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*Includes the first eight chapters in abridged graphic novel form. $1 from every sale of the Special Graphic Novel edition will be donated to melanoma research.*
When having two powers makes you a Super and having none makes you a Normal, having only one makes you a sad half-superpowered freak. It makes you a One. Sixteen-year-old Merrin Grey would love to be able to fly – too bad all she can do is hover.
If she could just land an internship at the Biotech Hub, she might finally figure out how to fix herself. She busts her butt in AP Chem and salivates over the Hub’s research on the manifestation of superpowers, all in hopes of boosting her chances. Then she meets Elias VanDyne, another One, and all her carefully crafted plans fly out the window. Literally.
When the two of them touch, their Ones combine to make them fly, and when they're not soaring over the Nebraska cornfields, they’re busy falling for each other. Merrin's mad chemistry skills land her a spot on the Hub's internship short list, but as she gets closer to the life she always wanted, she discovers that the Hub’s purpose is more sinister than it has always seemed. Now it’s up to her to decide if it's more important to fly solo, or to save everything - and everyone - she loves.
When having two powers makes you a Super and having none makes you a Normal, having only one makes you a sad half-superpowered freak. It makes you a One. Sixteen-year-old Merrin Grey would love to be able to fly – too bad all she can do is hover.
If she could just land an internship at the Biotech Hub, she might finally figure out how to fix herself. She busts her butt in AP Chem and salivates over the Hub’s research on the manifestation of superpowers, all in hopes of boosting her chances. Then she meets Elias VanDyne, another One, and all her carefully crafted plans fly out the window. Literally.
When the two of them touch, their Ones combine to make them fly, and when they're not soaring over the Nebraska cornfields, they’re busy falling for each other. Merrin's mad chemistry skills land her a spot on the Hub's internship short list, but as she gets closer to the life she always wanted, she discovers that the Hub’s purpose is more sinister than it has always seemed. Now it’s up to her to decide if it's more important to fly solo, or to save everything - and everyone - she loves.
370 pages, Paperback
First published May 17, 2013
9 people are currently reading
5026 people want to read
About the author
LeighAnn Kopans
12 books414 followersRaised on comic books and classic novels, Leigh Ann developed an early love of science fiction and literature. As an adult, she rediscovered her love for not only reading, but also writing the types of fiction that enchanted her as a teen. Her debut novel, ONE, is about a girl with only half a superpower, the boy who makes her fly, and her struggle to make herself whole.
Leigh Ann, her husband, and four children live in Columbus, Ohio. When she’s not immersed in the world of fiction, you can find her obsessing over the latest superhero movie or using her kids as an excuse to go out for ice cream (again.)
Leigh Ann, her husband, and four children live in Columbus, Ohio. When she’s not immersed in the world of fiction, you can find her obsessing over the latest superhero movie or using her kids as an excuse to go out for ice cream (again.)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 196 reviews
September 22, 2013
I am a sucker for superhero novels, and I was intrigued by the author's marketing of this self-published novel. That's right, this is a self-published novel. Leigh Ann Kopans apparently found an agent, but the agent was unable to interest any publishers in this book, so Kopans decided to go the "indie" (I hate that disingenuous and misleading term) route and publish the book herself, with a professional cover.
She should have spent a little more money on editing; in general, I found the book to be written well, but there were enough grammatical errors, sentences that were missing verbs, and other clunkers that professional editing should have caught, that I would say this is a manuscript that could have been greatly improved with another round of polishing.
That also applies to the story, unfortunately. There was potential here, but weak worldbuilding and cardboard characters left nothing to distract me from the insta-love teen romance between Mary Sue and Mr. Perfect Cute Tame Huggable Boy, which unfortunately takes up more page count than the interesting stuff, like superpowers and evil scientist conspiracies.
One starts with some interesting ideas. It's a couple of centuries in the future, and there was a "World Uranium War" that released radiation into Lake Michigan, causing mutations and superpowers. Okay, that's a suspension of disbelief I'm willing to give the author as a gimme -- — it's no dumber than most superhero origin stories, especially in novels where you have to come up with a single origin for all the superpowered people.
A true Super has two powers, which is what actually allows them to function as supers. Explained this way, it makes sense — flame-projectors, for example, need invulnerability or regeneration along with their flame powers or they will give themselves burns every time they use their powers. Likewise, someone with super-strength but not a super-strong skeleton who tries to pick up a car... well, it won't be pretty. Teleporters, if they don't have super-senses to let them see where they are teleporting to, are likely to meet with grisly ends. And so on.
Merrin Grey is a "One" — she has just a single power, and much to the disappointment of her Super parents, it never became anything else. She can float, but she has no propulsion ability, so she can't actually fly. Most Ones' powers fade when they get older, but Merrin, unbeknownst to her parents, has continued to practice, unwilling to give up.
When she is finally written off as unpowered, she is transferred from Superior High, where all the super-kids go, to a "normal" high school. Here she meets Elias VanDyne, whose sweatshirts she will spend most of the rest of the book sleeping in.
Elias turns out to be a One also. Elias has some friends who are also Ones. Elias's twin sisters are Supers, like Merrin's twin brothers. There is a Hub, which is the super-secret-except-they-have-annual-expositions-for-all-the-local-high-school-students-to-come-see scientific facility that does research on Super powers. Merrin wants to go there because she thinks they can unlock the genetic puzzle that prevents her powers from manifesting.
Naturally, sinister conspiracies are uncovered, Merrin and Elias learn how to do Things, and two sixteen-year-olds realize their eternal totally mature and believable love for each other.
So first of all, this is a very, very girly book. If you like very girly books, you will probably enjoy it more than I did. I guess I should have been warned off by the cover, but hey — superheroes.
The romance is a much stronger element than the superpowers and the conspiracies. And I can tolerate romance. I do not expect sixteen-year-olds not to be googly and stupid for each other, because hey, hormones.
Yeah, so here is the cover for the sequel, Two:
You can practically hear the author squeeing.
Elias is the ideal boy for Merrin (who, incidentally, is a super-genius and totally cute and her big "flaw" is that she has a semi-useless super-power, and anyone she likes turns out to be nice and anyone she dislikes turns out to be evil, and all of her guesses turn out to be right — yes, I am going to throw the Mary Sue card here). He's nice, and gentle, and sweet — but manly! — and loves his sisters, and never acts like a jerk, and even though he's in love with Merrin he never tries to do anything she doesn't want to do, and they are literally super-compatible and urgh-hurk!
Okay, on the plus side: I kind of like that Merrin is a genius and is neither modest nor boastful about it. And while Eliaskissykissywoowoo is the perfect boyfriend, Merrin has realistic reservations about boys after meeting some Super boys who are not perfect boyfriends. And the One/Two angle is actually rather inventive.
Even if you like girly YA romances, though, I felt this book failed in most other respects. For example, for a world with superpowered people, we sure don't hear much about them. They exist, but they don't seem to have done much to change the world. And for a world set in the 22nd century or thereabouts, it sure resembles our world an awful lot. They have smart-houses and faster Internet, but otherwise high school and suburban living seems to be pretty much unchanged.
But what really caused me to revise my estimation of the book downward, after some initially mildly positive feelings despite the onset of kissy-kissy-woo-woo, was the direction the plot took with the conspiracies and the villain. Namely:
1. Most plot complications came about from people just not telling each other stuff they could easily have told each other.
2. The villain's evil plan consisted of lying about things that... there really wasn't much reason to lie about. I mean, at the end I tried to reason out why everything had to be kept secret, instead of just telling everyone involved what they were doing. It was a case where enlisting voluntary cooperation would probably have been easier and less risky than playing cloak and dagger games and being Really Evil.
One is not terrible; it is aimed solidly at teenage girls who want to swoon over a cute guy, and if you are in that demographic, it's probably a decent pick. My bad for wanting a superhero novel.
2.5 stars, and normally I'd round up to give the author props for writing and marketing a self-published title that approaches professional quality, but I am rounding down because reading other reviews has revealed that the author has earned herself a place on one of those authors-behaving-badly shelves that Goodreads no longer allows. Bad author, Ms. Kopans: no half-star for you.
She should have spent a little more money on editing; in general, I found the book to be written well, but there were enough grammatical errors, sentences that were missing verbs, and other clunkers that professional editing should have caught, that I would say this is a manuscript that could have been greatly improved with another round of polishing.
That also applies to the story, unfortunately. There was potential here, but weak worldbuilding and cardboard characters left nothing to distract me from the insta-love teen romance between Mary Sue and Mr. Perfect Cute Tame Huggable Boy, which unfortunately takes up more page count than the interesting stuff, like superpowers and evil scientist conspiracies.
One starts with some interesting ideas. It's a couple of centuries in the future, and there was a "World Uranium War" that released radiation into Lake Michigan, causing mutations and superpowers. Okay, that's a suspension of disbelief I'm willing to give the author as a gimme -- — it's no dumber than most superhero origin stories, especially in novels where you have to come up with a single origin for all the superpowered people.
A true Super has two powers, which is what actually allows them to function as supers. Explained this way, it makes sense — flame-projectors, for example, need invulnerability or regeneration along with their flame powers or they will give themselves burns every time they use their powers. Likewise, someone with super-strength but not a super-strong skeleton who tries to pick up a car... well, it won't be pretty. Teleporters, if they don't have super-senses to let them see where they are teleporting to, are likely to meet with grisly ends. And so on.
Merrin Grey is a "One" — she has just a single power, and much to the disappointment of her Super parents, it never became anything else. She can float, but she has no propulsion ability, so she can't actually fly. Most Ones' powers fade when they get older, but Merrin, unbeknownst to her parents, has continued to practice, unwilling to give up.
When she is finally written off as unpowered, she is transferred from Superior High, where all the super-kids go, to a "normal" high school. Here she meets Elias VanDyne, whose sweatshirts she will spend most of the rest of the book sleeping in.
I want Elias — kissing him was enough to tell me that, and I’m not stupid enough to deny it.
I want to fly more than I want him. Way more.
As unbelievable as it was, it wasn’t — could never be — it’s not flying on my own. If I fly with Elias, I can’t fling my arms out to the side and feel the nothingness speeding between the earth and me. Not unless he carries me.
And no matter how good it felt to kiss Elias, to be so close to him that I felt his heart beating in my chest and the vibration of his speech against my skin, I don’t want to let him carry me until I know I can carry myself.
Elias turns out to be a One also. Elias has some friends who are also Ones. Elias's twin sisters are Supers, like Merrin's twin brothers. There is a Hub, which is the super-secret-except-they-have-annual-expositions-for-all-the-local-high-school-students-to-come-see scientific facility that does research on Super powers. Merrin wants to go there because she thinks they can unlock the genetic puzzle that prevents her powers from manifesting.
Naturally, sinister conspiracies are uncovered, Merrin and Elias learn how to do Things, and two sixteen-year-olds realize their eternal totally mature and believable love for each other.
So first of all, this is a very, very girly book. If you like very girly books, you will probably enjoy it more than I did. I guess I should have been warned off by the cover, but hey — superheroes.
The romance is a much stronger element than the superpowers and the conspiracies. And I can tolerate romance. I do not expect sixteen-year-olds not to be googly and stupid for each other, because hey, hormones.
Yeah, so here is the cover for the sequel, Two:
You can practically hear the author squeeing.
Elias is the ideal boy for Merrin (who, incidentally, is a super-genius and totally cute and her big "flaw" is that she has a semi-useless super-power, and anyone she likes turns out to be nice and anyone she dislikes turns out to be evil, and all of her guesses turn out to be right — yes, I am going to throw the Mary Sue card here). He's nice, and gentle, and sweet — but manly! — and loves his sisters, and never acts like a jerk, and even though he's in love with Merrin he never tries to do anything she doesn't want to do, and they are literally super-compatible and urgh-hurk!
Okay, on the plus side: I kind of like that Merrin is a genius and is neither modest nor boastful about it. And while Eliaskissykissywoowoo is the perfect boyfriend, Merrin has realistic reservations about boys after meeting some Super boys who are not perfect boyfriends. And the One/Two angle is actually rather inventive.
Even if you like girly YA romances, though, I felt this book failed in most other respects. For example, for a world with superpowered people, we sure don't hear much about them. They exist, but they don't seem to have done much to change the world. And for a world set in the 22nd century or thereabouts, it sure resembles our world an awful lot. They have smart-houses and faster Internet, but otherwise high school and suburban living seems to be pretty much unchanged.
But what really caused me to revise my estimation of the book downward, after some initially mildly positive feelings despite the onset of kissy-kissy-woo-woo, was the direction the plot took with the conspiracies and the villain. Namely:
1. Most plot complications came about from people just not telling each other stuff they could easily have told each other.
2. The villain's evil plan consisted of lying about things that... there really wasn't much reason to lie about. I mean, at the end I tried to reason out why everything had to be kept secret, instead of just telling everyone involved what they were doing. It was a case where enlisting voluntary cooperation would probably have been easier and less risky than playing cloak and dagger games and being Really Evil.
One is not terrible; it is aimed solidly at teenage girls who want to swoon over a cute guy, and if you are in that demographic, it's probably a decent pick. My bad for wanting a superhero novel.
2.5 stars, and normally I'd round up to give the author props for writing and marketing a self-published title that approaches professional quality, but I am rounding down because reading other reviews has revealed that the author has earned herself a place on one of those authors-behaving-badly shelves that Goodreads no longer allows. Bad author, Ms. Kopans: no half-star for you.
dnf
September 21, 2014DNF.
Unpopular opinion time: I did not enjoy this book in the least. Although I won't say I hated it because that sounds too strong a statement. Rather I was just so...bored. At one point during reading the book even went as far as making me all droopy-eyed and sleepy until I decided to put it down and go to bed.
When I tell you that the first half of this book was filled with nothing but cheesy sappy insta-love, the first half of this book was filled with nothing but cheesy sappy insta-love. I mean for god's sakes, it's 2013, why does the romance always have to be the main driving force of the plot all the time in YA books still? The actual plot of the book and the concept and all that to me just felt...sprinkled in. And the whole "destined to be together" thing again, really? Come on now.
Once again I have to bring up that age-old trope I've spoken about with other books released this year like Ink by Amanda Sun, for example. The concept of the book can be intriguing and eye-catching, but at the end of the day it's simply masquerading the mediocre, run-of-the-mill sappy romance story that myself and I'm pretty sure the majority of you guys are sick to death of by now.
The concept was pretty cool though, I guess, but this isn't "superheroes" in a traditional sense, it's just people with powers--which, if you think about it, isn't really all that original. But the author did try making it more original with the whole One/Super/Normal stuff so I won't be too hard on that. Anyways, I thought there were just way too many confusing things about it and how it all worked that at some point during the book I just...lost the ability to really care about it anymore. And soon that also happened with the characters and the plot (or rather lack thereof) until I just stopped caring about the book altogether.
I tried, I really did. But when the book you're reading starts to feel like a chore, I'm pretty sure it's about time you just close it and move on.
I am not saying that this book is bad, not at all. It's just not the type of book that I'm needing right now. The ultra-cheesy and overly in-your-face romance made it feel as if I'm reading the same old book all over again.
So that's my two cents on it. I dunno, maybe the good stuff was in the later parts of the book and I should've kept reading, given the book another chance, but...I tried, and me and this book just flat-out don't click well. This is just me, though, I suggest you still read it anyway. You might agree with me, or you might end up loving it, who knows.
I'll keep the rating blank, because it doesn't seem right to rate this book.
Unpopular opinion time: I did not enjoy this book in the least. Although I won't say I hated it because that sounds too strong a statement. Rather I was just so...bored. At one point during reading the book even went as far as making me all droopy-eyed and sleepy until I decided to put it down and go to bed.
When I tell you that the first half of this book was filled with nothing but cheesy sappy insta-love, the first half of this book was filled with nothing but cheesy sappy insta-love. I mean for god's sakes, it's 2013, why does the romance always have to be the main driving force of the plot all the time in YA books still? The actual plot of the book and the concept and all that to me just felt...sprinkled in. And the whole "destined to be together" thing again, really? Come on now.
Once again I have to bring up that age-old trope I've spoken about with other books released this year like Ink by Amanda Sun, for example. The concept of the book can be intriguing and eye-catching, but at the end of the day it's simply masquerading the mediocre, run-of-the-mill sappy romance story that myself and I'm pretty sure the majority of you guys are sick to death of by now.
The concept was pretty cool though, I guess, but this isn't "superheroes" in a traditional sense, it's just people with powers--which, if you think about it, isn't really all that original. But the author did try making it more original with the whole One/Super/Normal stuff so I won't be too hard on that. Anyways, I thought there were just way too many confusing things about it and how it all worked that at some point during the book I just...lost the ability to really care about it anymore. And soon that also happened with the characters and the plot (or rather lack thereof) until I just stopped caring about the book altogether.
I tried, I really did. But when the book you're reading starts to feel like a chore, I'm pretty sure it's about time you just close it and move on.
I am not saying that this book is bad, not at all. It's just not the type of book that I'm needing right now. The ultra-cheesy and overly in-your-face romance made it feel as if I'm reading the same old book all over again.
So that's my two cents on it. I dunno, maybe the good stuff was in the later parts of the book and I should've kept reading, given the book another chance, but...I tried, and me and this book just flat-out don't click well. This is just me, though, I suggest you still read it anyway. You might agree with me, or you might end up loving it, who knows.
I'll keep the rating blank, because it doesn't seem right to rate this book.
January 13, 2014
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
One is one of those self-published gems that I seem to always be hunting for. It’s not perfect, but it’s just really fun to read. It reminds me a lot of x-men, but with teens. The writing is decent, though, I do feel it was better in the second half, and the plot is pretty good. The anticipation was built just right and the climax did have me on the edge of my seat. Not to mention the cover is gorgeous, one of my favorites of 2013. If you enjoy superhero books, you’ll probably like this one.
One is one of those self-published gems that I seem to always be hunting for. It’s not perfect, but it’s just really fun to read. It reminds me a lot of x-men, but with teens. The writing is decent, though, I do feel it was better in the second half, and the plot is pretty good. The anticipation was built just right and the climax did have me on the edge of my seat. Not to mention the cover is gorgeous, one of my favorites of 2013. If you enjoy superhero books, you’ll probably like this one.
April 16, 2013
ONE was unlike anything I've ever read. I've been hearing about this book forEVER, so I definitely went into it with high expectations. I was not let down.
To summarize my thoughts while reading, giving you an idea of what a great storyteller LeighAnn Kopens is, and how well she writes a scene ... Here's a thought that popped into my mind consistently--CONSISTENTLY--while reading:
"Omg. I can't wait to see this movie!"
Not every book has that special magic that makes you imagine it on the big screen, but with the way LeighAnn created her world, and her beautiful mastery of describing the setting, you can't help but picture the movie unfolding.
It's going to be awesome, and I truly hope it happens.
To summarize my thoughts while reading, giving you an idea of what a great storyteller LeighAnn Kopens is, and how well she writes a scene ... Here's a thought that popped into my mind consistently--CONSISTENTLY--while reading:
"Omg. I can't wait to see this movie!"
Not every book has that special magic that makes you imagine it on the big screen, but with the way LeighAnn created her world, and her beautiful mastery of describing the setting, you can't help but picture the movie unfolding.
It's going to be awesome, and I truly hope it happens.
February 26, 2013
Plot: 5 stars
Characters: 5 stars
Style: 5 stars
Pace: 5 stars
I was a little hesitant about this book when I saw the concept. Super powers in YA have been done so much that it’s almost impossible to escape the tropes, and so much YA has felt predictable to me lately. But when both Becca and Trisha said it was awesome, I knew I had to give it a shot (They’re both amazing writers in their own rights, and thus far, haven’t steered me wrong on books). When Leigh Ann asked for people to volunteer for a chance to read it early in exchange for an honest review, I couldn't resist. I've been known to put down even my best friends’ books after a chapter or three if they’re bad. In those cases, I just explain to them why I couldn't get through it. I figured worst case, I would read some of it, and if it was really bad, I could just bow out gracefully.
I was very pleasantly surprised. Not only was it not a trope-walk, but the style was engaging and the pace was crisp enough that I devoured it all in one sitting. I’d meant to read a chapter or two, then go back to configuring the new TV and maybe play some video games on it (purely for testing purposes, of course!). The next thing I knew, it was 3 hours later and I’d devoured the book without even getting up again. Uhm, oops?
Merrin, “Mer” Grey is a girl who knows her own mind. A half-powered freak compared to her Super talented twin brothers, she’s full of anger and resentment as she transfers to the normal’s high school for her sophomore year. All she can do is float, but she dreams of flying. Her only hope lies in the Hub, a massive Supers research facility hidden beneath the Kansas fields. If she can get an internship there, maybe she can figure out how to go from a One to a Two and finally fly.
When she meets Elias, with his gorgeous blue eyes, there’s an immediate spark; Not instalove, fortunately, though love follows fairly easily. Equally frightened and thrilled by the way he makes her feel, she slowly falls for him, opening herself up, until they manage to combine their powers and fly.
But not everything is what it seems, and they’re not as unobserved as they think they are. There’s a lot more at play than they suspect, and when things reach a fever pitch, Mer will have to choose between her head and heart, between what she’s always wanted and who she wants.
I’m a sucker for well done romance. I get tired of the instalove where their eyes meet and they’re instantly stupid in love with each other. The romance on this was VERY well done. It captured both the immediacy and overwhelmingness of teenage love, while making the growth of it seem realistic.
The Super powers were convincingly done. I could buy into the world building with it, and most of it was well woven into the narrative. The only point where I felt like I was being given a history lesson, it was one, but it worked. It was still well filtered through Mer’s world view.
My only real complaint is that I could have read far, far more of it, like a couple books more, minimum! Looking forward to reading much more from Leigh Ann. Definitely an author to keep an eye on, I foresee very good things in her future.
You can read the first chapter here.
Characters: 5 stars
Style: 5 stars
Pace: 5 stars
I was a little hesitant about this book when I saw the concept. Super powers in YA have been done so much that it’s almost impossible to escape the tropes, and so much YA has felt predictable to me lately. But when both Becca and Trisha said it was awesome, I knew I had to give it a shot (They’re both amazing writers in their own rights, and thus far, haven’t steered me wrong on books). When Leigh Ann asked for people to volunteer for a chance to read it early in exchange for an honest review, I couldn't resist. I've been known to put down even my best friends’ books after a chapter or three if they’re bad. In those cases, I just explain to them why I couldn't get through it. I figured worst case, I would read some of it, and if it was really bad, I could just bow out gracefully.
I was very pleasantly surprised. Not only was it not a trope-walk, but the style was engaging and the pace was crisp enough that I devoured it all in one sitting. I’d meant to read a chapter or two, then go back to configuring the new TV and maybe play some video games on it (purely for testing purposes, of course!). The next thing I knew, it was 3 hours later and I’d devoured the book without even getting up again. Uhm, oops?
Merrin, “Mer” Grey is a girl who knows her own mind. A half-powered freak compared to her Super talented twin brothers, she’s full of anger and resentment as she transfers to the normal’s high school for her sophomore year. All she can do is float, but she dreams of flying. Her only hope lies in the Hub, a massive Supers research facility hidden beneath the Kansas fields. If she can get an internship there, maybe she can figure out how to go from a One to a Two and finally fly.
When she meets Elias, with his gorgeous blue eyes, there’s an immediate spark; Not instalove, fortunately, though love follows fairly easily. Equally frightened and thrilled by the way he makes her feel, she slowly falls for him, opening herself up, until they manage to combine their powers and fly.
But not everything is what it seems, and they’re not as unobserved as they think they are. There’s a lot more at play than they suspect, and when things reach a fever pitch, Mer will have to choose between her head and heart, between what she’s always wanted and who she wants.
I’m a sucker for well done romance. I get tired of the instalove where their eyes meet and they’re instantly stupid in love with each other. The romance on this was VERY well done. It captured both the immediacy and overwhelmingness of teenage love, while making the growth of it seem realistic.
The Super powers were convincingly done. I could buy into the world building with it, and most of it was well woven into the narrative. The only point where I felt like I was being given a history lesson, it was one, but it worked. It was still well filtered through Mer’s world view.
My only real complaint is that I could have read far, far more of it, like a couple books more, minimum! Looking forward to reading much more from Leigh Ann. Definitely an author to keep an eye on, I foresee very good things in her future.
You can read the first chapter here.
June 13, 2013
Initial reaction: ....I has disappoint.
Review: I was so heavily distraught over how dumb this book turned out to be. I was almost not going to write a review after I saw some fracas where the author was trolling, but you know, chances are no one's gonna read this but if I can save someone from the incredibly frustrating experience that was reading this, than hey, I'll consider my job done.
What I wanted out of this book? Superheroes! What this book gave me: a very confusing, convoluted mumbo jumbo quasi-scientific explanation that conflicted with it confusing convoluted quasi-power-of-love explanation for the same exact thing. Reading the world building for this book felt like my head was bobbing back and forth watching a tennis match between a schizophrenic person yelling at themselves. "Guys! The powers are all genetic! No, wait! The powers can be shared because LOVE! No, come back, they're genetic! No, wait, they're not! MUTATIONS AND SCIENCE. Hey, stop, no, love, love is all there is. NO MUTATIONS AND RADIATION IN LAKE MICHIGAN - NO, LOVE AND KISSES - NO, SPLICES OF GENES AND TESTS IN TUBES - NO, LOVE AND DAMN KISSES - NOOOO I SWEAR IT'S GENES - transference occurs! because science! - transference occurs! because love and damn kisses! - but, but, twins! who are identical but not! NO BUT LOVE - wait if we just hold hands the powers meld because SCIENCE."
I'm exhausted trying to think through the twisted, just, like, CRAZYTOWN logic of this. There isn't any. Throw in a heaping dose of instalove (like, just, really, they're in love a week after meeting), and Merrin's insistence that her whole life is centered around working at the Hub, where both of her parents work, but she just NEVER GOT AROUND TO ASKING THEM ABOUT IT. At one point, she's literally thinking, "Huh, guess I never thought to ask mom what she does down there at the Hub. Oh well. Probably nothing. Doesn't matter. Don't care. Lemme kiss teh boy" and this is smackdab in the middle of her explaining how HER WHOLE LIFE IS ABOUT GETTING TO WORK AT THE HUB.
*facepalm*
This was a truly great premise. It could have been saved from the shipwreck yard by a good editor and publishing house. That's what made me so devastated about this. The author is so dang proud of self-publishing (which is not inherently a bad thing, there's lots of great self-pubs, this just isn't one of them) which makes this extra sad because I wish I could write her a letter back in time stating, "Dear Ms. Kopans: please, for the love of all that is good and just, get an agent. Get an editor. Do the due diligence this book needs to be better. You'll thank me later." I mean, this was a promising first draft. But it needed three more drafts and a critical outsider eye before it should have been allowed to become a book for the public's consumption.
It's a damn tragedy.
*drops mic*
Review: I was so heavily distraught over how dumb this book turned out to be. I was almost not going to write a review after I saw some fracas where the author was trolling, but you know, chances are no one's gonna read this but if I can save someone from the incredibly frustrating experience that was reading this, than hey, I'll consider my job done.
What I wanted out of this book? Superheroes! What this book gave me: a very confusing, convoluted mumbo jumbo quasi-scientific explanation that conflicted with it confusing convoluted quasi-power-of-love explanation for the same exact thing. Reading the world building for this book felt like my head was bobbing back and forth watching a tennis match between a schizophrenic person yelling at themselves. "Guys! The powers are all genetic! No, wait! The powers can be shared because LOVE! No, come back, they're genetic! No, wait, they're not! MUTATIONS AND SCIENCE. Hey, stop, no, love, love is all there is. NO MUTATIONS AND RADIATION IN LAKE MICHIGAN - NO, LOVE AND KISSES - NO, SPLICES OF GENES AND TESTS IN TUBES - NO, LOVE AND DAMN KISSES - NOOOO I SWEAR IT'S GENES - transference occurs! because science! - transference occurs! because love and damn kisses! - but, but, twins! who are identical but not! NO BUT LOVE - wait if we just hold hands the powers meld because SCIENCE."
I'm exhausted trying to think through the twisted, just, like, CRAZYTOWN logic of this. There isn't any. Throw in a heaping dose of instalove (like, just, really, they're in love a week after meeting), and Merrin's insistence that her whole life is centered around working at the Hub, where both of her parents work, but she just NEVER GOT AROUND TO ASKING THEM ABOUT IT. At one point, she's literally thinking, "Huh, guess I never thought to ask mom what she does down there at the Hub. Oh well. Probably nothing. Doesn't matter. Don't care. Lemme kiss teh boy" and this is smackdab in the middle of her explaining how HER WHOLE LIFE IS ABOUT GETTING TO WORK AT THE HUB.
*facepalm*
This was a truly great premise. It could have been saved from the shipwreck yard by a good editor and publishing house. That's what made me so devastated about this. The author is so dang proud of self-publishing (which is not inherently a bad thing, there's lots of great self-pubs, this just isn't one of them) which makes this extra sad because I wish I could write her a letter back in time stating, "Dear Ms. Kopans: please, for the love of all that is good and just, get an agent. Get an editor. Do the due diligence this book needs to be better. You'll thank me later." I mean, this was a promising first draft. But it needed three more drafts and a critical outsider eye before it should have been allowed to become a book for the public's consumption.
It's a damn tragedy.
*drops mic*
January 17, 2013
Watch out for this one - one of my favorite boys in recent memory! Full review to come...
April 15, 2013
While this story is about superheroes, it wasn't about the X-men or Avengers-type of superhero. It is so much more about the superhero potential that we all have in us. And what better character to help us explore that potential than Merrin? She is a One, which means she has been given less of a potential in terms of her powers, relative to the Supers around her. But she perseveres and works toward her goals, and she is strong, determined, and incredibly independent; what she lacks in her second power, she more than makes up for with her inner strength. Along the way, Merrin meets a boy named Elias and other Ones that have similar challenges to herself. I fell in love with Merrin's character even more as I saw her relationship with these other characters develop, and particularly as I read about Merrin and Elias - as independent as she is, Merrin is still her own individual, but her romance and chemistry with Elias is as real as all of LeighAnn's wonderful characters. AND (if you need even more incentive to read this awesome story), ONE also incorporates an intriguing dystopian plot that is intelligent and full of twists that keep you glued to the page to the very end. There are suspenseful moments, and touching moments (make sure you have a few tissues handy), and the ending is absolutely sublime.
June 17, 2013
One was a really fun read, for the most part. I wasn't expecting a super serious book, and I did think that One had the expected "superhero" vibe to it. It definitely reminded me of The Incredibles in places, with not-quite-believable but still pretty cool worldbuilding and characters. I especially liked the beginning - it was predictably light and fairly low-key, but still fun.
In Kopans' world, set sometime in the not-so-distant future, there was some kind of accident involving radiation, resulting in certain people gaining a "Super" - which is actually at least two superpowers combined to form one functioning power. Like, in order to be able to create fire, you have to also be indestructible, otherwise you'll burn yourself. But there are also some people who don't have a Super, they have a One - which is half of the required powers to actually be "useful". I thought this was a pretty cool twist on the "superpower" idea, but honestly I couldn't really buy into the idea that all Ones were useless. Like indestructibility - how is that not a good superpower?
Anyway, Merrin Grey, the main character and narrator of One, is - you guessed it! - a One. And she really doesn't like being a One. It puts her in a weird place, socially - between the powerful/popular Supers, and the normals, not accepted by either group. Merrin is super (hah) smart, however, and she is determined to figure out how to make her One into an actual Super.
When Merrin never ends up developing a second power, her parents finally decide to send her to the school for normals; previously she'd attended the school for Supers. At this new school, she meets Elias - also not a Super - just a super nice, super cute, super tall guy (which is funny, because Merrin is tiny). The two (reluctantly, on Merrin's part) become friends, and when Merrin starts hanging out with Elias's friends, she discovers that he, and they, are all Ones.
I really liked Merrin, for the most part. She's smart, determined, and I thought the narration was written in a way that made her really accessible as a character. I also really liked how she viewed her and Elias's relationship at first. She's definitely falling for him, but this line...
However. As much as I liked her mindset at first, I still really felt an insta-love vibe from the two of them. I'm not sure it technically is, because as far as I can tell the timeline does last for some months... I think...? But that's another issue. There were multiple parts where I wasn't sure how fast things were moving, time-wise. I thought only a day had passed, but apparently weeks had, or I thought more time had passed, and it had been less. At least twice, I was flipping through my ebook trying to figure out how and where the days had gone, when it felt like the events were happening the next day. So, because of this, I still got the insta-love vibe - I didn't feel like the characters really grew from friendship into something more, because I didn't feel like I saw that time passing and their feelings gradually changing. But they were still really sweet, and I actually did like them as a couple, other than the time-related issues. Elias, like I mentioned, is just the picture of a gentleman, and an all-around great guy. Although some things are revealed at the end that left me a little confused... but I can't say anything because spoilers. =S
But there was a point in the book where my reading experience got a little strange. As Elias and Merrin kind of solidified as a couple, and were figuring out their powers and how they worked together, the action started to amp up and certain ominous things were being revealed that had only been hinted at previously. But at that point... I lost interest. So much so, that I actually read two other books right after something pretty drastic happened and I felt I'd hit a good place to stop and take a break...! That's not supposed to happen, right? I was supposed to be glued to the page with anxiety and worry, but I wasn't. And I think it's because the action and reveals at the end were... well, pretty predictable. Or if not precisely predictable, at least fairly unsurprising and nothing new. Our Heroes are thrown in harm's way, the evil mastermind is revealed, big showdown, etc. I felt like I'd seen this ending before, so my interest waned instead of peaked. But, while this did hinder my enjoyment of the ending, I still liked the characters and world, so I finished the book feeling, on the whole, pretty positive about it.
In conclusion...
Overall, One was a fun and light read. I liked Merrin as the protagonist, and aside from some timeline issues, really liked her and Elias's relationship as well. The ending left a little to be desired, just because I found it rather unsurprising. But I'll most likely still pick up book 2. I'm not 100% sure where the plot will go - we're left with a little teaser but nothing too concrete. But I think One was a good starting-point, and I'll be excited to see what Kopans has planned for Merrin and Elias in Two. :)
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{ Find this and other reviews at my blog, There were books involved... }
In Kopans' world, set sometime in the not-so-distant future, there was some kind of accident involving radiation, resulting in certain people gaining a "Super" - which is actually at least two superpowers combined to form one functioning power. Like, in order to be able to create fire, you have to also be indestructible, otherwise you'll burn yourself. But there are also some people who don't have a Super, they have a One - which is half of the required powers to actually be "useful". I thought this was a pretty cool twist on the "superpower" idea, but honestly I couldn't really buy into the idea that all Ones were useless. Like indestructibility - how is that not a good superpower?
Anyway, Merrin Grey, the main character and narrator of One, is - you guessed it! - a One. And she really doesn't like being a One. It puts her in a weird place, socially - between the powerful/popular Supers, and the normals, not accepted by either group. Merrin is super (hah) smart, however, and she is determined to figure out how to make her One into an actual Super.
When Merrin never ends up developing a second power, her parents finally decide to send her to the school for normals; previously she'd attended the school for Supers. At this new school, she meets Elias - also not a Super - just a super nice, super cute, super tall guy (which is funny, because Merrin is tiny). The two (reluctantly, on Merrin's part) become friends, and when Merrin starts hanging out with Elias's friends, she discovers that he, and they, are all Ones.
I really liked Merrin, for the most part. She's smart, determined, and I thought the narration was written in a way that made her really accessible as a character. I also really liked how she viewed her and Elias's relationship at first. She's definitely falling for him, but this line...
I’ve known Elias for a week and a half. I am sixteen years old, and he is handsome and kind, but if someone told me that for sure he was my other half, I would throw up....is PERFECT.- One, ebook, 37%
However. As much as I liked her mindset at first, I still really felt an insta-love vibe from the two of them. I'm not sure it technically is, because as far as I can tell the timeline does last for some months... I think...? But that's another issue. There were multiple parts where I wasn't sure how fast things were moving, time-wise. I thought only a day had passed, but apparently weeks had, or I thought more time had passed, and it had been less. At least twice, I was flipping through my ebook trying to figure out how and where the days had gone, when it felt like the events were happening the next day. So, because of this, I still got the insta-love vibe - I didn't feel like the characters really grew from friendship into something more, because I didn't feel like I saw that time passing and their feelings gradually changing. But they were still really sweet, and I actually did like them as a couple, other than the time-related issues. Elias, like I mentioned, is just the picture of a gentleman, and an all-around great guy. Although some things are revealed at the end that left me a little confused... but I can't say anything because spoilers. =S
But there was a point in the book where my reading experience got a little strange. As Elias and Merrin kind of solidified as a couple, and were figuring out their powers and how they worked together, the action started to amp up and certain ominous things were being revealed that had only been hinted at previously. But at that point... I lost interest. So much so, that I actually read two other books right after something pretty drastic happened and I felt I'd hit a good place to stop and take a break...! That's not supposed to happen, right? I was supposed to be glued to the page with anxiety and worry, but I wasn't. And I think it's because the action and reveals at the end were... well, pretty predictable. Or if not precisely predictable, at least fairly unsurprising and nothing new. Our Heroes are thrown in harm's way, the evil mastermind is revealed, big showdown, etc. I felt like I'd seen this ending before, so my interest waned instead of peaked. But, while this did hinder my enjoyment of the ending, I still liked the characters and world, so I finished the book feeling, on the whole, pretty positive about it.
In conclusion...
Overall, One was a fun and light read. I liked Merrin as the protagonist, and aside from some timeline issues, really liked her and Elias's relationship as well. The ending left a little to be desired, just because I found it rather unsurprising. But I'll most likely still pick up book 2. I'm not 100% sure where the plot will go - we're left with a little teaser but nothing too concrete. But I think One was a good starting-point, and I'll be excited to see what Kopans has planned for Merrin and Elias in Two. :)
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{ Find this and other reviews at my blog, There were books involved... }
June 12, 2013
When I was younger, I had these recurring dreams of flight. Well, not so much flight as hovering, with limited ability to move any direction but up. This is what Merrin Grey can do, her one power, where two are needed to be considered Super. She's just a One. Leigh Ann Kopans debut is a fun read for anyone who enjoys superhero stories as much as I do. Give me humans evolving to have superpowers and I'm generally a happy girl.
Kopans puts an interesting spin on the basic superhero formula through the idea that one power alone does not a superhero make. Logically, I don't really see how one power is useless, but, conceptually, it's a neat idea, a sort of paradigm shift. At any rate, there's always the self-fulfilling prophecy side of it: since the Ones are told that one power is useless, they probably won't investigate enough to see if that's really true.
In fact, most Ones do give up on their powers. Not so Merrin. Even though she's transferring from the high school for Supers to one for Normals, she's still convinced she will fly someday, that she'll develop the second power she needs to do so, propulsion or the ability to manipulate winds. She refuses to give up, because she believes her dreams of flight will come true. Meanwhile, she channels all of her anger and sadness at not having developed properly into her studies of organic chemistry, the better to someday cure herself of One-ness, and playing the drums, which soothes her rage.
At school, Merrin is instantly befriended by a super cute boy, Elias, who brings her into his little group of friends. Skeptical at first, Merrin realizes these are her people, when they reveal that they are all Ones, and all determined to keep using their powers. On top of that, they put together that, much like Captain Planet, their powers combined can make great things happen. Kopans does not skimp on the action sequences or the use of powers, which tends to be the number one downfall of superhero stories. What's the point of powers that don't get used?
Kopans also peppers One with references to classic superheroes, which will be sure to delight comic book nerds, though I imagine many of them went over my head. For the most part, One is fairly light and comedic, but, towards the end, things get darker. I really liked the upped stakes as the novel progressed, the amount of danger everyone was in and how hard it is to tell who to trust.
Merrin and Elias are very cute together, if a bit sappy at times. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get particularly into their romance, since they seem to have fallen in love much too fast. Now, I will say that I'm not sure how long it actually took them to fall in love, because I found the pacing in the novel confusing. What seemed like three consecutive days would be hinted at as being actually much longer. Essentially, I couldn't follow the passage of time, so it was hard to tell whether they instaloved or fell in love over the course of a few months. It also seems a bit over-convenient that the four Ones all are paired up to fall in love and complete one another, so I'd like to see further complexities added to those relationships later in the series.
Fans of Heroes, The Incredibles, or classic comic books will not want to miss Kopans' One. Though the series is as yet untitled, I do believe Kopans is planning additional books in this universe, and I would be curious to finding out what happens next.
Kopans puts an interesting spin on the basic superhero formula through the idea that one power alone does not a superhero make. Logically, I don't really see how one power is useless, but, conceptually, it's a neat idea, a sort of paradigm shift. At any rate, there's always the self-fulfilling prophecy side of it: since the Ones are told that one power is useless, they probably won't investigate enough to see if that's really true.
In fact, most Ones do give up on their powers. Not so Merrin. Even though she's transferring from the high school for Supers to one for Normals, she's still convinced she will fly someday, that she'll develop the second power she needs to do so, propulsion or the ability to manipulate winds. She refuses to give up, because she believes her dreams of flight will come true. Meanwhile, she channels all of her anger and sadness at not having developed properly into her studies of organic chemistry, the better to someday cure herself of One-ness, and playing the drums, which soothes her rage.
At school, Merrin is instantly befriended by a super cute boy, Elias, who brings her into his little group of friends. Skeptical at first, Merrin realizes these are her people, when they reveal that they are all Ones, and all determined to keep using their powers. On top of that, they put together that, much like Captain Planet, their powers combined can make great things happen. Kopans does not skimp on the action sequences or the use of powers, which tends to be the number one downfall of superhero stories. What's the point of powers that don't get used?
Kopans also peppers One with references to classic superheroes, which will be sure to delight comic book nerds, though I imagine many of them went over my head. For the most part, One is fairly light and comedic, but, towards the end, things get darker. I really liked the upped stakes as the novel progressed, the amount of danger everyone was in and how hard it is to tell who to trust.
Merrin and Elias are very cute together, if a bit sappy at times. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get particularly into their romance, since they seem to have fallen in love much too fast. Now, I will say that I'm not sure how long it actually took them to fall in love, because I found the pacing in the novel confusing. What seemed like three consecutive days would be hinted at as being actually much longer. Essentially, I couldn't follow the passage of time, so it was hard to tell whether they instaloved or fell in love over the course of a few months. It also seems a bit over-convenient that the four Ones all are paired up to fall in love and complete one another, so I'd like to see further complexities added to those relationships later in the series.
Fans of Heroes, The Incredibles, or classic comic books will not want to miss Kopans' One. Though the series is as yet untitled, I do believe Kopans is planning additional books in this universe, and I would be curious to finding out what happens next.
June 20, 2013
0.25/5
plot:
in the world of tomorrow, people are divided into three categories:
# normals
# ones
# supers
the protagonist merrin grey is, neither a 'normal' without any powers, nor a 'super' with two powers. she's smack in the middle, a 'one' that cannot control her ability. in the new school she is sent to, she finds her love interest and other stuff about herself that make her question everything she's learned so far in life.
impression:
i hate flat, mustachio-twirling villains and that is exactly what this book gave me, besides huge info-dumps, eye rolling dialogues and a cheese-factor of 200%.
cringe-worthy cheesiness achieved
the only positive aspect of kopans' debut novel is the awesome book cover. i mean just look at it!
plot:
in the world of tomorrow, people are divided into three categories:
# normals
# ones
# supers
the protagonist merrin grey is, neither a 'normal' without any powers, nor a 'super' with two powers. she's smack in the middle, a 'one' that cannot control her ability. in the new school she is sent to, she finds her love interest and other stuff about herself that make her question everything she's learned so far in life.
impression:
i hate flat, mustachio-twirling villains and that is exactly what this book gave me, besides huge info-dumps, eye rolling dialogues and a cheese-factor of 200%.
cringe-worthy cheesiness achieved
the only positive aspect of kopans' debut novel is the awesome book cover. i mean just look at it!
March 8, 2013
I have read lots of books as a Bookseller at Barnes and Nobles. So when I come across one I love, I have to share! One was a great read, which I couldn't put down. Teenagers who have superpowers?! Cant beat that. It reminded me of Xmen meets Sky High. I fell in love with the characters, Merrin and Elias. When there are Supers who have two powers, Ones who have only one power and Normals who don't have any, you know a conflict with ensue. Merrin has only one power, she floats but she wants to fly. She meets Elias and well...you have to read it! And boy does it get good toward the end. This is a must read. Leigh is very descriptive that brings this world to life. The emotions between the characters make them feel real. I truly enjoyed this and you will too!
February 8, 2013
This book was super fun to read. Who doesn't love super powers? Seriously. And there was a lot of action at the tail end of the book. I'm hoping there will be a second installment- I'm attached to the characters and I need to know what happens next! :)
March 13, 2013
There are so many sci-fi/dystopian books out there that I keep on thinking I've read them all. But then books like One come along and pull me into an entirely new world that is impossible not to love.
Merrin Grey is a One, a girl who doesn't have two powers to be a Super, but only one useless power, making her a freak. Instead of being able to fly like she would if she were a Super, all Merrin can do is float. With her incredible intelligence along with her longing to fly, Merrin will do anything to earn the coveted internship at the Hub, using her brains and chemistry to help Ones everywhere to finally become a Super. When she transfers to the school for normals, though, she meets Elias. And when the two of them touch, Merrin finds herself able to finally fly, thanks to Elias's one ability. As Elias and Merrin explore this phenomenon, they get closer to finding out just what exactly it is the Hub is researching and who they're using to find the answers they want.
While it started off a bit slow, One is a story that really grabs you and doesn't let go. I loved Merrin's character and all of her little quirks. She's super smart, but isn't snobby about it, and it's really unique how she uses the drums as a way to let out her anger. And her twin brothers are so adorable! Merrin is the perfect big sister to them. Her relationship with her parents was kind of confusing, because in the beginning she made it seem like they really didn't like her because she wasn't a Super, so things were always awkward and strained. But as her parents, I feel like they shouldn't have been so distant and closed off from her. Other than that, though, the rest of the characters were great.
All of the people Merrin meets at her new school (Leni, Daniel, and Elias) are exactly who Merrin needs to meet and it's cool how they're Ones as well. The whole idea of Ones being isolated (not a super, but not a normal) really brings Merrin and her friends together, but it also creates a whole lot of drama. The mystery behind the Hub is so intriguing and it's obvious they're hiding something big, you just have no idea what. You don't know who to trust and who's really the bad guy. Things definitely get crazy!
Overall, One was an awesome book that gives a unique twist to super powers and secret government organizations. The beginning was slow, but once you got introduced into Merrin's world things pick up and began to get very complicated. The whole concept of this book reminds me of a YA X-Men, which in itself is awesome. So I'd recommend checking this one out! And now that it's over, I'm really looking forward to the next book and seeing what's in store next for Elias and Merrin.
Merrin Grey is a One, a girl who doesn't have two powers to be a Super, but only one useless power, making her a freak. Instead of being able to fly like she would if she were a Super, all Merrin can do is float. With her incredible intelligence along with her longing to fly, Merrin will do anything to earn the coveted internship at the Hub, using her brains and chemistry to help Ones everywhere to finally become a Super. When she transfers to the school for normals, though, she meets Elias. And when the two of them touch, Merrin finds herself able to finally fly, thanks to Elias's one ability. As Elias and Merrin explore this phenomenon, they get closer to finding out just what exactly it is the Hub is researching and who they're using to find the answers they want.
While it started off a bit slow, One is a story that really grabs you and doesn't let go. I loved Merrin's character and all of her little quirks. She's super smart, but isn't snobby about it, and it's really unique how she uses the drums as a way to let out her anger. And her twin brothers are so adorable! Merrin is the perfect big sister to them. Her relationship with her parents was kind of confusing, because in the beginning she made it seem like they really didn't like her because she wasn't a Super, so things were always awkward and strained. But as her parents, I feel like they shouldn't have been so distant and closed off from her. Other than that, though, the rest of the characters were great.
All of the people Merrin meets at her new school (Leni, Daniel, and Elias) are exactly who Merrin needs to meet and it's cool how they're Ones as well. The whole idea of Ones being isolated (not a super, but not a normal) really brings Merrin and her friends together, but it also creates a whole lot of drama. The mystery behind the Hub is so intriguing and it's obvious they're hiding something big, you just have no idea what. You don't know who to trust and who's really the bad guy. Things definitely get crazy!
Overall, One was an awesome book that gives a unique twist to super powers and secret government organizations. The beginning was slow, but once you got introduced into Merrin's world things pick up and began to get very complicated. The whole concept of this book reminds me of a YA X-Men, which in itself is awesome. So I'd recommend checking this one out! And now that it's over, I'm really looking forward to the next book and seeing what's in store next for Elias and Merrin.
Read
June 20, 2013Disappointing. The premise was nice - as long as you weren't bothered by a total lack of sense in the 'science' - but it ended up being a rather by-the-numbers YA dystopian. Merrin was very unevenly drawn, even allowing for the fact that she was supposed to have all kinds of 'issues' from her years of being just a One. She bounced around from being mousy, super-angry, cool nerd, traumatised by a near-rape - oh, now *fine* about same (only took a sentence or two from bf, leading me to feel that the trauma was actually about setting up the REAL consequences of the making-out on a roof), and rather embarrassingly vocal about her 'but I luuuuve him' feelings. The villain was -- well, I don't think he quite twirled his moustache while doing his evil smirking, but he sure did a lot of patented villain moves.
Pity, because there were some nice touches, including the Nebraska setting, and places where it looked as if Merrin was going to become the more solid character that popped out at times.
Pity, because there were some nice touches, including the Nebraska setting, and places where it looked as if Merrin was going to become the more solid character that popped out at times.
April 7, 2013
I ADORED this book. The relationship between Merrin and Elias is so touching, and so real. One scene in particular (I won’t say which, as it’s a major spoiler) had me in tears. Merrin is an amazing character – feisty and independent with a wonderfully distinctive voice. Sometimes her stubbornness made me want to shake her, but at the same time, it only made me like her even more. And Elias… sigh.
This was one of those books that, when I was away from it, was constantly at the back of my mind; I found myself dipping into it at every available opportunity, and was sad to finish. Exciting, edgy, romantic and beautifully written, ONE is a book from an incredible new writing talent that will leave you longing for more!
This was one of those books that, when I was away from it, was constantly at the back of my mind; I found myself dipping into it at every available opportunity, and was sad to finish. Exciting, edgy, romantic and beautifully written, ONE is a book from an incredible new writing talent that will leave you longing for more!
July 27, 2013
This book is fabulous. I adore Merrin. <3
September 3, 2013
3.5 stars
Merrin Grey lives in a world with two types of people in it: those with superpowers and those with none. People born with superpowers always have Two, because it's useless to be able to make fire without indestructibility. If you didn't have the latter, you'd burn yourself every time you tried to use your ability. Unforunately, Merrin falls into the little discussed in-between category of having One superpower, without it's essential mate. She can float about 3 feet off the ground, but doesn't have the ability to make herself move in the air. Merrin longs to fly, and practices for hours hoping that the ability will come. But so far, she's had no luck.
At sixteen, it's unlikely that Merrin's second power will ever show up. She's tired of being useless at the Superhero High School where her classmates are using their powers in amazing ways. This year she's determined just to be Normal, transferring to the regular town high school. But as much as Merrin tries to fit in there, she still feels like an outsider. That's when Merrin meets Elias VanDyne, another One. Together Merrin and Elias discover they can do something together that they'd only dreamed of on their own. They also begin to realize that not everything in their world is what it seems, nor is the truth about their powers.
I really like that this book had to do with superheroes, and that their abilities came in pairs. I thought that the science presented in One was complex and believable, and pretty fascinating. One takes place in a future United States, and the explanation for how part of the population got their powers was well thought out, which I greatly appreciated. Although it wasn't the main focus of the book, there were also some political and social ramifications of people with powers vs those without, and it all served to flesh this world out well. I really like when the science-fiction/fantasy aspects of a book are tempered in reality, especially when they take place in an America that looks like our own. A book like this only works for me if there is some sense behind it, and I definitely found that here.
I could also sympathize with Merrin's desire to fit into her world. Her struggle over being a One and feeling trapped between two places - the world of regular people and the world of superheroes - was believable and relatable. I like that she played the drums and listened to heavy metal music. Fun, personal details of her life that we don't often see in YA heroines. Merrin also loves science, especially Organic Chemistry (I know, crazy!), and a major part of the plot in One involves her quest to work for the big Superhero research facility, the Biotech Hub.
When Merrin meets Elias they have an instant attraction to each other. I know some of you are checking out now. But for me, this is a case where a quick connection did not bother me, because there was a reason behind it. There were a few instances where I thought things moved a bit quickly between them - mostly because of some of Merrin's past experiences and how that's affected her trust, but for the most part I was easily able to connect in with them. I can imagine Merrin feeling like she'll never fit in, then finding someone like her and wanting to cling to that. It was really fun to see what these two discovered about themselves and each other once they were together.
The main struggle I had with this store is that the conflict in the plot was largely based on characters not telling each other things. On secrets. Not just between Merrin and Elias, but their parents and others weren't always forthcoming. A lot of problems could be solved, or at least figured out sooner, if they had just communicated with each other.
But overall, One was a fun book. I read it on the car ride home from vacation and it was the perfect story for that journey back to reality. I'm also looking forward to its sequel Two, which I believe is going to be from Elias' point of view.
Love Triangle Factor: None
Cliffhanger Scale: Low. The second book, Two comes out in October. I believe it's going to be in Elias' POV (or maybe a split?) It has another gorgeous cover.
Merrin Grey lives in a world with two types of people in it: those with superpowers and those with none. People born with superpowers always have Two, because it's useless to be able to make fire without indestructibility. If you didn't have the latter, you'd burn yourself every time you tried to use your ability. Unforunately, Merrin falls into the little discussed in-between category of having One superpower, without it's essential mate. She can float about 3 feet off the ground, but doesn't have the ability to make herself move in the air. Merrin longs to fly, and practices for hours hoping that the ability will come. But so far, she's had no luck.
At sixteen, it's unlikely that Merrin's second power will ever show up. She's tired of being useless at the Superhero High School where her classmates are using their powers in amazing ways. This year she's determined just to be Normal, transferring to the regular town high school. But as much as Merrin tries to fit in there, she still feels like an outsider. That's when Merrin meets Elias VanDyne, another One. Together Merrin and Elias discover they can do something together that they'd only dreamed of on their own. They also begin to realize that not everything in their world is what it seems, nor is the truth about their powers.
I really like that this book had to do with superheroes, and that their abilities came in pairs. I thought that the science presented in One was complex and believable, and pretty fascinating. One takes place in a future United States, and the explanation for how part of the population got their powers was well thought out, which I greatly appreciated. Although it wasn't the main focus of the book, there were also some political and social ramifications of people with powers vs those without, and it all served to flesh this world out well. I really like when the science-fiction/fantasy aspects of a book are tempered in reality, especially when they take place in an America that looks like our own. A book like this only works for me if there is some sense behind it, and I definitely found that here.
I could also sympathize with Merrin's desire to fit into her world. Her struggle over being a One and feeling trapped between two places - the world of regular people and the world of superheroes - was believable and relatable. I like that she played the drums and listened to heavy metal music. Fun, personal details of her life that we don't often see in YA heroines. Merrin also loves science, especially Organic Chemistry (I know, crazy!), and a major part of the plot in One involves her quest to work for the big Superhero research facility, the Biotech Hub.
When Merrin meets Elias they have an instant attraction to each other. I know some of you are checking out now. But for me, this is a case where a quick connection did not bother me, because there was a reason behind it. There were a few instances where I thought things moved a bit quickly between them - mostly because of some of Merrin's past experiences and how that's affected her trust, but for the most part I was easily able to connect in with them. I can imagine Merrin feeling like she'll never fit in, then finding someone like her and wanting to cling to that. It was really fun to see what these two discovered about themselves and each other once they were together.
The main struggle I had with this store is that the conflict in the plot was largely based on characters not telling each other things. On secrets. Not just between Merrin and Elias, but their parents and others weren't always forthcoming. A lot of problems could be solved, or at least figured out sooner, if they had just communicated with each other.
But overall, One was a fun book. I read it on the car ride home from vacation and it was the perfect story for that journey back to reality. I'm also looking forward to its sequel Two, which I believe is going to be from Elias' point of view.
Love Triangle Factor: None
Cliffhanger Scale: Low. The second book, Two comes out in October. I believe it's going to be in Elias' POV (or maybe a split?) It has another gorgeous cover.
August 12, 2014
I bought this book forever ago and it has just been chilling on my e-reader for a while but this week I finally pulled it out and decided to give it a go. I can't say I actually enjoyed it but I did give it a try.
The story is pretty generic. It is a few decades into the future where the world is changed because of a huge Uranium War that has caused some people to start having mutations. The story is centered around 16 year-old Merrin. She does have powers but only half the power that awesome mutants have leaving her to be an outcast. When she transfers schools to get away from the Super mutants, she is still looking to develop the rest of her power and find the pieces that she has always been missing.
�I only made it about half way through before I called quits on this. Maybe a few months from now I will be bored enough to try and finish this but for now I just give up.
�My list of why I didn't finish this book:
1. Okay so I watch a TON of super-hero movies. I have seen every big Marvel movie to come out in the last five years. For that reason I didn't find this story to be very original at all. The mutant high school where the kids that don't have as strong powers are the outcast but really are the ones that save the day completely reminded me of the movie Sky High. Then all the separation between the humans and supers left me feeling like it was another X-Men, even the hub reminded me of X-Men where they are trying to create more super mutants.
2. Instalove for the most part I am okay with the love at first meet in books but this book just made it soooooo boring. The way Merrin thinks just makes me cringe, she is so annoying. Her inner voice is so immature, she doesn't want to be in love with Elias but he is such a good kisser. Then she doesn't want to be dependent on Elias but he is such a good kisser. I didn't feel any pull that made me care about Elias or Merrin, their relationship was only surface level and it was annoying.
3. The powers. They are boring! The main character only has the ability to float and since she can't propel herself forward and fly this makes her a half super. This lets her be whinny the who book, crying about wanting to be some awesome super when she's not. Since Merrin is an outcast, she doesn't even talk all that much about the supers that have the cool powers.
4. BORING! This story was dull, it was predictable and boring. I swear I knew exactly everything that was about to happen. I felt like if certain parts could have been drawn out they could have built suspense and maybe been a little bit of a surprise but everything felt rushed. Since it was all rushed it was dead boring, I felt like nothing was building or growing instead it was all just going through the motions.
5. The characters just were one dimensional and cliché even. I didn't feel like the characters had any deeper meaning then what they were on the surface. They were always so cheerful or brave or sad but they never had crossed emotions. Merrin could do something that Elias should get upset by but the next time they are together it's all kissy-kissy. There were certain scene's when I felt like Elias should have questioned Merrin more or at least been confused by her but instead he just went on to try and comfort her. I feel like real people go through more than one emotion people aren't always good or bad but have moments that are good and moments that are bad, these character however just continued to act like how they were on the surface. Because of this there was no tension in the story, I didn't yearn for anything to happen or change.
This book bored me. I just felt like I could predict the ending from page one, and didn't feel any connection to these characters or story.
The story is pretty generic. It is a few decades into the future where the world is changed because of a huge Uranium War that has caused some people to start having mutations. The story is centered around 16 year-old Merrin. She does have powers but only half the power that awesome mutants have leaving her to be an outcast. When she transfers schools to get away from the Super mutants, she is still looking to develop the rest of her power and find the pieces that she has always been missing.
�I only made it about half way through before I called quits on this. Maybe a few months from now I will be bored enough to try and finish this but for now I just give up.
�My list of why I didn't finish this book:
1. Okay so I watch a TON of super-hero movies. I have seen every big Marvel movie to come out in the last five years. For that reason I didn't find this story to be very original at all. The mutant high school where the kids that don't have as strong powers are the outcast but really are the ones that save the day completely reminded me of the movie Sky High. Then all the separation between the humans and supers left me feeling like it was another X-Men, even the hub reminded me of X-Men where they are trying to create more super mutants.
2. Instalove for the most part I am okay with the love at first meet in books but this book just made it soooooo boring. The way Merrin thinks just makes me cringe, she is so annoying. Her inner voice is so immature, she doesn't want to be in love with Elias but he is such a good kisser. Then she doesn't want to be dependent on Elias but he is such a good kisser. I didn't feel any pull that made me care about Elias or Merrin, their relationship was only surface level and it was annoying.
3. The powers. They are boring! The main character only has the ability to float and since she can't propel herself forward and fly this makes her a half super. This lets her be whinny the who book, crying about wanting to be some awesome super when she's not. Since Merrin is an outcast, she doesn't even talk all that much about the supers that have the cool powers.
4. BORING! This story was dull, it was predictable and boring. I swear I knew exactly everything that was about to happen. I felt like if certain parts could have been drawn out they could have built suspense and maybe been a little bit of a surprise but everything felt rushed. Since it was all rushed it was dead boring, I felt like nothing was building or growing instead it was all just going through the motions.
5. The characters just were one dimensional and cliché even. I didn't feel like the characters had any deeper meaning then what they were on the surface. They were always so cheerful or brave or sad but they never had crossed emotions. Merrin could do something that Elias should get upset by but the next time they are together it's all kissy-kissy. There were certain scene's when I felt like Elias should have questioned Merrin more or at least been confused by her but instead he just went on to try and comfort her. I feel like real people go through more than one emotion people aren't always good or bad but have moments that are good and moments that are bad, these character however just continued to act like how they were on the surface. Because of this there was no tension in the story, I didn't yearn for anything to happen or change.
This book bored me. I just felt like I could predict the ending from page one, and didn't feel any connection to these characters or story.
June 22, 2013
Merrin Grey is a One. In a world where a minority population of 'gifted' people has evolved to have superhuman abilities, being a One just isn't enough. What's the point of being able to float if you can't push the air around you to be able to fly.
ONE begins with Merrin's transfer from the Super high school to 'Normal' Nelson High, having begrudgingly accepted that her second power will never manifest. Trapped between the Normal and Super worlds, Merrin yearns to become more, to turn Super and be able to fly, and is determined to put her considerable intelligence to this task. But, when Merrin meets fellow One, Elias, at her new school, she starts to wonder whether she's closer to Super than she ever thought she was...
ONE is an enjoyable YA sci-fi with a gentle romance that enticed me with it's superpowered focus - I'm a huge comics fan and I particularly love anything with teen heroes, so that was me sold! I liked how Merrin is an obviously intelligent character, and that the importance of science and the 'Hub' become more and more critical to the plot as the story develops. The story grows from a teen romance into a sci-fi drama easily and in a way that drew me deeper into the story universe as I read on.
As a self-pub debut novel, ONE isn't bad at all, however, while I love the premise and the fact that Merrin is a very intelligent female protagonist, I sometimes felt impatient while reading the first half of the book waiting for the plot to begin, and then felt a bit lost as the science jargon heavy drama rapidly unfolded in the final few chapters.
I also had to persevere through the first couple of chapters which did fall victim to the 'infodump' that tends to plague YA sci-fi. I might have preferred being more subtly immersed in the ONE universe from the get-go rather than having everything explained quite so opaquely - the ONE world lost a little bit of it's wonder and mystery as a result of this, I felt.
Overall I did enjoy ONE and will be looking out for the sequel (TWO, naturally!) when it comes out in October 2013.
If you are looking for more YA teen heroes fiction, try Hero by Perry Moore and The Girl Who Would Be King by Kelly Thompson. For comics, try Runaways, Vol. 1: Pride and Joy or Young Avengers, Vol. 1: Sidekicks.
ONE begins with Merrin's transfer from the Super high school to 'Normal' Nelson High, having begrudgingly accepted that her second power will never manifest. Trapped between the Normal and Super worlds, Merrin yearns to become more, to turn Super and be able to fly, and is determined to put her considerable intelligence to this task. But, when Merrin meets fellow One, Elias, at her new school, she starts to wonder whether she's closer to Super than she ever thought she was...
ONE is an enjoyable YA sci-fi with a gentle romance that enticed me with it's superpowered focus - I'm a huge comics fan and I particularly love anything with teen heroes, so that was me sold! I liked how Merrin is an obviously intelligent character, and that the importance of science and the 'Hub' become more and more critical to the plot as the story develops. The story grows from a teen romance into a sci-fi drama easily and in a way that drew me deeper into the story universe as I read on.
As a self-pub debut novel, ONE isn't bad at all, however, while I love the premise and the fact that Merrin is a very intelligent female protagonist, I sometimes felt impatient while reading the first half of the book waiting for the plot to begin, and then felt a bit lost as the science jargon heavy drama rapidly unfolded in the final few chapters.
I also had to persevere through the first couple of chapters which did fall victim to the 'infodump' that tends to plague YA sci-fi. I might have preferred being more subtly immersed in the ONE universe from the get-go rather than having everything explained quite so opaquely - the ONE world lost a little bit of it's wonder and mystery as a result of this, I felt.
Overall I did enjoy ONE and will be looking out for the sequel (TWO, naturally!) when it comes out in October 2013.
If you are looking for more YA teen heroes fiction, try Hero by Perry Moore and The Girl Who Would Be King by Kelly Thompson. For comics, try Runaways, Vol. 1: Pride and Joy or Young Avengers, Vol. 1: Sidekicks.
June 13, 2013
It wasn't too long ago I first stumbled upon Leigh Ann’s author blog and saw what she was working on. Her stories caught my attention and One stood out to me in particular. So fast forward a few months later to the news that One would soon be published - you can imagine I was pretty excited.
It took me a little while to get into but that might have to do with me and the fact that I’m still slowly getting out of a book slump and not so much to do with the actual book itself. Once I settled down and dedicated some time to it, I started to enjoy it.
Leigh Ann writes realistic, teenage scenes well, with just the right amount of awkward, cute and funny. Sometimes you stumble upon scenes in YA that are just too perfect to be real and though it’s easy to be swept up in the moment and swoon your heart out, let’s be honest, real life isn't like the movies *weeps* and the author brought a sense of realism that made the book realistic.
When were first introduced to Merrin, she’s descried as petite and small, neither Super or Normal, her One is that she can hover. I happen to have a pretty good memory so I can remember books and details even if they were read several years ago. I mention this up because when I met Merrin and started forming a picture of her in my head, like you do, she reminded me of a…fairy. A spunky fairy but none the less, a fairy. (Wait? Did I just openly confess to having read a (make that multiple) fairy book? Again, it took place many years ago in a kingdom far, far away…)
In non-fairy related news, I wouldn't say I have strong feelings for the characters but I liked them enough. I related with Merrin here and there, thought Elias was sweet and together they made a cute couple. The highlight for me was probably Merrin’s Super twin brothers – they were pretty adorable and I wish they could have played a larger role.
Unfortunately, self-published books don’t have the best rep and I find that a shame, especially since when a good One (pun! get it?) comes along and it gets dismissed because of that factor. I might not have much experience with self-published titles but you can see how much effort and love Leigh Ann has put into her debut - that much is obvious. Sure, there were some weak spots that could have been more polished but I think Kopans shows real potential and if she keeps on honing those skills like all good artists should, I’m looking forward to her future work.
More times than I’d like, I’m largely disappointed by books I had been looking forward to so I’m glad to say that this wasn't the case. Superhero fan or not, supporter of the self-published or one to hesitate, I have three words for you: superhero geekiness galore!
It took me a little while to get into but that might have to do with me and the fact that I’m still slowly getting out of a book slump and not so much to do with the actual book itself. Once I settled down and dedicated some time to it, I started to enjoy it.
Leigh Ann writes realistic, teenage scenes well, with just the right amount of awkward, cute and funny. Sometimes you stumble upon scenes in YA that are just too perfect to be real and though it’s easy to be swept up in the moment and swoon your heart out, let’s be honest, real life isn't like the movies *weeps* and the author brought a sense of realism that made the book realistic.
When were first introduced to Merrin, she’s descried as petite and small, neither Super or Normal, her One is that she can hover. I happen to have a pretty good memory so I can remember books and details even if they were read several years ago. I mention this up because when I met Merrin and started forming a picture of her in my head, like you do, she reminded me of a…fairy. A spunky fairy but none the less, a fairy. (Wait? Did I just openly confess to having read a (make that multiple) fairy book? Again, it took place many years ago in a kingdom far, far away…)
In non-fairy related news, I wouldn't say I have strong feelings for the characters but I liked them enough. I related with Merrin here and there, thought Elias was sweet and together they made a cute couple. The highlight for me was probably Merrin’s Super twin brothers – they were pretty adorable and I wish they could have played a larger role.
Unfortunately, self-published books don’t have the best rep and I find that a shame, especially since when a good One (pun! get it?) comes along and it gets dismissed because of that factor. I might not have much experience with self-published titles but you can see how much effort and love Leigh Ann has put into her debut - that much is obvious. Sure, there were some weak spots that could have been more polished but I think Kopans shows real potential and if she keeps on honing those skills like all good artists should, I’m looking forward to her future work.
More times than I’d like, I’m largely disappointed by books I had been looking forward to so I’m glad to say that this wasn't the case. Superhero fan or not, supporter of the self-published or one to hesitate, I have three words for you: superhero geekiness galore!
February 28, 2013
You guys like superheroes, right?
You know you like superheroes.
Unfortunately, it’s tough to come up with a new, original, not-in-a-graphic-format superhero story these days. (Trust me. I’m trying.) I mean, remember Sky High? Yeah. shudder
Now, I need you to imagine Sky High for me. Take away all the lame cliches and the freaky guinea-pig shapeshifting. (Keep the prejudice against kids with stupid powers, you’ll need that.) Now add in a plausible government, some much more compelling characters, and a love story that isn’t quite as cliché.
Ha! You’ve got something that looks an awful lot like Leigh Ann Kopans’ ONE.
See, in the ONEiverse, kids are either supposed to have a natural and complimentary power or no power at all. Having just the natural power makes them (in-universe) lame and pathetic Ones. See, you might have pyrokinesis, but without flame resistance, you’re just gonna set yourself on fire. And, y’know, get burned. (Hint: not fun.) So the MC, Merrin? She’s one of those Ones. She can float. That’s it. Just float.
Boooooring.
That is, until Elias comes along. See, he can push air, right? (Plus: sweet, adorable, persistent, beautiful. Definitely a keeper.) So when he and Merrin are together, their Ones combine and they fly.
Pretty sweet.
‘Cept the thing is, Merrin really likes him and all but she’d prefer to be able to fly on her own. And that, my friends, is what sets this book apart from other YA books. See, I already told you what set it apart from superhero lit. But the fact that the MC has her own conflict, apart from her boyfriend, that has nothing to do with his family or her family but only to do with her own, personal desires and ambitions, is absolutely fantastic.
So you see, ONE is awesome. It’s got likeable characters (I haven’t even told you about some of the supporting ‘cause I don’t wanna spoil anything.) It handles real, accessible problems like not being spectacular, but not being normal either. Plus, it’s still got the cool powers and epic fight scenes that you love in superhero fiction.
Consensus: Yes! When this book comes out June 11th, 2013 you all must get yourselves out and purchase it in mass quanities!
Rating: 4/5 stars. **
Follow the author on twitter @LeighAnnKopans
**I have a personal policy about not giving 5 stars to any book that didn’t absolutely blow me away. And trust me, that is incredibly hard to do. hardened book-warrior nod 4 stars means it is awesome and I would def read again/recommend. 3 stars means it was worth reading and I’d recommend, but maybe not buy. 2 stars means it was okay and I’m not mad I read it, but I probably wouldn’t recommend or buy. 1 star means it wasn’t worth the read and I definitely wouldn’t recommend.
You know you like superheroes.
Unfortunately, it’s tough to come up with a new, original, not-in-a-graphic-format superhero story these days. (Trust me. I’m trying.) I mean, remember Sky High? Yeah. shudder
Now, I need you to imagine Sky High for me. Take away all the lame cliches and the freaky guinea-pig shapeshifting. (Keep the prejudice against kids with stupid powers, you’ll need that.) Now add in a plausible government, some much more compelling characters, and a love story that isn’t quite as cliché.
Ha! You’ve got something that looks an awful lot like Leigh Ann Kopans’ ONE.
See, in the ONEiverse, kids are either supposed to have a natural and complimentary power or no power at all. Having just the natural power makes them (in-universe) lame and pathetic Ones. See, you might have pyrokinesis, but without flame resistance, you’re just gonna set yourself on fire. And, y’know, get burned. (Hint: not fun.) So the MC, Merrin? She’s one of those Ones. She can float. That’s it. Just float.
Boooooring.
That is, until Elias comes along. See, he can push air, right? (Plus: sweet, adorable, persistent, beautiful. Definitely a keeper.) So when he and Merrin are together, their Ones combine and they fly.
Pretty sweet.
‘Cept the thing is, Merrin really likes him and all but she’d prefer to be able to fly on her own. And that, my friends, is what sets this book apart from other YA books. See, I already told you what set it apart from superhero lit. But the fact that the MC has her own conflict, apart from her boyfriend, that has nothing to do with his family or her family but only to do with her own, personal desires and ambitions, is absolutely fantastic.
So you see, ONE is awesome. It’s got likeable characters (I haven’t even told you about some of the supporting ‘cause I don’t wanna spoil anything.) It handles real, accessible problems like not being spectacular, but not being normal either. Plus, it’s still got the cool powers and epic fight scenes that you love in superhero fiction.
Consensus: Yes! When this book comes out June 11th, 2013 you all must get yourselves out and purchase it in mass quanities!
Rating: 4/5 stars. **
Follow the author on twitter @LeighAnnKopans
**I have a personal policy about not giving 5 stars to any book that didn’t absolutely blow me away. And trust me, that is incredibly hard to do. hardened book-warrior nod 4 stars means it is awesome and I would def read again/recommend. 3 stars means it was worth reading and I’d recommend, but maybe not buy. 2 stars means it was okay and I’m not mad I read it, but I probably wouldn’t recommend or buy. 1 star means it wasn’t worth the read and I definitely wouldn’t recommend.
March 8, 2013
I was excited for this book. I pre-ordered two copies as soon as the release date was announced. I near bounced out of my skin when ARCs were given to the members of Team ONE. But all of this was pretty new for me because…
I don’t go crazy over Young Adult. In fact, I hardly read any Young Adult (I know, I’m so boring). I don’t know if this is because I just exited my angsty teen years and I’m not that excited to revisit them, or what. Maybe it will change soon. If it does, it will be because of books like this one! *big, huge, gigantic smile*
So you can take this from a total Young Adult cynic: ONE passed my expectations. Over and above. Totally in love. Boom.
The story starts out with a fabulous hook — Merrin has only half of a super power. She doesn’t fit in with the mutant kids called Supers, and she doesn’t fit in with the Normal kids, either. She’s known as a One, a.k.a. a freak. Yeah, okay, typical teen feels, I don’t fit in, nobody understands me, etc. But not only did the futuristic world grab me, Merrin’s attitude was excellent. She’s not whiny, she doesn’t sit around being a pout. She does her best to use what she does have: an incredible brain. Yes. Main character we can get behind. Like, like, like.
Enter tall and gawky totally awkward and smiley love interest character. He’s just the right amount of push, enough to get into Merrin’s world — and just the right amount of no pressure, I like you, let’s be friends. He really reminded me of my little brother. A total sweetheart at the core. Someone you can be happy about every time he shows up. Love, love, love!
And just about the mid point, when I felt a little bogged down with “I love you, you’re so perfect for me” moments, the story starts spiralling out of control with about 80 pages of sheer action. The ending was perfection. Happy, but with danger lurking. Sequel, please!
Overall? Five out of five stars. No matter who you are or what genre you usually read, pick up ONE this June (and be ready for the sequel, TWO, coming in October!). You won’t regret it.
I don’t go crazy over Young Adult. In fact, I hardly read any Young Adult (I know, I’m so boring). I don’t know if this is because I just exited my angsty teen years and I’m not that excited to revisit them, or what. Maybe it will change soon. If it does, it will be because of books like this one! *big, huge, gigantic smile*
So you can take this from a total Young Adult cynic: ONE passed my expectations. Over and above. Totally in love. Boom.
The story starts out with a fabulous hook — Merrin has only half of a super power. She doesn’t fit in with the mutant kids called Supers, and she doesn’t fit in with the Normal kids, either. She’s known as a One, a.k.a. a freak. Yeah, okay, typical teen feels, I don’t fit in, nobody understands me, etc. But not only did the futuristic world grab me, Merrin’s attitude was excellent. She’s not whiny, she doesn’t sit around being a pout. She does her best to use what she does have: an incredible brain. Yes. Main character we can get behind. Like, like, like.
Enter tall and gawky totally awkward and smiley love interest character. He’s just the right amount of push, enough to get into Merrin’s world — and just the right amount of no pressure, I like you, let’s be friends. He really reminded me of my little brother. A total sweetheart at the core. Someone you can be happy about every time he shows up. Love, love, love!
And just about the mid point, when I felt a little bogged down with “I love you, you’re so perfect for me” moments, the story starts spiralling out of control with about 80 pages of sheer action. The ending was perfection. Happy, but with danger lurking. Sequel, please!
Overall? Five out of five stars. No matter who you are or what genre you usually read, pick up ONE this June (and be ready for the sequel, TWO, coming in October!). You won’t regret it.
May 3, 2014
Also posted on my blog.
When I began reading this I had huge huge expectations. And this book is self-published. Don't get me wrong, some self-published books are really good. This one was one of them, but sometimes books that aren't self-published are better, for some reason. This one was really good, but my expectations were too high.
I read about half of it in about 3 days and I just couldn't read anymore and I took a break for about a month. I then picked it up and, because my expectations were really low now, it got SO FUCKING GOOD! Thus my rating.
The main character, Merrin is really a good chemist and that made me fangirl a tiny bit because SCIENCE IS COOL! And she can float. And she can't fly because she has only half of a power. And that the end you know why and IT'S BRILLIANT!
This book was so intelligent! So so smart! Let's say you have a Super who can set themselves on fire. They have two powers, the power of protection from the fire and the power to ignite. And these powers stand by each other and I think that that is a brilliant concept.I would never have thought of that!
There were a few things that bothered me a bit about the book, but I ignored them. I didn't get the thing with Merrin playing the drums. I know it's a stress relief, and I can get why, but it didn't really fit in my mind for some reason. It felt as if the romance between Merrin and Elias was a bit too fast, but that might just be me. I did like the whole thing tho.
The pacing was good. It wasn't too rushed, nor was it too slow. It made me feel all the feels throughout the whole book and I just really really liked it! I was really scared for them in the second half of the book and that part was so damn good!
I really really enjoyed this book. I do recommend it to anyone who likes super heroes or romance or a really good book! Don't get your expectations too high tho, because you might end up not liking it.
When I began reading this I had huge huge expectations. And this book is self-published. Don't get me wrong, some self-published books are really good. This one was one of them, but sometimes books that aren't self-published are better, for some reason. This one was really good, but my expectations were too high.
I read about half of it in about 3 days and I just couldn't read anymore and I took a break for about a month. I then picked it up and, because my expectations were really low now, it got SO FUCKING GOOD! Thus my rating.
The main character, Merrin is really a good chemist and that made me fangirl a tiny bit because SCIENCE IS COOL! And she can float. And she can't fly because she has only half of a power. And that the end you know why and IT'S BRILLIANT!
This book was so intelligent! So so smart! Let's say you have a Super who can set themselves on fire. They have two powers, the power of protection from the fire and the power to ignite. And these powers stand by each other and I think that that is a brilliant concept.I would never have thought of that!
There were a few things that bothered me a bit about the book, but I ignored them. I didn't get the thing with Merrin playing the drums. I know it's a stress relief, and I can get why, but it didn't really fit in my mind for some reason. It felt as if the romance between Merrin and Elias was a bit too fast, but that might just be me. I did like the whole thing tho.
The pacing was good. It wasn't too rushed, nor was it too slow. It made me feel all the feels throughout the whole book and I just really really liked it! I was really scared for them in the second half of the book and that part was so damn good!
I really really enjoyed this book. I do recommend it to anyone who likes super heroes or romance or a really good book! Don't get your expectations too high tho, because you might end up not liking it.
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July 14, 2014Despite being a superhero newbie, I enjoyed One. It's a little bit superhero, a little bit sci-fi, and definitely a little bit paranormal romance. (But don't worry -- no love triangles here.)
Merrin was a unique and appealing main character. She's very into chemistry and also a drummer, which I thought was super-cool. I loved the book's Nebraska setting. I've never been there, but this book describes the landscape in way that made me want to remedy that. As the book explains, the so-called "mutants" were exiled to Nebraska after a group of them made an attempt on the president's life. When Merrin is finally able to fly, she looks down on her home and sees the beauty in it.
But let's back up a bit. Before that, Merrin really struggles with the fact that she's a One. In the story world, there are the Supers -- those who have cool powers, like flying. Then there are the Normals, those with no powers. And then there are the Ones, those with a single, cool-but-essentially-useless power. For example, Merrin can levitate a little, but she can't fly. After Merrin never becomes a Super, she finds herself at Nelson (aka "Normal") High, feeling pretty dejected.
Some readers may feel that the romance has a bit of an insta-love feel, but the instant connection between Merrin and a guy she meets at school is pretty central to the story. When Merrin first touches Elias, she feels an electrical current. Together, the two of them can fly. I did like the relationship between them and the fact that their negotiation of the combined power thing served as a nice parallel for their relationship. But One isn't only about teenage love -- there's a lot of action in the book too. Before long, Merrin and Elias involved in trying to stop some nefarious stuff going on at The Hub. And it looks like there will definitely be a sequel!
Merrin was a unique and appealing main character. She's very into chemistry and also a drummer, which I thought was super-cool. I loved the book's Nebraska setting. I've never been there, but this book describes the landscape in way that made me want to remedy that. As the book explains, the so-called "mutants" were exiled to Nebraska after a group of them made an attempt on the president's life. When Merrin is finally able to fly, she looks down on her home and sees the beauty in it.
But let's back up a bit. Before that, Merrin really struggles with the fact that she's a One. In the story world, there are the Supers -- those who have cool powers, like flying. Then there are the Normals, those with no powers. And then there are the Ones, those with a single, cool-but-essentially-useless power. For example, Merrin can levitate a little, but she can't fly. After Merrin never becomes a Super, she finds herself at Nelson (aka "Normal") High, feeling pretty dejected.
Some readers may feel that the romance has a bit of an insta-love feel, but the instant connection between Merrin and a guy she meets at school is pretty central to the story. When Merrin first touches Elias, she feels an electrical current. Together, the two of them can fly. I did like the relationship between them and the fact that their negotiation of the combined power thing served as a nice parallel for their relationship. But One isn't only about teenage love -- there's a lot of action in the book too. Before long, Merrin and Elias involved in trying to stop some nefarious stuff going on at The Hub. And it looks like there will definitely be a sequel!
February 13, 2013
Merrin's story drew me in from the start, she is a strong MC that fights for what she wants, even if what she wants changes along the way.
One has a dystopian setting where you have to have two powers to be a Super if you want to be 'someone important'. The next best thing is to be a Normal - with no powers and you live away from Supers- with... well, a normal life. Or... you can be sort of a freak and have just one power, not quite fitting in either world. Merrin is a One. And she wants nothing more than to use her brainiac smarts to figure out a way to fully become a Super.
She is transferred to a different High School because she never developed that second power and she meets Elias. And this is where I start to swoon. They get entwined in this sweet little romance that happens fast for both of them but in such a natural way that I couldn't help but smile like a lunatic for them. In this closeness they discover a way to make both their "One's" work. Merrin can float, Elias can push air, and together? They fly!
This is just the tip of their story, them flying together is not normal. If its discovered... well, I think you should find out and read it for yourself. There is action, romance, betrayal, friendship and love, which is important in so many ways for the story.
I loved the world created by the author and cannot wait for the next book in the series!
One has a dystopian setting where you have to have two powers to be a Super if you want to be 'someone important'. The next best thing is to be a Normal - with no powers and you live away from Supers- with... well, a normal life. Or... you can be sort of a freak and have just one power, not quite fitting in either world. Merrin is a One. And she wants nothing more than to use her brainiac smarts to figure out a way to fully become a Super.
She is transferred to a different High School because she never developed that second power and she meets Elias. And this is where I start to swoon. They get entwined in this sweet little romance that happens fast for both of them but in such a natural way that I couldn't help but smile like a lunatic for them. In this closeness they discover a way to make both their "One's" work. Merrin can float, Elias can push air, and together? They fly!
This is just the tip of their story, them flying together is not normal. If its discovered... well, I think you should find out and read it for yourself. There is action, romance, betrayal, friendship and love, which is important in so many ways for the story.
I loved the world created by the author and cannot wait for the next book in the series!
June 10, 2013
One is one of those stories that stays with you long after you've finished. It's the amazing journey of Merrin Grey and her search to become more than she thinks she is - just a half-powered super freak. Merrin is one of those characters you immediately fall for - tough, smart, funny and vulnerable. She doesn't need anyone or anything, and nothing is going to stop her from getting what she wants - an internship at the Biotech hub. But when she meets Elias, she just gets....better. This isn't some "I can't live without you" relationship, but one that is built on respect and eventually trust.
Don't get me wrong, Merrin has her faults, but she's such a fantastic character you have to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next. With ONE, Kopans has created a rich world with a fun plot and amazing characters that feels like it should be a movie or comic book. It's totally one of my favorite books ever and I truly would like to hang out with these characters in real life. Highly recommended!
Don't get me wrong, Merrin has her faults, but she's such a fantastic character you have to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next. With ONE, Kopans has created a rich world with a fun plot and amazing characters that feels like it should be a movie or comic book. It's totally one of my favorite books ever and I truly would like to hang out with these characters in real life. Highly recommended!
April 8, 2014
2.5
I would give this one 3 or 4? stars if the second half came first than the first half. Seriously, the first half was the cradle of insta-love civilization and when it comes to insta-love, it's a no-no for me though I admit that the first half conjured an important sense for the whole book, I mean it was probably a build-upm or something. I really wanted to abolish this but since I have an oath to myself to finish books I'm currently reading, I persisted. Yes, I did suffer a lot from this but hey, I'm lucky because the last several pages of the book made sense, at least. Hooray! Superpowers and all that shit. Oh my god, finally! And with that, I conclude that sometimes, first impression lasts.
I would give this one 3 or 4? stars if the second half came first than the first half. Seriously, the first half was the cradle of insta-love civilization and when it comes to insta-love, it's a no-no for me though I admit that the first half conjured an important sense for the whole book, I mean it was probably a build-upm or something. I really wanted to abolish this but since I have an oath to myself to finish books I'm currently reading, I persisted. Yes, I did suffer a lot from this but hey, I'm lucky because the last several pages of the book made sense, at least. Hooray! Superpowers and all that shit. Oh my god, finally! And with that, I conclude that sometimes, first impression lasts.
April 18, 2013
This book is wonderful. I adore Merrin. It is nice to read a book about an intelligent, strong young woman. She loves science and is a drummer! Elias is sensitive and caring. I love every single thing about it. The teen relationships, the struggle to understand your parents, the sibling rivalries; they are all described perfectly. I felt like I was a participant in this book, not just the reader. Great job!
January 17, 2013
Such a brilliant concept, and Leigh Ann has the most beautiful, elegant writing style...you'll fall for ONE, even as it makes your heart soar! (See what I did there??) Seriously, read this book. Awesomeness is contained within.
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