The Diviners by Libba Bray

This book was one of my top six books to be on the lookout for at BEA.  I stood in a long line for it, but lucked out, because I got to wait with Pam, aka Midnyte Reader.

Book:  The Diviners by Libba Bray
(To be released September 18, 2012 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

Summary: Evie is a flapper with the ability to sense a person's past from their belongings.  After getting into trouble for knowing more than she should, Evie is sent to New York to stay with her Uncle Will, an occult expert who runs an establishment known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies".  When bodies start showing up, killed in a ritualistic fashion with strange symbols, the police turn to Uncle Will for help and Evie realizes that her gift may be the key to solving the murders.  Intertwined with this is a prophecy predicting great evil and a group of Diviners--those with the abilities to stand against this threat.

Characters: There were a lot of characters, but I managed to love them all.  Evie is a party girl dealing with a supernatural gift.  She is lots of fun, although sometimes so reckless that it made me nervous.  For example, she uses the press to get what she wants and... using the press is just ill-advised.  I actually talked about Evie a few weeks ago when Top Ten Tuesday wanted us to list characters who reminded us of ourselves.  So yeah, I love Evie.

I'm not really sure how much to go into the rest of the characters.  There are so many of them, but they are all distinct with these complicated pasts.  Even Uncle Will has drama he's trying to hide.  I loved getting to know Theta and Henry, especially.  We learn a little bit about their pasts that doesn't really go anywhere in this book, but I expect it to resurface in book two and learning about them became one of my favorite parts of the book.  It is obvious that the story is much bigger than one book and I can't wait to read this whole series.  It's one of those books that gives you a feel for the city and the decade and not just a supernatural story about a serial killer.

Plot/Pacing:  I loved the characters and the mystery, but everything unfolded a lot slower than I prefer.  The story could not have been done any quicker, because of how deep it goes with its many characters.  I wasn't always sure where Bray was going with each bit of information, but I believe she is going somewhere and I am invested in every single character she wrote about.  There is absolutely a lot going on here and it is masterfully woven together.

Moments I Loved:  At one point, Evie decides to go undercover and tells Jericho, a boy who is clearly in love with her, to pretend to be her husband.  She's completely oblivious and Jericho is adorable and that scene is just fun.

WTF Moments:  When you figure out Jericho's story.  Completely unexpected!  I can't wait to learn more about him.

Overall:  At over 600 pages, it is definitely an investment, but one that I think is worth it.  Every character has an intriguing and mysterious past and along with the search for the serial killer, the book is building toward an epic conclusion.  It is definitely a series that I am going to stick with.

Reading Challenges: This book counts toward the following challenges: 608 pages toward the 15,000 page challenge.  Track all my progress on my 2012 Challenges page.

**I received an ARC of The Diviners from the publisher at BEA.  I was in no way compensated for my review and all opinions expressed here are my own.  Feel free to check out my full FTC Disclaimer on my About This Blog page.**