Clarity by Kim Harrington (Book Review)

Clarity by Kim Harrington
Release Date: March 1, 2011
Publisher: Scholastic Point
Pages: 242
Received: Library
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Page

Summary

From Goodreads:

When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?

This paranormal murder mystery will have teens reading on the edge of their seats.

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case--but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother--who has supernatural gifts of his own--becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?

Review

Hoorah! I'm dense again!

I'm usually very slow on the uptake, but lately it seems like I've seen every plot point coming from page one. Not so with Clarity! Kim Harrington threw so many possible suspects at me, and each and every one of them was believable. I was constantly on my toes and looked at everyone with suspicion. The final reveal surprised me but was still totally believable.

The paranormal parts were nice, blending seamlessly into the overall plot without overwhelming it. I liked seeing the ways Clarity and her family used their abilities, but I also liked how there were rules that restricted what they could do. Their abilities could have threatened to make the story overly simplistic (just ask the dead person who killed them! Ta da!) but the limitations Kim Harrington created kept the story from becoming too easy.

I did like the mystery and it did keep me on my toes, but I never really felt invested in the story beyond surface-level curosity. I never had that feeling of "OMG I HAVE TO KEEP READING!!!" The mystery was interesting, but it wasn't packed with action. Still, the book is very short and the pacing is steady and to the point. Almost every scene ties back to the mystery in some way, so there aren't any wasted scenes you need to slog through to get back to the main point.

I'm not sure if I like you, Clare

Clarity has an easy narrative voice that I instantly fell into. She's straight forward and didn't bore me with a bunch of internal wallowing. Which is a big feat considering how much her life sucks. Her ex-boyfriend cheated on her with her nemesis, she has a nemesis in the form of a popular mean girl, and she has no friends. None! Luckily Clare just rolls with the punches, throws a few of her own, and focuses on solving the murder mystery.

Except...eh, sometimes I got the impression that Clarity's leper status might be her fault. Maybe she's too prickly. I wonder if people would be so cruel to her if she approached them with honey instead of vinegar. Afterall, her brother is just as much a psychic as she is, and he has friends and girls lining up to be with him. There is a tiny hint dropped about this, so I suspect this question will be expanded on further in the sequel. I think it's a seed planted, not sloppy writing.

It's a family thing

Family plays a big part in Clarity. The family business was a fun feature that, while it didn't play a huge role in the actual story, it set a stage that I loved. How cool would that job be? Though the whole mom having mind-reading powers thing could suck in real life (Could you imagine how much of a drag it would be if your mom you read your mind?). I like that Clarity's mom was a part of the story, but she seemed kind of wimpy and fragile to me. I don't like it when the kids seem to parent the parents, and that was sort of the case here.

Clarity's brother was a fun character and I couldn't help but like him...even though objectively I should be kind of disgusted by him. He's a womanizer and a suspect for murder, but I liked him. Kudos to Kim Harrington for creating a character I loved even though I would normally hate him. I hope he plays a larger role in the sequel.

I don't love you

There's a love triange here that does take up a large part of the plot. It doesn't overwhelm the mystery, but it is a constant presence. I didn't like it, mostly because I didn't like either of the guys. Clarity is such a strong character and neither of these guys seemed worth her time. She can do better.

I also found the love triangle frustrating because it doesn't have any clear winner. Now I know this is the first book in a series and it was refreshing to have a female MC who wasn't tripping all over herself for a guy, but it was dissatisfying to leave the love triangle completely up in the air at the end. Clarity doesn't make any choices in this book and there isn't anyone in the lead. Who she's interested in is as much of a mystery as the murderer (but at least we get a resolution on the murderer).

Where do we go from here?

Clarity ends nicely as a standalone...at first glance. The murder mystery is wrapped up, but that's about it. Clues were dropped about Clarity's father and those clues make it sound like something big is coming with all sorts of secrets and history. Or maybe I'm reading too much into things. There was also that little clue about why Clarity doesn't have any friends that still needs closure. And of course the love triangle needs to be settled.

I don't feel a burning desire to get the next book RIGHT NOW, but I will read the sequel eventually. I like Kim Harrington's writing and the story overall was nice and to the point. Plus, I just like the idea of psychic investigators.

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