stones and hidden millennia ago, all to rescue Daniel's kidnapped mother. But Kayla has no idea that this rescue mission will lead back to her own family — and to betrayals that she may not be able to forgive... or survive.

DNF @ 70 pages     

  When I read this book I was hoping for something more daring and different. FORGET about the gorgeous cover, this was one of the biggest disappointments of the year for me, since I expected so much better. I've heard so many things about Sarah Beth Durst's books, and this was a true sign that I will never speak of or want to see any of her books ever again.

    I've put off writing this review for a few weeks now, and I've just kept on re-scheduling it over and over again, farther from the present date since I really don't know what to say now. Am I and the rest of the general public just getting so sick and tired of paranormal reads? Probably that is the case, since I'm still reading paranormal books to this day and am usually DNF-ing them and writing a rant review, just like this one will become.

     I thoroughly enjoy writing rant reviews. But actually not so much to piss the author off or anything in that sorts. I find that I can just scream all of my hate out to you guys and hope and cross my fingers that you will not choose to read this book whatsoever or whenever.

       Chasing Power was very interesting... in my opinion. When I saw that my library had just gotten it, available to request—I freaked and went to get it right away. The concept sounded just for me. Truth is that it was the opposite of just for me. This book was hideous and from just reading 70 pages, I realized that it truly wasn't for me and I honestly feel stressed and like banging my head on a desk, over and over again since I obviously listened to the reviewers.

        From the first page, I was like "ew." NO. Telepathy is so overrated. We've been through the phase in 2010, and it's 2014. Why not come up with something new? Maybe something like Arrow or Flash? No—we have to go through this catastrophe. 

         So from what I understood after reading 70 pages, what was happening was that Kayla is able to move things with her mind but her mother forbids her from using her magical skills because they can 'hurt her in ways she cannot even imagine.' And then she meets Daniel, who accidentally sees Kayla using her powers and tells her that he will tell unless Kayla helps him find his kidnapped mother.

          WHAT WAS THIS. I honestly think that there was no way to change this book unless the whole thing was rewritten. It was so not for me. Sure, Durst could've used the same characters. Those are probably the only things that could stay. WE NEED A REWRITE, PEOPLE.

       Yes, the concept strongly sucked. The plot sucked as well because the concept sucked. Isn't it a whole bookish system? Aren't things supposed to be connected in a book? I swear, if the concept isn't good for me, then I'll probably dislike and loathe the book. That's the way everything worked in this book. Not that Sarah Beth Durst is a bad author—no. She's probably a very good author since I've heard so many positives about her and her past books. I guess that her 2014 was a bump in her career, a least from what I saw.

       So you're probably asking, 1.5? Why not one star? The beginning was okay. Like the first few chapters were entertaining and showed improvement in the plot, but from there, it all went downhill. I screamed, I fidgeted, and I felt like I was doomed to go into a peculiar reading slump. I've probably already went through three this past year, and three is surely enough. 

       Obviously there probably was some romance between Kayla and Daniel afterwards, but I didn't care enough to want to find out how everything ended up. It probably became to be the cheesiest thing in the world, to be honest.

        

          In order for this book to be magnificent, I'd probably recommend a whole rewrite, which would then probably impress me to the minimum. The only positive thing here? The beginning. The characters and the whole concept and the plot was hideous. I'd say take the chance for a minimum if you're interested, but this was in the worst situation with me.