Title: The Society of S
Author: Susan Hubbard
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
Published: May 1st 2007
Series: Ethical Vampire (Book #1)
Source: I purchased a copy from a bookstore:
Blurb from Goodreads: "If you ever want to hide from the world, live in a small city, where everyone seems anonymous."That's the advice of twelve-year-old Ariella Montero, who lives with her father in Saratoga Springs, New York, in a house haunted more by secrets than by memories. "The Society of S" traces her journey south, to Asheville and Savannah, and on to Florida, as she learns that everything she knows about her family is a lie.
When she finds her mother, she learns the truth: Ariella is a fledgling member of the Society of S.
"S" stands for "Sanguinists", a sect of environmentalists concerned with ethics and human rights -- although they happen to be vampires. S also stands for synesthete: a person able to see words and letters in colors. The letter S is lucky for Sara, Ariella's mother, who gravitates to cities such as Savannah and Sarasota. But will it be lucky for Ariella?
Susan Hubbard's novel is an intricate literary mystery that raises provocative questions about the way we live now. Ariella's voice will lure you into a world where you'll meet the "others" among us: vampires who cope with their special nature and need for blood in a variety of ways, ranging from the savage to the mundane to the scientific.
Review
My thoughts: I bought this book in one of my shopping sprees for my birthday, like a year ago. I have to admit that I really liked the cover so I became interested right away. The synopsis sounded interesting too, so I decided to buy it. I didn't even know this was a series.
When I started to read it, I was excited to find out what was this Society that inspired such compelling cover, but then I got caught on pages and pages of nothing.
For a vampire book it was terribly slow, before I even reached the third chapter I was already bored. I continued reading just because I refused to lose the money it has costed me.
It wasn't a bad plot, but I think it wasn't well developed. There are some mysteries and they could have been told in a more captivating way, but they got lost in all the details and irrelevant thoughts on Ari's mind.
For instance, I never got to understand what the synesthete has to do with the vampires or how this "ability" plays a roll on the plot itself.
I gave it two clocks just because I liked Ariella, not in such a good way either, because I felt sorry for her. But I hate hes father and mother and I though they were selfish and self-centered and obviously a lot of what was happening could have been avoided if they would just talk to each other. I didn't even like her friends and kind-of-boyfriend.
Well, it was a disappointing book, I didn't have huge expectations, but I obviously expected more than what was delivered to me.
¿Would I recommend it?: I don't think so. Unless you really like vampire stories in a more scientific way.
Rating:
Quote:
“My father was right: people are always leaving. They fall in and out of your life like shadows.”
About the author:
Susan Hubbard, born in upstate New York, is the author of two collections of short fiction, both winners of national prizes, and four novels. The Society of S was published in May 2007 by Simon & Schuster, and The Year of Disappearances, a sequel, was released in May 2008. The U.S. paperback edition of The Year of Disappearances was published in 2009.
The third volume in the Ethical Vampire series, The Season of Risks, was published in July 2010.
Hubbard's books have been translated and published in more than 15 countries. Her short stories have appeared in TriQuarterly, The Mississippi Review, The North American Review, America West, Kalliope, Ploughshares, and other journals. She is coeditor of 100% Pure Florida Fiction, an anthology.
She has received teaching awards from Syracuse University, Cornell University, the University of Central Florida, and the South Atlantic Adminstrators of Departments of English. She has been awarded residencies at Yaddo, the Djerassi Resident Artists Project, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, and Cill Rialaig.
Hubbard has led writing workshops at universities and arts programs across the United States and the United Kingdom. A former president of Associated Writing Programs, she has served as an assessor and curriculum consultant to several colleges and universities.
Hubbard currently is a Professor of English at the University of Central Florida. She is an advocate for animal rights, social justice, academic etiquette, and literacy. Her hobbies include running, salvaging, and collecting items of questionable taste.
It wasn't a bad plot, but I think it wasn't well developed. There are some mysteries and they could have been told in a more captivating way, but they got lost in all the details and irrelevant thoughts on Ari's mind.
For instance, I never got to understand what the synesthete has to do with the vampires or how this "ability" plays a roll on the plot itself.
I gave it two clocks just because I liked Ariella, not in such a good way either, because I felt sorry for her. But I hate hes father and mother and I though they were selfish and self-centered and obviously a lot of what was happening could have been avoided if they would just talk to each other. I didn't even like her friends and kind-of-boyfriend.
Well, it was a disappointing book, I didn't have huge expectations, but I obviously expected more than what was delivered to me.
¿Would I recommend it?: I don't think so. Unless you really like vampire stories in a more scientific way.
Rating:
Quote:
“My father was right: people are always leaving. They fall in and out of your life like shadows.”
About the author:
The third volume in the Ethical Vampire series, The Season of Risks, was published in July 2010.
Hubbard's books have been translated and published in more than 15 countries. Her short stories have appeared in TriQuarterly, The Mississippi Review, The North American Review, America West, Kalliope, Ploughshares, and other journals. She is coeditor of 100% Pure Florida Fiction, an anthology.
She has received teaching awards from Syracuse University, Cornell University, the University of Central Florida, and the South Atlantic Adminstrators of Departments of English. She has been awarded residencies at Yaddo, the Djerassi Resident Artists Project, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, and Cill Rialaig.
Hubbard has led writing workshops at universities and arts programs across the United States and the United Kingdom. A former president of Associated Writing Programs, she has served as an assessor and curriculum consultant to several colleges and universities.
Hubbard currently is a Professor of English at the University of Central Florida. She is an advocate for animal rights, social justice, academic etiquette, and literacy. Her hobbies include running, salvaging, and collecting items of questionable taste.
No comments:
Post a Comment