3 out of 4 stars
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Surviving is a common theme in many genres, be it the show of the same name on CBS or the song, 'I Will Survive', by Gloria Gaynor. And so it is that we have a group of teenagers trying to survive in the book, Survivor, by author Samantha K. Duke. In this tome, a group of friends are trying to survive a serial killer that is offing baseball players at Sanford E. Dutton High. New student Max Wilson is accused of the crime, but Amanda Chase is sure that he's innocent. Can she prove to her friends that her newfound crush is innocent? IS he innocent? What secret is he hiding, then?
Sophomores Amanda (Amy), Kit, Lindsey, Hallie, Shannon, Ricky, Jack, and A.J. are content in their little group, though they wish that they weren't being picked on by other kids in school. Then, on the very day that handsome Max transfers to their school, baseball players turn up dead, and Max is suspected. Amy, on the other hand, has formed a major crush on the teen, so she rushes to his defense, even against her longtime friends. What they come to find is both scary and troubling, but they're determined to show that Max is innocent. Yet, Max is also keeping a secret, a secret that could be a danger to them all.
What I really liked about this group of friends is that they all have their own little characteristics that make them stand out. Kit, for instance, is obsessed with becoming a famous filmmaker, so she's always in her friends' faces, trying to shoot them. Lindsey is exceptionally tall, while Ricky is short for a guy. I applaud the author for drawing such realistic characters without stooping to stereotypes. Still, I didn't really care for any of them, though I didn't wish to see them dead. I found myself annoyed with them a little too often to fully bond with any of them. I also think the author did a good job illustrating the culprits; rather than being cookie-cutter characters, they had their own minor backstories and motives, even if I didn't agree with their reasons.
With that being said, I found Survivor to be a fun read with just enough suspense and action. Max's history was also written in such a way that it just flowed without being intrusive. A major part of the story involves supernatural elements, and that was my favorite part since I'm a big fan of the supernatural. I felt myself getting minor chills here and there, which increased my enjoyment substantially. The resolution was also well-written, and it didn't feel rushed like it sometimes does in YA novels. The build-up to the finale was great as well, so the pacing all the way through the book was spot-on. I'll also note that there's a second book in the series, and I do plan to read it, so clearly I was quite impressed with this one.
As great as this tome was, I do have to take away points for the lack of editing; in fact, I don't even think it was proofread in a minor way. The book was full of punctuation errors, capitalized words that should have been lower-case and vice-versa, and incorrect word usage ("incorporative" in place of "uncooperative", for instance). There was also a formatting issue early in the book, where a sentence dropped to the next line midway through. In addition, I noted a few sentence fragments that were not stylistic and an occasional failure to change paragraphs when changing speakers. Finally, I found one inconsistency that had me scratching my head for several pages, saying, "But...but...but..."
Due to the inordinate amount of grammatical errors found in this novel, I have to give Survivor 3 out of 4 stars. I don't think my inability to bond with the characters warrants a further drop, especially since I was able to enjoy the story just the same. Despite the many typographical mishaps, I recommend this book to older teens and other fans of YA stories, especially those with a supernatural slant. I also think fans of low-boiler crime mysteries would like it. The violence is not graphic, but foul language is included throughout, so those are also things to consider before grabbing a copy.
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Survivor
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