Book Review: Abandon by Meg Cabot

Pages: 304

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pub. Date: April 26, 2011

Source: ARC from Kim at The Book Butterfly (Thank you!)

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "Though she tries returning to the life she knew before the accident, Pierce can't help but feel at once a part of this world, and apart from it. Yet she's never alone . . . because someone is always watching her. Escape from the realm of the dead is impossible when someone there wants you back.  But now she's moved to a new town. Maybe at her new school, she can start fresh. Maybe she can stop feeling so afraid.  Only she can't. Because even here, he finds her. That's how desperately he wants her back. She knows he's no guardian angel, and his dark world isn't exactly heaven, yet she can't stay away... especially since he always appears when she least expects it, but exactly when she needs him most.  But if she lets herself fall any further, she may just find herself back in the one place she most fears: the Underworld."

Pierce fell into her pool in the middle of winter and almost died.  She had a near death experience and a very unusual one at that.  She visited the Underworld and almost wasn't able to leave, thanks to the mysterious and captivating John Hayden.  After her accident, Pierce was never really the same and got into a lot of trouble at her old school.  Because of this, her mom moved Pierce back down to her mom's hometown, which is an island off Florida.  However, Pierce can't escape John and she can't deny her attraction to him as well.  He's always showing up at times she needs him the most.  Meg Cabot's Abandon, the first installment in her new young adult paranormal trilogy, is deliciously entertaining and fun.

Pierce is an unusual sort of heroine.  I was intrigued by her immediately and her near death experience.  John is also equally captivating, but it took me awhile to warm up to him as he is so dangerous. Let's just say he's truly a literary bad boy.  Abandon definitely set the readers up for some more interaction between Pierce and John in book two as Abandon mostly showed us the two through the use of flashbacks.  Most of their relationship is explained in flashbacks, which I thought would bother me and the story's continuity, but this technique definitely grew on me.

I loved the fact that this is a modern retelling of Persephone, one of my favorite myths.  I actually teach this myth to my 7th graders and it's always very popular. I look forward to sharing this book with them as a modern retelling.  Cabot does a great job of sticking to the basics, but adding a few fun twists. I loved her incorporation of the Furies--it was perfect! By the time the Furies were involved in Abandon, I was one the edge of my seat.

I will admit Abandon takes awhile to get going, but once Cabot gets started with the drama, it doesn't stop.  There's a lot of action in the second half of the book.  Although Cabot has been around for ages, she is a new-to-me author and I am really enjoying her writing style. It's easy, captivating, and perfect for the beach; needless to say, I'm a huge fan.

Abandon takes place on the island of Isla Huesos, which was inspired by Key West.  I kind of figured that out not too far into the book since I am obsessed with all things Key West. I loved the tropical weather, the creepy cemetery, the "Coffin Night," and the incredible thunderstorms.  An island like Key West is the perfect setting for a paranormal story; Abandon's atmosphere was sweltering, oppressive, and thick just like the air in southern Florida.

I can't wait for the second book, Underworld, which comes out in 2012. I really enjoyed Abandon's incorporation of mythology and am looking forward to seeing how Cabot is going to spin this classic tale.  

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