Need

Need #1

by Carrie Jones

Pain shoots through my head. Fireworks. Explosions. All inside my brain. The white world goes dark and I know what's about to happen.


Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane...but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now.

She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right - not human - in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

In this creepy, compelling breakout novel, Carrie Jones delivers romance, suspense, and a creature you never thought you'd have to fear.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Fae, Werewolves, Paranormal Romance

306 pages, Hardcover

First published December 23, 2008

About the author

***SO MANY APOLOGIES***

I had been unable to get into my Goodreads account for years. If you have friended me, I have just friended you back (July 2021). If you have messaged me, I'm going to be working through those in the upcoming weeks.

Thank you all for reaching out and I'm so sorry.

Now onto the regularly scheduled bio:

Carrie Jones likes Skinny Cow fudgsicles and potatoes. She does not know how to spell fudgsicles. This has not prevented her from writing books. She lives with her cute family in Maine, but she grew up in Bedford, NH where she once had a séance with cool uber-comedian Sarah Silverman.

The Meyers brothers are from Bedford, too, so you’d think it would make Carrie funnier, coming from Bedford N.H. Obviously, something didn’t work.

Carrie has always liked cowboy hats but has never owned one. This is a very wrong thing. She graduated from Vermont College’s MFA program for writing. She has edited newspapers and poetry journals and has recently won awards from the Maine Press Association and also been awarded the Martin Dibner Fellowship as well as a Maine Literary Award.

Here’s the lowdown about Carrie…

1. Carrie can not drink coffee. It makes her insane. Do not give her caffeine.
2. Carrie is very responsive to loving strokes on the hair, kind of like a puppy. However, do not do this without asking first unless you are a ridiculously handsome man or an editor who is about to offer her a trillion dollars for the first draft of her novel.
3. Carrie is secretly really, really shy even though she’s pathetically outgoing in person. She has a very hard time calling people. So, if you want to talk to her, make the first move. And, if you’re her in-Maine female best friend, Jennifer, do NOT get mad at her because she is so bad at returning emails.
4. Carrie sometimes wears mismatched socks, if you do not think this is cool, do not tell her. You will hurt her feelings.
5. Carrie really, really wants you to like her books. Please like her books. PLEEEAASSSEEEE. She’ll be your best friend forever. That is, if you want a friend who is shy about calling and emailing and who wears mismatched socks and can’t drink caffeine and likes being pet on the head. Hhmmm….
6. Carrie is not above begging.
7. Carrie, like Belle in TIPS ON HAVING A GAY (ex) BOYFRIEND drinks Postum. It’s for the same reason, too.
8. Carrie loves Great Pyrenees dogs. They are huge and white, and furry and it looks like they have white eyeliner and mascara on, which is way too cute. Do you have one? Send a picture!
9. Carrie lives in Maine. She has a hard time with this in the winter. It is bleak in Maine in the winter. Imagine everything shades of gray and brown and no green anywhere except for in people’s noses. This is Maine in Winter. Maine in summer is the best place in the world, so it’s a trade-off. Feel free to invite Carrie to your house in the winter, but not if it’s in Greenland, Canada, or anywhere north of Florida.
10. Forget that. She’d still probably come.

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I randomly picked up this book at the library. I had seen it at Borders at least a dozen times, and I needed a book, so I decided to check it out.

Okay, let start off with the basic plot.
Zara, a once popular and happy girl living in Charleston, watches her father die of a heart attack on their kitchen floor. Feeling depressed and "dead inside," her mother forcibly sends her to Maine to live with her grandmother because somehow solitary confinement will help her cope. There, she makes a whole bunch of new friends and enemies as soon as she steps in the door (literally), and she acquires a 'powerful' stalker. She is surprised to find out that pixies and weres exist, and her stalker is actually the King Pixie. She is also shocked to find how her family has ties to the age old battle between the pixies and the weres. She has to fight along side her new best friends to help save the world, and save herself from becoming the Queen Pixie.


Now that that's over, let's talk about my opinion.
All right. One word to describe this book: stupid. You could actually use pointless too! This book felt like a complete waste of time, and it took every inch of my willpower to finish it up. Halfway through the book, I was about to throw it against the wall or something! Talk about unoriginal and forced! Whew! This book was obviously written for the Twilight crew, for the two books greatly resembled each other (and that is definitely not a good thing.)
Anyways, let's break it down into elements:

Negative Elements:
The Plot - I've seen this plot time and time again. Girl with tragic past moves to new town. Girl makes a boatload of new friends and is torn between two unrealistically hot guys. Girl gets into trouble through her own stupidity that is somehow portrayed as courage. Helpless girl gets beat up a little (but not so much as to distort her pretty features) and is saved by her love. With the help of her "awesome" friends, the bad guy is defeated. Girl ends up with hunkiest guy.
That was the plot, no joke. It was so predictable... so boring. The ending, however, is what really made me uncomfortable. Way to make the bad guy look like a wimp and set up a boring ending, Ms. Jones.

The Characters - I thought the characters, especially the main one, were extremely annoying and unoriginal. Zara is a perfect embodiment of Mary Sue. She was too perfect, and idealized by the other characters. Nothing is wrong with being liked by others, but it is a problem when you're loved by all and don't have a personality. Her lack of flaws, stupidity and neediness alone was enough to drive me insane. Continuing the trend of current YA novels, she was way too dependent on Nick. She couldn't live without him, couldn't stop thinking about him, etc. The other characters were also perfect in pretty much every way; they only had a few, obviously placed flaws. The antagonists were wimps who were too stupid for their own good.

The "Romance" - Gosh, talk about corny. The romance between Nick and Zara was completely fake. Nick, of course, was REPEATEDLY (as in throughout the entire freakin' book) described by Zara as having bulging muscles, smooth skin, dreamy eyes, a washboard stomach, a Mediterranean tan, ultra-soft lips, luscious hair, manly scruff, blah, blah, and blah. Their so-called chemistry was based solely on looks, not what really counts. All Zara talked about was how cute Nick was. *groan* As for Nick, he was a flawless hunk whose only goal in life was to protect Zara. Ha ha, sound familiar?

The Believability - Okay, I know it's a story about Pixies and Weres, but come on! The author could have made it at least a little bit believable. Everyone was so calm about finding out the pixies and weres actually existed. If I moved to a new town and some people I barely knew told me these types of things existed, I would contact a mental institute. Zara was just like, "Pixies? Like, no way. Like, they actually exist? I totally believe you." Everyone was so.. matter-of-fact. It was annoying. Obviously this was done to bypass the time needed to create an exceptional novel. This book, if you can ever call it that, was a money maker and nothing else. The author did not write to selflessly put her imaginary world on paper, she wrote to exploit this generation's young adults and cash in a huge profit.

The Dialogue - Forced and lacked meaning. The entire dialogue was full of bad sarcasm, stupid comments/questions and cheap romance. Need I explain more?

Positive Elements:
The Phobias - The ONLY thing I enjoyed about this book was Zara's hobby - chanting all the phobias. Every chapter was titled a phobia, and Zara was constantly describing them. I enjoyed reading them and finding out what they meant. I especially loved the long ones that I couldn't pronounce.


All in all,
I found this book to be a waste of time, and I don't recommend it to anyone. Feel free to disagree with me, but this is one of the worst books I've ever read. I hated how the not-so-evil villains acted and how all the females were portrayed as useless damsels. It was uncomfortable and uninteresting. Read it if you dare. ;)

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd give this book 2.5 stars if I could. The beginning starts off a little strange. We're not given much description and we pretty much live inside Zara's head. There's a lot of dialogue and inner monologue, and while it's quick to read, it's just not as engaging as it could have been. Plus, Zara's obsessions with phobias is a little odd and it's never really explained why or how she remembers them all.

At first I was thinking that this was going to turn out to be a typical teen book with all the cliches, but there were enough surprises along the way that I could look past the shortcomings of the novel. The characters are developed well enough, even though most are pretty much standard-fare for any teen novel; the mean blond pretty popular girl, the hot mysterious guy that falls for the awkward girl, awkward girl's slightly more awkward friend with bonus handicapped boyfriend. I was a little disappointed that the author stuck to these less than creative roles, but it didn't kill my interest in the story.

Zara's step dad dies and her Mom sends her to Maine to live with her Grandmother, Betty. Zara is used to North Carolina weather so she constantly complains about the snow, ice, and cold temperatures. Since I live in Michigan I can sympathize, but Zara whines about it excessively.

Zara is being stalked by a man and her friends set out to find out who or what he is. With one day of research they come upon the idea that he's the Pixie King. I'm not sure how they come up with this, I don't know if you can do a Google search for "stalker, man, following, pointing, fast" and come up with Pixie King as a result, but they did it somehow. Zara doesn't even mention the gold dust that she sees, which would have been a valuable search keyword, so I'm not sure how they arrive at this conclusion.

Once Zara figures out what's going on in the town and about who's following her, the story really picks up. In fact, it picks up so fast that it's over before you know it. The fight between Zara and the Pixie King is anti-climatic and pretty much the first plan she comes up with works on the first try. Zara accepts the fact that pixies are real and comes up with the plan to defeat them so quickly that it's kind of absurd. Plus, the way she defeats them is so hypocritical since she's constantly spouting off about Amnesty International and how people that are falsely imprisoned need the help of letter-writing teens, which was also another weird obsession that Zara had.

I know there's a second book coming out but I can't stand it when an author plans for that. I'm going to read it but I hope I enjoy it more than I did Need. I like the characters and the world, but I think the pixies got a raw deal in the end, and I hope we get to learn more about them!

My reviews of Captivate (Need, #2) and Entice (Need, #3).

[Arminzerella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Zara White is sent to live with her grandmother in Maine after her father dies and she falls into a deep depression. Living with her grandmother and being thrown into the middle of a mystery (disappearing teenage boys, and a stalker) – not to mention the attentions of several cute boys – seems to perk her up a bit. Throw in some elements of the supernatural and you have, yet another, Twilight wanabee. With werewolves and pixies (fae) and blood-drinking, this may appeal to fans of Stephenie Meyer’s books and/or those who like Melissa Marr.

This book has an intriguing cover – gold dusted lips set in a pale face with the branches of a winter dead forest creeping up the figure’s neck. The story just wasn’t very good, though. The whole thing feels sloppy and thrown together, like Carrie Jones scooped up the elements that make a “Supernatural Teen Story” and blended them up any which way (ok, if I’m honest, it reads exactly like the crack baby lovechild of Twilight and Wicked Lovely). Zara and the other characters are superficial, and their conversations are almost painful to read. They can’t seem to figure out (or remember) who they are either, from one page to the next. The pixies aren’t all that well-developed – Zara’s biological father is their king, and we don’t get to know them at all except for their baser instincts, which are leading them to prey on humans. And everyone is remarkably matter-of-fact about the presence of werewolves, were-eagles, and weretigers. There’s just not enough depth to any part of this story to make it good – everything is glossed over (except for these meaningless dialogues between Zara and her friends that seem to make up the bulk of the novel). This did not in any way rock my socks. Alas.

[Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies · Rating 1 out of 5]

One would need a tremendous amount of willing suspension of disbelief to believe the events in this book. I mean, I GET that it's fiction, and paranormal fiction at that, but oh man, the heroine is so TSTL it's unbelievable. Things are just too easily believed in the book to be credible. Her friends tell her pixies exist, and Zara is like "No! They can't possibly...Oh ok, so maybe they do," in the span of like 2 seconds. Please.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since the recent death of her beloved stepfather, Zara has been accumulating phobias like some people collect stamps. She’s pretty much afraid of everything. Zara’s mother, worried for her, sends Zara to live with her grandmother, believing that Zara will be safer in that cold and isolated state of Maine. Zara is upset, she hats the cold and misses her home in Charleston. And then, there’s also that mysterious guy that Zara keeps seeing everywhere, the one that leaves nothing but glittery gold dust behind. It turns out that he’s real—and a threat. He’s a pixie, and not one of those cute little things that flit around flowery gardens, but one who’s controlled by his horrible needs—needs that are causing boys to disappear, needs that are haunting Zara’s new home once again, needs that are causing Zara’s phobias to pile up at an unprecedented rate. And Zara is about to find out just where she fits into this dangerous pixie tale.

I know they say not to judge a book by its cover, but with one look at this one, I knew I was hooked, even before I read the summary. Zara is such an interesting character; there is something so sweet about how she wants to save the world, yet at the same time, her self-sacrificing tendencies make her vulnerable. I thought Zara’s character was extremely well-developed and realistic as well. She constantly struggled between what was imaginary versus what was actually real. I was also impressed that the other characters weren’t just flat and uniform; Nick and Zara’s Gram were characterized especially well. But, although the characters were pretty extraordinary, the plot was even better. Need has all the essential elements such as mystery, fantasy, danger, and romance to keep the story suspenseful. The only thing I didn’t really like was that the plot slowed before I felt the climax was reached. Need was an incredible book with the perfect combination of plot and characters that keep me needing to turn those pages until the very end.

I initially thought it a little ambitious for the book to say it appeals to fans of Stephenie Meyer and Melissa Marr, because they are truly phenomenal writers, but now that I’ve read Need, I have to agree. Fans of the paranormal, from Meyer’s Twilight and Marr’s Wicked Lovely to Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith and The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong, we well as most reluctant readers, won’t be able to set Need down.

reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a fantasy junkie, so of course I absolutely devoured Need, in one setting. I could not put it down. When I first read the synopsis for the book, I was instantly intrigued. It sounded like something right down my alley and it ended up being much more than I anticipated!

I had a few things pegged before they happened. {Slight Spoiler Alert} I mean how could you not with these context clues.....

“....... wolfs down one of those lunch room cheeseburgers....”

“....... could huff and puff and blow my house in.”

Then there was another about hair falling over eyes like a dog.... hmmm, not to mention all the talk about werewolves.

{End of Spoiler Alert}

But it didn’t bother me that I had it figured out. Because there was a great deal more that surprised me. That sly Carrie Jones, she had me so fixated figuring out what I already new, I didn’t see what was coming!

The character’s were wonderfully developed and three dimensional. The plot was intense! It definitely kept me turning the pages. Driven by my own need, I just had to know! There were a few minor details that bothered me. Which I’ll refrain from divulging because unfortunately that would be a huge spoiler. Sorry! It was story telling at it’s finest. Well, if you like elements of fantasy, suspense, romance, and mystery in your novels as I do.

I really enjoyed Jones’s writing and will definitely continue to pick up her novels!

[AH · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a few good things to say about Need. If you are an aspiring psychologist or psychiatrist thinking of specializing in phobias, well – this is the book for you. Need is a great vocabulary builder. Instead of numbered chapters, each chapter is named after a phobia with its definition below. So you get to learn great and useful words like:

Phobophobia – a fear of phobias
Autophobia – a fear of yourself
Cacaphobia – a fear of ugliness

Too bad there isn’t a word for fear of dull reads – dullreadophobia.

Need was an unsatisfying read. Many times I had a sense of déjà vu. I’ve read this story before, somewhere. I don’t think it is fair to compare to other books, but as I was reading this, I had this “same old, same old” thought in my head.

Zara, grieving after the sudden death of her father is sent to live with her grandmother Betty in rural Maine. Zara gets the use of the sensible Subaru, goes to the local high school, makes a few friends, and has two boys vying for her attention. Oh yes, there is a stalker and a warning to stay indoors at night.

Zara is a smart, articulate young woman. Yet, she has absolutely no sense of self-preservation. Everyone warns her to stay in, she goes out jogging at night on rural roads. Who does this? Rural roads are not for night jogging.

Pixies....Here’s where I had a problem with this book. I just can’t imagine a pixie as a threat. I just can’t picture them as human sized and dangerous. Pixies need blood? Pixies leave sparkly gold dust on the snow? They just don’t have the same cachet as vampires and werewolves do.

There was a little excitement in the book, but I felt that it came too little, too late. The resolution was just too easy. I understand that there is a sequel to this book. I think I’ll pass.

[Irmak · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kitabı sevdiğim söylenemez. Öncelikle bu kitap 2009da yazılmış keşke ona yakın bir zamanda çevrilseydi çünkü günümüz kitaplarına göre yavan kaçmış. Çünkü artık farklı şeyler bekliyoruz fakat 7 sene önce yazılan bir kitaptan farklılık beklemekte pek olmuyor.
Kitapta en sevdiğim şey Zara'nın fobiye olan ilgisiydi. Ki sanırım bu herkesin en sevdiği şey olmuş kitapta. Ve kitap çok akıcıydı. Okuyamama durumuna iyi gelecek kitaplardan birisi bence İhtiyaç.
Üstelik konunun periler etrafında dönmesi bence çok hoştu.
Amaa yazarın anlatımını sevmedim. Diyaloglar başlarda bana çok zorlama geldi. Ortalardan sonra yine daha düzgündü.
Baş karakteri yani Zara'yı hiç sevmedim. Güçlü bir karakter gibi yansıtılmak istense de bence bu başarılamamıştı. Bir insan ne kadar güçlü olursa olsun perilerin, şekil değiştirenlerin ve daha bir çok şeyin varlığını öğrendiğinde bunu bu kadar kolay kabul edemez.
Çok tahmin edilebilir bir kitaptı. Her şey gün gibi ortadayken salak Zara hiç bir şeyi fark edemedi bile. Fenalıklar geçirdim vallahi.
Sonunu da beğenmediğimi söyleyebilirim. Bence bulduğu çözüm oldukça komikti. Serinin devamında ne olacağını tahmin edemiyorum çünkü bitmiş gibi bitti. Yanı bir devam yok gibi.
Kısacası okudum bitti kitaplarındandı. Çabuk okundu, tempomun düştüğü bu günlere iyi geldi. Ama pek hoşlanmadım.

[Roohdaar · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a strange book.

So here's this teenage girl named Zara who memorizes phobias just for the hell of it. She chants them when she is nervous. It calms her down. It was interesting at first. You know, to be aware of so many bizarre phobias out there. However, it got simply annoying and it wouldn't relate to anything in the story. They were so random.

Then there's this Mary Sue (Gary Stu?) of a love interest named Nick who is macho, huge, unbelievably good looking and just glides through ice with this feet (It's really because he wears boots like a sensible human being, not heels like the silly girl.) so gracefully. He's basically very controlling and very Edwardish.

Very Edwardish.


Then there's this seemingly BA grandmother named Betty White. LOL. Betty White. She knows karate, I believe. She's very fit. And she talks like a 20-year-old woman. She claims that she will kick anyone's butt if they mess with her only grandaughter.


That's utterly silly. Since when were grandmothers that BA? Or is it just that I am stuck with a mean, gossipy Indian one and I cannot do anything about it?

Then there are these really annoying, weird characters that made me cringe. That Issie girl that made me want to choke someone. That Ian guy that existed for no reason. And Megan, the evil, jealous witch.

That's purrty much it, peeps. I just couldn't finish this.

[Krystle · Rating 2 out of 5]

What you see is what you get with this book. Most of what you need to know can be gotten from the cover. The story was superficial and not much on depth.

Zara was a decent character - had some spunk and some of her quirks. I felt that the idea of her being so adamant about helping the poor, saving those in need, while good in concept, it was forced and only seemed to be a method to try and make the character stand out more. I had a feeling that it was the author trying to preach me some sort of message and I wasn’t too appreciative of that.

I did like the whole bits about phobias though. I thought it was neat since it’s interesting to find out what kind of fears people have. Even the chapters are split up by the name of phobias, and not by the traditional numerical marker and/or title. Her writing is decent, clear and easy to read through.

The romance suffered from a lot of what is populating the ya section nowadays. It’s lust on the superficial level where we have the main character going on and on about how hot he is, how gorgeous, and what not. Yech. I’m sorry I don’t want to hear how good looking he is every time they meet. Also, Zara’s friend sort of blended together and there wasn’t much to distinguish one from the other so I constantly forgot who did what, what they looked like, and so on.

Some concepts of the book were pretty interesting though. Vampire/cannibalistic-like pixies. The majority of the plot twists are pretty predictable, although there is one that manages to surprise you a little.

Pretty typical ya fare.

[new_user · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readers can find a lot of diversity across the YA spectrum. There are Gossip Girl dramas, insightful reflections, and adventure reads. Need by Carrie Jones sits between the latter two. It's a novel about junior Zara White coming to terms with the recent death of her father, a mother who deals with her husband's death and her daughter's grief by folding and sending Zara away, and rumors of a serial killer in a strange Maine backwater town.

Need can easily be dissected into two moods: the first a mystery as Zara learns the disturbing depths of her town and comes to trust a few friends and finds a possible love interest. It's the Getting to Know You period.

The second mood of the novel is What Comes After. Zara has learned the truth, finds allies and enemies. Here's the action element and without this I feel the book would have been too simplistic. However, this conflict presents another layer that only improves the story, as Zara deals with X and Y and Z all at once, i.e. emotional, family, and supernatural problems.

The story's told in first person, present-tense mode from Zara's point of view in a concise, relatively simple style that really speeds the narrative along and allows us to sink ourselves into Zara's plight, especially her reconciliation with her father's death, which conflict is probably one of the most critical in the book. (For this reason, I relate the book to The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause, whose heroine meets a vampire but narrative ultimately hinges on the death of a loved one.)

Not to diminish the romance, of course. That was satisfactory for this romance reader. ;) (PG-13, FYI.) And the fight with the pixies! LOL. (They're Grimm's pixies, not Disney's, okay? Work with me here.)

However, the style does have its drawbacks. Need is pretty simple and straightforward, without the complexity, gray areas and subtext that we love. I don't want to compare every YA paranormal novel I read against Twilight, but since Need is advertised as comparable to that book, I'll say that Need's characters and plot are somewhat shallower, with the notable exception of the pixies who are a definite gray area. So this is lite.

I did like that Zara was not obnoxious. She was an intelligent teen, and I do like the themes for younger readers in this book, the encouragement to be proactively involved in the world and write, the contrast of need vs. love (particularly relevant to readers who may be struggling with the physical implications of that question, even though they may not draw blood like the pixies, LOL).

I will probably be reading the sequel, since the ending left me no choice (!) I would recommend this to readers looking for a simple, quick adventure romance. :D

[Megs ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Need is a fun paranormal fantasy. Each chapter name was a certain phobia, since the main character Zara "collects" phobias. I thought most of the phobias were pretty interesting, but some were just stupid. Zara is a very likable character and a pretty smart girl.

The secondary characters shine in Need, particularly Zara's friends. Her quirky band of outsider pals share banter that is hilarious, breaking up intense moments of darkness and angst. Issie is an awesome friend to Zara. Nick is the mysterious hottie that Zara can't keep her eyes off of. I felt that Nick laid on the machismo a little too much at times, but other than that, he was attractive and generally a good person. I've seen a few other people complain about the dialog in this book , and to a degree I can agree that some of it feels totally unrealistic, but somehow the characters still feel very real so that didn't bother me too much.

As far as the romance I love the excitement that comes from Zara's draw to the "bad boy". I enjoy knowing what her mind is telling her in contrast to what her heart is longing for. She knows something is different and strange about him but cannot pull herself away from the feelings he brings her.

The plot flows smoothly and quickly, while having just the right amount of suspense and twists.

I thought this book was genuinely unique and recommend it to all paranormal and fantasy fans. I was surprised how much I liked this book.

[Kayla Silverss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zara White suspects there's a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She's also obsessed with phobias. And it's true, she hasn't exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane...but Zara's pretty sure her mom just can't deal with her right now.

She couldn't be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara's overactive imagination. In fact, he's still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There's something not right - not human - in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

CHARACTERS-
I loved Zara and I just thought she was such a great character.

ROMANCE-
I didn't really ship Nick and Zara, it just didn't feel right.

PLOT-
The plot was super unique and intriguing. I've never read about pixies before and it was just super cool to read about something different.

ENDING-
I loved the ending. I just need the next book.
I just don't really like Nick, I don't know what's wrong about him.

Characters-10/10
Romance-8/10
Plot-10/10
Ending-10/10
Speed-10/10

[jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun, quick read!



I thought the incorporation of Zara's slight obsessive-compulsiveness with the phobias was interesting. It really built her character and surprisingly gave her a personality. I hate it when heroines are introduced with no intriguing traits or hobbies, and we're expected to believe it when everyone lusts after her. THANK GOD Zara has some sort of distinguishing feature.



Zara is a very likable character. She has a good head on her shoulders, for the most part, and her quirkiness is refreshing. Too often are we presented with bland female leads with no real intrigue, but Zara realizes she's a complete weirdo and embraces it. Yes, please! Given her circumstance with losing her stepfather, I felt especially sad for her. I can't imagine going through what she did. Though it was evident that Zara was in near constant pain, she kept her chin up and kept on truckin'. I have to give props on the secondary character, too, who were very well developed, namely Devyn.



The villain was a little strange, though not unpredictable, especially when the whole "need" thing was brought into play. Creeptastic, truly.



There are definitely some cliche aspects to the book:

1. Awkward, clueless new girl in town moves in and the spunky friends are drawn to her, the hot guys get a crush on her, and all is well except for the beautiful bitchy girl that tries to make her life hell.

2. "Secret" supernatural beings, but that's perfectly acceptable.

3. Awkward, clueless girl finds out that nothing is as it seems and discovers she might be EXTRA-SPECIAL and not just awkward.

4. Special awkward, clueless girl ends up not-so-clueless and realizes she's an essential pawn in evil, diabolical plan.



But this book was so fun, I don't even care about any of that. Nick and Zara were a cute pairing and for ONCE there was no "I love you" 50 pages into the story, taking place 5 minutes after the hero/heroine first meet. Yay, Carrie Jones! You did it right!

[crίѕтίŋα•●Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ●• · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Coleciono medos como quem coleciona selos, o que faz de mim mais anormal do que sou. Mas sou dessas. Das dos medos. Fobias.
Há aquelas fobias típicas e comuns. Há montes de gente com medo da alturas, de elevadores e de aranhas. Essas são uma seca. Eu sou fã de boas fobias.”
*
“I collect fears like other people collect stamps, which makes me sound like more of a freak than I actually am. But I’m into it. The fears thing. Phobias.
There are all the typical, common phobias. Lots of people are afraid of heights and elevators and spiders. Those are boring. I’m a fan of the good phobias.”
- Zara White

* * *
“O desconhecido é que me mete um medo de morte.
Não sei o nome desse medo, mas sei que o tenho, o medo do desconhecido.”
*
“It’s the unknown that mostly freaks me out.
I don’t know the name of that fear, but I know I’ve got it, the fear of the unknown.”
- Zara White

* * *
“Mesmo sabendo que os beijos não duram para sempre - pois não?
Porém, não é o fim dos beijos que me assusta.
Nao. A única coisa que me assusta agora sou eu mesma. A Zara que eu poderei vir a ser.
Toda a gente tem medos não é? Mas quantos de nós tem o mesmo medo?
Bastantes parece. Porque até tem nome.
Autofobia medo de si mesma.
*
“I know that kisses can’t last forever—can they?
But it’s not kisses ending that really scares me.
No. The only thing that scares me now is me. The Zara I might become. The Zara I don’t ever want to be.
Everybody has fears, right? But how many of us have my fear?
Enough, it seems. Because there’s a name for it.
Autophobia fear of oneself.”
- Zara White

[Ronyell · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Need” is one of the first paranormal books I have read in my life and I can tell you that I really enjoyed reading this book! “Need” is a paranormal book written by Carrie Jones and it is about how Zara White realizes that a mysterious stranger has followed her from her hometown Charleston to her new home in Maine. “Need” is a brilliant book that will be a huge hit for paranormal fans.

What can I say? Carrie Jones has really brought life to this paranormal romantic story. Carrie Jones has made the book extremely intense yet charming at the same time as Zara White is a truly wonderful character in this book. Zara is not afraid to speak her mind as she is genuinely interested in World Peace and she tells everyone her desire to be a pacifist with such passion that it makes her a truly admirable and courageous character. Another character who is truly memorable in this book is Nick Colt as he seems like a mysterious character, but as the story progresses, he becomes a close friend to Zara as he is willing to protect her from any danger. Carrie Jones brings creativity to this book as each chapter is named after various types of phobias that Zara experiences in her adventures in Maine such as one chapter being called “Didaskaleinophobia – fear of going to school” and another chapter is called “Sitophobia – fear of eating.”

For adults who do not like bad language in books, this book has a couple of mild profanities, but the profanities in this book are not as strong as some of the books and it might not affect many adults who dislike bad language in books.

“Need” is a truly mesmerizing book full of mystery and romance that any hardcore paranormal fan will for ages.

Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog

[Angigames · Rating 2 out of 5]

Prendete una ragazza 17enne carina ma normale sotto tanti aspetti, fatela trasferire in una piccola cittadina nel Maine, dove sembra che l’inverno non finisca mai (non vi ricorda qualcosa?).
Fate vivere la ragazza dalla nonna che dovrebbe avere una certa età, ma che pare abbia la forza di Superman, fatela trasferire in una nuova scuola dove i pochi studenti non fanno altro che parlare di lei. La carissima ragazza sarà la prima, sulla faccia della Terra, ad attirare l’attenzione del più ambito ragazzo della scuola che, ovviamente, non si comporta normalmente… no! È tutto molto misterioso, vive da solo è guida una Mini rosso fuoco… (sicuri di non aver già letto una cosa simile?)
Intanto, dall’arrivo della ragazza cominciano ad accadere strani fatti: due ragazzi scompaiono, vengono avvistati strani cani e la povera ragazza si convince che qualcosa di non umano la sta seguendo! Avete capito ora di che libro si tratta? Si? Come dite? No… lo so pare strano ma non è quel libro! Capisco che la trama sia molto simile (UGUALE) ma no non è quel libro lì!
Qui non ci sono i vampiri ma i pixie, una specie di esseri fatati belli e pericolosi che non possono entrare in casa se non sono invitati (si lo so, questo fatto è vampiresco), che cercano la loro regina… qui, invece, ci sono i Mannari: tigri mannare, orsi mannari, aquile mannare (?) e ovviamente loro (o meglio, LUI) i mannari per eccellenza, i LUPI che in primis verranno scambiati per cani.
La dolce donzella in difficoltà per tutto il libro (proprio tutto) adotterà un atteggiamento da eroina della difficile situazione, ma che in realtà si rivelerà essere un atteggiamento da perfetta idiota! Testarda, non ascolterà i consigli di nessuno e cadrà nella trappola del nemico… povera… mi sono chiesta perché ancora ci si ostina a salvare tali personaggi… io l’avrei eliminata all’istante!
IO ODIO I LIBRI FOTOCOPIA!

[~ Tara Bezeau ~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was bored for a lot of it. There was a lot of normal things going on in it like shovelling a drive way etc. Things I could have cared less about reading about. I want plot and twists and this for sure didn’t have too much of that going on for most of the book. I was disappointed for sure and nothing is making me want to pick up the second book.

[Alice-Elizabeth (Prolific Reader Alice) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this for The YA Room's Throwback Bingo Challenge!

Challenge Square: Fae

There were lots of things about this book that either confused me, or didn't sit well with me personally. Each chapter is named after a type of phobia and for someone like myself who has an anxiety disorder and lots of fears, it was a little uncomfortable but that is just me personally. Zara lives with her grandmother after the death of step-father and things go well, until she feels that someone is stalking her. After some time, her past starts to catch up with her. I was really interested in the fae aspect, but when the introduction of werewolves happened 50% through, I was just very lost about who was who. I would say that this is more of a werewolf book rather than a fae book. I struggled with the writing style and couldn't connect to the characters. I won't be continuing on with the series!

[Dana Al-Basha | دانة الباشا · Rating 2 out of 5]

I never knew how many kinds of phobias there are in the world! I might have half of them! LOL... but the storyline is kind-of like Twilight, with some differences but still, kind of the same. A new girl in a cold town, a new-old car, the hot guy who never liked anyone but her, who can't seem to read her, the girl hates cold weather, then she get hurts and goes to the hospital... You see where I'm going with this?



I don't know, the dialog is so bad, they keep repeating everything, and I knew everything before it happened along time ago, and Zara is kind of stupid, I mean she is afraid and she knows the pixies are out there to get her but she still goes out!! She could do as she is told and stay inside until the weather clears or help gets to the house!



All in all, it is a light predictable read, not so bad but not good either. I hate that Zara is so mean and rude with her mother, though she is quite nice, and there is no reason for her to act mean.



Okay, such a stupid book!! With such a stupid ending!! Pixies can fly, people!! Isn't that the way her dad took her to his house!! How can they be stuck if they can fly!?

[Sharrol · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my god. this book was the worst book i have ever read besides thirsty by mt anderson which i also reviewed. zara keeps saying throughout the book she isn't needy and that she is independent yet every other sentence she says to nick, the love interest, is needy. "do you like me? like.. like like me?" him: "yes, zara." her: "no, like like like me.. you know.. LIKE me" (not exact quotes) then she is in the lunchroom and sees a stalker outside of the window. her two friends invite her over to their house and say that they've researched online about the guy they saw outside and they came up with the fact that he's a pixie. WHAT!?!?! how do you deduce that a creepy guy who is mostly just a shadow in the distance a PIXIE!?!?! there is not enough info on him to even research!? omg. and then when they tell the news to zara she is not even surprised. "oh ok" seems to be her reaction. not only is everything so obvious through the whole book but then nick who is a werewolf and the #1 enemy to the pixies doesnt even know about pixies??? the way that he was built up (hardly!!!) in the book was not believable. not to mention he comes into zara's house and she doesnt even realize he is a werewolf. lmfao!!! how silly can you be to not know what a werewolf is when you see one?? she kept saying here doggy. ummm....no. so after you suffer through all these pages there is an anticlimactic ending where they basically put railroad tracks around the pixie house that they can't even see...lmfao!! they must be good guessers right? oh not to mention cant the pixies with royal blood fly over the railroad tracks???? so basically there is no solution!! the ending isnt even logical.

i have never in my life been more frustrated with a book.... i could cry and scream !!!!!

[Jade · Rating 4 out of 5]

2nd Reread (11.6.2022):
I originally rated this 5 stars when I read it many moons ago in my teens, but this time around it was more a 4 stars read. I still really enjoyed it, but there was just some things that bothered me that I know I would've overlooked in my younger days.

The FMC (Zara) was a bit ... dumb, I guess? She was lovely sometimes and them overwhelmingly irritating at other times. Even the MMC (Nick) was pretty meh. He and Zara had zero chemistry; it didn't suit his personality and the way others described him that he'd never kissed a girl, and most of the time he came across as rude (with everyone claiming he was just hot-headed. Like, NO he's being a jerk!). I honestly preferred the side characters Issie and Devyn and thought they had so much chemistry.

I still thoroughly like the concept and plot and felt it all flowed at a really good pace that kept me interested the entire read, which is why it still gets 4 stars. I'm really looking forward to finally finishing the series.

○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●

1st Read (2010):

This is again one of those rare books I come across where I adore the characters and plot. It was beautifully written and I can read it over and over again. Definitely worth a look for anyone contemplating reading it. Well worth your time!

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good read. I am a huge paranormal romance fan, so I am always looking for new and interesting series and "Need" did not disappoint! I thought it had some similarities to "Twilight", which was not a bad thing, since I enjoyed "Twlight"... Zara getting sent off to live with a relative she isn't as familiar with, new school, all new friends, cold, isolated setting in the North, this guy who seems really interested in her but also aloof and distant... but also had enough differences that it was certainly its own story. What I mean to say is, if you liked "Twilight" and are looking for another similar book, this one fits.

I really liked the relationship between Zara and her grandmother Betty. Betty is a strong character on her own, and the way they get closer over the course of the book is cool. I also like the friendships that Zara develps with Izzy and Devon. The super natural element was cool, and I look forward to seeing that developed more.

Please excuse typos. Entered on screen reader.

[Rabbit {Paint me like one of your 19th century gothic heroines!}]

DNF on page 33

DNF because the slight potential this book had nose dived into cliche territory. Not only was this a twilight-esque (granted with potential to be a better than the source material). I've read all these themes before. Wash rinse and repeat.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all. How about those gold lips? Shimmery! The color of those lips does a good job of representing the glittery-but-dangerous magic in this book. Just as the pale skin of their owner conveys the tone of the story quite well: pale, cold, and creepy. I'm pretty sure this is my first pixie urban fantasy and I wasn't sure what to expect. What I did not expect was feeling like I was back inside the world of Stephen King's It. But apparently if a book's got Maine, winter, and a town with a curse on it, it will always evoke the same prickly, back-of-the-neck feelings in me. And Need's heroine shares my sentiments.

Zara's stepdad is dead. After watching her waste away day by day, Zara's mother puts her on a plane and sends her to her de facto grandmother--her stepdad's mom Betty. Betty lives in Maine. Maine feels like another world to Zara. A world in which the every surface is blanketed in snow and the local teenagers are all track stars or football talent or some other sort of gifted. These things combined make Carrie real nervous. As a coping mechanism, she recites phobias in the hopes that naming her fear will help her face it. Yeah, she's brave and likeable that way. And she makes a trio of truly cool, hilarious friends. The adorably scattered Issie, the kind and quiet Devyn, and the dark and looming Nick. The three of them begin giving Zara a reason to get up again. There are, of course, some kids who don't like the new girl. And there is, of course, a bit of a love triangle (but not really). And it's all very high school. That is until gold dust starts showing up everywhere and her classmates start turning out to be Not Who She Thought They Were. And it becomes clear that something wicked is definitely this way coming.

Need is a good one to stay up late at night reading. Alone. That way you can take full advantage of the awful not-pretty pixies going to eat you factor. And, really, when was the last time you did that? What I liked about Ms. Jones' writing is the way she created a truly scary world and villain with very little overt description. I have no idea what he looks like. In my head he's this huge dark form without a face and he is the scarier for it. Part of this is accounted for by the fog Zara is in when she first arrives in Maine, and part by the fear that seems to grow no matter how many names she gives it. I liked that she had such good friends and that they were actually a part of the story, not just background music. Once I met Issie and Devyn, I wanted more and more of them. Nick is definitely a good guy and could probably have used a little more conflict for my taste. But I liked him well enough. His hero complex was indeed charming. I would be happy to read more in this world. Recommended for fans of Holly Black.

[Jay G · Rating 1 out of 5]

Want to see more bookish things from me? Check out my Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfer...

1.5 Stars

Zara White has just been shipped to Maine to live with her Grandmother after she watches her stepfather die of a heart attack. She believes that she has a stalker following her and now he's shown up in Maine as well. The strange thing is, he leaves gold dust every where he goes. With the help of her new friends, she tries to discover what he wants and how to stop him.

This book is literally just Twilight redone. The writing was corny and most of the time I was just rolling my eyes at the plot line. The plot was so predictable, I was able to call the entire story within the first 30 pages. Some of the lines in the book are so over used... "I'm not like other girls" is one of my favourites. Zara really pissed me off... She did literally everything people told her not to do... and every thought she had had to do with the 'hottest guy, like ever' Nick. ALSO, Nick is described as smelling "like safety"... I'm sorry, but what does safety even smell like?! All of the characters had no personalities and were so one dimensional. They were your typical stereotypical YA characters you see in every book with no variety.

Overall, just a boring read.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Julie M. Prince for TeensReadToo.com

Zara has been unceremoniously shipped off to Maine to stay with Grandma Betty in the middle of nowhere during a frigid winter. According to her mother, Zara just hasn't been herself since her step-father passed away, and all of this is apparently supposed to help.

Before Zara even has a chance to snap out of the depression, her attention is drawn elsewhere by a mystery surrounding a local boy's disappearance. Oh, and then there's the strange man who seems to be stalking Zara.

She knew Maine would be a change of pace, but she didn't know she'd be running for her life...much less running from evil pixies!

When the fantastical pixie element is introduced, the excitement is enhanced, and much like WICKED LOVELY and other books of this caliber, the introduction seems natural and believable. These elements don't seem to overrun the story, but compliment it instead.

Author Carrie Jones (GIRL, HERO and other books) has a way of creating unique characters and supplying them with strong voices that seem immediately familiar to the reader. Zara's character is no exception. This immediate familiarity helps engage readers from the very beginning and hold their attention until the very end.

Aiding the familiarity of the voice in this book is its backdrop of Jones's home state. Here, the blistering cold and the frustration at being snowed in comes through loud and clear as we suffer through the Maine winter right along with Zara.

All-in-all, this is a read you won't want to miss, especially if you're a fan of contemporary fiction with fantasy woven in.

[Ezgi T · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kitabı 46. sayfada bıraktım çünkü o noktaya kadar olan her şey şöyle ilerledi:

- Üvey babasını kaybeden kız depresyonu nedeniyle babaannesiyle yaşamaya gönderilir.

- Kız yeni okuluna geldiği ilk beş dakika içinde arkadaş ve düşman edinir:
Düşmanı çok şaşırtıcı(!) bir şekilde, okuldaki "popüler kız" (Megan) ve ana karakter kızımıza (Zara) karşı bir kin dolu, bir kin dolu, sormayın.
Nedeni ne sizce? --> Zara, Megan'ın Nick'le birlikte olmasının önünde duran bir "engel" ... Yahu kız daha birkaç dakika önce tanıştı Nick'le. ?!?!?!

- Kız iki düşmanın arasında kalır:
Onu okula girerken düşmekten kurtaran Nick ve her şeyi başarmak zorundaymış gibi hareket eden Ian. Ian ona Nick'i kötüler, Nick ona Ian'ı. Neden? Bence hiç kimsenin bir fikri yok bu konuda.

Bana okuduğum 46 sayfa içinde orijinal gelen tek şey Zara'nın içinden fobi saymasıydı, ama bu huy kitaba devam etmem konusunda ikna edemedi beni. İçinde periler var diye gerçekten heyecanlanmıştım ve kitabın yazıldığı yılın (2008-2009) da farkındaydım, o yüzden süper-über-harika bir şey beklemiyordum ama buna devam edemem...

46 sayfada beni kendinden harika bir şekilde soğuttu kısacası.

Not: ALACAKARANLIK?!?!?!

[These Violent Delights (Robin) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this reread. I love the characters (not so much the love interest, I mean, I liked him throughout much of this book but there are little things he does that have made me reexamine his character)

I love Zara, I like her grandma, I love Issie & Devyn. I loved the different types of beings in this book (ie, Pixies, WereTigers, WereWolves, Werebirds, etc.)

I just really liked this book. Can't wait to reread Captivate next.

[Sabi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though it gets a little cheesy at times, it's a fresh idea to read about Pixies.


Pros:

1. A quick read for people who like YA and want to explore more than Twilight.

2. The start of the chapters was really nice and interesting.

Cons:

1. It could've been any mysterious creature: The Pixie world should've been explored more.