n 2010 I went through an odd phase whereby any movie being released based on a book I would read before it came out and sit there and judge it with intense scrutiny. Having seen the trailer for I Am Number Four I then rushing out to grab the book before the impending movie release date. Normally I am not into alien battle type-novels, yet as I started reading I found myself intrigued by the whole set-up and writing style of the mysterious and illusive Pittacus Lore. Set on Earth, Number Four, aka John Smith, is not your normal teenager. He may look like one of us but he is secretly from the planet Lorien, a planet which was destroyed by an evil race of aliens known as The Mogadorians. Nine children and nine guardians escaped from Lorien while it was being attacked and the aliens took refuge on Earth, believing it was a safe haven. But the Mogadorians found them and followed them here. Now they are killing the Lorien’s one by one in order from nine to one to break the magical bond that unites them. Setting the story on Earth makes it easy to relate to and as the book goes along we get a glimpse into Lorien and a description of the planet, often described as a utopia. The story is solid and for a first book in a series it does an outstanding job of incorporating an epic back-story while still keeping the current story moving along at a readable peace. This is one of the first books where I could not put it down in places. The characters are remarkably human for a bunch of aliens. In particular John’s mentor Henri whose pain and loss for his home planet emanates from his character’s motives and his unwavering love and dedication to John, determined to see him evolve with his legacies (superpowers that evolve as the Lorien’s get older). John himself is the typical broody teenager type, falling in love with local all American-girl Sarah in a relationship that is an easy to relate to first love and teenage love affair. Sam Goode is an adorable sci-fi nerd and John’s best friend whose willingness to help John find his friends and fight the Mogadorians. While we are on the subject, the Mogadorians are the most evil, cunning and well versed evil aliens I have ever read in print. Their determination to eradicate that Lorien’s without any remorse or care is thrilling to read and you can sense just what a threat these evil aliens are. Pittacus Lore is the fictional author of this book and his dedication and love for his invaded home planet is the perfect depiction in the first few chapters. The majority of the story is told through John Smith’s view and this allows us to really get inside his head and feel some empathy and love for this character and situation. I Am Number Four breaks new ground in fantasy/alien/sci-fi fiction and while aimed at a young adult audience, all ages will find something here. The story is gripping and addictive and with enchanting characters that evoke empathy and understanding it is hard not to fall in love with this universe. Alisdair Dewar, 9.0/10 -- “We left when we were very young, almost too young to remember. Almost. And now... We are here to keep our race alive which was almost entirely obliterated. We’re just trying to survive. But we are hunted, and the hunters won’t stop until they've killed us all. I know that I am next.” I am Number Four is written by Pittacus Lore the pen name of Jobie Hughes. I am Number Four has already been made into a major film with great reception. Although I already watched the film some months before reading the book, I generally appreciate the book more than the film, and this was also the case for I'm Number Four. The concept behind I am Number Four got me interested in the Lorien Legacies; featuring alien races, supernatural powers intermingled with humans. What piqued my curiosity were the bold statements on the cover“In the beginning were nine. Three are gone. Six are left. They caught Number One in Malaysia. Number Two in England. Number Three in Kenya. I am Number Four.” I just knew that I was getting into an all-out chase and action-packed story. This is more than true but next to focussing on Number Four there is much more... I liked how the story picked up firstly going from the death of Number Three and the consequences of this death to the other remaining Numbers. From this point on Number Four takes the stage and you get to know the past and present day adventures of Number Four (also known as John Smith in his new personality). The Lorien Legacies feature two alien races: The Lorien and the Mogadorians, where the Lorien are the good guys and the Mogadorians evil. The Mogadorians invaded the home planet of the Loriens and after a losing battle 9 chosen children were send to planet Earth as a last resort. The Loriens have exceptional powers, both flashy and subtle, also known as Legacies and they are always on the run for the Mogadorians. They are still growing into their Legacies to build up enough power to confront the

I'm going to write this review while grappling with the emotional conflicts I Am Number Four left me with: disappointment and "eh". Before I wrestle those demons, I want to start straight off and say that I saw the movie first. I had heard about the book from a few friends and wasn't interested. But, the movie previews looked reasonably enjoyable. I like action, explosions and super powers. Frankly, I was expecting two hours of mind numbing violence and cool chase scenes. That's pretty much what it was. I liked the movie, despite it's abysmal reviews. It reminded me a bit of Xmen and a lot of Smallville. That's a promising mix. There's some romance, but it's very light if not perfectly easy to ignore... which... is definitely a fault in its own right, but take it for what it is. After watching it, I decided to get the book. I could see potential, and since Hollywood is not often kind to YA book adaptations I gave the original the benefit of the doubt. I wanted a little more depth to the story and figured it would expand much further in text. I found the book on sale and took a leap of faith with my wallet instead of checking it out from the library. A red flag went off when I opened it and saw the page layout. The page numbers will tell you 440. I cannot describe how misleading this is unless you personally open the book and look at the margins. They are big enough to drive a whaling ship through them. Condensed, it probably would not push 250 pages. But, like I said, leap of faith and all. Welcome to my demons. This book is written by two different people and wow can you tell. The problem is that one writer is better than the other. Some of the chapters are so dry and brittle that I caught myself staring at the wall instead of reading. There is a minuscule (if any) amount of description or voice when these pieces of the books pop up. It's written with the power and dignity of a grocery list. - I just entered a house. - There is a couch. - A girl was sitting on the couch. - I hope Sara likes me. - Golly Mark is a jerk. This is NOT what I expected. I wanted expansion, not limitation. What goes on inside John's head? I dunno. Not very much apparently. The writing is so bland that it's kind of disgusting. I wasn't expecting a literary masterpiece, but something other than "the sky looked blue today. I'm wearing nike sneakers." would have sufficed. The direct line that broke me was, "he said confusedly". Author 2's parts of the book are... I loath to say "better", so let's go with "bearable"... because there's actual prose. John sometimes even has personality and emotions! Whoa! It wasn't fantastic, or even near an acceptable second draft, but it was better than reading the back of a cereal box, which is something I guess. Most of it takes place in high school, centered around John acting out life as a typical kid. Sometimes he goes to math class and his hands start glowing. Ooooooooo~. Do you remember much from day-to-day highschool life? No? That's because it's BORING. This. Should. Be. Easy. The plot is about a teenager with developing superpowers who is on the run from murderous aliens. How do you mess that up? Their story is derivative and needs strong characterization and confident writing to stay afloat. It has neither, so it sinks. James Frey thinks his audience is stupid and can't handle depth or subtlety. That's all there is to it. Oh. Right. James Frey. Let's talk about him really quick. I'm sure most goodreads members are already privy to this information by now, but James Frey (author of A Million Little Pieces, a supposed memoir where he lied about everything which, by the way, is the direct opposite of a memoir) is one of the two people who worked on it. By 'worked on it' I mean had a ghostwriter named Jobie Hughes create the story and most of the writing and then not really give him credit or money. Frey is running a so called young adult fiction machine-- an assembly line made up of inexperienced, new writers who are so desperate for publishing that they'll consider his slimy hand. He wants to mass produce the "next Harry Potter", as he so lovingly put it.