Review: The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies Trilogy #2) 

by Pittacus Lore

Published: August 23, 2011

Publisher: HarperCollins

Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us-if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.

Number Two in England.

And Number Three in Kenya.

They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio - and failed.

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.

And I'm ready to fight.

Review:

From the synopsis this book sounds as if it were going to follow Number Seven through the entire story. Instead the book alternates between Number Seven and Number Four. This changing view point is part of what I liked about the book, but also part of why I didn't like the book. The transitions between view points is abrupt and very confusing for most of the book. There is no signal that it is changing, and considering both perspectives are told in first person I sometimes had to read an entire page for clues to the setting and mentions of other characters in order to figure out the perspective had changed. Although it did get easier to notice the changes as the story progressed.

The change in view point however did let us back into the mind of Number Four (John Smith), and pick up on where he, Sam, and Six left off. There was a good continuation to their storyline and it meshed well with that of Number Seven.

Number Seven's plotline was really interesting and I liked how she was having a completely different experience on Earth than Four and Six. We get a few more clues about what happened to all of them after landing and how they managed to survive. Through Number Seven we also get to find out what happened to the second vessel Four saw leaving Lorien.  

Overall, The Power of Six was a good solid transition book in this trilogy. It had enough new info and action to keep it from feeling like filler, answering some of the questions raised in I Am Number Four, and building even bigger mysteries to be answered in the final book. This is a book though that needs to be read after reading I Am Number Four (not just watching the movie).