I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

Cannonball Read III: Book #9/52
Published: 2010
Pages: 448 (3,449 total so far)
Genre: Young Adult

I picked up this book after seeing the trailer for the upcoming movie. I love sci-fi movies and I always feel the need to read the book before I see the movie. I Am Number Four is about a fifteen-year-old boy, John, who came from the dying planet, Lorien when he was a toddler. His cepan (kind of like a guide/guardian), Henri, came with him and is his pretend father on Earth. Mogadorians from their rival planet are hunting down the nine Lorien teens and killing them. Oh, and they have a spell put on them so they can only be killed in order. John is Number Four (in case you weren't aware from the title).

This was kind of a throwaway book for me. I just found out that "Pitticus Lore" is actually James Frey of the Million Little Pieces scandal. I read that book years ago, and this book is a TOTALLY different direction that one. However, this book fell a little flat. The characters weren't BAD, but they weren't exactly that memorable or interesting either. The story was interesting, but I kept finding myself wanting to skim through pages just to get to the end. I was very disappointed that they kind of left the end hanging for the second book to pick up with. I don't really want to read a whole other book, but I kind of do want to know what Henri's letter said.

Also, he's fifteen freaking years old. They should have either made him a little older (17 or 18 maybe) or just killed the whole romance subplot. It's hardly believable (and actually laughable unless you actually are fifteen) to have two fifteen year old totally in love from the second they meet at school, one of whom just got out of a serious, long-term relationship with the school jock. What, did they date all through Jr. High?? And the way she and his friend Sam took the news that he was alien; like he was telling them he was actually from Russia or something completely normal.

There were other things I found completely implausible. First of all, there was a huge final battle at the high school with the Mogadorians and a bunch of giant "beasts". Did no one in this entire town notice any of this? There were no law enforcement, no ambulance, no news helicopters or reporters, no spectators, nothing. And don't get me started on the whole WTF moment of Mark (the jerk ex-boyfriend) becoming an ally with no reason behind it whatsoever.

All in all, it wasn't the best book ever, and wasn't the worst either. I doubt I'll pick up the second in the series unless my curiosity as to what Henri said in his letter gets the best of me. Which is entirely possible.