The Countdown by Kimberly Derting

Series: The Taking (bk. 3)

Genera(s): Sci-fi Mystery/Romance

Subjects: abductions, abilities, aliens, government agencies, love, mystery

Setting: Western states, primarily Wyoming, Oregon, and California

POV/Tense: 1st person POV, past tense: Kyra Agnew (and also some chapters with Simon and Tyler’s POVs)

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 376 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen

Summary/ product description: “She may no longer be human…but she’s their only hope.

In the concluding book in the otherworldly Taking trilogy, Kyra struggles to understand who she is as she races to save the world from complete destruction.

Ever since Kyra was abducted by aliens and then returned to earth, she has known there was something different about her. Now she knows the truth: she is an alien too. Her alien captors replaced all her human DNA with their own—gifting her with supernatural powers like incredible healing, enhanced eyesight, and telekinesis. But when she’s captured by an unexpected enemy, Kyra begins to wonder if her abilities are also a curse. And is she, as her enemies believe, meant to play some key role in helping an impending alien invasion? Is it programmed into her, something inescapable? Or can she fight that destiny?

No matter what the truth is, Kyra is sure of one thing: She just rescued the love of her life, Tyler, and she is not going to stand by and let anyone hurt him or her friends. Whatever it takes, Kyra will do everything in her power to save the world…even if it means making the ultimate sacrifice.”

My Review:  The Countdown is the amazing finale to The Taking trilogy. It’s got action, romance and aliens. It’s  perfect fro fans of the 5^th Wave by Rick Yancey, Caged by Meghan Shepherd, The Rules trilogy by Stacy Kade, The Host by Stephanie Meyer, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, Unremembered by Jessica Brody, Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza, Blackout by Robison Wells, Rush (the Game Trilogy) by Eve Silver and any other Kimberly Derting book. Pretty much anything with aliens, or teens gaining superpowers. X-file fans, Fringe fans, fans.

SPOILERS AHEAD: If you haven’t read the Taking, or even it’s sequel, the Replaced, then don’t read this review.

At the beginning of the book, Kyra is on the run with her father and Tyler, the only other “Replaced” (their DNA is completely alien. They’re not hybrids like the Returned). They’ve been on the road for days, and every morning at dawn Kyra hear another number in her head, like a countdown and she becomes obsessed with that number all day, seeing it everywhere.

The 3 of them stop at a diner, and Kyra finally decides to tell Tyler about their past, and he walks away from her. Kyra is kidnapped by other Returned and her father, Tyler, Simon, Jett and the others have to find her. Tyler feels like he might sense her. He keeps dreaming of a map that appears to be a reverse star-chart. And this is only the beginning. Lots of awesome stuff happens in this book.

This final book does things a little differently. It’s spilt into 2 parts, but I think maybe the first 2 books were too. It’s not entirely Kyra’s point of view. There are chapters that are more like intermissions because they’re not part of the chapter count. Those intermissions are in a different font (san-serif) and are Simon’s or Tyler’s POV. I was really worried that Tyler was body-snatched at the end of the last book when he said “The Returned must die,” but were see that’s not the case and get his point of view. I like Simon, but I really was team Tyler all the way.

I’m happy with how the series ended, although I was confused with what happened at first. It was a good ended. This is the second series by Kimberly Derting that I’ve completed. I gotta say she really knows how to write a series. I still haven’t read the Pledge, although a bought the whole series and had they all autographed by her. Kimberly’s a cool author. I met her three time. I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

Cover Art Review: Disappointing cover. The cover just kept getting less interesting.

The Replaced by Kimberly Derting

Series: The Taking (bk. 2)

Genera(s): Sci-fi Mystery/Romance

Subjects: abductions, abilities, aliens, government agencies, love, mystery

Setting: Washington state, Utah

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, past tense: Kyra Agnew

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 354 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen

Summary/ product description: “Romantic and action-packed, The Replaced is the gripping second installment in the Taking trilogy.

Kyra hasn't been the same since she returned from her mysterious five-year disappearance. Now, on the run from the NSA, Kyra is forced to hide out with others who, like her, have been Returned. Yet she is determined to find Tyler, the boy she loves who was also abducted—all because of her. When her group intercepts a message that Tyler might still be alive but is in the hands of a shadowy government organization that experiments on the Returned, Kyra knows it's a risk to go after him. What if it's a trap? And worse, what if the returned Tyler isn't the same boy she lost?

Perfect for fans of The Fifth Wave and the Body Finder series, The Replaced is both chilling and explosive, with creepy, otherworldly elements and twisty, psychological thrills that will have you questioning what exactly it means to be human.”

My Review:  I finally decided to start this series since I know the 3^rd book is coming out in 2 months and it’s spring break, so why not series-binge? I read the Taking and now I read The Replaced. I’m really enjoying this series. This sequel does not disappoint. It’s just as good as the first book. The only probably I had with it was the lack of Tyler, and Kyra romance with him. The Taking series is a fun, entertaining and mysterious sci-fi read. Perfect for fan of the X-files. I watched the new 6-part series recently, so I felt in the mood for some alien stuff.

To recap The Taking, Kyra Agnew, a 16-year old girl from Burlington, Washington, was taken after her high school softball team won the championship in 2009. She got into an argument with her dad, exited the car and saw a blinding light. She wakes up on the ground behind a gas station thinking she somehow choose to sleep outside for the night. She doesn’t find out that actually 5 years have gone buy since that night until mistake her boyfriend’s younger brother Tyler for her boyfriend Austin. Tyler who was only 12 last time she saw him, and is now suddenly looking 17. She starts to fall for Tyler, since Austin already moved on. The NSA is after Kyra, and wants to experiment on her. Kyra meet Simon, another Returned who knows more about this stuff and she learns that normal Returned usually come back within 48 hours, not 5 long years. She can heal faster than the others, see in the dark, hold her break longer, sleep less and move stuff with her mind. Kyra finds out her blood is toxic and she infected Tyler accidently. Kyra tries to save Tyler by taking him to a place where abduction happen a lot and want the aliens to save Tyler by making him a Returned. Agent Truman comes after them. Kyra uses telekinesis to get the gun away. Fireflies appear and Tyler is taken, and Kyra is knocked out.

In the Replaced, Kyra, Simon, Jett and Willow are at a different camp than the one Simon ran, since that one was attacked. She makes friends with a girl named Natty. Thom runs the camp there. Simon’s camp stays separate from the Silent Creeker of Thom’s camp. They hear news of Tyler possibly being held captive by Agent Truman’s Daylighters (the shady NSA section). There’s also a message that may have be sent by Kyra’s father. Kyra, Simon, Willow, Natty, Thom, and Jett go on a rescue mission, which turns into a bust. They escape, but can’t go back to their camp, so they end up traveling all the way to another camp in Utah, outside Zion National Park. Since they’re being tracked and their photos are out there, the have to change the appearance. So in a gas station bathroom, Kyra dyes her blond hair a reddish brown, Natty dyes hers black and Willow’s hair goes from brown to brown (not much of a disguise).

The other camp is big, but is run by someone Simon and Thom had a falling out with. When they arrive, they’re treated like prisoners. The leader runs the camp like a boot camp for soldiers. Also, there may be a traitor in the mist, giving information to the Daylighters. Kyra runs into someone she never expected to find at the camp

I enjoyed this sequel. I really liked how many interesting twists there were. Especially near the end. I suspected as much just based on the title. I really think Kyra’s abilities and alien hybrid DNA stuff are cool. I like books about super powered teens. I still a little disappointed in the romance of this sequel. I kind of feel like the author wants out hearts to break over Tyler by making him so wonderful and then taking him away.

I recommend this series to fan of: The Rules trilogy by Stacy Kade, The Host by Stephanie Meyer, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, Unremembered by Jessica Brody, Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza, Blackout by Robison Wells, Rush (the Game Trilogy) by Eve Silver. Pretty much anything with aliens, or teens gaining superpowers. X-file fans, Fringe fans, Kimberly Derting fans (I only read the Body Finder series).

Cover Art Review: Cool looking cover. Looks like stars in the type. Too bad it’s not metallic.

The Taking by Kimberly Derting

Series: The Taking (bk. 1)

Genera(s): Sci-fi Mystery/Romance

Subjects: abductions, abilities, aliens,

Setting: Burlington, Washington

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, past tense: Kyra Agnew

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 357 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover, now in Paperback

List Price: $17.99/$9.99

Publisher: HarperTeen

Summary/ product description: “A flash of white light . . . and then . . . nothing.

When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?”

My Review:  I finally decided to start this series since I know the 3^rd book is coming out in 2 months and it’s spring break, so why not series-binge? The Taking was a fun, entertaining and mysterious sci-fi read. Perfect for fan of the X-files. I watched the new 6-part series recently, so I felt in the mood for some alien stuff.

Kyra Agnew, a 16-year old girl from Burlington, Washington, was taken after her high school softball team won the championship in 2009. She got into an argument with her dad, exited the car and saw a blinding light. She wakes up on the ground behind a gas station thinking she somehow choose to sleep outside for the night. She doesn’t find out that actually 5 years have gone buy since that night until mistake her boyfriend’s younger brother Tyler for her boyfriend Austin. Tyler who was only 12 last time she saw him, and is now suddenly looking 17. Austin is now 22 and at college.

Kyra should be 21 now, but she looks exactly the same as she did the night she disappeared, down to her clothes and the bruise on her leg. She discovers her parents divorced, he mother remarried and she now has a little half brother. Everyone is astounded at her return. Kyra is upset with how her family is not the same anymore and feel angry with her mother and jealous of her new brother, and even refuses to get to know her new stepfather. Her real father is living in a trailer park now, kicked out by her mother for spouting crazy ideas of alien abduction and other conspiracy theories. The NSA wants to speak with Kyra, and may want to even experiment on her. There’s a mysterious boy with coppery eyes that keeps showing up where she goes. The one bright spot in her life is Tyler, who listen to whatever Kyra has to say. Tyler, who she’s now falling for.

This was a thrilling, romantic, and awesome book. There’s not enough sci-fi YA book currently out there that are set in contemporary times. I love dystopian books, but once in a while I’d like some modern science fiction. Some “paranormal romance” book could as science fiction, I suppose.

I really liked the romance between Kyra and Tyler. Tyler so funny and sweet. He’s a book nerd and does sidewalk chalk drawing to impress Kyra. He’s very open about his feeling for her, extremely flirtatious. He doesn’t like to be serious because he makes jokes in serious situation. Kyra is more serious, but she can easily banter along with him. He jokes about her being a dumb jock when she calls him a nerd. It’s very cute. It also feels a little heart wrenching toward the end. I’m also hoping there will be no love triangle, so I’m just going to dive into the sequel without reading the description.

Also, I think that’s the way Kyra’s change since she got back is cool. The blood thing’s a bummer, but I hope the abilities develop. They seem to be stereotypical “enhanced” stuff, so I wonder if there’s more to come possibly.

I recommend this series to fan of: The Rules trilogy by Stacy Kade, Blackout by Robison Wells, Rush (the Game Trilogy) by Eve Silver. Pretty much anything with aliens, or teens gaining superpowers. X-file fans, Fringe fans, Kimberly Derting fans (I only read the Body Finder series).

Cover Art Review: Love the title made out of fireflies! Perfect!