Imposter by Susanne Winnacker

Tessa is a "Variant", a human with special abilities and hers is that she can absorb another person's DNA and can shape shift to look exactly like that person. Tessa's ability to do this first surfaced when she was 5 years old. Her mother, unable to cope with Tessa's bizarre ability, abandoned her two years ago. Tessa has spent the past two years living at a compound run by the Forces with Extraordinary Abilities, (FEA) a branch of the FBI, training to take on special missions.

That time has finally arrived and Tessa's first mission will be to impersonate a girl, Madison Chambers who was attacked and left for dead. Madison is the fourth victim of a serial killer stalking the town of Livingston, Oregon. Madison was strangled and thrown into the lake where she was discovered by a jogger. She is now severely brain damaged and expected to die. Once she dies, Tessa will take Madison's place and her parents will be told that she has made a miraculous recovery. Tessa will then be embedded into the Chambers family with the hope of attracting the attention of the killer and provoking him or her into striking again. In the meantime, Tessa will try to learn all she can about Madison's life and to uncover the serial killer

While waiting for Madison to pass away, Tessa continues her training at the FEA compound. Tessa has a major crush on Alec, a man with incredible strength, but Alec is currently dating Kate, another variant who can read the minds of females. Alec seems to like Tessa too, but seems conflicted over his feelings for her. The person in charge of the variants is Major, a tough, badass man who takes no prisoners and no back talk.

When Madison dies, Tessa assumes her identity at the hospital with the help of several staff who tell Madison's parents and her twin brother, Devon, that she is gradually awakening from the induced coma. Tessa now living as Madison tells Madison's family that she does not remember what happened to her and not much about her family. This gives Tessa a chance to settle into her role as Madison. Everything seems to go well, with Tessa adjusting to life in the Chambers home. The FEA has also placed Alec in Livingston, where he will attend high school with Tessa so that he can provide back-up if required.

Because she has been diagnosed with amnesia, this provides Tessa with the perfect opportunity to ask Madison's brother Devon, and her best friend Ana about Madison's life before the attempted murder. As Tessa begins to uncover some very unsavoury facts about Madison's life, she also begins to wonder if another student is also a Variant. Tessa is continually hounded by Madison's former boyfriend, Ryan who seems intent upon renewing their relationship and won't seem to take no for an answer. Adding to the mystery is Tessa's discovery that her bedroom is being watched at night by an unknown person.

The situation comes to a climax at a party when the killer strikes again and Tessa as Madison finds herself drawn into a confrontation with the person she least expects but which the reader will find mostly predictable.

The premise behind Imposter is a good one, an X-Men type theme combined with mystery and some romance. Tessa is a strong character who is still struggling to master her variant and who also is a highly conflicted person. Because of her family background, the break-up of her family and the eventual abandonment by her mother, when Tessa embeds into the Chambers family she is overwhelmed by the kindness and love that they shower on her as Madison. It is something she has never experienced before and it makes her want to live her life as Madison. She faces additional conflict as a result of her relationship with Alec, whom she is attracted to and who continues to send Tessa mixed messages as he struggles to sort out his own personal issues. Tessa was very believable as a sixteen year old girl with special abilities; she was impulsive, desperate for affirmation and acceptance, and wishes for the life of a normal teenager.

She is helped along throughout the story by  Alec, who like Tessa was abandoned by his father. Alec's belief in Tessa's abilities help her to move forward with her mission. But while he helps Tessa on one level, Alec also proves to be a considerable distraction to her. Alec, who is two years older than Tessa, can't seem to get his act together when it comes to relationships, and this causes considerable tension between the three characters of Tessa, Kate and Alec, almost having disastrous consequences.

Imposter is the first in a series of books by Susanne Winnacker. It would be great to see Winnacker develop the characters of Tessa, Alec, Devon, Holly and Major more fully as this will help readers identify better with them. Imposter is mostly action-driven, and fleshing out the characters will make for a more appealing story. The set-up for the next novel suggests that Tessa will be the main focus of the storyline as she learns a rogue group of Variants may be after her.

Overall, Winnacker does a great job of attempting to keep her readers guessing the obvious - she gives multiple and conflicting hints throughout the novel, but readers will probably not be surprised by the ending. Nevertheless, the final confrontation sees numerous twists that ultimately make for a satisfying conclusion. Readers who like science fiction combined with mystery will enjoy this quick read.

Book Details:
Imposter by Susanne Winnacker
Toronto: Razorbill, An Imprint of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. 2013
274pp.

Hanging By A Thread by Sophie Littlefield

Sixteen year old Clare Knight and her mother have recently returned to their old home in Winston, California. Clare left Winston when she was ten years old, after the break up of her parent's marriage and moved to San Francisco with her mom. But when Clare's father encountered financial problems, Clare's mother was able to take possession of the family home once again. Their old home was once the family dress shop, several generations ago. It was where Clare's great-great-grandmother, Alma, was murdered along with a young woman for whom she was sewing a wedding dress. That night Alma died, but her unborn child, Josie, was saved and since that day, people in Winston claim that the house is haunted.

But something unusual also happened that night. The women in Clare's family were given a special gift that has passed from Josie to Clare's eccentric Nana and now to her. Clare's gift is that she experiences visions of a person's past life when touching their clothing.

When the novel opens, the town of Winston is making preparations for the July 4 celebrations in an attempt to move on from the tragedies experienced the previous two years; the murder of a 10 year old boy, Dillon Grange and last year the unsolved disappearance of Amanda Stavros.

When Clare moved back to Winston, she reconnected with her best friend from middle school, Rachel. Clare, with the help of Rachel, has started a vintage clothing business. Clare is the brains and the force behind the business. She spends her time scouring vintage shops, garage sales and even garbage bins for discarded clothing that she remakes into wearable fashions.

One evening after returning home from a party, Clare opens a box of donated clothing to see what she can use for her business. When she touches a torn, Ripley Couture jean jacket she experiences a powerful vision involving a violent incident.At first Clare believes this is just another vision, but when she goes to a party that night, she has a second vision when she touches a friend of missing girl, Amanda. In this vision Clare sees Amanda wearing the Ripley Couture jacket. Clare comes to the realization that the jacket she has hidden in a box in her closet at home holds clues to Amanda's disappearance.

While Clare struggles to come to terms with the visions she has experienced, she also begins to realize that other people in Winston are also keeping secrets. She discovers that Rachel has lied to her and not been upfront about her life in Winston. Clare meets Jack, a handsome boy with a troubled past, whom she is attracted to. But one touch leads her to realize that he too has secrets. Jack dated Amanda just before her death and was considered a prime suspect by the Winston police.

When Clare seeks advice from her Nana, who has the same "gift" of seeing other people's past, she is told to leave things alone. Clare has been told by her Nana that if she ignores the visions and doesn't act on them, they will go away. But can Clare risk that, when she might possibly learn who is responsible for Amanda's disappearance and the death of Dillon?

Overall this was a novel with an interesting premise but a rather predicable and somewhat disappointing ending. I was puzzled as to how the inhabitants of Winston could possibly link together two seemingly unrelated events - the death of Dillon with the disappearance of Amanda, other than the fact that they occurred, a year apart, on the same holiday. The author however, does tie the two events together in a believable manner. Readers will easily guess where the storyline is going, the climax of the novel is definitely exciting and revealing, but the resolution is weak and not at all believable.

There are plenty of descriptions of vintage clothing and the art of sewing, which young readers who sew and fans of vintage will certainly appreciate, but which for most might read as too much detail. What will keep readers going is Clare's hunt for more clues as she tries to piece together what has happened in Winston over the previous two years. As she learns more about the people of Winston, the number of potential suspects begins to grow.

I enjoyed the well developed characters in this novel. Clare is a strong character who, unlike her Nana, chooses to use her "gift". She decides to forge her own path, not only with the use of her special ability but also in her choice of a career. Clare also must decide if she will run with Rachel's crowd who party and engage in casual sex or be true to herself.

Jack is also a likable character, having learned some hard lessons after the death of his father. Despite his cynicism and sometimes open hostility, he gradually develops into a reliable confidant for Clare. Their relationship is typically strange, with Clare falling for the bad boy, despite experiencing visions that resonate with anger and violence. One would think that would be more than enough to make her at least hesitate. In the end, with no one to turn to, Clare decides to trust Jack with her secret, which unbelievably, he takes in stride.

The beautiful cover will draw readers to read this novel, but many might find the ending somewhat disappointing.


Book Details:
Hanging By A Thread by Sophie Littlefield
New York: Delacorte Press                   2013
270 pp.