Extraordinary

Sometimes a story will sound promising. Sometimes a story will deliver. Other times, an author will write a book that ends up being a complete dud. I was disappointed by Extraordinary immensely. I feel like this book didn't even get passed though the hands of an editor. I made myself finish the book after starting it over two months ago for the sake of churning out a helpful review.

The first issue with Extraordinary is the writing. Nancy Werlin's grasp of dialogue is like eating stale bread. You chew it over warily and then grudgingly swallow, wishing you had a slice that wasn't so dry and didn't make you want to cough it back up. It's hard to digest the words of Werlin's characters when they are so blatantly forced.

This leads to show more Werlin's characterization. Show, don't tell. That is the golden rule of creative writing. But Werlin does a lot more telling than showing. Sure, you can tell us that after one encounter Phoebe and Malory become soul sisters with a bond that can never be broken. But showing how that happened instead would be much more effective (though it would have hardly made a difference in this case). Werlin's portrayal of Phoebe's extremely insecure, submissive self along with an easily manipulative love interest is anything but romantic. Finally, the sudden change in Phoebe at the end provides the cherry of improbability for this story.

A letdown after reading Werlin's mediocre Impossible. Unless you have a taste for two-dimensional characters and sad attempts at medieval magical whatever, I recommend you pass this one up. show less

Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin proposes that the Rothschild dynasty was granted its success through a faerie pact. Years down the line, the Queen of the Faeries has decided it's time to end the alliance and take back the gift. To do that, Phoebe Rothschild (of a fictional branch of the Rothschilds) must be sacrificed.

Although the book is told mostly from Pheobe's point of view, there are chapters interspersed from the point of view of Mallory and her ersatz brother Ryland. While Werlin is up front about the Queen's plans, how and when they will be executed, though she leaves a mystery. Unraveling that timeline and the reasons behind the sudden urgency are what make Extraordinary such a compelling read.

There's one more unusual aspect to show more this human / faerie book, namely Pheobe's Jewishness. How that comes into play, though, is rather central to the book's climax and denouement, so I can't say much without flooding this post with spoilers. The added tough questions raised by Pheobe's faith and culture, though, bumped the book up from a well deserving four stars, to a full fledged five star read. show less

First off, I thought the book was aptly titled; I did think it was extraordinary. I loved the story and I loved Phoebe. It was wonderful to watch her grow in confidence through the book. The first actions we see already show us a compassionate and kind young lady who is willing to do the right thing even when it is hard. This is a very strong tale of friendship. It is about what friendship means and what friendship costs. Phoebe's relationship with Mallory is not as dependent as Phoebe thinks it is.

I felt so very sorry for Mallory. She had some terrible decisions that she had to make. In fact, I felt very sorry for all of faerie. I liked reading the interludes when Mallory and Ryland are reporting to the Queen. It is interesting to show more watch the Queen second-guess herself but remain strong because she doesn't see another choice. Mallory comments at one point that it is hard to know what action to take when all actions are evil but one action must be chosen.

Ryland was an interesting character. I can understand where he was coming from. He needed Phoebe to save his people. He didn't want to see her as a person because that could lead to doubts about his course of action. He is one of those characters who is so focused on the big picture that the collateral damage to people just didn't interest him or effect his choices. But I got so irritated with him as he tried to undermine Phoebe's confidence. I was also irritated with Phoebe for letting him get away with that. The romance was a good example of a bad romance with one controlling and psychologically abusive partner. At least Phoebe had the excuse that he glamored her into it.

I highly recommend this for lovers of paranormal and for lovers of stories about friendship and romance. show less

Take a look at Extraordinary’s cover. Is it not the most gorgeous thing!? Similarly, Nancy Werlin’s writing is absolutely stunning. However, a few bits of the story made Extraordinary a less-than-extraordinary experience for me.

After reading Impossible, I was eager to get my hands on Extraordinary. I was not disappointed in terms of the story. The idea of faeries coming into a girl’s life to befriend her and undermine her was very intriguing. However, I found that despite this interesting concept, it was difficult to really get into the book until the last hundred pages (but let me tell you, those last 100 pages were awesome). The whole befriending-destroying bit was stretched out too long for me. I was tired of reading about show more Phoebe’s struggles and was anxious for her to finally discover Mallory’s true identity.

I didn’t really enjoy Phoebe as a main character. Her vapidity and spoiled attitude was off-putting, and I found it difficult to sympathize with her because of it. Like, wow, you might not be extraordinary, Phoebe, but your parents have enough money to guarantee that you’ll never really be at risk of failing at life. I suppose the story really is more about self-confidence, but usually people born into riches have an abundance of that, not a lack like Phoebe.

Let’s talk about some things I did like about Extraordinary. Mallory was an excellent character. I loved her complexity and her loyalty to both her queen and to those she loves in the mortal realm. Ryland, despite being a total doucher, was great, too, at playing his role. Basically, the faeries were the highlight of Extraordinary, in my opinion. As soon as we switched settings from the real world to the faerie realm, I began to fall in love with Extraordinary. I liked the history of the faeries, and how they made a bargain with Phoebe’s ancestor. I loved Nancy Werlin’s descriptions of the different types of fey, too. Very creative.
And, of course, I can’t forget to mention Nancy Werlin’s fantastic writing, which is highly descriptive and wonderful to read.
(Originally posted to 365 Days of Reading) show less

The fey are mean little bastards. No, really. They are! Or so I learned while reading Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin. Phoebe is a member of an extraordinary family. You may have heard of them. The Rothchilds, is that ringing any bells? One of the richest families ever. So, Phoebe has a pretty great family, but she battles some personal inadequacy issues. Phoebe is also a kind-hearted individual, so she decides to make friends with the weird girl in class. What do you know, the weird girl is a FEY named, of course, Mallory, since that is totally a name you have when you are a fairy.

The story unfolds exactly as you would expect a fairy tale to. If I was to get all wordy, I would say the prose flows with the gentle cadence of a tale from show more the old country. Yet, this is set in modern day. Werlin, however, has a way with words that I can appreciate. I never felt info-dumped. Plus, the progression of how the story unfolds was very natural. I was immediately sucked into the world of Extraordinary and invested in Phoebe.

Phoebe is a great sympathetic character. Yes, she has all the money in the world and many privileges I will never ever have. Yet, I actually felt bad for her. This is a character whom I should not care about at all, but I did. I think this is because she is never a snob. She is intelligent and LOVES books. She is generous. Oh, and she is actually a great friend. Of course, when things went down, I cringed. How could I not? Nobody likes it when bad things happen to good people.

ALSO oh my gosh. The fey. They are not nice at all! They are manipulative. They are seductive. They are self-serving. I never ever want to be friends with a fey. I swear, if I see a fairy I am either hiding or I will punch it. No way will I trust or bargain with one of those.

Here is where I do the happy family dance, too. Phoebe's mom, Catherine is SO awesome. She cares about her kid. She is uber intelligent. I picture her in a business suit telling people what to do. She runs her town, like in that song by Jay Z. Did I mention that Phoebe and Catherine actually get along? There's no turbulent relationship between them. I love that. Way to break cliches, Nancy Werlin. Please go pat yourself on your back.

I did quite enjoy Extraordinary, it was just what the doctor ordered. This book is perfect if you want to harken back to fairy tales of old, while residing in modern times. show less

Extraordinary is Werlin's newest book, and delves into, if such a thing were to exist, a realistic fantasy. I've heard tell that one of the new Things in YA literature has been faeries, but this has been one of the only ones I've bothered to read, and I'm very glad I did. It's rare to find a book, particularly in this day and age where every other YA book published is a "Paranormal Romance", that brings back memories of those old bedtime fairy tales, but this book captures that very essence. It was an immersive, enthralling reading experience, and refreshing to read, similar to Impossible. Two things of note: I really like that the main character's Jewish faith is important to her, and that importance is portrayed in the book without show more being preachy at all. (The same can be said of Alison in Are You Alone on Purpose?) The other thing that I really found meaningful was the importance of Mallory and Phoebe's friendship. While there is a romance story present, the fact that Mallory and Phoebe's story is the one that holds more importance is telling--again, it's hard to find good YA fiction nowadays, where romance is not the driving factor. Kudos to Werlin, for those things and for once again writing a fantastic novel.

Rating: 5/5 show less

Yes, this is another faerie book. But instead of a human protagonist being plagues by faeries or sucked into their world, most of this book is story about two girls who are the best kind of best friends. They share everything, build each other up, and act like sisters from a fairytale rather than like siblings in real life. Phoebe is loaded and Mallory has almost nothing, but that never seems to come in the way of their friendship, even though Phoebe's mom is paying for Mallory's mom to have around the clock care. There is never that you-owe-me sentiment that can sometimes creep into those kinds of relationships. Everything is perfect. Except...

This story is broken up by numbered conversations with the Faerie Queen. It seems Phoebe is show more very important. She is needed desperately by an ailing Faerie Court and it is Mallory's job to prepare Phoebe for whatever it is that she must do. Though we see most of the story (everything but these Faerie Queen convos) from Phoebe's point of view, it is Mallory's conflicting loyalties that are the real meat of this story. She loves Phoebe in that intense way that teenage girls have, where your best friend is your whole world, but she knows that if she doesn't do what she's been sent into the human world to do, the Faerie Queen and her Court will fade away, along with Mallory and all of her people. Mallory struggles with this for years, putting off her choice between her family and her best friend. In the mean time, she hides her assignment and helps Phoebe come into her own, not as a Rothschild, but as Phoebe. But that's not what Mallory was sent to do. Seeing Mallory's struggle, the Faerie Queen sends in the one person who can break up Mallory and Phoebe's all encompassing girl world: a smokin' hot guy who just happens to be Mallory's older brother.

With the addition of Ryland, Phoebe has her own conflicting loyalties to contend with. She's drawn to him inexplicably, but she knows it would hurt Mallory SO MUCH to find out that she's in love with him. Let me take a moment to say that this never strayed into the paranormal romance trope of intense, surprising (only to the character), and irrational tru lurv at first sight. Ryland is an ass. He really is a horrible guy. But he's a faerie, and a pretty powerful one at that. He glamours Phoebe. So even though smart, funny, confident Phoebe knows that she shouldn't date a guy who treats her like a child, constantly tells her she could stand to lose a few pounds, and whose whims make him either enchanting or incredibly hurtful, she can't seem to stop seeking him out. When he's not there, she knows he's bad for her; when she sees him, no matter what comes out of his mouth and how much it wounds her, she's convinced that she can't survive without him. You can almost see the magic that Ryland is throwing at Phoebe drown out her rational self, a self that used to be supported by Mallory. Except that Mallory can't seem to forgive Phoebe for dating her brother. And no matter how cruel Ryland is to her, it is Mallory's abandonment that breaks Phoebe's heart.

In the end, this is a story about an amazing friendship that is so convincing and alive. Werlin's portrayal of both girls and their relationship is what makes this story great; the faeries are simply a fascinating and (amazingly) original plot device to show how far each girl is willing to go for the other. Phoebe and Mallory have the kind of friendship where you say I love you and mean it; the kind that you would sacrifice anything for. And in the end, one of them has to.

Book source: ARC provided by publisher through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program show less