Farsighted (edition 2011)

Check our more reviews on my blog Overflowing Bookshelves. I got a free copy of this book as part of a tour hosted by Good Choice Reading Promotions.

There were two things that drew me to Farsighted: 1) the main character is a guy, and 2) he’s blind. With the slew of female protagonists in YA books it’s really hard to find a good YA book with a male lead and Farsighted is one of them. I felt like I was in Alex’s head and his reactions/emotions were spot on for a teenager who never had a friend before. It made sense to me that he would automatically start contemplating Simmi as girlfriend material because he’s at that age and she’s the first girl—first person, really—to ever talk to him. Even as juvenile as his reasoning is for liking her and how that’s what first motivates him to look into his gifts, it still made complete sense in Chand’s world. He’s always been ignored so if there’s a chance to be in the limelight and get the girl a la superhero style, he’s going to take it. Which he does.

The reason I liked the fact that he was blind was because he’s unique. In a lot of YA books the main character is perfect. Yes, they might have low self esteem or are fighting for their lives but they overcome that by the end of the book/series.They don’t have something that they will have to deal with forever. He’s a unique character right off the bat because the way he describes his world is in touch, smell, and sound. Reading this book made me realize how much authors, and people in general, rely on their sense of sight to tell them what’s around them. Even though we couldn’t see where everything was or what colors they were, Chand does a great job of painting a picture in your head of Alex’s surroundings and the everyday things he has to do to be autonomous.

“I haven’t got much,” I say, holding out a single bill folded lengthwise to let me know it’s a twenty, “but I’d still like to learn.”
It such a small detail, how his money is folded, but it tells you a lot about him and what his life is like. It made me really appreciate Chand’s writing, the characters, and the world she built.

As for the characters, all of them are amazing. Shapri and Simmi are perfect counterparts to Alex and I loved how they each have a different gift. Shapri’s gift, and her inability (read refusal) to acknowledge it made me sad for her because I knew it was just a reaction born out of fear. However, it made sense that she’d react in typical teenage way: 100% refusal and the belief that her mother’s crazy. Shapri preferred to think that than have to really acknowledge what her gift meant. Regardless, I did like the interplay between all three characters, although, I felt the makeup scene was a tab bit contrived.

Overall I can’t wait to read the rest of the books in the series and see how the rest of the characters deal with their powers. ( )

Check out my review of Farsighted and all my reviews here:
http://abshepherdsreinventedreader.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/farsighted-by-emlyn-chand-my-rating-4.html ( )

I was really excited to read this book. The whole idea of the main character being blind was original and I couldn't wait to see how the author would pull it off. I was also interested in seeing how all of these "powers" would come into play. After the onslaught of vampires, fairies and witches in YA lit recently, it was nice to read something different in the paranormal genre. There was a lot that I really loved about this book, but there were some things that I didn't really like.

The book is written in first-person from the point of view of the main character, Alex. He just so happens to be blind. He attends a regular high school where he is an outcast and at home he has a mom who is loving and means well but is a little bit clueless and a dad who is distant. I was immediately drawn in to Alex's world. What would it be like to experience the world without your sight? All of Alex's other senses are heightened. Especially his sense of smell. We are introduced to the world through Alex's senses. We know what each character smells like. We know how certain people sound when they walk. We learn how to gauge a person's reaction by subtle clues in their movement and body language. We really have no idea what any of the characters look like, but we know what they each smell like. I loved that looks really had nothing to do with any of Alex's interactions and relationships. It was a fascinating way to experience the story and I loved it.

The general storyline kept me interested and wanting to know more. I wasn't totally riveted and didn't feel compelled to finish in one sitting but I did enjoy it. Alex begins to develop a "gift" where he sees glimpses of the future - and they all involve the horrific death of his friend (or maybe more?), Simmi. His other new friends develop powers as well and they start on a quest to stop Simmi's death from happening. Although this general storyline is not altogether original, it was fun to read. There were a couple of points during the story where I felt things could have been explained better.

My issues with the story really come with the character interactions and the character development. I didn't think all of the dialogue was entirely believable, and in some cases was downright silly. Alex's parents in particular didn't come off as authentic. His dad almost has a split personality between the first and second halves of the book. Although the plot attempts to explain this, I wasn't really satisfied with how that all worked out. His mom seems completely clueless and comes off as an airhead until the end when she all-of-a-sudden knows everything. What? That definitely didn't seem realistic to me. I also didn't feel like any of the characters developed beyond what they were in the beginning of the story. Powers develop, relationships develop, but the characters themselves seemed a little bit two-dimensional to me. Part of that may be because we are experiencing the story entirely through Alex with no insight into the thoughts or feelings of the other characters. Future books in the series are written from the POV of other characters so we'll see how they all develop as the series continues.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. I would recommend this one to fans of paranormal who are looking for something other than vampires, werewolves and fairies. It's clean and there are some sweet teenage moments. There are also some cool powers and while I wasn't completely blown away, I was entertained and look forward to reading the next book in the series, Open Heart. ( )

I loved Farsighted! It was extremely intriguing throughout and I had a hard time putting it down. Ms Chand has a lovely writing style that was easy to read and so much fun. The main character, Alex is falling in love for the first time, but he is getting confusing signals. As the characters evolve along the way, the reader is drawn into the world that is created with vivid imagery detailed throughout.

Alex Kosmitoras is no typical teenager, at almost 16, he goes to an ordinary school and goes to ordinary classes; the only thing that isn’t ordinary is that Alex was born blind. This adds an interesting touch to the story, but Alex carries on, head held high just like every other student.

At school on his first day back and in class, Alex has a vision and doesn’t understand what is happening. He just thinks it’s a hallucination and tries to ignore it. Meeting a new girl in his Physics class, Simmi, Alex is immediately attracted to her. Since he can’t see her, it’s his other senses that are heightened to Simmi; her almond scent and sing song voice. Simmi seems friendly enough and they start to become friends.

As Alex has more visions, he is working out that they are of the future, but cannot control them. A new shop has opened next door to his Mother’s florist shop, All-Seeing Miss Teak. A psychic shop that Alex thinks is a phoney. Being the curious teenager that he is, Alex goes next door to find out what the story is. Miss Teak has a daughter, Shapri that is also in school with Alex, but that is not the curious part. Miss Teak knows things about Alex that he doesn’t know himself. Alex IS having visions of the future and it is his gift. There are teenagers that come into their gifts at puberty and Alex is one of them, as is Simmi and Shapri (not that Shapri will accept her fate). Alex has to learn to use his visions to help others and but these visions seem to surround Simmi. With all of these new feelings for Simmi, he is determined to protect her and not let her get into danger.

Follow along with Alex as he learns how to harness his abilities and discover his new feelings for Simmi and Shapri. Not having friends before, everything is new and he gets caught up in the drama. Alex goes on an adventure of discovery with Simmi, Shapri and Miss Teak, trying to decipher his visions and work out who this boy is that will put Simmi in danger. His relationship with his Father gets questioned and the supernatural becomes a fact.

Farsighted was a great introduction to the series and all the details of Alex and how he learns at school was fascinating. Typing notes and having them converted to Braille, I have never actually thought about how it would all work. With the twists throughout the book, you can never predict which way the story will go. It was such a fun read and I cannot wait to read Open Hearts next. ( )

I liked this book so much more than I was prepared to. I know, I know, I signed up for the tour. But I went in with a negative attitude for some reason, and let me just say that Emlyn blew me out of the water with Farsighted. I loved Alex's voice, and although I have no idea what it is like to be blind, I do know what it is like to feel like an outsider. So I related to him on that level very much so.
It gave me so much hope watching him grow as a character and then learn to accept things that he previously thought was the stuff of the stories. He had no idea that he was having visions, and he started feeling crazy. But then he met others like him, and slowly began to accept that there is more to the world than he once thought. I liked that Alex was an unlikely hero and what he accomplished despite his handicaps.
He meets quite a cast of characters, and I love how they all play into the story. Simmi is sweet and a bit of a mystery to me. I loved what she brought to the story though, and the confidence and protector instinct that she evoked in Alex. I also enjoyed reading about Shapri. I appreciated that she doubted even though she grew up with a mom that was a psychic of sorts and it went straight up her family tree. I like the confidence she possessed in herself and how she is slow to let people in, but once she does, she is loyal to the core, even when they are involved in things she doubts and doesn't believe in.
The family support is great in this one. I love that they are present and involved in Alex's life, and that he also has other adults that he can trust and talk to. I also appreciated that the parents were realistic. Alex's mom was loving but she hovered. This would drive anyone crazy, and although Alex understands it is protector instinct because of his blindness, it still is a flaw, and that makes it perfect, easy to relate to, and believable.
The pacing is good, and the plot flows well. I like how things tie together and while most things were pretty tied up, we do get a taste of a different conflict for the next book but doesn't leave us hanging in a major way.
The ending is nothing what I expected, but I think that Emlyn made it work for this story, and I am def looking forward to picking up the next one to see if some of my suspicions are true.

Bottom Line: Great fantasy about a blind main character who fights for his friends and to discover his gifts.