You can also read my review over on my blog at: http://abnormallyparanormal.blogspot.com/2012/02/book-review-cicada-by-belle-whi...

Plot: Things definitely happen, although, perhaps timed a little off what they should be. Blair is a high school girl whose friends have all just graduated from high school, except she still has another year left. Everyone else is going through major life changes, especially when they all encounter a creature that appears to not be of this world. Her old friend Everett ends up being the most affected by this creature, and thus changes the most, and also makes some drastic changes to his future post-high school plans.

Characters: Blair is a cute country girl from an inconsequential town in east Texas. Her brother, her grandfather, and her other male friends are so convincingly southern men—it's a hoot! I like Everett the best because he is different from everybody else, a nerd-boy who loves bugs and running into daunting situations head first without fear. He is super cute and I like that he gets to play the main hero character—not some popular jock boy. Although, he ends up going through some serious changes that left me, like Blair, a bit uncomfortable because I really liked Everett as the goofy, clumsy, silly guy.

Writing: It's simple and effective. Nothing artful, but definitely decent. The southern YA voice was also really well done.

Storytelling: I think the story could have benefited from starting a bit sooner. There is some back-story for a little while before anything important happens to start the plot. But, it does the job of helping us to get to know the characters. I really like the ambiance of the slow, hot, humid summer on an east Texas ranch, with cicadas whining and fireflies floating around under a blanket of twinkling stars. Very relaxing. It was easy to hear the characters speaking with their southern drawls. I love Blair's mother's rhymes as she spoke in rhymes all the time. It was quaint and sweet. “My Blair with the dark brown hair,” things like that. It seems accurate as to what I know of real people from that region, particularly mothers.

Overall Quality: Pretty decent and very compelling in parts. I would have liked more information on the inhuman element in the story and why it was around them, why it had been hiding for several years, where it came from, who were its enemies, and how all of that tied into the death of Blair's father and brother (which had already happened prior to the story). I like when I'm more in-the-know than not, but it doesn't mean it's a flaw, as it's so common in literature these days to keep things uber mysterious. Everett was such a neat character, in my personal estimation, he made me want to keep on reading, especially to see where his relationship with Blair would go.

Favorite Moment/Scene: When the non-human life form Blair and her friends had discovered started to emerge from its pod. I thought Everett's reaction upon seeing it was very interesting and memorable. (He kind of freaked out!) What the life form resembled was also pretty shocking.

My Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

*I received this title as a complementary copy in exchange for my honest review. ( )

Reviewed by Valerie
ebook provided by Belle Whittington

Wow. Colorful. Immediately drew my attention the way the girl was posed.
Review:WARNING: Spoilers are in this preview.

I loved the preface to this book... “So, I ask again. Can you keep a secret? If not, put aside this story. Throw it away. Burn it. Tell no one what lies between the covers of this book. But if you can keep a secret, proceed with caution. And tell not a soul.” My hubby and I took a trip last year to southeast Texas, to the great piney woods during the hot summer days and nights where this story took place, and as I read, I felt like I was THERE again. The author did a fantastic job of creating the setting for this story and reading it at night spooked me out.

A time of celebration in a small town turns into a mystery that Blair, her brother, and friends want to solve as weird things start happening. First, an unusual building “appears” in town. Then, a crop circle is spotted in her grandpa’s pasture. While riding four wheelers, the teens spot an object in the sky hovering over the crop circle. What can all these clues mean? Noticing an unusual spot in the trees within the crop circle, they decide to check it out and find a large pod with a creature inside, growing. Although the group disagrees on whether or not to kill or save the creature, the final decision is to hide it at a local storage shed. Besides trying to figure out what type of creature they’re harboring, Blair’s worried about her brother. His behavior has changed, for the worst, and he’s stopped shaving, bathing, and doesn’t seem to care about anything anymore. Since they lost their dad and Andrew’s twin, Blair and her brother have been each other’s support.

When Blair’s best friend, Everett, first sees the hatched creature, he’s shocked. It looks just like HIM. While everyone is confused, it seems that the creature had imprinted him when they first located It. It begs them to keep It safe from the ones who would harm It. Unbeknownst to the others, the creature talks to Blair telepathically. Adding even more confusion are the weird dreams she keeps having. As the story continued, the action picked up as the creature was indeed in danger, as well as Everett. When Everett is the one tortured and almost killed, the creature passes on energy to help him heal. Soon though, Everett doesn’t need his glasses to see, nor does he need his crutches to walk. He starts dressing differently and acting cocky. Blair’s entire world has changed: her nerdy, geeky boy friend is now her boyfriend, but what is he? Her brother no longer tells her his secrets and is leaving to travel around the country on his motorcycle. Her best hope for finding answers lies in her dad’s study and when she starts poking around, the mystery gets even more bizarre. On their honeymoon, her dad took a picture with a cocoon high up in a tree, just like the one the creature was found in. WHAT was her dad involved with?

A tale with a lot of twists and turns that will keep you wondering...book two will be called Firefly.

Quote: “After a quick shower, I snuggled into bed and wished that it was possible to never have to fall asleep again. Nightmares had become the specter that haunted me in the recesses of my mind as I plunged into the darkness of slumber. That afternoon was no exception. I was helpless in my fight to stay awake and sank into a deep sleep.” ( )

In Short
- Cicada had a new and unique paranormal creature
- I enjoyed Belle's writing
- The main characters were well developed
- I felt the romance wasn't necessary
- This is an imaginative story

In Long
Cicada has one of those blurbs which doesn’t really give much away so you find yourself starting a book which you don’t really know much about and have no idea where the story might go. I didn’t even really know what paranormal creatures were involved in this.

I did expect some kind of paranormal story but not necessarily the one I got. When I realised what the book was about I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get into it so was relieved when Belle quickly thrown us into the story.

Although you were thrown into the story Belle still created some great characters that were both brave and interesting characters, although I felt like I could have done with more descriptions on how they looked. I did also feel this with the ‘creature’ in this book and felt it spoiled the book in some places because I wasn’t able to build up a picture in my head. The relationships between the characters were something I also struggled with. I felt like the romance was just put in so that there was a romance in the book but I felt it didn’t add much to the storyline and wasn’t necessary.

I really liked how imaginative this story was. It took you to places other books haven’t ever taken me and although I sometimes struggled with using my imagination I really loved being challenged by Belle. At times I did feel that I needed a more in depth description on what this creature was but throughout the story more detail was added and I was able to get a picture in my mind.
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Final Thoughts
Belle is a great writer with an amazing imagination. I would definitely recommend giving this book a go and would also suggest reading any other books she may bring out. Although I didn’t LOVE Cicada I can see I would love another book by her because Belle’s writing is great! That is shown with how Belle’s writing enabled me to enjoy Cicada, a sort of book I probably wouldn’t usually enjoy! ( )

Some books just feel like they were written for you only. That's how Cicada felt for me. When I was 13, I was obsessed with the TV show Roswell. The dormant UFO-freak in me rejoiced when I learned that Cicada featured a different kind of paranormal, my kind of paranormal (that sounds weird...)

Cicada is a wonderfully constructed story about changes and the end of childhood. After summer ends, four out of five characters are going to college, but a different kind of "change" will send them on different paths. Cicada is quite a short read, but by the end, it feels like you're reading a completely different book. Everything and everyone has changed. As summer moves on, secrets and mysteries come up one after another, and the tone grows darker and heavy with the looming danger and unanswered questions. Characters unfold and grow until you barely recognize them anymore. The superstar of Cicada is Everett, the "bug-boy". Going into details would spoil most of the book, but in short, he's the hottest nerdy ever!

As for reasons why it's not a shiny five stars...The beginning of the story seemed a bit forced, I couldn't "feel" it and the first encounter with the characters was not impressionable. It takes a few chapters, some build-up and action to start seeing them as individuals and the purpose each of them fulfills.

I loved how the romance between Everett and Blair developed. It grows out of true, lifelong friendship. It shows in face of adversity and grows stronger in hard times. That's true love.
I all but exploded with joy when I saw the songs Belle mentions in Cicada. Muse and Fireflies by Owl City. My music. My book. My precious!

Anyway. I hereby pledge my undying love for Belle for not only contacting me and letting me read the book, but also for having written it in first place. I'm really fed up with vampires and werewolves, and I can't even tell you how happy I am that I've come across a few YA novels about the extraterrestrial lately. Hooray for new horizons, new ideas, new worlds, new creatures, new books to pine for. ( )