Need by Carrie Jones

TL;DR small-town supernatural - without vampires!!

re-read finished 7/28/16

(first time read: 2009-ish)

Need is one of quite a few books that I thought I read in late elementary school but were only published after 2008 (when I moved up to middle school). It's actually stuck around with me for a while; I remember reading one of the books on our spring break trip in 7th grade (... which might've made it Need, since Goodreads says Captivate was 2010). Zara's find in Nick's car has crossed my mind more than once recently while riding around with my friend lol. I've compared him to Nick more than once even though I couldn't remember Nick's name. 

I read it the first time through the library, and I haven't been able to find a copy since I decided I wanted to read it again. (Probably because I was looking at a different library branch.) I managed to find a copy at a local thrift store and I was cised. It was at one more focused on furniture and women's clothing, no less. This one has a meager book collection and it honestly felt like fate. 

Even though I've read Need before and had fond memories of it, I still went in with a lot of gaps in my memory. It made the read a nice mix of nostalgia and experiencing the story like it was new. (I'm gonna admit this review probably has nostalgia-goggles.) 

The aesthetic was really solid. I've only been to Maine once, ten years ago and in the southern part during summer rather than Bangor-ish during October, but it brought to mind what I remember of the trip. Need is actually one of the main reasons I'd like to go back to Maine, lol. Also, the whole unsettling-creepy thing was good, and the characters kept it from getting too dark. It was good company during a thunderstorm.

(Three hours for a thunderstorm is too freakin' long. This book would take more normal people closer to four or five hours, I think, but it's a good rainy-afternoon read. I had no problem reading it in one go.) 

I like all the characters, but I will readily admit that this was probably the heaviest aspect influenced by my nostalgia. They felt like soft t-shirts, y'know? I enjoyed reading about them again but I'll admit that they were lacking a little substance. They have three more books to grow, and I think I remember more than my brain will call to mind about them. 

The romance was decent. At first I was a little worried about the potential for a love triangle, but luckily it worked out in my favor. I liked the relationship and how they act around each other (and Betty's reactions to them, oh my god she's my fave), but I am a little concerned about the alpha tendencies. I don't remember if that becomes a problem later in the series or if he grows out of it. I mean, technically he does have a reason for it, and he does apologize for his rash decisions, so I guess he could maybe be worse.

The plot was what I remembered the least from my first read, so it was like going in blind, but take that how you will, I guess? I remembered the series plot as a whole but not specifically what happened in Need. (But my memory is just sucky in general.) I think the stakes were fitting but I can also see how it could be lackluster or cliche. I can't figure out if this is part of the Twilight craze or if it beat it by a few months. (It doesn't feel like any of the post-Twilight trend books, but it would've been first published about the time I started catching wind of Twilight.) 

(Now I'm considering re-reading Twilight. Like I didn't already try and fail that endeavor once recently. Ugh. I guess we'll see.) 

Anyway, even if it is part of this Twilight-inspired trend that lasted all of my middle school career, Need goes a unique direction compared to all the other supernatural-themed books I've read. The lore isn't quite as strong in the first book but I did enjoy reading about it over the course of the series. It does dismiss some of the bigger stereotypes of the genre, and maybe combine some different aspects into single things, so it's good if you like a new take on the genre and bad if you like specific, tried-and-true things of it. 

(But let's be real, Twilight-esque stuff of the genre is kind of cliche at this point. At least in this day and age.) 

TL;DR I enjoyed it but I'm allowing myself a little bit of cynical-ness (cynacy doesn't sound like a word) because of the fond memories I have of my first read-through. I'm hoping to read through the rest of the series again and see if it continues to hold up or not. I think it's worth a try for most people.