Losing Lila.

TITLE. Losing Lila
AUTHOR. Sarah Alderson
RELEASE DATE. August 2012
PAGES. 346
FORMAT. Paperback
GENRE. YA

SUMMARY.
Alex and Lila are on the run, desperately trying to stay one step ahead of the Unit, which is somehow tracking their every move. While Alex is determined to keep Lila safe and het ability a secret at any cost, Lila’s only thought is of finding a way back to California so she can rescue her brother and mother from the military base where they’re being held.

Struggling to control both her growing power and her deepening feelings for Alex, Lila decides the time has finally come to stop running and start fighting. Together with Alex, Demos and the others she’s come to think of as family, Lila plans not only to save her brother and mum, but also to completely destroy the Unit and everything it stands for. But the plan requires Lila to return to California alone, and to make friends with the enemy – and in doing so, she risks losing everything: Alex, her family… even her life.

STANDALONE or SERIES.
This is the second, and last, part of the Lila series. I’ve read the first book a couple years back, but did not continue with this one.. so I started over so I could finish this story !

WHY this book.
Because I’ve had this book in my bookcase for like forever.. only two books to this series and I’ve not even finished it !! I really enjoyed the first part, but because that was a couple years (and a looooooot of books) back, I could not remember what had happened.. So after rereading the first one I finally got to this one.

COVER impressions.
 Yeah, well what to say about it ? Typical YA.. I mean COME ON !! Why can no one come with an original YA cover.. instead of some part of the female character AGAIN… Maybe I should just scrap this part out of my reviews the next time. Always the same anyway.

FIRST THOUGHTS.
OMG I had to struggle sooo much to get through this one !! I really enjoyed the first part, for real ! I liked the characters, the story development.. The whole powers stuff of course.. But in this part I got soo annoyed.. about almost everything !!

PLOT.
Well… Lila and Alex survived the first book, ran away from the fight and awaiting the others in Mexico. While doing so they are well.. not doing much noteworthy.. Running and hiding, meeting the Mafia (really easy to find btw, just go to the bad part of town and approach the first shady person you see.. he will take you directly to the local drug lord) When they get back with the others they come up with some delirious plan.. Lila being the one who comes up with the plans ? God only knows why out of all the pro’s only a teenage girl with no experience comes up with anything but well.. They rescue Jack.. rescue the mom.. the end. How happy I was that it was over…
A part from that not even everything is solved or solved to easily without much of an explanation !! Like Jack and his father ??? Why the hell not tell him.. come on that’s just bullshit. Just leave the guy in oblivion about who his real father is, deciding for him what is good for him (hypocrites) And why would Sarah go to all the trouble of being the perfect girlfriend when she knew everything all along ? What did she benefit ? For science.. ?? How lame… I found her betrayal really weird, it made no sense. I mean, I like a good plot twist.. but this was just bullshit.
And they knew all along about Lila and her powers but just let her be ? So weird.. You know, it seemed more like she made it all up along the way, whatever became convenient… It should make more sense !!!

ROMANCE.
I LOVE a good romance, but this was just ridiculous.. I felt no connection between those two at all. No chemistry. God how annoying Lila was swooning and crying over Alex the whole time. Ohh his body this, oohh his body that, ugh.. Trying to throw herself at him and him being all righteous and stopping before it could get any further. Ugh.. just no.
It makes me kind of sad, in the first book they had more going on, not like wow or anything.. but at least I felt a little with her. This one just nothing.

SETTING.
Though I like the whole world she started building in the first part, with the powers and genetics and stuff.. That it can be dormant until something traumatic triggers it.. I felt like it all fell apart in this one. Just like an air castle deflating... All the air puffing away. Ugh.
Everything was just too easy, the powers where too convenient. The plans were complete bullshit, though everyone acted like she was some kind of genius.. I mean you have a room full of pro’s ! Alex is the equivalent to a Navy SEAL, Demos has been hurting the Unit for years, Harvey was a bank robber (convenient) but the only one with a plan is a unexperienced teenager ??? How does that make sense ??? IT MAKES NO SENSE !!!
Just as her powers, being a telekinetic.. Since when do they have control over the elements ?? That is not what a real telekinetic is.. that is just convenient and bullshit.
And her mother ! Oh we just found her and she is peachy, not worth putting anything about her or what she has been through in the story.. She is only the main reason for breaking into the base anyway. Just like Thomas, we readers are just too delicate to explain anything about what he has been through… Grr.

CHARACTERS.
Lila. The most annoying main character I’ve come across in some time. She is not only really selfish, but has a lot of self-pity and is incredibly childish. Like really, really, really childish… She thinks more about Alex and his body than anything else, and deflates into a huddle of self-pity at the slightest problem.. She claims to be strong and independent, but cries for Alex every single time. Needs his help all the time. Come on !! You have awesome powers.. Be stronger, be better than this !! I wanted to shake her so many times !! And god, how many times does she have to look in a mirror at herself for some super self-reflection ???
Alex. He is the boyfriend of Lila and best friend of Jack. They all know each other for most of their lives. But he does not seem to care about Jack AT ALL. Oh no we just leave him, no we just let him be transferred so he can be tortured and dissected. Dude ! He is supposed to be your best friend !! And now that you’re with Lila he doesn’t matter anymore ? One of the least passionate love interests EVER. He just stops. Every time. Because he knows better. Nobody likes self-righteous assholes. And he was so easily offended !!! Oh boehoeh my girlfriend is stronger than me and doesn’t need me any more to protect her. Get over yourself, please.
Jack. The brother of the main character, and long-time stalker of his sister. What is it with guys and protecting their sisters ?? Ok, in some part you help them of course.. but this is just ridiculous. This is bordering on creepy stalker stuff… And the stuff with Sarah ? He dealt really easily with that…
Sarah. Jack’s girlfriend and big time traitor. How ??? It makes no sense !!! Why did she do it all ? She said for science, but really ? I liked her, and then all of the sudden she is a completely different person… without a good reason !!
Rachel. Daughter of the president of the Unit and she is the boss of Alex and Jack. A real bitch.. with not much else going on.
Demos. The leader of the.. yeah, the psy-rebels ? Turns out to be the good guy who wants to stop the experimenting and torturing. He has some kind of special powers, one of a kind. He can make people do anything. Oh ! What about him and Alicia ? He just let her leave ? And he is not even going to talk to Melissa ? Pussy.
Suki. Japanese mind reader with a shoe addition. I thought it was kind of weird to through the shoes in the mix.. Like trying to put something funny in it that was not funny at all. But all with all I kind of liked her, even though she was kind of useless, and made more problems than contributing to anything.
Nate. Gay projector, can project himself out of his body to watch everybody. Mainly interested in getting to see Alex naked. Not much of a personality.
Key. The father of Nate, also a projector. He helped Lila in the first part a lot, and continues doing this in the second part. He might be the only character I’ve no problem with. He acts logically and does good work.
Amber. Mood reader ? She lost her partner in the first book and was really mad in the beginning. Came around. Was kind of hoping she turned out to be the traitor, would have made for some nice plot twists.. but nope.
Richard Stirling. The President of the Unit and the big bad. Kind of a normal bad guy, with money as motivation. Did not seem to care about anything else.. not even his own daughter.
 
FAVORITE.
Since I only have one character I did not dislike, I’ll have to go for Key. He was a good guy who helped a lot. He did not whine or act stupid, and saved the day most of the time. Downside being his mother, but that is not even worth bitching about. Once again, failing to be funny.

LEAST FAVORITE.
Everybody else.

THE BAD.
See entire review… I should probably turn this into THE GOOD instead. What did I like ? Ehm.. Sorry, I’m kind of drawing a blank here. I think I liked the first book better, that that is the good ? Just shoot me.

FAVORITE QUOTES.
None.

FINAL THOUGHTS.
This book was really disappointing. I liked the first book, ok it was not perfect but at least it was entertaining. This one was not. I would seriously suggest just never reading this one if you’ve finished the first and just keep fantasising about how it could end. Because I can guarantee that would be better than this. Everything just seems to have been made up along the way, it was just all very convenient and not in line with the rest of the story. It made no sense. A story should make some sense, logical in some way.. this was just a lot of bullshit bound together to make it look like a story. I was thinking before I wrote this to give it 3 Freyja’s.. but honestly ? When writing this one, and getting my thoughts together I found more and more faults into the story and its characters. I will have to go with.. 1.5 Freyja’s, for the effort.