Jilly's Reviews > Whispers in Autumn

I was interested in this book because it reminded me a bit of The Host, which I loved, but it turned out to be nothing like it. There are aliens who have taken over the planet, but they have do not inhabit the humans. Instead, they use mind control on them and control every thing in their entire lives. Any human that somehow "breaks" through the mind control is immediately picked up and taken away - never to be seen again. Everyone else lives happily as some sort of Stepford Wives with smiles on their faces at all times, happy with their alien overlords.

Althea alone is not under this mind control and she has to hide this fact by acting like everyone else and trying to blend in. Adding to that, she does this strange time traveling between families, living with a different family during different seasons of the year. Except summer. For some reason, she has never been in summer. Each family does not seem to notice that she is with them for only certain times, or that she comes and goes, and she is never sure how long her stay will last. This leaves her feeling alone and miserable. All she has is a note in a locket that tells her that she is different and must hide her difference from the others.

In Autumn, she meets up with Lucas, who seems like he is different too and she thinks she finally might have met someone like herself. The problem is that things are getting crazy and she has the distinct feeling that the aliens are noticing her presence and looking for her.

The book premise is interesting and the characters are strong. The only problem I had with the book was how slowly it moved. There was a very long period of time where nothing much happened and I just never felt much suspense or danger until the last few pages. I hope that the next book moves along faster and that there is a lot more action and suspense because there is a great opportunity for it in this story.