Unbreakable by Kami Garcia

Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
Release Date - October 1, 2013
Publisher Website - Little Brown
Publisher Social Media -  Twitter
Pages - 320 pages
My Rating - 3.5/5
**obtained for review from publisher**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Supernatural meets The Da Vinci Code in this action-packed paranormal thriller, the first book in a new series from New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia.

I never believed in ghosts. Until one tried to kill me.

When Kennedy Waters finds her mother dead, her world begins to unravel. She doesn’t know that paranormal forces in a much darker world are the ones pulling the strings. Not until identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into Kennedy’s room and destroy a dangerous spirit sent to kill her. The brothers reveal that her mother was part of an ancient secret society responsible for protecting the world from a vengeful demon — a society whose five members were all murdered on the same night.

Now Kennedy has to take her mother’s place in the Legion if she wants to uncover the truth and stay alive. Along with new Legion members Priest and Alara, the teens race to find the only weapon that might be able to destroy the demon — battling the deadly spirits he controls every step of the way.

Suspense, romance, and the paranormal meet in this chilling urban fantasy, the first book in a new series from Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures novels.

Unbreakable is a mix of ghostly chills, romance, and friendship.  An entertaining, and rather scary horror filled story that offered a few surprises along the way.

Upon reading the synopsis my first thought was that this had been done before. My opinion is the same after reading it. There is nothing new, or particularly unique about the plot, or characters. Something like this requires the author to put their own spin on it, claim it as their own. At the end of the first book of this series, I see the potential for that to happen, but I don't think this installment succeeded in that just yet.

This novel did sometimes keep me on my toes. Things that I expected to happen didn't or they didn't happen in the manner I anticipated. Part of the allure of this novel was that the predictable aspect of some of the plot points was sidestepped, especially in the latter half of the novel.

The romance in this novel did not appeal to me in the slightest. Two brothers interested in the same girl is always uncomfortable to me, and I can see this 'triangle' being woven throughout all the books. There were a few scenes between Kennedy and one of the brothers that allowed me to see some potential between them. I wanted the characters fleshed out more, and a deepening of the connection between Kennedy and ONE of the brothers. It felt, to me, like the romance aspect was included simply because it's thought of as required. I didn't see the same planning as with the paranormal elements.

The backstory of the characters is almost entirely woven into the paranormal part of the story. It binds them to the story, cementing them into the world Kami Garcia has created. This strength in this story is the paranormal aspect. I found myself caught up in the race to find this weapon that they need. It created some tense moments. The unraveling of the history of The Legion and their true purpose was also fascinating to me. It drew me in and I definitely wanted to learn more.

I did want a little more from the characters, especially Jared and Lucas. I felt they were mostly interchangeable, other than one was kinder than the other. Priest ended up being my favourite character. Charming, self depreciating , and he provided most of the (much needed) comic relief. His journey is one that I am the most curious to continue. The subtle changes in his character in this novel left me with hope for his continued growth in the series.

A creepy, and surprising start to a new series. Even thought I wasn't totally sold, there is more than enough to pique my curiosity and have me coming back for the sequel.