Title: The Possible
Genre: Contemporary YA with paranormal elements
Author: Tara Altebrando
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Publication: June 6th 20177
Cover Rating: 5/5
In 2016 I picked up The Leaving by Tara Altebrando with the purpose of instantly reading it. That didn't end up happening. I tried a few times but I don't think I was in the mood for aliens or whatever was abducting kids. I have been doing this thing lately for newer authors where I will pick up their second book(as long as it's not a series) and I will read that book and if I end up liking their work I will go back and pick up their first book. I decided to do that with The Possible because it sounded really interesting with the whole telekinesis thing. Matilda, HELLO! Matilda was actually referenced quite a lot in this book and it makes me sad because this book doesn't deserve to use that name. While the overall concept of the book sounded really good, the follow through and the authors way of going about the story just didn't produce something that was as great as I had hoped for.
Plot:
Telekinesis, murder and adoption. In that order. Then a podcast, birth mother and a horrible tantrum from an already grown up girl. Yep, that sums it up.
If you would like more detail... Kaylee is an adopted girl. She knows she is the daughter of the once famous Crystal. Crystal was famous as a teenage for having telekinetic powers that a reporter somehow managed to catch on camera. Things for Crystal obviously didn't go so well because flash forward and she is currently in jail for the murder of her two year old son, Jack. Kaylee was four when this happened and ended up in a really great foster home.
Now, a woman who does a podcast for crimes and such finds Kaylee and hounds her to join in on the podcast that will be about her mother. Kaylee was told no by her parents and her friends told her she was being stupid but she still did it anyways.
Kaylee ends up down a path of destruction that begins with her trying to figure out if she has the same powers her mother allegedly has. Add some weird love interest and that is pretty much the plot.
Characters:
Kaylee
Podcast Lady
Best girl friend
Best guy friend
Foster Parents
Crystal - Birth Mother
Kaylee is one of those characters that you just can't connect with or like. She puts herself in these situations and the way she reacts to certain things just makes her entirely unlike-able. She pushes everyone away but still expects them to be there for her. I want to say she has some left over mental trauma from her mother killing her brother but it honestly seems like more than that considering she lived all those years with her foster family like a normal kid. I felt that Kaylee was a very naive person and because of that that made her very pliable.
Podcast Lady was a horrible person, at first. It seemed like she was only out to exploit Kaylee, and she was, but she did kind of make up for her crap in the end.
Best girl friend was meh. She was actually kind of mean. I know Kaylee was a poor friend but Best Girl Friend was horrible first. Sometimes you just really need to accept your best friends plans and help them out no matter how inane it might seem. You don't get the BEST FRIEND title by not being there for the bad stuff as well as the good stuff.
Best guy friend was a much better friend and Kaylee used him to her advantage. He got sick of it but at least he stuck around longer. And then he was there in the end when Kaylee needed him the most.
The Foster Parents were your every day John and Jane. They wanted to protect their daughter but all Kaylee wanted to so was rebel and treat everyone like crap. They were entirely too understanding if you ask me.
Crystal... Ew. She was just nasty all around. I got this uneducated bully vibe from her even though she has had plenty of jail time to fix her flaws. She also turned out to be a horrible liar and manipulator, big shock there.
World Building:
There wasn't really any world building needed as it was a contemporary setting but I did appreciate how the author described the prison Crystal was in. I have never been in a prison, I don't even think I have even been NEAR one, so it was pretty helpful for visualization purposes. The author was also pretty good at writing the whole high school scene. Her sense of description is very good and that matters so much because almost all readers like to visualize things for themselves.
In the end... WHOA. I was really not expecting that ending. Yeah, I kind of saw the whole romance thing but Kaylee's mother and her foster mother? That was nuts! I am glad it ended with the bad person not getting her way but I really hope that Kaylee can heal and move on with her life as a normal functioning person. Also, I still have no idea what happened with the little brother. Nothing about that was solved or proven and I think that was a pretty major plot point.
Overall, I gave the book 3/5 stars.
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