Review: Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson

Plot: 17-year-old Lila has two secrets she's prepared to take to the grave. The first is that she can move things just by looking at them. The second is that she's been in love with her brother's best friend, Alex, since forever. Or thereabouts.After a mugging on the streets of South London goes horribly wrong and exposes her unique ability, Lila decides to run to the only people she can trust - her brother and Alex. They live in Southern California where they work for a secret organisation called The Unit, and Lila discovers that the two of them are hunting down the men who murdered her mother five years before. And that they've found them. Trying to uncover the truth of why her mother was killed, and the real remit of The Unit, Lila becomes a pawn in a dangerous game. Struggling to keep her secrets in a world where nothing and no one is quite as they seem, Lila quickly realises that she is not alone - there are others out there just like her - people with special powers -and her mother's killer is one of them... (Summary from goodreads.com)

My opinion: What originally drew me in was the gorgeous cover. I just love the blue dress and red heals. The premise also sounded unique and the love story promising. So, did it live up to my expectations? Yes, it did! I found this a rather intriguing read that I finished in a few short sittings (although portioned out over a few days). Despite the fact that I just started a new job and have had loads of new things to do, resulting in a very tired me, I kept turning the pages late in the evening. I just had to find out what would happen next!

I really liked Lila, who was a character that I easily could relate too (though I don't master telekinesis and my mother is very much alive) and that I cared about. Alex really was a swoon-worthy love interest and Lila's all-life crush on him is easy to understand. There was good tension there..

The only thing that was a downer for me about this novel was the way too open end and the obvious pass to the coming sequel. I don't mind a series when the author is this good, the premise this exciting and the romance this... romantic, but I do wish that even books that are part of a series could have an actual ending too.

Hunting Lila was a fast paced, funny, compelling and romantic debut novel and there were few dull moments. This truly is a great novel and you should read it!