Darkest Fear by Cate Tiernan ~ Review

Title: Darkest Fear (Birthright #1)

Author: Cate Tiernan

Publication Date: January 7, 2014

Pages: 368

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy

Rating: 3 stars

Summary: Vivi has known the truth about her family—and herself—since she was thirteen. But that doesn’t mean she’s accepted it. Being Haguari isn’t something she feels she’ll ever accept. How can she feel like anything but a freak knowing that it’s in her genes to turn into a jaguar?

Now eighteen, Vivi’s ready to break away from the traditions of her heritage. But all of that changes with the shocking, devastating deaths of her parents and the mysteries left behind. Vivi discovers family she never even knew she had, and a life open with possibility. New friends, new loyalties, and even romance all lay ahead—but so do dangers unlike anything Vivi ever could have imagined.

You know what you guys? I liked sharing my internal thought process so much, I'm going to do it again. So here's what went through my brain as I was reading:

-this is going nowhere!
-[chandler's voice] Can you BE anymore annoying. The whole damn book: omg my parents are dead, i was a horrible daughter, i hate being a haguari, my life sucks, wow he's so hot
-You, Vivi, are a Mary Sue, hate to break it to you... No, i'm not
-why you so duummmmmmb

Yeah. So let's break this up a bit and I'll try to explain. 

But first! Let me get the good stuff out of the way! I did enjoy a few things not mentioned up there. Mainly because they were after the fact, when I could calm down and think rationally after flipping the last page. After all, I did give this 3 stars. There's gotta be something redeemable about it. Right?
You're right, but there isn't much. But just enough to inch my rating up.

One thing I really, really enjoyed was the writing style. While I was not completely sucked in, I was halfway there. Things like characterization, plot holes, and other things kept taking me away from the story BUT the writing was fun and gorgeous. I will definitely be looking at some of Cate's other works just for that reason alone.

One other redeemable thing was one little part in the story: the undeniably hot kisses in the rain scene. OMG, was my heart pounding! Does Cate write adult novels? I need to read one of those. That scene was very there in my mind. Just wow, mmph. 

Okay, I've fantasized long enough.

Now I will get to the bad. Man, do I hate yet love this part.

I feel like I've been in a rut of bad, muddy books. I need a good book and soon!

Moving on! So back to my internal dialogue, we'll start with the first one: this is going nowhere! No, really, nothing of importance that moves the plot along happens. I mean, of course you have your catalyst, the event that sets everything in motion (parents die - not a spoiler, it's in the summary!) But really no advances are made after this. No reasonings as to why anything that was going on had a point. Not. one. thing. And how frustrating is it to read over 300 pages and not get ONE answer?! As frustrating as trying to peel an onion without shedding a tear. I think that may be my biggest complaint of the whole thing.

Vivi is also suffering from Mary-Sue-woe-is-me syndrome. Not only are we getting nowhere is this novel but the whole way we have to go over the same pity story again and again. We get it, your parents die and it is devastating. But agonizing over every tiny decision with the exact same thoughts is not only demeaning the process of grief but boring. Vivi is pretty boring herself. She's just blah. I mean, I can't remember one single detail about her. Except she's a whiner. That stands out loud and clear.

Wait! I'm remembering something. Oh yeah, Vivi is also dumb. I mean her parents are killed, we established this. And then, inexplicably she's surprised when she is then attacked? Are you fucking kidding me right now? Where's that face. Hold on.

There you go. That's how I felt. I mean, if my parents were killed right in front of me by long lost relatives or whatever then you can bet your ass I'd batten down the hatches. Or skip town. Lets just say I'd try to be somewhat intelligent about the whole thing. Or paranoid. Whichever works.

I think I summed up my feelings on Darkest Fear pretty well. What are your thoughts?