Very often, when I am reading a self-published author's ebooks I can tell that I am reading a self-published author's ebooks. They might be full of typos, or the dialogue might be forced, or the book might be lacking in good detail -- as if the author might have had this great story in his/her head but just was in too big of a hurry to tell it to me. Well, I have to say that I have never, ever felt this way with any of the wonderful books written by M. Leighton. She creates amazing characters that are likable and deep. She creates layers within her novels that help to create a rich background for the story as it is being told. I rarely find myself frustrated with any lack of description or because characters are too cliche. In short, Leighton is an amazingly talented authors -- probably one of my favorites. So I immediately download any new book of hers whenever it becomes available.
Gravity is the latest Leighton book to become available for kindle, and once again Leighton has amazed me with her ability to tell a wonderful story. I really enjoyed this story a lot. What is interesting about this story is that there are a lot of elements within the story that you could find in any number of paranormal or young adult books. There is the pining for a secret love. There is conflict with a mean-spirited popular girl. There is the discovery of a soul mate. There is the loss of that soul mate. There is the story of a young girl who discovers that she is more than she ever realized, along with the discovery that the world around her is not what she believed it to be. So there are lots of things that have been done before. And yet somehow the story is told in such a way that it seems completely new and original. Indeed, the idea of the people in this novel having "second natures" where they are basically sharing bodies with some sort of supernatural creature is a completely original take on the paranormal universe. It gives you the standard vampire/werewolf/witch/you-name-it story, but it adds the drama that would occur if you suddenly found yourself changing into something else one day in the school cafeteria. I liked the originality of the story.
As for the characters -- Leighton has always been able to create heroines for her stories who are witty and strong and funny, and she does the same with Peyton in this novel. Peyton feels as if she is a relatively average girl, but she finds out during a lunar eclipse that she is anything but. She eventually discovers that she has an extremely important role in the world, and this book really involves her coming to terms with that and figuring out how she was going to manage her life in this new existence. She is desperately pining for her twin brother's best friend, Trace (I'm not a fan of this name, but I do like the character). Trace appears to mostly be oblivious to this until the night of the eclipse, and then he falls for her big time. I know there are a lot of people out there who are not fans of the love-at-first-sight all encompassing devotion that sometimes shows up in these sorts of novels. I happen to be someone who loves the soul mate stories, so I really enjoyed Peyton and Trace's story. To be honest there was a lot more pining in this book than I am generally comfortable with. It seems as if Peyton spends half of the book moaning about her need to be with Trace, and things especially get depressing for her with Trace backs away. However, Leighton manages to write Peyton's Trace-musings in such a way that it never seemed over the top or annoying. In the context of the story it just seems to be more of an example of just how important it is for the two of them to work together to solve the dilemma created in this world with the second natures. It was obvious that the two of them needed to work in tandem. I wish the two of them would have come to this conclusion a lot earlier. It would have helped the action to move along a bit smoother in the middle portion of the book. But still, it did make me happy to see them figure out their importance to each other eventually. If anything, I would have to say that I would have liked to have their relationship forged out even more in this book. They had such good chemistry and good report with one another. I was hungry to read more of this within the book -- less of Peyton's anxiety and more development of the relationship, or at least more of a showcase of the ease of their relationship with one another. But to be fair, Peyton had a lot thrown at her in a short amount of time, and her relationship with Trace was not your average run-of-the-mill sort of teenage relationship, so her anxiety and the speed of her attachment to Trace made sense in the whole pace of the book.
I really did enjoy the wonderful portrayal of the brother/sister relationship between Peyton and her brother Brad. It came across just as a brother/sister relationship should -- equal parts love, irritation, protectiveness, humor, and comfortable companionship. Brad could be somewhat annoyingly interfering at times, but don't all good brothers do that once in a while? And the best friend, Lacey, was a great addition to the story. I absolutely loved her mangling of the the English language by intermingling words. At first I thought I was reading typos, but then I soon realized that I was understanding a character trait. She was a fun character in this book.
As for the story itself, I really enjoyed the mystery of the story and the need for Trace, Peyton, and Brad to work together in order to succeed in this new and bizarre world they have discovered. It was a good length for a story, but I have to admit that I was hungry for more as soon as I finished. I hope the sequel comes out soon so that the story can continue. This story doesn't exactly end on a cliffhanger, but it does leave the story unfinished. It is almost as if this is a setup piece for the main event which will take place in the next book. It doesn't make this a bad book at all. It just leaves me feeling a bit incomplete. I loved this book, but I know that by the time I finish the next book I will be able to feel the full magic of the entire story arc. I know this will become magic just like every other Leighton series I have had the pleasure to read. I do highly recommend this for readers who love great characters, great romance, and a bit of mystery on the side. I can't wait to see what happens next!