Carrier of the Mark (ARC)

Title: The Carrier of the Mark


Author: Leigh Fallon


Publisher: HarperTeen


Pages: 352


Read Time: Did not finish, stopped on page: 130 


Tag Words: Paranormal romance, debut author 2011, Ireland, control of the elements, the Twilight problem


My Summary:


At Megan's new school she discovers secrets, a strange family of outcasts and passion with a boy so handsome, it's as if his looks are otherworldly.

Sound familiar?


My Review:

Fool me once, shame on you.

Fool me twice, shame on me. 

Die For Me by Amy Plum is 'French Twilight.' 

And Carrier of the Mark is 'Irish Twilight.'

I like Twilight. I liked it when it first came out and I like it still. I try to forget about the movies, but always have a burst of memory repair whenever Taylor Lautner takes off his shirt. I like Bella, too. I think the 'Bella syndrome,' as well as 'Twi-mania' have both become cliches, originating with knock-offs and not within the original manuscript. 

If you want to know more, read my Twilight review.

My point? My beef is not with Twilight. It is with the mass-produced hysteria it has left in it's wake. 

I liked the story the first time around because it was original, it was interesting, and it wasn't trying to imitate a previously written book for profit, fame, and interest. (Maybe I'm not being fair to Leigh Fallon here, but I know that Amy Plum wrote Die For Me because she loved Twilight and wanted to put her name on something similar.) 

However, I do not want to read the story fifty times over!!!!!

 I feel on the verge. 

The verge of what? 

Of this:

They're not ripping off this nit-wit anymore. 

Gabrielle Carolina is saying NO!

Am I the only one who feels duped? Am I the only one who feels patronized? Am I the only one who feels sold-down to? Am I the only one this upsets on intelligence grounds? 

I don't care that Carrier is a Twilight knock off set in another country. If that's how the author chose to spend her time, that's on her, but when the book gets pitched again, and my interest is raised only to discover that I've been inside the book before, I feel bloody insulted.

I cannot be fooled any longer. I will not be fooled any longer! Insta-love does not make me swoon. I'm interested in emotions that are more intense than an eye smolder across a crowded parking lot. I am not excited by the prospect of obviously spooky elements that go unaddressed to create tension. I want intelligently written plot twists, not to discover there are "baddens" of the same species out to get'cha. I don't want any new species! I want new books, new ideas, new love stories. I want settings that matter, and characters I can cheer for. I don't want to read Irish-Twilight, French-Twilight, Finnish-Twilight, British-Twilight, Aussie-Twilight, Dystopian-Twilight, Historical Fiction-Twilight, or High Fantasy-Twilight! 

So what am I looking for?

I want intelligence, intrigue, true love and high stakes. And not the kind you plunge into the undead's hearts. 

  
Notes on the Names:


The lack of interesting Irish names was tragic. If you're going to commit to an interesting setting, you need to build the world for the reader from the ground up.


Thoughts on the Cover:


I wish I could say I loved the cover, but there's always been something... odd about it for me.

I just stared at it for five minutes, because I should be able to support the idea, right?

But I can't put my finger on it.

I did have a friend comment, he liked it, said it made him want to read the book, so I guess it serves it's purpose.