The Repossession by Sam Hawksmoor

The Repossession by Sam Hawksmoor
Repossession #1
Release Date: March 1, 2012 (UK)
Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
Source: Publisher
Rating: Essential

34 kids missing. Vanished without a trace.

Believing she is possessed, Genie Magee's mother has imprisoned her all summer encouraged by the sinister Reverend Schneider. Beautiful Rian, love of her life, sets her free, and their escape washes them up at Marshall's remote farmhouse downriver. But why are there newspaper clippings of the missing kids pinned to Marshall's bathroom wall? And should they believe his stories about the experiments at the Fortress, an underground research station nearby?

Genie meets Denis. Missing two years now, but hasn't grown an inch. Rian is haunted by Renée, who insists she's not actually dead. Soon they discover the terrible truth about Reverend Schneider and worse, Genie is next ... and Rian can't do a thing to prevent it.

The Repossession is just the beginning. - Goodreads

I'm really pleased with how much I ended up liking this one! While it wasn't the most fast paced novel, I thought it was a really good read.

The Repossession has a bit of an Anthony Horowitz type feel to it, and I think that's one of the main reasons I enjoyed it. It's written in third person, and the point of view skips from time to time, as needed, and I think it worked really well this way. It wouldn't have been as good if it had been written in first person.

If you're a regular reader of my reviews, you'll know that I often have a problem with teenage romance in YA novels, as I often don't think it's realistic, or I feel it takes away from the characters. Genire and Rian, however, were totally awesome. This is teen romance done right! The two already had the build up and the history, and they were perfect together. They were still wonderfully independent from one another, and very much their own people, which I adored. I didn't even roll my eyes at them. *applause*

I think the pacing is a little off in the middle, and while I understand the need for everything to be included, I feel it could have been tightened a little bit to keep me interested.

The science fiction aspect of the novel was fascinating. It was explained in a way that was easy to understand, and there were no huge info dumps. The main characters often didn't understand what was going on either, so if you don't initially then you won't be alone.

It was a fantastic novel, and I'm now really excited to read the sequel to see where it leads, because the author left me on a mahoosive cliffhanger which I totally do not appreciate.

Now, I'll be right back. I'm currently sat under my duvet, trying to figure out if this cover is meant to glow in the dark.

The Repossession series:

1. The Repossession

2. The Hunting