Book #72 - Wings (Wings #1)

Wings (Wings #1), Aprilynne Pike
290 pages
urban fantasy
Started 6/25/12
Finished 7/2/12
3 STARS

I'm a Top 40s girl. Yeah - I'm the one you see at the stop light singing her lungs out to her favorite song. But, there always seems to come a time when all the songs are overplayed and I get sick of hearing them all. It's times like those that I seek out an audiobook at the library. I have a 35-minute commute to work and then home again, so it usually takes me a little better than a week to finish an audiobook. Wings was the audiobook that provided me with a break from the bubblegum pop this time.

Laurel is a 15-year-old about to enter public school for the first time after bring home schooled her entire life. She's a bit different from other girls her age. She's never cold, she is a very strict vegan and salt water makes her sick. Things get really weird when she sprouts a flower on her back a few months after starting school. She confides in her new friend/boyfriend David, as well as another kindred spirit, Tamani, that she meets in the woods behind her old house. Together, they help her come to grips with what she is and what is hunting her.

Wings was... cute. I would put this book at a slightly lower level than YA - like, somewhere between middle grade and YA. Laurel's discovery of what she really is and all the things that go along with it seemed like a child looking at a bug - excited, wide-eyed with wonder, trepidation and a little fear. Laurel was a very washed out character for me. The adjective I thought about a lot when she was going on and on about all her problems was, "BLAH." She's like a wet noodle - limp and boring.

David is your typical, doppy, 16-year-old guy. He likes Laurel because she's really pretty. He blusters a lot about how he's going to protect her and tries to be all big and tough. But, during the big, bad battle, he wasn't much help. And, don't get me started on Laurel's BFF Chelsea - I really could've done without her completely.

The bright spot for me was Tamani. He was colorful, adorable, mysterious, chivalrous. Why he's obsessed with wishy-washy Laurel is beyond me. And the fact that she totally leads on both he and David made me crazy.

But, who am I kidding? It was still a light read. It passed the time in my car. And, as I sit in my living room, typing this very mediocre review, I have Spells (Wings #2) in the CD player of my car (it's so far better than Wings!). I just hate giving up on series. We'll see if I'm just a glutton for punishment.