Father - Cat Stevens

Away
The Line, Book 2

Author: Teri Hall
Pages: 234
Publisher: Dial Books

I read the first book in this series, The Line, a couple of years ago over spring break. Although a little slow moving at the beginning, I thought, at the time, that it had some promise, that it was doing some interesting things that intrigued me and made me want to give the second book a chance. So here I am.

Unfortunately, I do not feel any sort of a connection to this book. Away bored me from the beginning to the end. The cool elements, like the powers some of the Others have, are largely ignored, and the ones that get used to any fairly significant degree are lame.

The writing, too, was utterly uninspiring. I suppose it must have been in the first one too, but being less entertained this time, I could not help noticing it now. The simplistic nature of the writing might make this a good book for reluctant readers that do not like too much action in their books. If you like the works of Lisa McMann, you might like Teri Hall's fairly sparse writing style.

To be completely fair to Away, I have only the vaguest memories of The Line, so maybe I have forgotten something crucial to the enjoyment of the second book. Whatever the case, it's safe to say that I will not be returning for the next installment.

"Father, oh father
You give me just a little hope
I feel something out there reaching for me
Well, here I am
Won't you take me with you
Out of this maze
And away from this place?"