Review: I am number four by Pittacus Lore

Plot: In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now.

The Nine had to separate and go into hiding. The Mogadorian caught Number One in Malaysia, Number Two in England, and Number Three in Kenya. All of them were killed. John Smith, of Paradise, Ohio, is Number Four. He knows that he is next.
"I Am Number Four" is the thrilling launch of a series about an exceptional group of teens as they struggle to outrun their past, discover their future—and live a normal life on Earth.

I AM NUMBER FOUR. I AM NEXT.

(Summary from goodreads.com)

Cover: There seem to be quite a few covers out there to choose from. I wasn't planning on gettings this book at all but when I stumbled upon this allegedly "adult version" I bought it anyway.

First sentence:

My opinion: I have had an aversion towards this book, not because of its content and plot but because of its coming into existence and this whole James Frey and his Fiction Factory debacle. So I did put off reading it for the longest time as some kind of silent protest against mentioned publisher. I'm not quite sure what made med change my mind though, perhaps curiosity. Plus I generally do want to read the novel before I watch the movie, which will be available to rent on DVD in the summer.

So, what do I think about it? Well, it's not that bad. The premise is fine and I like the characters. John (or whatever his name is) and Henri have a nice father-son relationship though not being it for real. Alien obsessed Sam turns out to be a real friend to John, probably the best one he could find given the circumstances. 

As for the love interest, Sarah, she almost seems to good to be true, but that might just be because we see her through love struck John's eyes. As we all know, I'm a sucker for a first love story and off course the emerging relationship between John and Sarah got me jumping up and down like a fool - in the beginning. I really liked this whole John starting to grow and recognize feelings for her yet not being sure how to act and what to do and get totally adorably shy and nervous around her. Loved that. But then their relationship just felt very rushed and ultimately lost that tingly feeling. It really is a challenged for authors to be able to keep that even when they characters are together.

The novel starts out great but sadly it kind of slows down in the middle after the first almost-encounter with the Mogadorians at the publisher's. Everything just goes back to normal although it's the closest they've been to being exposed ever. And even the action-packed ending just makes me go *yawn*. Somewhere along the middle I just lost interest and only finished it because you should.However, if you like sci-fi and really girlie girlie mushy love stories, then I think this novel is for you.