The Humming of Numbers

by Joni Sensel

Aidan is poised to take his monastic vows—until a girl enters the abbey, one who hums of the number eleven. Aidan has the ability to hear the humming of numbers, a buzzing energy given off by living things. He is captivated and tormented by the mysterious girl, Lana, who has some unusual abilities of her own. How can he become a monk when his mind is filled with impure thoughts?

 

Before he can begin to sort his feelings out, the Vikings raid. Only Aidan and Lana can save the village from certain, violent death—and only if they learn to trust in their mysterious talents.

 

Joni Sensel’s richly imagined new novel is a compelling blend of fantasy and adventure.

 

The Humming of Numbers is a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Historical, Romance, Fiction, Young Adult Fantasy

243 pages, Hardcover

First published May 27, 2008

About the author

Joni Sensel is the author of more than a dozen non-fiction titles for adults and five novels for young readers from Macmillan imprints, as well as two picture books. Her fiction titles include a Junior Library Guild selection, a Center for Children’s Books “Best Book,” a Henry Bergh Honor title, and a finalist for several other awards. Her adventures have taken her to the corners of 15 countries, the heights of the Cascade Mountains, the length of an Irish marathon, and the depths of love. She lives at the knees of Mt. Rainier in Washington State with a puppy who came into her life as a birthday gift that reflected afterlife influence. Sign up for her creativity newsletter on her website!

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one had me at hello. I loved it. I L-O-V-E loved it. This one is going to the top of my oh-so-satisfying-just-can't-praise-it-enough list. Here's how it starts off:

Lana Nicarbith hummed of the number eleven. The sound caught Aidan's attention as he swept the path near the abbey's front gate. He stared, open-mouthed, while Lord Donagh dragged the girl through the entry, past Aidan's poised broom, and inside. Plenty of people filled Aidan's ears with the chiming of four or seven or nine, and many of his brothers in the order purred softly of six. Never in his seventeen years, though, had Aidan O'Kirin met anyone endowed with the energy of a number higher than ten. He'd seen Lana before, but only from a distance--too far to hear the eleven that wafted from her now like fragrance from a flower.


The Humming of Numbers is set during the tenth century. And its primary setting is a Celtic abbey. The premise of this one is simple: Aidan is a novice; he's in training to be a monk. Why does he want to be a monk? Well, two reasons really. The first is that it is really his only career option. He's got three older brothers ahead of him in line to work the family farm. He's got no hope for an inheritance there. But the church, well, the church opens up a whole new world of possibilities for him. It's unfortunate that this career path would call him to be chaste or celibate...but on the other hand, he is fascinated by illumination. He wants to work illuminating texts. And this is a job solely for those in the church. Lana is a village girl, the illegitimate daughter of one of the local lords. She's been taken into custody for trying to sell phony sacred objects to pilgrims on their way to the village, to the abbey. Her father is "asking" (as if the church could refuse) those at the abbey to take her on as a servant girl in the kitchens. But before the girl can become a servant scrubbing floors (and so forth), she must do her time and repent of her sins.

Two young teens...one boy...one girl...you can imagine where this one's going. And yet...and yet it's so very wonderful. It's full of adventure and danger and romance and life and death. What is this danger I speak of...the Vikings. And where the Vikings go...there is sure to be danger and adventure and blood and gore and life and death and drinking.

This novel is so many things: great coming of age story, great romance, great adventure, great historical fiction, nice exploration of religion and spirituality.

http://www.jonisensel.com/numbers.html

Let me just say this too...If I had read it before October 15th....I SO would have nominated this for the Cybils! It kind of makes me sad to see it not on the list.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,75 stars- English Ebook

Review follows later

[Anya Ballinger · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was pretty disappointed by this book. I was hoping for either a sci-fi fantasy or historical fiction, but as it turns out, I would categorize this book as Shallow Romance, loosely set in medieval Ireland. I will grant that the writing was readable and flowed nicely. It was just the plot and characters I did not like.(Spoilers ahead)
The main character's supernatural power to hear numbers humming in people and objects is never fully explored, nor does it have any consequential impact on the plot.
Aiden is a lonely novice monk who isn't really sure that he wants to be a monk. Then a girl appears and he is immediately, carnally attracted to her, yet he makes no active choice to pursue a relationship with her. He is carried along by catastrophes and her own cunning decisions. As a main character, he felt weak and wishy-washy.
Aiden and Lana's incompatible faith (he believes in the Bible, she believes in 'tree spirits') is rendered unimportant because they are so attracted to each other and when he kisses her, he hears "None" - that is, his head is emptied of all worries. Is this a healthy relationship based on mutual respect and understanding? No.
They're basically horny teenagers.
Lana is a rape survivor - and even worse, her rapist may have been her half brother. During the viking raid, it is alluded that Aiden's sister also may or may not have been raped by the invaders. I felt the author glossed over these issues and the horrors of war and battle, using them as vehicles for Aiden to feel 'closer' to Lana.

The viking attack simply serves as a catalyst for Lana and Aiden to grow closer together and fall in love and get married. The message of this book is that love and marriage will solve all your problems. Not the message I would have Young Adult audiences reading.

[Katie Zafian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't say I hated this book, but I vividly disliked it and the themes it brought up. I didn't even finish it because I just did not think it was able to get better at all.
Firstly, I have to say that the humming number idea was not needed in this storyline- it would have been completely normal without it. A monk discovering a prisoner girl and wondering what she's like and what life is like on the other side, considering he's lived in the abbey for five years.
Also, about Lana- she is the bastard daughter of a rich lord and a village woman, living only with her mother. Now, put this into context. It's the tenth century, (mid-900s) and there was a girl born out of wedlock. That was, and still is not fully in modern times, accepted. I'm surprised she wasn't considered an orphan and shipped off to an orphanage, to be eventually adopted by a married couple and live in a normal (by standards) family. And now she's escaping on her own, talking with 'pilgrims', having her own underground hideout in the WOODS, for goodness sake. She did get a worthy punishment, being sent to work in a kitchen for an abbey, but I just don't think it's accurate.
This review is probably really stupid and I just realized much of what I said is probably inaccurate...
All I'm trying to say is that I was very confused by this book, and if anyone who liked it wants to explain to me why, feel free.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel had a couple of interesting concepts that I liked. As far as being a full and truly engaging story, it never really got off the ground, but it was decent.

Aiden is a monk in Celtic Ireland around the turn of the nineteenth century, working hard to be allowed to illuminate the books and manuscripts he loves. But he also has a strange talent; the ability to hear numbers in people and things around him, each revealing aspects of character through its sound, pitch, and volume. And when a fiery and proud girl named Lana comes to the abbey, humming of the very rare number eleven, Aiden is immediately caught.

Viking raids, herbal and druidic nature lore, religion, lust, and love all collide in this story, which feels like it could have been a lot more. I identified with Lana's strength of character and love for nature and her special magic, as well as Aiden's fascination with books and learning. An okay book to pass the time, but don't expect too much of it.

[Renna Mira (AKA Enna Isilee) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was... boring and confusing. It's about a novice monk and a girl. Their world is torn apart by vikings and it's up to them to save it. But throughout the book the question isn't "Will they save the day?" but rather "Will they have sex?" It bothered me. And the whole idea of the novice "hearing numbers" was never really flushed out.

Didn't like it so much.

[Carol Kirksey (Campbell) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stumbled on this book at a Goodwill and the title alone caught my eye. The excerpt on the back sounded interesting, so I took it home with me. I finally got around to reading it and honestly, I loved it. I found so many things about this book so charming - the setting, the characters, and even the plot, despite some of the more horrible aspects depicted that were actually common for the era. I had to scoff at some of the reviews on here complaining about the "young love/lust" and "glossing over" of the violence. In those days, the age that people got married was much younger than it is now (and lifespans were much shorter), so I think it was realistic enough. So was avoiding thinking and talking about violent acts that were so much a part of life... That's something we still (as a society) struggle with today. Another complaint I saw was about the main character Aidan being "wishy-washy," but I don't see it that way at all - he's a boy who becomes a man very quickly. He stands up for his people and risks his life for them. He makes some very difficult decisions and is ready to face the consequences of his actions when he chooses to do things that can get him into trouble. I found him to be mostly a very likable main character - more so than a lot of others I've seen elsewhere... All in all, great book. Love it. Highly recommend.

[Lynn Strickland · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Humming of Numbers will transport you as a reader into life in the 10th century Celtic abbey. This is where the main character of the story Aidan is getting ready to take his monastic vows. His dream is becoming a monk that paints illuminated religious texts. He also has a gift of hearing the humming of numbers. This is a buzzing energy given off by living things. A new person comes to the abbey and it is a girl named Lana that hums the highest number Aidan has ever experienced. He starts to fall for this girl in a romantic way and it causes him to question himself about taking the monastic vows. There is a sudden disaster taking hold of everyone and that is a Viking attack. The Viking raid is a trail of burned homes, murdered people, and stolen goods. The Vikings attack the abbey causing Aidan to flee into the forest. In the forest he comes across Lana. This encounter is where the story takes off. Find out what happens to Aidan and Lana in the story. They will have many encounters and eventually help save their people and way of life.

[Benjamin Elliott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw this book in a store shortly after it first came out, and it looked intriguing, but I didn't get around to reading it until now. I was initially intrigued by the premise with the numbers and the setting was sort of incidental to my wanting to read it.

It turned out to be the exact opposite. The stuff that I enjoyed stemmed mostly from the historical fiction aspects of the story, and the titular fantasy elements were a complete letdown. At no point does Aiden's sensing of these numbers impact the story in a meaningful way. The story would have been at least as good if Aiden was simply a good judge of character.

The other thing of note is that the progression of Aiden and Lana's relationship takes a hard turn a bit more than halfway through the book. That may be reflective of the time period, but it was a bit jarring in today's context.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sensel, Joni The Humming of Numbers, 243 p. Henry Holt, 2008.

Because of his love of richly drawn illuminations, hand-drawn illustrations in the days of hand-copied books, Aidan has committed to joining the monastery. His oath is set, until the day that the local lord brings one of his by-blows to imprisoned in the abbey as punishment. Aidan is inexplicably drawn to Lana and struggles to resist the temptation she represents. Circumstances, however, throw the two together and Aidan's surrender to love may be inevitable.

While there is nothing particularly wrong with this book, I didn't find it particularly intriguing nor compelling, either. It doesn't cover a historical situation, nor does it address a subject that students will find particularly interesting. Sorry.

MS - NO
http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2008/...

[Gail Gauthier · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I found myself...ah...responding strongly to those freaking Vikings. I started thinking of them as Dark Age Nazis. I've read that Vikings raided because of economic need and that, eventually, many of them gave up taking slaves and robbing and settled in Ireland and northern France. What? It took them generations to think of emigration?

Vikings destroying an Irish monastary is kind of a classic situation if you've ever done any research on the tenth century. (Which I have, many years ago, for a book that's on life support somewhere here in the office.) They really seemed to love those places. So, for me the basic situation in The Humming of Numbers was very realistic. "

Excerpt from Original Content

[Allyson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s historical fiction so don’t get too uptight about their speech. That’s what I told myself initially, because it was annoying to hear a monk in early medieval times using the word “OK.” Once I got over that, I was able to enjoy the story. Something that I really lived is the way Lana, the wood-witch, has no problem seeing the Christian god as one and the same with nature, and her staunch belief that her natural powers must come from god and therefore must be good. I love her self-confidence.

[Carol Riggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel had a great premise, and I enjoyed seeing how it played out in the plot—having people and objects “hum” a certain number that tells the main character about that person or object. The characters were enjoyable to spend a few hours with, and ditto for the book. Aidan and Lana did fall in “love” awfully fast, but that’s a young adult novel for ya. The thing I didn’t like so much was how the author meshed Christian beliefs with witchcraft. Interesting idea for a novel; it just didn’t jive with my personal opinion that the two aren’t mesh-able. A good read overall.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a fan

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A predictable love story told in a way that keeps one's attention.

[Caydence]

i really liked this book and i hope they make more just like this.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up at the library because the title interested me. It is YA though it talks about sex and rape. It's almost 250 pages long, but it's a small book so it doesn't seem like that. It takes place in 10th century Ireland. That seems bleak enough in itself for me, but the main character Aidan is training to be a monk. Only he is tempted by women, not that there are any in the Abbey (I thought monks lived in a monastery, but that's what it's called). He also has a weird talent, ability, thing he can do. He hears numbers humming from living things and over the years he's developed a theory about what the different numbers mean. What numbers he can trust, what numbers make a great leader, what number makes a liar, a fighter so when the local nobleman shows up with his bastard daughter looking for her to be taught a lesson for cheating Pilgrims out of their money, he hears a number he's never heard before an eleven. He is intrigued by her and because of it, his test as a novice is to be responsible for her while she serves her sentence in the Abbey. But she follows him the very same day he is given this duty, while he is on an errand and in so doing, both their lives are saved because Viking raiders hit the Abbey and the fields and village.




Aidan learns more of Lana while they hide until it is safe, more than makes him comfortable and she won't admit it, but he feels certainly that she is a witch. She has knowledge of trees and prays for them to protect them and thanks them in prayers just as he would thank God. And when he is close to her, he has lusty thoughts, ones a monk, a novice rather, should not have. He leaves her to find out what has happened and finds the Abbey stripped of everything including most of it's monks. Only a handful remain who insist on sticking to their rigid schedule of prayers despite the bodies all around them. Aidan leaves in disgust to find his family and finds his oldest brother who has lost his own wife and child as well as their parents, their brother and the Vikings have taken their sister and the nobleman's son and are holed up in the Brewster's Inn. A plan is formed and with Lana's help Aidan goes in to rescue the nobleman's son and make the Viking's come out to be ambushed by the villagers. But, does Aidan have as much faith in Lana's capabilities as he does in his God?




We learn all about Aidan, his thoughts, feelings, desires, hopes from the narrator. We only know the other characters through what they tell us, but Lana is somewhat easy to figure out. A young woman who doesn't want to be kept from knowledge just because she's a girl, rebellious and intelligent. Most of the other characters are so unimportant that they don't matter.




The book was slow to start, and not exactly exciting until the plan was put into action which is only about the last third of the book. Yes, Aidan did a few exciting things on his own in the middle like sinking the Viking's boats, which I thought was a stupid idea, but the Viking's also had his sister. In all, it was okay. I'm glad I didn't buy it, but the writer has promise. In fact, I googled her and she has a fantasy series out that is doing very well, so maybe that is more her speed.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating: 2.5 stars

Aidan is a novice in a tenth century Irish Abbey whose only goal in life is to work as a scribe and illuminator in the scriptorium. Three things stand in his way: his ability to hear the hum of numbers, the mysterious Lana who hums of the number 11, and Viking Raiders.

My thoughts after reading The Humming of Numbers are much like the book itself, a confusion of contradictions. It is like a large, sturdy foundation with no house ever built, tons of promise never fulfilled. It is obvious that a lot of effort went into period research; Sensel really knows her stuff. I just wish that as much effort has been spent of character development.

Neither Aidan nor Lana ever feel like fully developed characters. Aidan is never a unified individual but rather amalgamations of different caricatures of the time. He is at times the intellectual driven to the abbey in search of education - the bastion of academia in the period. At other times, he is the ignorantly disproving holy man. Lana is even worse. She is never a character at all, merely a device to move the plot forward. Together they have absolutely no chemistry - as written I can hardly believe they would even like each other. Here is where Sensel's history gets in the way of her story - she maintains historical accuracy in Aidan's attitudes towards rape and education of women, which makes him an ass toward Lana. The secondary characters were all so cardboard they hardly merit mentioning - a week later and I can't even recall any names.

There were so many intriguing details in Sensel's descriptions of both Aidain's number synesthesia and Lana's knoledge of spiritual and medicinal uses of plants. Yet the information was scattered about haphazardly and never really played as big a role in the story as I had expected. It left me feeling disappointed. There were also a lot of questions that never really got answered. What wood was Lana selling? Was is Lana's traditional Celtic beliefs that made her an 11, unique compared to the Christians with which he was familiar? If so, why were the Viking's numbers familiar?

Overall, it was just an okay book, but it also had the promise of something better. I will definitely give other books by Joni Sensel a chance. If she can create characters as colorful and rich in texture as her backgrounds, her books could be amazing.

[Maelstrom Reviews · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review is pulled straight from the Charybdis. Go view it from a comfortable distance here :



Meeeeh. I am not a big fan of books that make me go "meeeeeh". Which is depressing, because I was expecting so much from this one.

Aidan wants to be a monk more than anything else in the world. Then he would be able to handle the beautiful books of the abbey, perhaps even create them. But there's something different about Aidan. He can hear the numbers of the world. Everything hums out a specific and mathematical tone to his ears. All is at peace. Until the 11 arrives.

Lana is an entirely different sound and an unfamiliar number altogether. Aidan is intrigued and entranced. In completely unmonkely fashion, he dreams of the special girl and agonizes over his womanless fate. But everything changes in a flash when the Vikings invade. Aidan and Lana must find a way to save what remains of their home and everything they want to reach or escape from will be compromised in the process.

This book was kind of bipolar. It would go from super interesting to completely flat in the space of a paragraph. Must be a record. But after enough of that, I got a little tired of it and instead began to pick up on the inconsistencies. Aidan being the biggest one. Sometimes he struggles with his hormones and hopes and then the next chapter he couldn't care less about being monk. So sad to see the mental process of a perfectly promising character reduced to "Woman...need...snogfest..." You guys are probably familiar with my opinions on random kissing in books. I have a few.

The writing was a little weak as well. For such an awesome premise I was hoping for some gorgeous and epic-esque, Icemark-esque Viking hardcore writing style. But it didn't happen. I'm distressed by the loss, even writing this review. Thor would be displeased.

So. Here's the part I've been deliberating on. 2 out of 7 humming trees. ZAP! ouch. It's been a bit since we've seen that number. All the same. I have heard mixed views on this so I'd still recommend you try it if you're dead set on plowing through the good ole TBR pile.



Listening very closely and restraining the meeeh reflex,

Aella Siofra

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

If you are looking for something different to read, pick up a copy of THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS. Several things combine to make it a quite unique reading experience.

First, there is the setting - the 10th-century in a Celtic monastery. Most books I've read lately have been set in 2008 and have included the latest in modern technology. In THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS, the main character, Aidan, is in training to become a scribe. He lives at the abbey and is a novice monk. His days are spent following their strict rules and dreaming of the day he will be able to work magic with his calligraphy pen.

Next comes the magic. Aidan possesses a mysterious talent. He associates numbers with everyone he meets. It's almost as if each person emits an aura (hum) that communicates to Aidan. The story begins one day in the abbey when Aidan hears an eleven. Until that day he has never heard anyone above a ten. Most of those he meets hum the number three. From the moment Aidan meets Lana, her special number and her lovely face become the focus of his attention. As the story unfolds, it also becomes clear that Lana has her own unique magic, and Aidan hopes her magic can be used to save the lives of those around them.

Another element that adds a different dimension to this story is the presence of raiders attacking and pillaging the countryside around Aidan's abbey. Aidan's life is spared when he is sent on an errand away from the abbey. Lana insists on accompanying him, so she is safe as well. When the two realize the horrors that have destroyed the villages and killed many, they offer to use their talents to rescue the local lord's kidnapped young son. Complicating matters is the fact that Lana is actually the illegitimate child of the local lord and has been sent away to the abbey as punishment.

THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS is truly an escape into another time and place. It is filled with likeable characters whose lives revolve in an entirely different direction than ours. This book gives readers a peek into the past, into the world as it once was.

[Liviania · Rating 3 out of 5]

Teenager Aiden wants to be a monk so that he can become a scribe, rather than for love of God. He's an artistic young man who desires to illuminate text. He also possesses a strange ability. Objects, including people, hum of numbers. These numbers can give him some personality cues and such. As the book opens, he realizes Lana hums of eleven - the first human he's met with a number higher than ten.

Lana, a bastard daughter of the local lord, is forced to live at the abbey because she's something of a troublemaker. She possesses a sort of wood magic. She's a witch and a strong-willed girl in a time when those are dangerous things to be.

One day when Aiden is gathering apples to make ink and Lana is trying to run away, Vikings attack the abbey and village. They have also captured the lordling Brendan Donagh and are holding him for ransom. The two teenages devise a plan that uses their powers to rescue Brendan and make the Vikings leave.

Really, I cannot say much about THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS. I found it a bit boring and lackluster. There's some interesting thoughts about God, but that will probably make it seem more boring to younger readers. There are also references to rape that probably make the novel a bit too adult for the audience for which it is best suited. (In addition to finding it unsuitable for the intended audience, I felt Lana's rape did nothing to further the plot.) Most of the violence occurs off-page which allows it to remain appropriate for younger readers on that count. Fans of Irish history will probably enjoy THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS, but most other readers will probably be unsatisfied.

[Maggie (fck amaz0n) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 stars

Hmm. Yeah...sorry. Unfortunately, this book didn't live up to my expectations. The premise is very intriguing- a monk (who can, for some reason, hear numbers?) and a witch in medieval Ireland team up to save their town from a Viking invasion! Oooooh! But I realized pretty quickly that the story was just...really not that interesting. For me it lacked all of the excitement that the synopsis promised and I didn't feel hooked to the story at any point. I only finished out of my stubborn determination to finish every book I start reading. Heck, even at the climax of the book I still didn't really care much to know what was going on, and when that was done I was like, "wait, THAT was what this was all leading up to?" I didn't feel any sense of attachment to the characters, nor did I feel compelled to root for their romance. If anything, I felt it was so odd for them to be so incredibly horny for each other during an invasion in which the people in their town are being killed. I think in that situation I would have bigger fish to fry. And the "humming of numbers" aspect of the story made no sense because it was never developed or explored, nor did it contribute anything of real value to the story. It could've been left out entirely and the narrative would've been almost the exact same.

Anyway, the point is, I was fairly bored by this book. I'm sorry. I spent the whole book waiting for the book to get more interesting and eventually realized that it wasn't going to. It was, I suppose you could say, humming with potential (badum-tss!), but did not live up to it. I eventually hope to read something exciting about medieval Ireland, but this was not it.

[Kristi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Aiden, a novice monk in tenth century Ireland, is preparing to take his vows and join the abbey. Lana, an unusual girl, is sent to the abbey as punishment. Aiden can’t help his overwhelming curiosity of the new guest, and finds himself drawn to her even though he knows he will only be punished for it later. Surprisingly enough Aiden is charged with Lana’s well being during her stay in the abbey. Although their take on the world and God couldn’t be more different, the pair realize that they alone have talents that make them different from others. Aiden hears a humming of numbers emitted from people and objects, he can use the humming to base a person’s true nature. Lana is a wood witch, she is able to feel and communicate with trees and such. When their village is attacked and destroyed by Viking Norsemen, Aiden and Lana use their talents together to help defeat them.

I enjoyed The Humming of Numbers, but at times I found the story lacking. Aiden’s ability is explained well, but Lana’s wood-witch nature wasn’t elaborated at all. I understood the overall premise of it, but it would have been nice if it was explained in further detail. I liked the plot of the novel as well, but I wish it would have been more refined, it just felt incomplete and improbable. There wasn’t anything in particular that drew me into the story either. I found the characters flat, I would have loved to known more about them. Overall, I think The Humming of Numbers was a good book, but it lacks some of the qualities, that I think would make it a great read.

[Flora Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was quite an interesting read. Aiden is a young novice monk, getting ready to take his final vows to enter the monastery. Living in 11th century Ireland and coming from a large family, he really has few options open to him. He also has a special talent that allows him to hear numeric vibrations from everything and everyone around him. He meets up with Lana who has been drug to the monastery by her biological father, and he hears an 11. This is the highest number he has ever heard from a person. He soon learns there is much more to her besides an 11.

After meeting Lana, a raid by Vikings is thrown into the mix and this gives a little drama and adventure to the story. We learn more about Lana and Aiden through all this but its never really explained why he hears numbers. Quite possibly its a form of synesthesia which really could not be explained at this time in history.

Overall, I really enjoyed this YA book. Even with the violence its not too over the top for the age group. It drew me in from the beginning and I had difficulty putting it down.

[Bsdjazminec]

I thought the book was rather intrieging. The way the author incorperated two different beliefs as they come together in harmony and peace. When Aidian saw Lana for the first time I could tell there was something about her that aidian would come to need her for something. I liked it when the authors started to foreshadow in Aidian and Lana and the idea that there may be a possiblity that the two of them could make it work if they kept in mind about how religion doesn't matter. If you love eachother then you are bound to achieve greatness together. It doesn't matter weather or not everyone else thinks that it wouldn't work because of a life's choice to how you are to live for God. It only matters if the two of you can not let something like that get between the two of you and ruin a perfect relationship.

[pdarnold · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt like this tale was taken out of a much larger story, not condensed, just a part of a whole. I don't know how to explain that any better. It seemed I was dropped in to the middle of a story. That being said, I did enjoy the book. I read it fairly quick (for me). The monk-hood was that really what Aidan wanted? That seemed to be the question from the get-go. Set in ancient Ireland, almost the coming together of two different religions but not really. It seems to be made clear both main characters Aidan and Lana believe in the one God. They have different "gifts" that when utilized together are stronger than when separate. There is the selfishness of man, the greatness of man, longing and striving for what is right and good, the temptations of flesh, hatred and forgiveness, somewhat also a coming of age story, family unity and community loyalty and vikings.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This brief coming of age story offers a Celtic mix of religion and witchcraft from 10th century Ireland. Aidan, novice at the Saint Nevin Abbey, aspires to take his vows and work on illuminated texts. Since childhood he has sensed the humming of all living things and each humming has a number. Aidan has learned from experience to keep this unusual ability to himself.

Then Lana, an eleven, is brought to the abbey for punishment. Aidan is drawn to this strange creature who has a number higher than any human he has ever known. Soon enough their fates are bound together as they stand against invading Vikings.

I recommend this to teen historical fiction or fantasy readers and even adults who enjoy the Brother Cadfael series. Contains implicit sex and references to rape.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first time I read this book, I loved it. I remember gushing about how amazing it was. So I decided to reread this one. I remembered it as being amazing and wonderful, but, this second reading didn't thrill me. It's a great reminder of just how subjective reading is and how mood factors into how much a person loves a book...or not. I did like it the second time, it's not that my opinion changed completely. It's just that it was definite like and not love. I think the first time through I focused on the adventure of it--the danger of it, the Vikings. The second time I wasn't worried about that threat, and I was able to see the rest of the story, and the "romance" didn't quite work for me.

[Doris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story starts with the teenage Aidan hearing the humming of numbers. Everything has a number and the higher the number the more pure it was / is. For instance, most people have numbers in the single digits, and he has learned that certain numbers reflect certain types of people. For instance, a 7 is a leader.

Aidan is in the abbey to learn to script - to write - and longs to one day be allowed to create copies of books.

Instead, the introduction of Lara turns his world askew, and he moves out of the forefront to allow Lara to be the chief mover and shaker. They work together, eventually becoming a pair, as the Viking raiders decimate their village and only the humming of numbers and the witchcraft Lara uses can save everyone.

[Maluhia]

After seeing the lovely animated picture The Secret of Kells, I went hunting for reading material with the same flair or flavor. I came across this title, though totally unrelated to the aforementioned movie, seemed to have the same elements, (setting in Ireland, viking invasion, priest life) and what seemed to be a pretty cool premise of the main character being able to hear the 'numbers,' of people - a vibrational hum assigned a numerical equivalent. The book, despite this premise and title, has very little to do with humming numbers at all. It plods along a boring, droning pace with uninteresting characters and no 'magic' or thrill whatsoever. No interest whatsoever to read the whole thing....it was terrible. 0 stars.