ARC Review: The Repossession by Sam Hawksmoor

Title: The Repossession
Author: Sam Hawksmoor
Genre: Young adult-fantasy, mystery
Published: March 1st 2012 
Publisher: Hodders Children Books
Source: ARC for review from Laure at Hodders books!
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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Description from Goodreads.com

34 kids missing. Vanished without a trace. Believing she is possessed, Genie Magee's mother has imprisoned her all summer encouraged by the sinister Reverend Schneider. Beautiful Rian, love of her life, sets her free, and their escape washes them up at Marshall's remote farmhouse downriver. But why are there newspaper clippings of the missing kids pinned to Marshall's bathroom wall? And should they believe his stories about the experiments at the Fortress, an underground research station nearby? Genie meets Denis. Missing two years now, but hasn't grown an inch. Rian is haunted by Renée, who insists she's not actually dead. Soon they discover the terrible truth about Reverend Schneider and worse, Genie is next ... and Rian can't do a thing to prevent it. The Repossession is just the beginning.

Hi! 

On the back of my proof copy, The Repossession is described as: An intense, edgy thriller for readers who love suspense, action and romance. 


It certainly is that. 

This is a slight dystopian, I think, as it's set in the future, but not along the scales of The Hunger Games or Divergent; they still have only cars and phones and everything is as we know it now. 


Except for a mysterious research facility known as The Fortress. Children go missing all the time in Spurlake. And as you read this book you start to connect the dots and understand why and how. 


Our protagonist, Genie Magee, is going out with Rian Tulane. They do everything normal teenage couples do, but they haven't been on a date. This is because Genie's mother forbids Genie too. 


At the end of school, Genie tells her mother that her Grandmother has just died, she just knows. Her mother (who, by the way, is very cruel to Genie) tells her to be quiet.


 A few hours later they find out that Genie's Grandmother has died. Genie's mother yells and curses at Genie and says that she's been possessed by the Devil. 


She locks her in her room and treats her like a prisoner. 

That is the beginning of the book and I was really gripped. The storyline is great and Sam Hawksmoor really piles on the non-stop action. You discover things as the characters do and fear the evil as they do. There isn't one main villain in this book, but Genie and Rian find themselves surrounded by them. I also like how the blurb gives away nothing about the plot of this book. It was a big surprise when I found out what this was about.

All in all a very powerful book with superb action and mystery. Surprisingly, I would not shelve it as dystopian, but rather mystery, fantasy and even a little sci-fi. 

4 out of chocolate

What did you think of this book if you've read it? How does it sound if you haven't?


Thanks for reading!