What do you think?
Rate this book
Num8ers #1
Den Tod im Blick
Als kleines Kind hat Jem mit angesehen, wie ihre Mutter an einer Überdosis gestorben ist. Seitdem ist sie von einer Pflegefamilie zur anderen weitergereicht worden. Deshalb wundert es auch keinen, dass sie ruppig und kontaktscheu ist. Nicht mal in die Augen sehen kann sie einem, sagen sie in der Schule. Und das stimmt – wenn auch aus einem anderen Grund, als alle vermuten. Denn Jem hat eine besondere Gabe: Wenn sie jemandem ansieht, erscheint in ihrem Kopf eine Zahl. Es ist das Datum, an dem diese Person sterben wird.
Jem lässt niemanden an sich heran – sie weiß ja, wann der andere sterben wird ... Doch dann lernt sie den verrückten, hibbeligen Spinne kennen. Als sie Riesenrad fahren wollen, sieht Jem plötzlich, dass alle Menschen um sie herum noch am selben Tag sterben werden. Sie und Spinne rennen weg, kurz bevor die Bombe hochgeht. Und von diesem Augenblick an sind sie auf der Flucht. Denn man hat sie weglaufen sehen, und wie sollen sie erklären, warum sie von dem Attentat wussten? Die Flucht ist alles andere als romantisch, die beiden frieren und hungern. Doch auf ihrer Flucht lernen sie einander besser kennen, und Jem verliebt sich in Spinne. Damit hat sie noch ein Problem mehr, denn sie weiß, dass Spinne in wenigen Tagen sterben muss ...
368 pages, Paperback
First published November 8, 2008
686 people are currently reading
20916 people want to read
About the author
Rachel Ward
22 books671 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,770 reviews
June 16, 2011
Numbers is yet another victim of misleading marketing. Everything about this book's packaging - the cover, the blurb - screams Sci-Fi! Saving the world! Action! Angsty love! No wonder every negative review of it I've read says - Well, I expected Numbers to be this, but it turned out to be that, so I am totally disappointed.
Let me tell you what this novel actually is about. Numbers is a story of two poor, rough British kids who find themselves on the run when, thanks to Jem's ability to see every person's death date, they flee the scene of a bombing and are accused of causing it. Their flight is not necessary and maybe even stupid. But Jem and Spider are the kids of the lower class, children of addicts who maybe dabble in crime, and they do not have much faith in authorities (and rightfully so). They think that escape is their only way out. The other important driving force of the flight is Jem's knowledge that Spider's death is only mere days away. She can't allow her friend spend his last days in jail. The two are hiding and hoping for a better future for themselves.
Jem's ability has an almost allegorical meaning here. It is not a super-special world-saving power and it doesn't have much bearing on the story. This ability is more of Jem's personal burden she has to carry. It has shaped her worldview, forced her to stay away from people, to never let anyone in. What is the point of getting attached if she knows when their lives will end?
I loved almost everything about Numbers. The development of the relationship between Jem and Spider was so sincere and well done in its progression from reluctant camaraderie to genuine young love between two outcasts. I enjoyed Jem, closed out and vulnerable and funny. (Special thanks to the reader of the audio version - she was fabulous and truly brought Jem to life.) Spider is a male love interest I rarely see in YA lit - he is not particularly attractive, he is flawed, and yet infinitely caring and kind.
Finally, I appreciated the main sentiment of this story - we all are walking clocks counting down the remaining minutes, hours, days, years of our lives. Knowing that everything ends should not stop us from enjoying what we have now.
My only negative is that I wish the story was not so sad.
Let me tell you what this novel actually is about. Numbers is a story of two poor, rough British kids who find themselves on the run when, thanks to Jem's ability to see every person's death date, they flee the scene of a bombing and are accused of causing it. Their flight is not necessary and maybe even stupid. But Jem and Spider are the kids of the lower class, children of addicts who maybe dabble in crime, and they do not have much faith in authorities (and rightfully so). They think that escape is their only way out. The other important driving force of the flight is Jem's knowledge that Spider's death is only mere days away. She can't allow her friend spend his last days in jail. The two are hiding and hoping for a better future for themselves.
Jem's ability has an almost allegorical meaning here. It is not a super-special world-saving power and it doesn't have much bearing on the story. This ability is more of Jem's personal burden she has to carry. It has shaped her worldview, forced her to stay away from people, to never let anyone in. What is the point of getting attached if she knows when their lives will end?
I loved almost everything about Numbers. The development of the relationship between Jem and Spider was so sincere and well done in its progression from reluctant camaraderie to genuine young love between two outcasts. I enjoyed Jem, closed out and vulnerable and funny. (Special thanks to the reader of the audio version - she was fabulous and truly brought Jem to life.) Spider is a male love interest I rarely see in YA lit - he is not particularly attractive, he is flawed, and yet infinitely caring and kind.
Finally, I appreciated the main sentiment of this story - we all are walking clocks counting down the remaining minutes, hours, days, years of our lives. Knowing that everything ends should not stop us from enjoying what we have now.
My only negative is that I wish the story was not so sad.
December 17, 2014
Review before finishing the book:
I am so sorry to my friend who willingly spent her money just to buy me this disappointing book for Christmas. When I read the overview, I was like, "This is going to be a great book!", and so, I spent months craving for this book because I don't have the time to buy and read it, until my oh so good friend gave it to me as Christmas gift. I was so excited to read it!! but...
It.was.horrible. The plot was just so irrelevant to the supposed main idea of the book. The ending was so predictable.. Okay, start from the beginning. Jem is a troubled child under foster care who doesn't want to get emotionally attached to anyone because of her ability to see other people's death dates when she looks into their eyes, blah blah blah. Then she meets Spider, a guy who finally understands her, lets down her guard and takes a chance, blah blah blah. The back of the book was way more interesting than the story itself.
So the London Eye explodes right after they left the area (they ran away, she predicted it, obviously), so the police got suspicious and they're being hunted, accused of being terrorists. And that's where the interesting part ends. The rest of the book comprised of their runaway and hiding from authorities and civilization. It was booooring. I didn't care about the characters all that much. The only character I liked was Britney, who played a minor, short role in the book.
Personally, I was expecting something more exciting after the explosion. Like, there would be another terrorist attack, and Jem and Spider would get caught, but they found out about Jem's abilities (somehow) and she would be used to help stop the future terrorist attack. Or something. Or maybe even reveal Val to be some sort of former agent or something. ANYTHING. Anything that doesn't involve running away over and over. It was just so... repetitive. Okay, maybe I'm like this 'cause I just finished reading Eve, which was full of surprises (AWESOME BOOK). I wanted more from the story, I don't get how the rest of the events relate to her ability. I mean, it's just so pointless to have that factor in the story if the author isn't even going to make it useful. It's like.. "I can see the person's death" WOW and as the story progresses.. SO WHAT NOW??
I don't recommend this to anyone. The sort of love story part here isn't even sappy. I'm so so so so so sorry Christa!! Thank you, though!! I tried, but it was just so boring... It sucked, really. I didn't even get into the the characters.. Sooooorry. Anyway, I'm going to try to finish for the sake of finishing it.
I am so sorry to my friend who willingly spent her money just to buy me this disappointing book for Christmas. When I read the overview, I was like, "This is going to be a great book!", and so, I spent months craving for this book because I don't have the time to buy and read it, until my oh so good friend gave it to me as Christmas gift. I was so excited to read it!! but...
It.was.horrible. The plot was just so irrelevant to the supposed main idea of the book. The ending was so predictable.. Okay, start from the beginning. Jem is a troubled child under foster care who doesn't want to get emotionally attached to anyone because of her ability to see other people's death dates when she looks into their eyes, blah blah blah. Then she meets Spider, a guy who finally understands her, lets down her guard and takes a chance, blah blah blah. The back of the book was way more interesting than the story itself.
So the London Eye explodes right after they left the area (they ran away, she predicted it, obviously), so the police got suspicious and they're being hunted, accused of being terrorists. And that's where the interesting part ends. The rest of the book comprised of their runaway and hiding from authorities and civilization. It was booooring. I didn't care about the characters all that much. The only character I liked was Britney, who played a minor, short role in the book.
Personally, I was expecting something more exciting after the explosion. Like, there would be another terrorist attack, and Jem and Spider would get caught, but they found out about Jem's abilities (somehow) and she would be used to help stop the future terrorist attack. Or something. Or maybe even reveal Val to be some sort of former agent or something. ANYTHING. Anything that doesn't involve running away over and over. It was just so... repetitive. Okay, maybe I'm like this 'cause I just finished reading Eve, which was full of surprises (AWESOME BOOK). I wanted more from the story, I don't get how the rest of the events relate to her ability. I mean, it's just so pointless to have that factor in the story if the author isn't even going to make it useful. It's like.. "I can see the person's death" WOW and as the story progresses.. SO WHAT NOW??
I don't recommend this to anyone. The sort of love story part here isn't even sappy. I'm so so so so so sorry Christa!! Thank you, though!! I tried, but it was just so boring... It sucked, really. I didn't even get into the the characters.. Sooooorry. Anyway, I'm going to try to finish for the sake of finishing it.
June 16, 2011
I was pleasantly suprised by this book, I really liked the story and the exploration of the underclasses and labelling in society. The questions asked about the current justice system in Britain and whether or not the police are simply looking for a likely candidate to blame, are often a question faced in reality. The exploration of racial issues also gives insight into a dark world where the police see a black boy (or girl, but less so) automatically as a criminal or at least a suspect.
The plot intrigued me as soon as I heard of it. The protagonist, Jem, has been able to see the numbers all her life, as soon as she looks into someone's eyes, she knows the date they will die. The numbers have always been absolute and unchanging. But one day she sees the exact same numbers on everyone waiting in the London Eye queue and flees, knowing the tragic fate of the passengers. The Eye becomes subject to a terrorist attack and the only CCTV footage shows Jem and her friend Spider running away from the scene. Instant suspects, the two attempt an escape, heading for a seaside town of Spider's childhood.
The story idea was very good, it seemed fairly original to me unless someone better-read would like to correct me. The focus on the lower working class was insightful but, most likely, exaggerated. I find it stereotypical of the author to paint every one as a drug-dealer or criminal of some kind, all with a low life expectancy to go with it. Some of it may be an accurate depiction of the struggles faced when you aren't born into wealth and opportunity but I grew up in a very mixed-class English town and the only difference between those defined as 'working class' and 'middle class' was their income. Neither were criminals, neither lacked education or ambition.
The race issue, however, can still happen and the author made her point very effectively by the way that the police assume without question that Spider must be a criminal.
The love story is something I didn't expect and when it first happened I didn't expect to get into it either. Actually, I became rather absorbed. Jem is such a strong character, I like how she is the one to pull Spider out of the river instead of waiting for him to come to her rescue (Twilight, anyone?); and how the two are partners, equally helping each other and sharing one another's strengths and weaknesses - there is no damsel, no knight in shining armour, they are both equals who have been labelled by society since they were young kids.
The ending, well the bit just before the ending, made me cry. I felt unexpected emotion for the characters and was left with no doubt as to whether I would read Numbers #2. And even if that bit before the ending hadn't been enough, the very last line would have been the cliffhanger to seal the deal. I was very impressed.
The plot intrigued me as soon as I heard of it. The protagonist, Jem, has been able to see the numbers all her life, as soon as she looks into someone's eyes, she knows the date they will die. The numbers have always been absolute and unchanging. But one day she sees the exact same numbers on everyone waiting in the London Eye queue and flees, knowing the tragic fate of the passengers. The Eye becomes subject to a terrorist attack and the only CCTV footage shows Jem and her friend Spider running away from the scene. Instant suspects, the two attempt an escape, heading for a seaside town of Spider's childhood.
The story idea was very good, it seemed fairly original to me unless someone better-read would like to correct me. The focus on the lower working class was insightful but, most likely, exaggerated. I find it stereotypical of the author to paint every one as a drug-dealer or criminal of some kind, all with a low life expectancy to go with it. Some of it may be an accurate depiction of the struggles faced when you aren't born into wealth and opportunity but I grew up in a very mixed-class English town and the only difference between those defined as 'working class' and 'middle class' was their income. Neither were criminals, neither lacked education or ambition.
The race issue, however, can still happen and the author made her point very effectively by the way that the police assume without question that Spider must be a criminal.
The love story is something I didn't expect and when it first happened I didn't expect to get into it either. Actually, I became rather absorbed. Jem is such a strong character, I like how she is the one to pull Spider out of the river instead of waiting for him to come to her rescue (Twilight, anyone?); and how the two are partners, equally helping each other and sharing one another's strengths and weaknesses - there is no damsel, no knight in shining armour, they are both equals who have been labelled by society since they were young kids.
The ending, well the bit just before the ending, made me cry. I felt unexpected emotion for the characters and was left with no doubt as to whether I would read Numbers #2. And even if that bit before the ending hadn't been enough, the very last line would have been the cliffhanger to seal the deal. I was very impressed.
January 24, 2012
Reading this book was agonising.
I wanted to like it so much. Jem’s ability is great. The message of the novel is interesting. The concept holds so much promise, but gets seriously bungled up due to the shoddy writing, silly characters and insipid plot.
I didn’t like the writing—it felt kind of messy to me. In my opinion, the story is told in a very dull way. I don’t know, it had the potential to be interesting, but it fell flat in that area.
And the characters! They are such complete idiots! Jem is such a frustrating protagonist. The whole ‘bitter’ thing is understandable, given her sad history, but after a while it gets kind of annoying. There were a few moments in which I actually liked Spider, but overall he’s pretty irritating too (or maybe I’m just an irritable person?).
The decisions the characters make are just so incredibly stupid. Neither Jem nor Spider seem to have the ability to think things through rationally so they just rush headlong into disaster. They don’t even seem to THINK before making rash decisions (like fleeing from the police for no reason, or having unprotected sex…). There are consequences for your actions!
Practically the whole plot is based on their stupidity. Seriously—why did they flee? WHY? If they had acted sensibly, the whole mess would have been wrapped up without so much hassle. Yes, I get that they have issues with the social system. I get that they mistrust the authorities. But honestly, going on the run? Who does that? What does it solve? Their actions just… defy logic.
I will admit that I only skimmed the last fifty pages. And, er, wow. That ending with Spider… it’s ludicrous. If it was intended to be shocking or sad, it failed epically in those departments.
So overall: I really don’t like this book. What a waste of a good concept. (And apparently, it’s a series! Haha… no way.)
I wanted to like it so much. Jem’s ability is great. The message of the novel is interesting. The concept holds so much promise, but gets seriously bungled up due to the shoddy writing, silly characters and insipid plot.
I didn’t like the writing—it felt kind of messy to me. In my opinion, the story is told in a very dull way. I don’t know, it had the potential to be interesting, but it fell flat in that area.
And the characters! They are such complete idiots! Jem is such a frustrating protagonist. The whole ‘bitter’ thing is understandable, given her sad history, but after a while it gets kind of annoying. There were a few moments in which I actually liked Spider, but overall he’s pretty irritating too (or maybe I’m just an irritable person?).
The decisions the characters make are just so incredibly stupid. Neither Jem nor Spider seem to have the ability to think things through rationally so they just rush headlong into disaster. They don’t even seem to THINK before making rash decisions (like fleeing from the police for no reason, or having unprotected sex…). There are consequences for your actions!
Practically the whole plot is based on their stupidity. Seriously—why did they flee? WHY? If they had acted sensibly, the whole mess would have been wrapped up without so much hassle. Yes, I get that they have issues with the social system. I get that they mistrust the authorities. But honestly, going on the run? Who does that? What does it solve? Their actions just… defy logic.
I will admit that I only skimmed the last fifty pages. And, er, wow. That ending with Spider… it’s ludicrous. If it was intended to be shocking or sad, it failed epically in those departments.
So overall: I really don’t like this book. What a waste of a good concept. (And apparently, it’s a series! Haha… no way.)
September 29, 2023
Review redacted.
August 23, 2010
Rachel Ward has written a really dirty and gritty novel here, one that will stick with me for a while...the ending was packed with a very sad punch...and the last few sentences really left me wanting Numbers 2, The Chaos!
So while, I was sure in the beginning this novel was NOT one I would like, thinking I would never finish it, in the end it's a 4 mushroom book for me! A book that reminded me that, while it might take a while, you need to give a book a chance...it just might turn out to be something you adore!
This book also carries with it a strong message, everyone dies, that's a fact...but it's not how you die, or the date of your death that matters –it's who you are UNTIL that day! Like the quote:
Dance like nobody's watching; love like you've never been hurt. Sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth. ~ Mark Twain
Bottom line – the beginning is a tough ride, but I urge you to hang on...the last half makes up for it, and Jem grows on you more than you ever think she ever could! 4 mushrooms!
Read my rull review - Numbers
So while, I was sure in the beginning this novel was NOT one I would like, thinking I would never finish it, in the end it's a 4 mushroom book for me! A book that reminded me that, while it might take a while, you need to give a book a chance...it just might turn out to be something you adore!
This book also carries with it a strong message, everyone dies, that's a fact...but it's not how you die, or the date of your death that matters –it's who you are UNTIL that day! Like the quote:
Dance like nobody's watching; love like you've never been hurt. Sing like nobody's listening; live like it's heaven on earth. ~ Mark Twain
Bottom line – the beginning is a tough ride, but I urge you to hang on...the last half makes up for it, and Jem grows on you more than you ever think she ever could! 4 mushrooms!
Read my rull review - Numbers
March 17, 2011
I was on the fence about this one. If I could, I would definitely give 1 and 1/2 star rating. But only because I wanted to see how this author could possibly ruin a completely awesome idea some more. It had promise and then she whisked it away.
I stayed up to finish this until the wee hours of the morning and have to say that I was pludging on because I not only wanted to see how it ended, but because I wanted to see how the predictable, but sad ending was said and laid out to me.
Mind you, I read the description here on goodreads.com and ventured a guess that this was going to be awesome. I was sorely mistaken.
I ended up reading the inside cover, describing what the book is about, which I usually yield from doing because sometimes it ruins the book completely. I shouldn't have done that either.
Both of them got my hopes up and I was truly disappointed with this book. I surely thought that this was going to go a different route. One, I did not know it was mainly going to be placed in London, I thought it was just a trip that Jem went on. Two, the second main character's name is Spider. C'mon. Three, there was just so much that Rachel Ward could have done better with this book!!! Four, I knew the ending. Totally predictable, almost to the point that I did not want to finish reading it, but was curious to see the name she would pick. Sorry if that gave it away.
So for a scrawny, white fifteen girl old year who sees numbers, which is the date you will die, she ends up getting all of the walls she put up knocked down by a 6'4 black teenager (?) that just can't sit still. Total opposites attract here. Not saying interracial relationships are bad!!! I'm just saying their backgrounds, and personalities did NOT mesh together or go together. But whatever.
They end up being chased after a terrorist bombing explodes at the Eye of London. They are seen running from the scene because Jem sees the date flash in everyone's eyes, which then ensues the high speed race, sometimes on foot and other times in a car, across all of England.
The miraculous part is that Tattoo Face finds them just so easily, and the police and all of England have no clue, only suspicions. Totally idiotic.
And then the side remarks about Val, Terry/Spider's nan, can see auras, but only after losing her husband. What? Ok, just throw that curveball in there. Glad Jem can relate to someone....other than Spider, who I did not like at all. I just could not even fathom liking him. Too erratic and too spastic to even make me see straight.
I guess overall, this was not the book for me. I thought that once she confessed to someone, particularly Spider, that he would turn her in, Jem would be sent to the FBI/CIA or what have you in London, England and she would turn into this awesome spy or something of that sort.
Not her getting pregnant with Spider's baby, having a mental breakdown, Spider dying, and Jem being totally uncontrollable with the loss of the only friend and person she truly loved and ever known. Dumb Dumb Dumb. Saw him falling from a mile away! And why was he the only one on that roof? No one else made it past the four locked doors? C'mon. And her losing sight of her numbers while pregnant? Man, she should've gotten knocked up a long time ago! And that whole stint with the daughter of the police officer? OMG! Could you get any more side tracked with what your book is about?! It's called numbers for gosh sakes! Stick with it! Ward's tangents were just too much and the concept was cool, but the execution was horribly planned to tell the tale.
I'm surprised someone actualy published this.
I expected more. I wanted more. But it was not delivered. I won't even bother picking the next one in the series. I don't care to learn what happens to Adam. No interest for me!
I stayed up to finish this until the wee hours of the morning and have to say that I was pludging on because I not only wanted to see how it ended, but because I wanted to see how the predictable, but sad ending was said and laid out to me.
Mind you, I read the description here on goodreads.com and ventured a guess that this was going to be awesome. I was sorely mistaken.
I ended up reading the inside cover, describing what the book is about, which I usually yield from doing because sometimes it ruins the book completely. I shouldn't have done that either.
Both of them got my hopes up and I was truly disappointed with this book. I surely thought that this was going to go a different route. One, I did not know it was mainly going to be placed in London, I thought it was just a trip that Jem went on. Two, the second main character's name is Spider. C'mon. Three, there was just so much that Rachel Ward could have done better with this book!!! Four, I knew the ending. Totally predictable, almost to the point that I did not want to finish reading it, but was curious to see the name she would pick. Sorry if that gave it away.
So for a scrawny, white fifteen girl old year who sees numbers, which is the date you will die, she ends up getting all of the walls she put up knocked down by a 6'4 black teenager (?) that just can't sit still. Total opposites attract here. Not saying interracial relationships are bad!!! I'm just saying their backgrounds, and personalities did NOT mesh together or go together. But whatever.
They end up being chased after a terrorist bombing explodes at the Eye of London. They are seen running from the scene because Jem sees the date flash in everyone's eyes, which then ensues the high speed race, sometimes on foot and other times in a car, across all of England.
The miraculous part is that Tattoo Face finds them just so easily, and the police and all of England have no clue, only suspicions. Totally idiotic.
And then the side remarks about Val, Terry/Spider's nan, can see auras, but only after losing her husband. What? Ok, just throw that curveball in there. Glad Jem can relate to someone....other than Spider, who I did not like at all. I just could not even fathom liking him. Too erratic and too spastic to even make me see straight.
I guess overall, this was not the book for me. I thought that once she confessed to someone, particularly Spider, that he would turn her in, Jem would be sent to the FBI/CIA or what have you in London, England and she would turn into this awesome spy or something of that sort.
Not her getting pregnant with Spider's baby, having a mental breakdown, Spider dying, and Jem being totally uncontrollable with the loss of the only friend and person she truly loved and ever known. Dumb Dumb Dumb. Saw him falling from a mile away! And why was he the only one on that roof? No one else made it past the four locked doors? C'mon. And her losing sight of her numbers while pregnant? Man, she should've gotten knocked up a long time ago! And that whole stint with the daughter of the police officer? OMG! Could you get any more side tracked with what your book is about?! It's called numbers for gosh sakes! Stick with it! Ward's tangents were just too much and the concept was cool, but the execution was horribly planned to tell the tale.
I'm surprised someone actualy published this.
I expected more. I wanted more. But it was not delivered. I won't even bother picking the next one in the series. I don't care to learn what happens to Adam. No interest for me!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 17, 2013
Jem has an unusual gift--when she looks people in the eye, a set of numbers pops into her head. When she was younger, she thought nothing of this. However, when her mother dies of an overdose, the numbers suddenly make sense to 6 year old Jem: the numbers are the month, day, and year on which the person in question will die.
Now 15 years old, Jem has lived a tough life in inner-city London. Shuffled from foster home to foster home and understandably withdrawn and guarded because of her secret, Jem keeps to herself and avoids making contact with anyone else. Kind of tough to make friends when every time you look at them you’re reminded of the date they’re going to kick it, right? All of this changes for Jem when she meets Spider, an energetic boy from the wrong side of the tracks who forces his way into Jem’s life. The problem? Jem knows that Spider will die in two weeks unless she figures out how to manipulate the numbers. Things don’t get any easier for the two when they are spotted fleeing the scene moments before a terrorist attack on the London Eye. Now on the run, time and fate seem to be forcing Jem and Spider into dangerous situations that will surely result in Spider’s rapidly approaching expiration date.
I really enjoyed that Rachel Ward took some risks in this young adult novel. These are not the spoiled, beautiful teenagers that populate so much of this genre today. Life for Jem and Spider is grim and gritty, a lifetime of disappointment and failure all mapped out for them as victims of cyclical poverty and its associated pitfalls. They’ve both been in trouble with the law, and the reader can see how their inherent distrust of a system whose deck seems to be stacked against them leads to one poor decision after another. They’re also both stubbornly obtuse to the fact that they are as much perpetrator as victim in the downward spiral that is their lives.
The one fault that consistently nagged at me was that Jem’s gift is forgotten for entire chapters and seems almost secondary once the characters are on the run. From that point on, it’s a typical chase narrative with Jem and Spider struggling to stay ahead of the mounting manhunt. I was just expecting a little more of the plot to hinge upon Jem’s ability and was disappointed when it didn’t. If I had such a power, I would seriously be messing with some people’s heads. However, because of its strong characterization and one hell of an ending, I enjoyed it enough to give the sequel a shot when it becomes available.
Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder
Now 15 years old, Jem has lived a tough life in inner-city London. Shuffled from foster home to foster home and understandably withdrawn and guarded because of her secret, Jem keeps to herself and avoids making contact with anyone else. Kind of tough to make friends when every time you look at them you’re reminded of the date they’re going to kick it, right? All of this changes for Jem when she meets Spider, an energetic boy from the wrong side of the tracks who forces his way into Jem’s life. The problem? Jem knows that Spider will die in two weeks unless she figures out how to manipulate the numbers. Things don’t get any easier for the two when they are spotted fleeing the scene moments before a terrorist attack on the London Eye. Now on the run, time and fate seem to be forcing Jem and Spider into dangerous situations that will surely result in Spider’s rapidly approaching expiration date.
I really enjoyed that Rachel Ward took some risks in this young adult novel. These are not the spoiled, beautiful teenagers that populate so much of this genre today. Life for Jem and Spider is grim and gritty, a lifetime of disappointment and failure all mapped out for them as victims of cyclical poverty and its associated pitfalls. They’ve both been in trouble with the law, and the reader can see how their inherent distrust of a system whose deck seems to be stacked against them leads to one poor decision after another. They’re also both stubbornly obtuse to the fact that they are as much perpetrator as victim in the downward spiral that is their lives.
The one fault that consistently nagged at me was that Jem’s gift is forgotten for entire chapters and seems almost secondary once the characters are on the run. From that point on, it’s a typical chase narrative with Jem and Spider struggling to stay ahead of the mounting manhunt. I was just expecting a little more of the plot to hinge upon Jem’s ability and was disappointed when it didn’t. If I had such a power, I would seriously be messing with some people’s heads. However, because of its strong characterization and one hell of an ending, I enjoyed it enough to give the sequel a shot when it becomes available.
Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder
June 3, 2011
Okay, so, usually, I try to be nice about reviewing a book, because writing a novel is hard, but I did not like Numbers. Like, at all.
I thought it was a really cool idea, that Jem could see the date of people's deaths, but I feel like that wasn't really the most important part of the plot.
It was like, "hey, this girl and her boyfriend are on the run from the police, even though they really didn't do anything wrong, but since they were suspiciously running from the scene before a terrorist attack and then were suspiciously running from the police when they were looking for them, they are now thought to be terrorists. Stupid society. Oh, by the way, whenever the girl sees someone's eyes, she says the date of when they will die."
And so there was really no point of the seeing date thing at all. The author could have done the same story without it. I mean, they wouldn't have been running if she hadn't seen the dates, but there could have been a different reason they came up with.
The other thing that bothered me" WHY could she see the DOD? I mean, don't go all, "There doesn't NEED to be a reason, it's fiction," on me, because, yes there does need to be a reason. Why can Harry preform magic? He's a wizard! Why do the X-Men have crazy powers? They're mutants! Why can Percy do all that stuff he does? He's like a demi-god, or whatever. (I'm running out of examples, but you know what I mean.) So I'm expected to believe that Jem was just born with this random ability that has no real purpose in the story?
Also, I didn't like the characters. They were dumb, and I din't feel bad for them at all. :/
I thought it was a really cool idea, that Jem could see the date of people's deaths, but I feel like that wasn't really the most important part of the plot.
It was like, "hey, this girl and her boyfriend are on the run from the police, even though they really didn't do anything wrong, but since they were suspiciously running from the scene before a terrorist attack and then were suspiciously running from the police when they were looking for them, they are now thought to be terrorists. Stupid society. Oh, by the way, whenever the girl sees someone's eyes, she says the date of when they will die."
And so there was really no point of the seeing date thing at all. The author could have done the same story without it. I mean, they wouldn't have been running if she hadn't seen the dates, but there could have been a different reason they came up with.
The other thing that bothered me" WHY could she see the DOD? I mean, don't go all, "There doesn't NEED to be a reason, it's fiction," on me, because, yes there does need to be a reason. Why can Harry preform magic? He's a wizard! Why do the X-Men have crazy powers? They're mutants! Why can Percy do all that stuff he does? He's like a demi-god, or whatever. (I'm running out of examples, but you know what I mean.) So I'm expected to believe that Jem was just born with this random ability that has no real purpose in the story?
Also, I didn't like the characters. They were dumb, and I din't feel bad for them at all. :/
December 29, 2021
This book is about a teenage girl that can see everyone's death date. She is having a tough time dealing with this power.
I have read reviews on this site where people were disappointed in this book because it isn't what they thought it would be. It is a fair point. The title, the cover, and the blurb suggests that this book would be a science fiction novel. It isn't. It is more a YA book. The science fiction aspect with her seeing numbers is just a minor catalyst that really doesn't add anything to this book. It's resolution is so anticlimactic and is very disappointing. Instead, this book is about teenager angst, finding one's self when that person feels all alone, and survivor's guilt. The author has good ideas but I wish she could have incorporated the science fiction element a little more. The one aspect I did like was the voice of the main character. I had a good sense of what she was feeling. I did think her journey at the end was a little rushed though.
This wasn't a badly written book. False advertising might be too strong but I did have a misconception of what this book was about. This did affect my enjoyment. If I was expecting a melodrama I might have enjoyed this book a little more. The book ended with a tease for a sequel which there is one. I might check it out one day since I now know what to expect.
I have read reviews on this site where people were disappointed in this book because it isn't what they thought it would be. It is a fair point. The title, the cover, and the blurb suggests that this book would be a science fiction novel. It isn't. It is more a YA book. The science fiction aspect with her seeing numbers is just a minor catalyst that really doesn't add anything to this book. It's resolution is so anticlimactic and is very disappointing. Instead, this book is about teenager angst, finding one's self when that person feels all alone, and survivor's guilt. The author has good ideas but I wish she could have incorporated the science fiction element a little more. The one aspect I did like was the voice of the main character. I had a good sense of what she was feeling. I did think her journey at the end was a little rushed though.
This wasn't a badly written book. False advertising might be too strong but I did have a misconception of what this book was about. This did affect my enjoyment. If I was expecting a melodrama I might have enjoyed this book a little more. The book ended with a tease for a sequel which there is one. I might check it out one day since I now know what to expect.
June 28, 2010
I've been going back and forth on how I wanted to rate this book, and I'm still not sure it's worth a full three stars, but that's what it's going to get from me at least for right now. I guess I was expecting something more… maybe different from Numbers by Rachel Ward. It wasn't really creepy, dramatic, suspenseful nor intriguing at any grand or significant scale. The story just shifted my suspended reality from here to there with no consistent path or flow, but I never really lost interest, so I guess it worked out okay.
The story is about Jem, a fifteen year old girl who's been tossed back and forth in the foster care system after the death of her mother, which I believe was around the age of 4 or 5, not 100% sure, but she was young. Anywho, the creepy, well not really creepy, but unique thing about Jem is that she can read peoples' numbers when she looks into their eyes. Those numbers reveal the date of the person's death with an uncanny accuracy. So, Jem never really forges any relationships with people for fear of what she'll learn about them. This all changes when she meets Spider, a boy that somehow captures her attention and begins to make her feel emotions she doesn't quite know what to do with. The story takes off, well not really takes off, but progresses, not that either, but you get it, when Jem and Spider are at the London Eye and Jem notices the people around her at the station share the same number. Predicting something is about to happen, her and Spider take off before a b0mb eventually detonates. Jem and Spider are caught on camera fleeing the scene and making them potential suspects. Lots of other stuff happens, but not really.
There were a couple things to note about this book. One, Jem and Spider are both fifteen and the author detailed an event that I didn't think she needed to describe so vividly considering the age of the two characters. Not going to say much about it, just that yes I know that stuff happens, but does it really need to be spelled out and gloried? I'm not passionate enough about what she wrote to take a stance one way or the other, just simply surprised that she did… that's all I'm saying about that. Second, the last few sentences really gave me cause to screech WHOA, but after 300 pages or so of bland, her final wow factor seemed a little late in coming. Lastly, the language is really foul, but I wasn't too vested into the story to care too much, so I just wanted to simply mention… the language is foul. That's all.
Overall, just an okay read that really had a ton more potential that I don’t think the author took advantage of. I guess if this story really grabbed my interest and the characters moved me to compassion, I'd have written a better review, but not really, so I"ll just blame my crappy review on the June gloom here in Cali...
The story is about Jem, a fifteen year old girl who's been tossed back and forth in the foster care system after the death of her mother, which I believe was around the age of 4 or 5, not 100% sure, but she was young. Anywho, the creepy, well not really creepy, but unique thing about Jem is that she can read peoples' numbers when she looks into their eyes. Those numbers reveal the date of the person's death with an uncanny accuracy. So, Jem never really forges any relationships with people for fear of what she'll learn about them. This all changes when she meets Spider, a boy that somehow captures her attention and begins to make her feel emotions she doesn't quite know what to do with. The story takes off, well not really takes off, but progresses, not that either, but you get it, when Jem and Spider are at the London Eye and Jem notices the people around her at the station share the same number. Predicting something is about to happen, her and Spider take off before a b0mb eventually detonates. Jem and Spider are caught on camera fleeing the scene and making them potential suspects. Lots of other stuff happens, but not really.
There were a couple things to note about this book. One, Jem and Spider are both fifteen and the author detailed an event that I didn't think she needed to describe so vividly considering the age of the two characters. Not going to say much about it, just that yes I know that stuff happens, but does it really need to be spelled out and gloried? I'm not passionate enough about what she wrote to take a stance one way or the other, just simply surprised that she did… that's all I'm saying about that. Second, the last few sentences really gave me cause to screech WHOA, but after 300 pages or so of bland, her final wow factor seemed a little late in coming. Lastly, the language is really foul, but I wasn't too vested into the story to care too much, so I just wanted to simply mention… the language is foul. That's all.
Overall, just an okay read that really had a ton more potential that I don’t think the author took advantage of. I guess if this story really grabbed my interest and the characters moved me to compassion, I'd have written a better review, but not really, so I"ll just blame my crappy review on the June gloom here in Cali...
August 22, 2020
Dacă ai ști când vor muri cei din jurul tău, le-ai spune? Dar tu ai vrea să ți se spună?
Jem este o adolescentă de 15 ani, care și-a petrecut mare parte din viață plimbându-se prin centre maternale. Nu și-a cunoscut niciodată tatăl, iar în puținii ani petrecuți cu mama sa până când aceasta a murit din cauza unei supradoze a avut parte de mizerie, răceală și sărăcie. Pe lângă faptul că nu a avut parte niciodată de căldura unui cămin și dragostea unei familii, Jem este împovărată de un ,,dar'': când privește un om în ochi, îi vede data morții. Prima dată când și-a dat seama ce înseamnă acele numere a fost când mama ei a murit în ziua care îi apăruse în minte de câte ori o vedea. De-atunci a evitat contactul cu oamenii și a stat cât mai retrasă pentru a nu fi nevoită să afle când va fi sfârșitul fiecăruia. Asta până când îl cunoaște pe Spider, un coleg de școală care intră mereu în probleme și este certat cu legea. Amândoi se schimbă când sunt împreună și își lasă fricile deoparte, dar asta nu poate dura prea mult pentru că ea știe. Știe că Spider va muri în doar câteva luni și nu poate schimba asta. Sau poate? Dacă ea nu ar mai fi, poate că și numerele ar dispărea. Poate că acestea există doar pentru că le vede cineva, iar dacă ea nu le-ar mai vedea, cronometrul vieții lui ar fi restartat și l-ar putea salva.
De parcă această grijă nu ar fi fost destul de mare, Jem este acum nevoită să fugă cu Spider de autorități după ce au fost văzuți fugind de la locul unei explozii chiar înainte de a se produce. Ea citise înainte în privirea oamenilor de-acolo că vor muri în acea zi și și-a dat seama că urmează să se întâmple ceva. Dar cum să explice adevărul cuiva? Nu le rămâne decât să plece de-acasă. Doi copii fără bani, fără niciun ajutor sau adăpost, cu o țară pe urmele lor, într-o cursă periculoasă cu un final imprevizibil.
Numere este o combinație interesantă de thriller și fantasy, cu mențiunea că o recomand adolescenților, deoarece unui adult i s-ar putea părea prea simplă și poate chiar puerilă.
,,Nu aveai cum să scapi de moarte: în cele din urmă, ne înhață pe toți.'' (pag. 167)
,,Nu e ușor să mergi mai departe când furia din tine este singurul lucru care te ține pe linia de plutire.'' (pag. 170)
,,Oamenii, adunați laolaltă, sunt periculoși.'' (pag. 179)
Jem este o adolescentă de 15 ani, care și-a petrecut mare parte din viață plimbându-se prin centre maternale. Nu și-a cunoscut niciodată tatăl, iar în puținii ani petrecuți cu mama sa până când aceasta a murit din cauza unei supradoze a avut parte de mizerie, răceală și sărăcie. Pe lângă faptul că nu a avut parte niciodată de căldura unui cămin și dragostea unei familii, Jem este împovărată de un ,,dar'': când privește un om în ochi, îi vede data morții. Prima dată când și-a dat seama ce înseamnă acele numere a fost când mama ei a murit în ziua care îi apăruse în minte de câte ori o vedea. De-atunci a evitat contactul cu oamenii și a stat cât mai retrasă pentru a nu fi nevoită să afle când va fi sfârșitul fiecăruia. Asta până când îl cunoaște pe Spider, un coleg de școală care intră mereu în probleme și este certat cu legea. Amândoi se schimbă când sunt împreună și își lasă fricile deoparte, dar asta nu poate dura prea mult pentru că ea știe. Știe că Spider va muri în doar câteva luni și nu poate schimba asta. Sau poate? Dacă ea nu ar mai fi, poate că și numerele ar dispărea. Poate că acestea există doar pentru că le vede cineva, iar dacă ea nu le-ar mai vedea, cronometrul vieții lui ar fi restartat și l-ar putea salva.
De parcă această grijă nu ar fi fost destul de mare, Jem este acum nevoită să fugă cu Spider de autorități după ce au fost văzuți fugind de la locul unei explozii chiar înainte de a se produce. Ea citise înainte în privirea oamenilor de-acolo că vor muri în acea zi și și-a dat seama că urmează să se întâmple ceva. Dar cum să explice adevărul cuiva? Nu le rămâne decât să plece de-acasă. Doi copii fără bani, fără niciun ajutor sau adăpost, cu o țară pe urmele lor, într-o cursă periculoasă cu un final imprevizibil.
Numere este o combinație interesantă de thriller și fantasy, cu mențiunea că o recomand adolescenților, deoarece unui adult i s-ar putea părea prea simplă și poate chiar puerilă.
,,Nu aveai cum să scapi de moarte: în cele din urmă, ne înhață pe toți.'' (pag. 167)
,,Nu e ușor să mergi mai departe când furia din tine este singurul lucru care te ține pe linia de plutire.'' (pag. 170)
,,Oamenii, adunați laolaltă, sunt periculoși.'' (pag. 179)
August 1, 2011
Loved it! Numbers is the story of Jem; a fifteen year old girl who has spent over half her life orphaned and bounced from family to family in the foster care system. Therefore, it almost goes without saying that she is a troubled girl with issues a plenty. In addition to the crap load of, well crap life has piled on her; Jem sees a number whenever she looks someone in the eye. That number is always there, always the same, and it is the date that person will die. As a result, Jem grows up learning to avoid looking anyone in the eye, shuns friendships and attachments, and barely skates by in school. Her philosophy is you’re born, shit happens, you die. Everything is random; nothing is for a reason or has a real purpose. How can she think otherwise when she knows someone’s death date has been predetermined from the moment they are born?
Regarding the numbers Jem sees, I think a case can be made for the numbers being real as well as it all being a figment of her imagination. Jem has always seen the numbers, but she didn’t figure out what they are all about until she discovered the body of her junkie mother. Suddenly, six (or seven?) year old Jem is alone and sees death everywhere, in the eyes of everyone she sees. Under ordinary circumstances, facing death at a young age (let alone something as traumatic as Jem’s experience) is going to influence a person. So, considering what has happened to her, it it any surprise that Jem turns out to be an antisocial loner obsessed with death? Under the disguise of mental illness, Jem may be a very perceptive girl who is able to sense when someone has an illness, or when someone is living a life so dangerous that it will be ended before their due time. I hate to play the “hysterical female” card but if Jem has a sense that Person X will die today, and they do, does that make her prophetic? Or it is a coincidence? Perhaps she has had that sense about others, yet they lived so we are not privy to those experiences? I should probably stop this line of thinking in this review though, because it is fairly clear that author Rachel Ward intended for Jem’s numbers to be real. However, what added to my enjoyment of Numbers is the fact that they could also be explained away by life circumstances, mental illness and stress. I can’t help thinking of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake and Madapple, both of which drew a fine line between reality, magic/paranormal, and mental illness.
As so many people have mentioned, this isn’t the sci-fi story it is marketed as. It is a fast moving, engrossing and plot driven book. It is also a very sweet story of friendship and growing up. Numbers completely captivated me from beginning to end. Admittedly, we are thrown a pretty big teaser early on and I have no impulse control. None whatsoever. Needing to know what will happen next was a large part of my drive to finish this so quickly. Even so, I look forward to reading this again, and seeing if the story is just as compelling the second time around (although I have a feeling it will be.) The ending is one of the best I’ve read. It left me with a punched in the gut feeling, and good or bad, it’s hard not to appreciate a story which makes the reader to feel anything so profoundly.
Regarding the numbers Jem sees, I think a case can be made for the numbers being real as well as it all being a figment of her imagination. Jem has always seen the numbers, but she didn’t figure out what they are all about until she discovered the body of her junkie mother. Suddenly, six (or seven?) year old Jem is alone and sees death everywhere, in the eyes of everyone she sees. Under ordinary circumstances, facing death at a young age (let alone something as traumatic as Jem’s experience) is going to influence a person. So, considering what has happened to her, it it any surprise that Jem turns out to be an antisocial loner obsessed with death? Under the disguise of mental illness, Jem may be a very perceptive girl who is able to sense when someone has an illness, or when someone is living a life so dangerous that it will be ended before their due time. I hate to play the “hysterical female” card but if Jem has a sense that Person X will die today, and they do, does that make her prophetic? Or it is a coincidence? Perhaps she has had that sense about others, yet they lived so we are not privy to those experiences? I should probably stop this line of thinking in this review though, because it is fairly clear that author Rachel Ward intended for Jem’s numbers to be real. However, what added to my enjoyment of Numbers is the fact that they could also be explained away by life circumstances, mental illness and stress. I can’t help thinking of The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake and Madapple, both of which drew a fine line between reality, magic/paranormal, and mental illness.
As so many people have mentioned, this isn’t the sci-fi story it is marketed as. It is a fast moving, engrossing and plot driven book. It is also a very sweet story of friendship and growing up. Numbers completely captivated me from beginning to end. Admittedly, we are thrown a pretty big teaser early on and I have no impulse control. None whatsoever. Needing to know what will happen next was a large part of my drive to finish this so quickly. Even so, I look forward to reading this again, and seeing if the story is just as compelling the second time around (although I have a feeling it will be.) The ending is one of the best I’ve read. It left me with a punched in the gut feeling, and good or bad, it’s hard not to appreciate a story which makes the reader to feel anything so profoundly.
April 13, 2017
Numbers ha resultado toda una sorpresa para mí, esperando cualquier cosa ha resultado ser una magnífica lectura consiguiendo engancharme de una forma que hacia mucho no me pasaba.
La edición es como la de cualquiera de este tipo de ediciones, normalita, pero cuenta con un pequeño detalle antes del comienzo de algunos capítulos, y es que en los márgenes de la hoja aparece una secuencia de números que le dan un toque diferente. Además, la portada aunque sencilla me gusta mucho más que el de la edición inglesa que a mi parecer es horrible y el título es muy acertado con él puedes saber todo sin apenas saber nada.
La historia tiene como eje central el extraño don de Jem de ver las fechas de la muerte de los demás pero solo es el tema que desencadenada todos los acontecimientos que van a tener que sobrellevar Jem y Spider. Huidas y persecuciones, descubrirse a uno mismo, sentir el amor y un gran dilema moral del que es complicado librarse, son algunas de los elementos que nos vamos a encontrar.
Y es que es difícil saber qué hacer cuando sabes que la persona que está a tu lado le queda poco tiempo ¿Se lo debería de decir o eso solo empeoraría la situación? La protagonista tiene que lidiar con estas preguntas y muchas otras que no paran de rondarle por la cabeza, su poder podría ayudar pero también destruir y hacer enloquecer a aquella persona que posea dicha información. Las reflexiones de Jem me han agradado, son profundas y te hacen pensar que harías tú estando en su lugar, o si a ti te gustaría saber la fecha de tu muerte.
El argumento es muy bueno, nunca había leído nada parecido en las novelas juveniles, pero he visto algunas reseñas que decían que podría haberle dado más provecho al poder de Jem, a mí a pesar de que es verdad que lo utiliza lo justo y necesario, me ha gustado el enfoque que la autora le ha querido dar y estoy segura de que los dos siguientes libros se darán más información e importancia al este don tan peculiar.
Reseña completa: http://letraslibrosymas.blogspot.com....
La edición es como la de cualquiera de este tipo de ediciones, normalita, pero cuenta con un pequeño detalle antes del comienzo de algunos capítulos, y es que en los márgenes de la hoja aparece una secuencia de números que le dan un toque diferente. Además, la portada aunque sencilla me gusta mucho más que el de la edición inglesa que a mi parecer es horrible y el título es muy acertado con él puedes saber todo sin apenas saber nada.
La historia tiene como eje central el extraño don de Jem de ver las fechas de la muerte de los demás pero solo es el tema que desencadenada todos los acontecimientos que van a tener que sobrellevar Jem y Spider. Huidas y persecuciones, descubrirse a uno mismo, sentir el amor y un gran dilema moral del que es complicado librarse, son algunas de los elementos que nos vamos a encontrar.
Y es que es difícil saber qué hacer cuando sabes que la persona que está a tu lado le queda poco tiempo ¿Se lo debería de decir o eso solo empeoraría la situación? La protagonista tiene que lidiar con estas preguntas y muchas otras que no paran de rondarle por la cabeza, su poder podría ayudar pero también destruir y hacer enloquecer a aquella persona que posea dicha información. Las reflexiones de Jem me han agradado, son profundas y te hacen pensar que harías tú estando en su lugar, o si a ti te gustaría saber la fecha de tu muerte.
El argumento es muy bueno, nunca había leído nada parecido en las novelas juveniles, pero he visto algunas reseñas que decían que podría haberle dado más provecho al poder de Jem, a mí a pesar de que es verdad que lo utiliza lo justo y necesario, me ha gustado el enfoque que la autora le ha querido dar y estoy segura de que los dos siguientes libros se darán más información e importancia al este don tan peculiar.
Reseña completa: http://letraslibrosymas.blogspot.com....
December 21, 2013
plot spoilers
Did Not Finish
I really debated quitting on pg. 2. Spider (and what kind of name is that? I’d like to have an actual name to call the guy instead of some stupid street name) talked like a 5 year old with ADHD, and his appearance was less than pleasing. In fact, it was a turn-off. The word giraffe was used, along with the phrases gangly and lanky, and he had BO. Yep, those are top quality traits in a romantic interest. And I hate the cussing these teenagers are doing, as well as the smoking, drugs, and living on the streets. That’s not my idea of a good book at all. I wish this power would have been paired with something a little more appealing.
I really didn’t care for when the teacher, oh excuse me, the Nutter, (and how very childish—at least this book is consistent with something) asked the class what they wanted to be, and she said mockingly that she wanted to be just like him. That was really mean, and I don’t like mean characters. And then when she realized his death date was set for Christmas, she said it would forever be spoiled for his family, and said it would “serve him right, the cruel bastard.” That was cruel. And you should direct that word to yourself, not the guy who’s actually trying to make a difference in your pathetic life.
There were several phrases used that only someone living in England would know. A little clarification wouldn’t go amiss. Like, she said Spider went to the bog, which I assumed was the bathroom, but didn’t know for sure because I don’t live in England. You can’t write and have only the people that live in your area know what you’re talking about. A dictionary would’ve been nice.
I also didn’t like how she kept calling people retards. And when she said she finally got with someone, it would have to be someone descent, not like Spider. He would have to be at least an 8 out of 10. Who is she to have such standards? That’s really conceited. I wish I knew what she looked like but the author has deemed it unimportant to give readers a physical description of the character we’re reading about, even though it’s page 41. It’s unbelievable that you wouldn’t let us know what the girl looks like. And I just found out very recently that she was 15. Thanks for finally tossing that out there. Do you realize how important these details are? Any reader knows that you visualize what you’re reading about, but it’s kinda hard to do that when you have no details about the character’s appearance. Idk what her hair color is, eye color, anything, just that she’s small and white. So I’m just envisioning a faceless blob at this point.
At the party Spider offers her pot, and that was surprising because she asked him if he did drugs and he said he didn’t. But I guess she didn’t consider it drugs because she said it wasn’t heavy. That was so distasteful.
Jem was a spoiled, distasteful, careless brat that bemoaned her solitary, poor life but then did things like pull out a knife at school and somehow find no fault with herself, blaming others, and trash all of her stuff and yet insist she had nothing, when she had brought that state into being entirely on her own. Yeah, that makes sense.
Finally, on page 60, after she stole someone’s milk, obviously proving that she had learnt nothing, and was no closer to redeeming her ways, I had to do something I haven’t done in a really long time: I flipped to the back of the book.
Spoilers ahead:The ending was so messed up. I wondered how she was going to save Spider from his demise, yet I saw the author had no intention to ever do that. Spider is dead, and she’s spreading his ashes over the sea, and somebody gets his ashes in their eye I think. Really great stuff. That’s a sure-fire way to create a really crappy novel: just have one of the couple die off in the end. And to top this trashy story off, she gets pregnant at 15, and 5 years later her kid has the same gift as her. I guess they’ll be in the next book, and their love interest will die. What a colossal, disgusting waste of my time. Drugs, violence, poverty, drinking, cussing, and teen pregnancy. That makes for great reading.
Did Not Finish
I really debated quitting on pg. 2. Spider (and what kind of name is that? I’d like to have an actual name to call the guy instead of some stupid street name) talked like a 5 year old with ADHD, and his appearance was less than pleasing. In fact, it was a turn-off. The word giraffe was used, along with the phrases gangly and lanky, and he had BO. Yep, those are top quality traits in a romantic interest. And I hate the cussing these teenagers are doing, as well as the smoking, drugs, and living on the streets. That’s not my idea of a good book at all. I wish this power would have been paired with something a little more appealing.
I really didn’t care for when the teacher, oh excuse me, the Nutter, (and how very childish—at least this book is consistent with something) asked the class what they wanted to be, and she said mockingly that she wanted to be just like him. That was really mean, and I don’t like mean characters. And then when she realized his death date was set for Christmas, she said it would forever be spoiled for his family, and said it would “serve him right, the cruel bastard.” That was cruel. And you should direct that word to yourself, not the guy who’s actually trying to make a difference in your pathetic life.
There were several phrases used that only someone living in England would know. A little clarification wouldn’t go amiss. Like, she said Spider went to the bog, which I assumed was the bathroom, but didn’t know for sure because I don’t live in England. You can’t write and have only the people that live in your area know what you’re talking about. A dictionary would’ve been nice.
I also didn’t like how she kept calling people retards. And when she said she finally got with someone, it would have to be someone descent, not like Spider. He would have to be at least an 8 out of 10. Who is she to have such standards? That’s really conceited. I wish I knew what she looked like but the author has deemed it unimportant to give readers a physical description of the character we’re reading about, even though it’s page 41. It’s unbelievable that you wouldn’t let us know what the girl looks like. And I just found out very recently that she was 15. Thanks for finally tossing that out there. Do you realize how important these details are? Any reader knows that you visualize what you’re reading about, but it’s kinda hard to do that when you have no details about the character’s appearance. Idk what her hair color is, eye color, anything, just that she’s small and white. So I’m just envisioning a faceless blob at this point.
At the party Spider offers her pot, and that was surprising because she asked him if he did drugs and he said he didn’t. But I guess she didn’t consider it drugs because she said it wasn’t heavy. That was so distasteful.
Jem was a spoiled, distasteful, careless brat that bemoaned her solitary, poor life but then did things like pull out a knife at school and somehow find no fault with herself, blaming others, and trash all of her stuff and yet insist she had nothing, when she had brought that state into being entirely on her own. Yeah, that makes sense.
Finally, on page 60, after she stole someone’s milk, obviously proving that she had learnt nothing, and was no closer to redeeming her ways, I had to do something I haven’t done in a really long time: I flipped to the back of the book.
Spoilers ahead:The ending was so messed up. I wondered how she was going to save Spider from his demise, yet I saw the author had no intention to ever do that. Spider is dead, and she’s spreading his ashes over the sea, and somebody gets his ashes in their eye I think. Really great stuff. That’s a sure-fire way to create a really crappy novel: just have one of the couple die off in the end. And to top this trashy story off, she gets pregnant at 15, and 5 years later her kid has the same gift as her. I guess they’ll be in the next book, and their love interest will die. What a colossal, disgusting waste of my time. Drugs, violence, poverty, drinking, cussing, and teen pregnancy. That makes for great reading.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 10, 2024
Alors ce premier tome est juste génial. J'ai même regretté de ne pas avoir les deux autres tomes sous la main que j'ai acheté des années plus tard. La plume est hyper fluide, c'est facile à lire et il y a de tout : de la joie, du suspens, de l'amour, de la tristesse bref tout ce qui fait un bon livre
February 8, 2020
Never quite read a book like this.
Not sure if i want to read the rest of the series just yet. Rachel Ward does take risk. Which i really respect.
Not sure if i want to read the rest of the series just yet. Rachel Ward does take risk. Which i really respect.
March 12, 2011
4.5
I think you have to take the book synopsis with a little grain of salt. I went into this thinking it was going to be sort of post-apocalyptic, with this huge cataclysmic event that Jem knows is coming, and that it was going to be all about that. Really, though, it's all about Jem. The attack is fairly small, comparatively, and really is more a catalyst for the action, and not the action itself. It's a story of self-discovery as much as anything.
And I didn't find this a bad thing.
The book is much more a study of human nature -- in all its harsh realities and surprising glories. There are so many things working together to make Jem's story what it is: powerful and genre-defying and unflinching. There are elements of a coming of age story, dashes of romance, gritty urban fantasy and thought-provoking sci-fi.
I truly loved a lot of the choices Rachel Ward made in this book, because I never really felt like she was holding back. She doesn't write down to her audience or pander. Jem's voice is always authentic and utterly human, by turns filled with wonder and triumph, and hopelessness and despair. Her voice and her journey -- fantastic as it may be -- is so human, in fact, that she is at times frustrating and yell-at-able in the way that truer characters can be.
I found myself so invested in Jem and her emotions, and I really felt it as she slowly opened up and grew as a person. And lest that sound really sappy and boring, I also really loved how on the edge of my seat I was through this whole book. There is a constant layer of tension and worry that pervades the story. I truly worried for Jem and Spider, and I loved that Rachel Ward never took the easy way out, or lessened her story with quick fixes and deus ex machina moments (well, there is one that comes to mind, but I actually liked it. It was very human for a deus moment... It worked.)
And through all of this there's this kick-ass concept of the numbers Jem sees, and what they mean realistically and philosophically, and what Jem's responsibility is, if any. It was all handled really, really well, in ways I wasn't always expecting, and I have to say, I ended up respecting Ward as an author and being far more impressed by this book and its unflinching human-ness than I ever thought to be. All this from a debut.
And if that sounds at all like your thing, I'd suggest you read it.
I think you have to take the book synopsis with a little grain of salt. I went into this thinking it was going to be sort of post-apocalyptic, with this huge cataclysmic event that Jem knows is coming, and that it was going to be all about that. Really, though, it's all about Jem. The attack is fairly small, comparatively, and really is more a catalyst for the action, and not the action itself. It's a story of self-discovery as much as anything.
And I didn't find this a bad thing.
The book is much more a study of human nature -- in all its harsh realities and surprising glories. There are so many things working together to make Jem's story what it is: powerful and genre-defying and unflinching. There are elements of a coming of age story, dashes of romance, gritty urban fantasy and thought-provoking sci-fi.
I truly loved a lot of the choices Rachel Ward made in this book, because I never really felt like she was holding back. She doesn't write down to her audience or pander. Jem's voice is always authentic and utterly human, by turns filled with wonder and triumph, and hopelessness and despair. Her voice and her journey -- fantastic as it may be -- is so human, in fact, that she is at times frustrating and yell-at-able in the way that truer characters can be.
I found myself so invested in Jem and her emotions, and I really felt it as she slowly opened up and grew as a person. And lest that sound really sappy and boring, I also really loved how on the edge of my seat I was through this whole book. There is a constant layer of tension and worry that pervades the story. I truly worried for Jem and Spider, and I loved that Rachel Ward never took the easy way out, or lessened her story with quick fixes and deus ex machina moments (well, there is one that comes to mind, but I actually liked it. It was very human for a deus moment... It worked.)
And through all of this there's this kick-ass concept of the numbers Jem sees, and what they mean realistically and philosophically, and what Jem's responsibility is, if any. It was all handled really, really well, in ways I wasn't always expecting, and I have to say, I ended up respecting Ward as an author and being far more impressed by this book and its unflinching human-ness than I ever thought to be. All this from a debut.
And if that sounds at all like your thing, I'd suggest you read it.
July 24, 2012
One and a half stars would be the ideal for this book.
I thought this one, was a big, waste of time and money, mess. The first hundred pages were painful to read. Dialogues in "street talk" is not my idea of a good book. Because the dialogue just doesn't "flow". I don't care if Jem and Spider are fifteen years old, and if that is a way to ilustrate their social background. I understand it, but i don't have to like reading it.
In fact it became painful to do it.
But i'm more than thirty years old. So shame on me, for deciding to read it. I'm perfectly aware that this is a YA book. But i never read something like that. Something that made me, almost on the first pages of the book want to give up on it. Because the characters just felt flat, as cardboard. They had no depth.
Fortunately for me, the author, decided around one third of the book, that Spider should start talking in whole, complete sentences.
Thank you. Talk about change of personality...
Let's talk about Jem, the leading character...so, Jem looks at "you" and sees when you're going to die....interesting concept....does it go anywhere?
No.
Does one find out WHY?
No. But one could say that the Lord's ways are misterious. And leave it at that.
Then there was a part in the book, when i started thinking: "Oh, i see...this is about the power of friendship and love. In believing that there are people out there who are willing to love you and accept you, if you let them..."
It is.
But in the end, it's also about how you can't deceive fate, no matter how much you try. And that life is a b*****ch! The thing is...i know that. I didn't have to spend money on this, to figure this out...so what is the central point around which the story develops itself? I don't know...
For those out there, who are depressed, i would suggest you'd pick a different book.
And in the end, it was all, rather pointless. That's a good word to describe this book. Pointless.
I thought this one, was a big, waste of time and money, mess. The first hundred pages were painful to read. Dialogues in "street talk" is not my idea of a good book. Because the dialogue just doesn't "flow". I don't care if Jem and Spider are fifteen years old, and if that is a way to ilustrate their social background. I understand it, but i don't have to like reading it.
In fact it became painful to do it.
But i'm more than thirty years old. So shame on me, for deciding to read it. I'm perfectly aware that this is a YA book. But i never read something like that. Something that made me, almost on the first pages of the book want to give up on it. Because the characters just felt flat, as cardboard. They had no depth.
Fortunately for me, the author, decided around one third of the book, that Spider should start talking in whole, complete sentences.
Thank you. Talk about change of personality...
Let's talk about Jem, the leading character...so, Jem looks at "you" and sees when you're going to die....interesting concept....does it go anywhere?
No.
Does one find out WHY?
No. But one could say that the Lord's ways are misterious. And leave it at that.
Then there was a part in the book, when i started thinking: "Oh, i see...this is about the power of friendship and love. In believing that there are people out there who are willing to love you and accept you, if you let them..."
It is.
But in the end, it's also about how you can't deceive fate, no matter how much you try. And that life is a b*****ch! The thing is...i know that. I didn't have to spend money on this, to figure this out...so what is the central point around which the story develops itself? I don't know...
For those out there, who are depressed, i would suggest you'd pick a different book.
And in the end, it was all, rather pointless. That's a good word to describe this book. Pointless.
January 29, 2017
Now, if I were rating this up to the point of the explosion, a couple chapters after, and the possible potential that this book could have had- it would have gotten a 4.
But no, Numbers by Rachel Ward was one soggy disappointment. I'm rating it at a 2.5. It got me all excited about a girl who could see death dates (which wasn't as creepy as all the comments said on the back, hello people, haven't you seen Death Note?) and how her world was ready to explode, plus the fact that she was getting close to someone who would be dying soon. Wouldn't it have been interesting if Jem realized she had the potential of changing fates and time? Of learning how to harness her ability.
We're not even told why she has the "sodding" thing (oh, points for this being so british it hurt, and in the good way. Reminded me of Misfits.)
And then they had to off my favorite character! WTF? What did Spider ever do to you, Ward? Except make your dumb wet towel of a character happy?
Ugh.
No thanks to my stupid librarian neighbor friend who said that this book was popular with all of the kids that go to her high school. Forget that. Go and find something better to read.
But no, Numbers by Rachel Ward was one soggy disappointment. I'm rating it at a 2.5. It got me all excited about a girl who could see death dates (which wasn't as creepy as all the comments said on the back, hello people, haven't you seen Death Note?) and how her world was ready to explode, plus the fact that she was getting close to someone who would be dying soon. Wouldn't it have been interesting if Jem realized she had the potential of changing fates and time? Of learning how to harness her ability.
We're not even told why she has the "sodding" thing (oh, points for this being so british it hurt, and in the good way. Reminded me of Misfits.)
And then they had to off my favorite character! WTF? What did Spider ever do to you, Ward? Except make your dumb wet towel of a character happy?
Ugh.
No thanks to my stupid librarian neighbor friend who said that this book was popular with all of the kids that go to her high school. Forget that. Go and find something better to read.
February 6, 2022
i read this when i was 11 and i was probably wayyy too young but ngl i kinda liked it and would love to reread cause its all a blur in my memory
March 4, 2019
Het begin was zo goed.. Ik zat er meteen middenin en was erg benieuwd waar het verhaal heen ging. Toen kwam het midden en dat kakte helemaal in. Echt helemaal! Tijdens het lezen van het middenstuk was ik ook van mening dat het een 2* boek zou worden. Maar toen kwam het einde en dat maakte het toch weer een beetje goed gelukkig.
Het hele concept van sterfdatums kunnen zien vond ik erg tof, helaas was de uitwerking iets minder..
Het hele concept van sterfdatums kunnen zien vond ik erg tof, helaas was de uitwerking iets minder..
January 4, 2012
I was torn with whether I even wanted to finish reading this book or not. One minute I had decided that I wasn’t going to read it anymore and then I would decide that I wanted to see how things played out. I went back and forth, back and forth the whole book.
I was really intrigued by the whole plot of this book. A girl who sees the date someone is going to die whenever she looks into his or her eyes. Why can she see this? What does she do about it? How does she deal with it? I was interested to see what direction the author was going to take with it.
The language was my biggest issue here. The amount of F words coming out of these characters mouths made me stop and put the book down on several occasions. There were also a lot of slang words, which I just find hard to follow sometimes.
Jem is a very confused character; she is burdened with this unwanted knowledge and doesn’t really know what to do with it. She keeps everyone at a distance, and tries her hardest to avoid eye contact with anybody. I really wasn’t able to connect with Jem at all, I hardly ever agreed with any of the choices that she made, and kept getting mad at her the whole time.
As for romance, Jem and Spiders friendship does develop into more of a relationship but it’s a weird one. When Jem decided she liked Spider as more than a friend is beyond me. I felt like she spent most of her time criticizing him and then all of a sudden she decides she’s in love with him. I don’t know it just seemed kind of strained.
I wasn’t aware that this book was the first in a series until I had finished. I think my jaw actually hit the floor when I read the last few pages. The ending was so good and so shocking that I did consider reading the next book for about half a second, but then my better judgment kicked in and I decided against it.
I was really intrigued by the whole plot of this book. A girl who sees the date someone is going to die whenever she looks into his or her eyes. Why can she see this? What does she do about it? How does she deal with it? I was interested to see what direction the author was going to take with it.
The language was my biggest issue here. The amount of F words coming out of these characters mouths made me stop and put the book down on several occasions. There were also a lot of slang words, which I just find hard to follow sometimes.
Jem is a very confused character; she is burdened with this unwanted knowledge and doesn’t really know what to do with it. She keeps everyone at a distance, and tries her hardest to avoid eye contact with anybody. I really wasn’t able to connect with Jem at all, I hardly ever agreed with any of the choices that she made, and kept getting mad at her the whole time.
As for romance, Jem and Spiders friendship does develop into more of a relationship but it’s a weird one. When Jem decided she liked Spider as more than a friend is beyond me. I felt like she spent most of her time criticizing him and then all of a sudden she decides she’s in love with him. I don’t know it just seemed kind of strained.
I wasn’t aware that this book was the first in a series until I had finished. I think my jaw actually hit the floor when I read the last few pages. The ending was so good and so shocking that I did consider reading the next book for about half a second, but then my better judgment kicked in and I decided against it.
March 7, 2013
Well, I'm not sure how I should even begin on this excuse of a book.
*Note: what I'm saying is my personal opinion, and I might be extremely harsh on this book.
Firstly, I must comment on the overall "feel" of the book. Before reading "Numbers," I had this almost science-fiction feel, and I thought it was going to be an interesting book about how she uses this superpower for interesting ways.
Instead, I get this crude tone of gangsters and drug addicts talking all the time, and rude, offensive Jem, who, might I add, is the main character, giving off this terrible feeling.
Jem didn't even want to USE her powers in this book. I understand that you wouldn't want to see your parents, but heck, it's a cool gift that she should have been okay with, for the most part.
Anyways, long story short, I hated this book, honestly. It had poor dialogue, and terrible characters that were completely useless and not nice at all. Don't waste your time on this book, and if you're looking to read this, don't get your hopes up.
*Note: what I'm saying is my personal opinion, and I might be extremely harsh on this book.
Firstly, I must comment on the overall "feel" of the book. Before reading "Numbers," I had this almost science-fiction feel, and I thought it was going to be an interesting book about how she uses this superpower for interesting ways.
Instead, I get this crude tone of gangsters and drug addicts talking all the time, and rude, offensive Jem, who, might I add, is the main character, giving off this terrible feeling.
Jem didn't even want to USE her powers in this book. I understand that you wouldn't want to see your parents, but heck, it's a cool gift that she should have been okay with, for the most part.
Anyways, long story short, I hated this book, honestly. It had poor dialogue, and terrible characters that were completely useless and not nice at all. Don't waste your time on this book, and if you're looking to read this, don't get your hopes up.
December 21, 2017
A waste of my time. The synopsis basically gives it all away so... why write something almost 300 pages long to describe what 2 paragraphs could do?
The idea is interesting. However it is told more like a romantic story than an urban fantasy story.
Didn’t like the characters too much. Very hard to relate to them. Only because I liked the concept, I have given it 2 stars. I will NOT be continuing with this trilogy.
The idea is interesting. However it is told more like a romantic story than an urban fantasy story.
Didn’t like the characters too much. Very hard to relate to them. Only because I liked the concept, I have given it 2 stars. I will NOT be continuing with this trilogy.
November 16, 2010
What pushed this book from 3 to 4 stars for me, is the dark and gritty subtext going on here between the lines. Jem's and Spider's world is not a kind one -- their story represents all those underprivileged, disenfranchised kids who fall through the cracks to end up working dead-end jobs, addicted to drugs, serving time, or dead. It's not a pretty picture, and while Ward is writing from a clearly British perspective, I feel it's not all that different in Canada either -- born into poverty, drugs, and violence and most likely that's where you stay. That cycle is a vicious one and very hard to break.
But this rip-roaring page-turner is more than just a social critique of the English class system, it's a story of a young girl with a very unusual problem -- once she makes eye contact with you she knows the exact date of your death. That's a great hook and as soon as I heard about this book I just knew I had to read it. It doesn't disappoint. Jem is wonderful -- prickly, antisocial and with a huge chip on her shoulder, but lovable nonetheless. She's been "through the shit" and has every right to be weary and leery. It's only until she meets Spider that all that begins to change for her. Oh how I love the gangly ADHD Spider, who jitters and jives to the music in his head, never able to quite shut up or sit still.
What I love about this book is that it forces us to contemplate our own mortality (terrain most teens eat up and are comfortable with) but grown-ups often run away from. If each of us started our lives knowing exactly when we were going to die, would it change how we live? Would any of us want to know? I'm fairly certain I wouldn't. I know it's going to happen "someday" but it's freeing to not know exactly when. Knowing would somehow suck the life out of the time that's left, rather than make it more precious. I think. And you gotta respect a book that makes you think.
Oh, and did I mention that there is a sequel on the way ... Jem's story is not finished yet and for that I am grateful.
But this rip-roaring page-turner is more than just a social critique of the English class system, it's a story of a young girl with a very unusual problem -- once she makes eye contact with you she knows the exact date of your death. That's a great hook and as soon as I heard about this book I just knew I had to read it. It doesn't disappoint. Jem is wonderful -- prickly, antisocial and with a huge chip on her shoulder, but lovable nonetheless. She's been "through the shit" and has every right to be weary and leery. It's only until she meets Spider that all that begins to change for her. Oh how I love the gangly ADHD Spider, who jitters and jives to the music in his head, never able to quite shut up or sit still.
What I love about this book is that it forces us to contemplate our own mortality (terrain most teens eat up and are comfortable with) but grown-ups often run away from. If each of us started our lives knowing exactly when we were going to die, would it change how we live? Would any of us want to know? I'm fairly certain I wouldn't. I know it's going to happen "someday" but it's freeing to not know exactly when. Knowing would somehow suck the life out of the time that's left, rather than make it more precious. I think. And you gotta respect a book that makes you think.
Oh, and did I mention that there is a sequel on the way ... Jem's story is not finished yet and for that I am grateful.
March 29, 2012
If you could know the date you were going to die, would you want to know?
In a just slightly different now, Jem is a moody teenager in the foster system in London. Her mom was a junkie who died of an overdose. She’s been moved from school to school, and in fact cuts school regularly. She has no friends, and avoids people. But that’s not why she’s a moody loner. Sort of like the kid from The Sixth Sense, Jem doesn’t exactly see dead people, she sees numbers. When she looks someone in the eye, she sees their death date.
That’s not a spoiler, it’s in the blurb on the book jacket, and it’s a great hook. I totally couldn’t wait to read this book.
Now, about those death numbers... I got a little hung up on this concept. Seeing actual numbers like on a digital clock seems weirdly computerish to me, whereas you’d think if you could sense something psychically about a person’s death, you would sense it in some kind of organic way, a weight of the years, or the shortness of time. But numbers? Plus, Jem didn’t even know what the numbers signified when she was little. What’s going on in her brain? Is there a digital gauge up there somewhere? That was distracting.
Setting that aside, I related well to Jem, with her feeling of always being on the outside, and I was really happy when she made a friend despite herself. Another outsider, Spider gloms on to her, he’s a gangly black kid who should bathe more often.
Certain events lead to Jem and Spider becoming “persons of interest” to the police, and they go on the run, at which point the story becomes more a standard thriller than anything to do with special powers. I was okay with that, because I liked the characters, and I liked how their relationship developed. But I was left at the end of the book with a lot of questions, which I’m hoping will be answered in the sequel. How did Jem get this ability? Are there more people with weird ESP powers out there?
A solid thriller with an intriguing SF-ish twist.
In a just slightly different now, Jem is a moody teenager in the foster system in London. Her mom was a junkie who died of an overdose. She’s been moved from school to school, and in fact cuts school regularly. She has no friends, and avoids people. But that’s not why she’s a moody loner. Sort of like the kid from The Sixth Sense, Jem doesn’t exactly see dead people, she sees numbers. When she looks someone in the eye, she sees their death date.
That’s not a spoiler, it’s in the blurb on the book jacket, and it’s a great hook. I totally couldn’t wait to read this book.
Now, about those death numbers... I got a little hung up on this concept. Seeing actual numbers like on a digital clock seems weirdly computerish to me, whereas you’d think if you could sense something psychically about a person’s death, you would sense it in some kind of organic way, a weight of the years, or the shortness of time. But numbers? Plus, Jem didn’t even know what the numbers signified when she was little. What’s going on in her brain? Is there a digital gauge up there somewhere? That was distracting.
Setting that aside, I related well to Jem, with her feeling of always being on the outside, and I was really happy when she made a friend despite herself. Another outsider, Spider gloms on to her, he’s a gangly black kid who should bathe more often.
Certain events lead to Jem and Spider becoming “persons of interest” to the police, and they go on the run, at which point the story becomes more a standard thriller than anything to do with special powers. I was okay with that, because I liked the characters, and I liked how their relationship developed. But I was left at the end of the book with a lot of questions, which I’m hoping will be answered in the sequel. How did Jem get this ability? Are there more people with weird ESP powers out there?
A solid thriller with an intriguing SF-ish twist.
Want to read
March 20, 2015The idea reminds me still of this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JQiE...
I remember thinking that I would've loved to see it as a movie or a book back then ;))
As for this book, there are so many conflicting opinions, maybe I'll give it a try one day and see it for myself.
____________________________________________
Blog (EN) | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Booklikes | Blog (RO)
____________________________________________
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JQiE...
I remember thinking that I would've loved to see it as a movie or a book back then ;))
As for this book, there are so many conflicting opinions, maybe I'll give it a try one day and see it for myself.
____________________________________________
Blog (EN) | Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Booklikes | Blog (RO)
____________________________________________
Read
February 13, 2022Finished. A bit weird this one, and with a lot of issues that bothered me.
Full review to come soon.
Full review to come soon.
December 7, 2013
Zitat:
„Du bist eine Zeugin, Jem. Du bezeugst die Tatsache, dass wir alle sterblich sind. Dass unsere Tage gezählt sind, dass uns zu wenig Zeit bleibt.“
„Aber das weiß doch sowieso jeder.“
„Wir wissen es, aber wir schieben es lieber beiseite – es ist so schwer, damit zurechtzukommen. […] Wir ziehen es vor, den Tod zu vergessen.“
(S. 321)
Inhalt:
Wenn Jem jemandem in die Augen sieht, sieht sie eine 8-stellige Zahl. Schon als sie klein war, hat sie diese Zahl gesehen. Aber erst am Todestag ihrer Mutter hat sie verstanden, was sie bedeutet. Die acht Ziffern zeigen das Todesdatum eines Menschen.
Dieser Fluch isoliert Jem, sie traut sich nicht, zu irgendjemandem eine Bindung aufzubauen, dessen Tod stets vor Augen, musste sie daher von Pflegefamilie zu Pflegefamilie wechseln.
Terry, genannt Spinne, ist der erste, der sich nicht von Jems abweisender Art abschrecken lässt. Er krallt sich so lange fest, bis sich Jem ihm verbunden fühlt. Nur gibt es bei ihm ein großes Problem. Seine Zahl. Bis zu dem Datum sind es nicht mehr viele Tage.
Die Ereignisse überschlagen sich, Jem ist gemeinsam mit Spinne auf der Flucht, das Todesdatum rückt immer näher.
Zum ersten Mal will Jem etwas dagegen unternehmen, um ihre erste Liebe zu retten.
Meinung:
Irgendwie weiß ich nicht, wo ich anfangen soll. Normalerweise mache ich mir während dem Lesen Notizen, fasse kurz zusammen, was mir aufgefallen ist, eine Art Zusammenfassung. Als ich „Numbers“ begonnen hatte, kam ich aber irgendwie nicht dazu.
Denn von der ersten Seite an übte Rachel Wards Debüt einen unglaublichen Sog auf mich aus. Obwohl ich von den Charakteren, allen voran der Protagonistin Jem, irritiert war, konnte ich nicht von dem Buch lassen. Ich war fasziniert von Jems Authentizität, den klaren Aussagen. Sie erzählt in Ich-Perspektive in Gegenwartsform, ich wusste nie, was als nächstes kommt.
Jem treibt sich gerne irgendwo herum, wo sie alleine ist. Sie kann nicht stets die Zahlen der Menschen vor sich haben, den Tag ihres Todes. So bleibt sie lieber für sich und geht den anderen aus dem Weg. Nicht so Spinne, der ihr nicht von der Pelle zu rücken scheint und für Jem Tag für Tag etwas mehr wie ein Freund wird, obwohl Jem gerade zu ihm keinen Kontakt möchte, weil es bis zu seiner „Zahl“ nicht mehr lange hin ist. Aber das kann sie Spinne nicht sagen. Niemandem erzählt sie davon.
Ab dem ersten Kontakt mit Spinne und der Nennung seiner Zahl spekulierte ich über seinen Tod. Lag es lediglich an der gesellschaftlichen Unterschicht, der die Charaktere angehören? Eine Schicht, in der Banden, Drogen und Gewalt zur Tagesordnung gehören? Genau diese Besonderheit der Charaktere war anfänglich mein größtes Problem mit „Numbers“. Es brauchte ein paar Kapitel, bis ich mich mit der Art der Protagonistin, ihren negativen Zukunftsaussichten und auch ihrer sehr einfachen und Slang-mäßigen Ausdrucksweise klar kam. Handelt es sich doch hier um Personen, denen man auf der Straße nicht wirklich begegnen möchte, von denen man den Blick abwendet, wie Jem selbst so schön sagt.
Überwindet man diese Hürde jedoch, versucht, sich in die vorgegebenen gesellschaftlichen Strukturen einzufühlen, erlebt man Charaktere der besonderen Art, die eine große Bandbreite an Emotionen weitergeben und ihren eigenen Charme besitzen.
Der Schreibstil bzw. die Erzählsprache von Jem ist dem Bildungsniveau der Protagonistin angepasst und macht ihre Schilderung der Erlebnisse authentisch. Sie ist es nicht gewohnt, Gefühle zu haben oder auszudrücken, daher mag die Geschichte dem ein oder anderen kalt vorkommen. Wer aber zwischen den Zeilen liest, sich mit ganzem Herzen auf Jem einlässt, wird überrascht sein, wie viel Gefühl in ihr steckt.
Wie eingangs bereits erwähnt, übte der Plot, seine vielen Kapitel und die besondere Erzählweise einen Sog auf mich aus, dem ich mich nicht entziehen konnte. So störte es nicht, dass Rachel Ward die Spannung nur sehr langsam, aber kontinuierlich ansteigen und ihrem Höhepunkt entgegenstreben ließ. Seite für Seite fesselte sie mich mehr, ich fieberte „dem Datum“ entgegen, stets die Hoffnung, dass sich alles zum Guten wenden würde.
Das Ende von „Numbers – Den Tod im Blick“ ist passend und emotionsgeladen und erklärt nun auch den Klappentext der Fortsetzung, die ich zum Glück bereits hier habe.
Urteil:
Rachel Wards Debütroman „Numbers“ liegt eine fantastische Idee zugrunde. Durch den Blick aus den Augen einer gesellschaftlich unteren sozialen Schicht erhält diese Facetten, die bei 08/15-Buch-Charakteren niemals in der Art aufgetreten wären. Abzug gibt es lediglich für die Eingewöhnungsphase in diese so untypische Welt und ihre Sprache. Daher sehr sehr gute 4 Bücher für „Den Tod im Blick“.
Wer sich nicht davor scheut, einer etwas anderen Protagonistin zu folgen, Teil ihres traurigen Lebens und ihrer miesen Zukunftsaussichten zu werden, sollte unbedingt zu „Numbers“ greifen. Die tolle und tiefgründige Idee der Autorin wird auch euch überzeugen!
Die Serie:
1. Numbers – Den Tod im Blick
2. Numbers – Den Tod vor Augen
3. Numbers – Den Tod im Griff
©his-and-her-books.blogspot.de
„Du bist eine Zeugin, Jem. Du bezeugst die Tatsache, dass wir alle sterblich sind. Dass unsere Tage gezählt sind, dass uns zu wenig Zeit bleibt.“
„Aber das weiß doch sowieso jeder.“
„Wir wissen es, aber wir schieben es lieber beiseite – es ist so schwer, damit zurechtzukommen. […] Wir ziehen es vor, den Tod zu vergessen.“
(S. 321)
Inhalt:
Wenn Jem jemandem in die Augen sieht, sieht sie eine 8-stellige Zahl. Schon als sie klein war, hat sie diese Zahl gesehen. Aber erst am Todestag ihrer Mutter hat sie verstanden, was sie bedeutet. Die acht Ziffern zeigen das Todesdatum eines Menschen.
Dieser Fluch isoliert Jem, sie traut sich nicht, zu irgendjemandem eine Bindung aufzubauen, dessen Tod stets vor Augen, musste sie daher von Pflegefamilie zu Pflegefamilie wechseln.
Terry, genannt Spinne, ist der erste, der sich nicht von Jems abweisender Art abschrecken lässt. Er krallt sich so lange fest, bis sich Jem ihm verbunden fühlt. Nur gibt es bei ihm ein großes Problem. Seine Zahl. Bis zu dem Datum sind es nicht mehr viele Tage.
Die Ereignisse überschlagen sich, Jem ist gemeinsam mit Spinne auf der Flucht, das Todesdatum rückt immer näher.
Zum ersten Mal will Jem etwas dagegen unternehmen, um ihre erste Liebe zu retten.
Meinung:
Irgendwie weiß ich nicht, wo ich anfangen soll. Normalerweise mache ich mir während dem Lesen Notizen, fasse kurz zusammen, was mir aufgefallen ist, eine Art Zusammenfassung. Als ich „Numbers“ begonnen hatte, kam ich aber irgendwie nicht dazu.
Denn von der ersten Seite an übte Rachel Wards Debüt einen unglaublichen Sog auf mich aus. Obwohl ich von den Charakteren, allen voran der Protagonistin Jem, irritiert war, konnte ich nicht von dem Buch lassen. Ich war fasziniert von Jems Authentizität, den klaren Aussagen. Sie erzählt in Ich-Perspektive in Gegenwartsform, ich wusste nie, was als nächstes kommt.
Jem treibt sich gerne irgendwo herum, wo sie alleine ist. Sie kann nicht stets die Zahlen der Menschen vor sich haben, den Tag ihres Todes. So bleibt sie lieber für sich und geht den anderen aus dem Weg. Nicht so Spinne, der ihr nicht von der Pelle zu rücken scheint und für Jem Tag für Tag etwas mehr wie ein Freund wird, obwohl Jem gerade zu ihm keinen Kontakt möchte, weil es bis zu seiner „Zahl“ nicht mehr lange hin ist. Aber das kann sie Spinne nicht sagen. Niemandem erzählt sie davon.
Ab dem ersten Kontakt mit Spinne und der Nennung seiner Zahl spekulierte ich über seinen Tod. Lag es lediglich an der gesellschaftlichen Unterschicht, der die Charaktere angehören? Eine Schicht, in der Banden, Drogen und Gewalt zur Tagesordnung gehören? Genau diese Besonderheit der Charaktere war anfänglich mein größtes Problem mit „Numbers“. Es brauchte ein paar Kapitel, bis ich mich mit der Art der Protagonistin, ihren negativen Zukunftsaussichten und auch ihrer sehr einfachen und Slang-mäßigen Ausdrucksweise klar kam. Handelt es sich doch hier um Personen, denen man auf der Straße nicht wirklich begegnen möchte, von denen man den Blick abwendet, wie Jem selbst so schön sagt.
Überwindet man diese Hürde jedoch, versucht, sich in die vorgegebenen gesellschaftlichen Strukturen einzufühlen, erlebt man Charaktere der besonderen Art, die eine große Bandbreite an Emotionen weitergeben und ihren eigenen Charme besitzen.
Der Schreibstil bzw. die Erzählsprache von Jem ist dem Bildungsniveau der Protagonistin angepasst und macht ihre Schilderung der Erlebnisse authentisch. Sie ist es nicht gewohnt, Gefühle zu haben oder auszudrücken, daher mag die Geschichte dem ein oder anderen kalt vorkommen. Wer aber zwischen den Zeilen liest, sich mit ganzem Herzen auf Jem einlässt, wird überrascht sein, wie viel Gefühl in ihr steckt.
Wie eingangs bereits erwähnt, übte der Plot, seine vielen Kapitel und die besondere Erzählweise einen Sog auf mich aus, dem ich mich nicht entziehen konnte. So störte es nicht, dass Rachel Ward die Spannung nur sehr langsam, aber kontinuierlich ansteigen und ihrem Höhepunkt entgegenstreben ließ. Seite für Seite fesselte sie mich mehr, ich fieberte „dem Datum“ entgegen, stets die Hoffnung, dass sich alles zum Guten wenden würde.
Das Ende von „Numbers – Den Tod im Blick“ ist passend und emotionsgeladen und erklärt nun auch den Klappentext der Fortsetzung, die ich zum Glück bereits hier habe.
Urteil:
Rachel Wards Debütroman „Numbers“ liegt eine fantastische Idee zugrunde. Durch den Blick aus den Augen einer gesellschaftlich unteren sozialen Schicht erhält diese Facetten, die bei 08/15-Buch-Charakteren niemals in der Art aufgetreten wären. Abzug gibt es lediglich für die Eingewöhnungsphase in diese so untypische Welt und ihre Sprache. Daher sehr sehr gute 4 Bücher für „Den Tod im Blick“.
Wer sich nicht davor scheut, einer etwas anderen Protagonistin zu folgen, Teil ihres traurigen Lebens und ihrer miesen Zukunftsaussichten zu werden, sollte unbedingt zu „Numbers“ greifen. Die tolle und tiefgründige Idee der Autorin wird auch euch überzeugen!
Die Serie:
1. Numbers – Den Tod im Blick
2. Numbers – Den Tod vor Augen
3. Numbers – Den Tod im Griff
©his-and-her-books.blogspot.de
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,770 reviews