Unbreakable by Kami Garcia

Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
(Legion #1)
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Publisher: Little Brown for Young Readers; 320 pages

Supernatural meets The Da Vinci Code in this action-packed paranormal thriller, the first book in a new series from New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia.

I never believed in ghosts. Until one tried to kill me.

When Kennedy Waters finds her mother dead, her world begins to unravel. She doesn’t know that paranormal forces in a much darker world are the ones pulling the strings. Not until identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into Kennedy’s room and destroy a dangerous spirit sent to kill her. The brothers reveal that her mother was part of an ancient secret society responsible for protecting the world from a vengeful demon — a society whose five members were all murdered on the same night.

Now Kennedy has to take her mother’s place in the Legion if she wants to uncover the truth and stay alive. Along with new Legion members Priest and Alara, the teens race to find the only weapon that might be able to destroy the demon — battling the deadly spirits he controls every step of the way.

Suspense, romance, and the paranormal meet in this chilling urban fantasy, the first book in a new series from Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures novels.

So I am gonna start out this review by sharing a secret.  I am afraid of ghost.  In fact, I am deathly afraid of anything paranormal.  I avoid any television shows with real life experiences with the parnormal.  Paranormal books and fiction television shows I can read and watch.   But once an episode of Unsolved Mysteries is on tv, I immediately change the channel.  In Unbreakable, Kami Garcia has reminded me why I don't like real life paranormal.  Because they are scary and creepy.  I don't want to call this a proper ghost story, but this definitely is no Casper!

Kennedy Waters is a seemingly normal teenager.  She lives at home with her mother, and besides one creepy incident when she was younger that involved waiting in a closet for an extended period of time.  Her life was pretty average.  Until one day she happens upon a ghost who kills her mother.  From there she is thrown into a whirlwind of paranormal.  Specifically when two twin boys named Jared and Lukas come to her house looking for her.  And after almost being killed by a ghost herself, Jared and Lukas not only save her, but they explain to her that her mother was a part of this group called The Legion.  

Seriously what a way to start a book!  All of this happens within the very first couple of chapters.  I was hooked on this story from the beginning.  The first night I started reading, I only planned on reading the first chapter and then heading to bed.  But I ended up reading the first 50 pages. 

And how cool is the name The Legion?  It's so simple, and yet it says so much in just one word.  The Legion were a group of five people who are trying to stop Andras, a demon who they accidentally freed in a binding spell gone wrong.  Over the years each member has picked a descendant to replace them.  Lukas and Jared explain to Kennedy that her mother was a member.  And that on the same night that her mother was killed, the other members of the Legion were killed as well.  Now Andras is after their descendants the three of them, along with Alara and Priest.

I couldn't help comparing the 5 members of the Legion to the Scooby Doo gang.  I used to watch the cartoon when I was younger, plus later in my teen years the characters on the tv series Buffy the Vampire Slayer referred to themselves as the Scoobies.  I adore the members of the Legion.  They all bring something to the table.  Priest is the tech geek and Alara is the tough as nails spells expert.  And even though Jared and Lukas are twins they couldn't be any more different than one another.  I love how Kennedy gradually increases her ability.  It bothers me when a character discovers who they are, and suddenly everything is easy for them.  She makes mistakes.  She is frightened.  This isn't normal and she knows.  She wants her normal life back like anyone would. 

The romantic aspect of the story actually made me giggle.  Because this is the first time I have read a book where the love triangle involves a set a of twins.  The situation for Kennedy of course isn't funny, but as I reader I kept thinking, "Oh man to be in her shoes!"  I must say that I am definitely Team Jared for Kennedy, but if I were to choose for myself I would definitely pick Lukas.  Even though I must point out that Lukas is entirely too young for me, but he has such a gentle soul.  Lukas has such jealous feelings towards his brother, but there is still a softness about him.  Jared on the other hand acts like the world is on his shoulders, he carries a burden and so much guilt.

It pains me that I probably have to wait a year to read the next book.  There were so many unanswered questions in Unbreakable.  I know that that frustrated many people, but for me it just makes me want the next book even more.  This is a series.  You can't give too much away in the first book, you have to give the reader just enough that they want to come back for more.  And I definitely want more!