The Turning by Helen Ellis

The Turning

Mary Richards is a normal sixteen-year-old girl living in Manhattan. Well, almost normal. She goes to private school on the Upper East Side, having been saved from a life of squalor by an adoptive family. But she’s also slowly transforming into a cat.

Struggling to hide her physical metamorphosis, Mary discovers that she isn’t alone. A whole race of cat people prowls the streets of Manhattan at night, including Mary’s long-time crush, Nick.

Aside from heightened feline senses, hanging out with Nick is the best thing about discovering her inner kitty. But Mary’s transformation is special and could decide the outcome of a citywide turf war. She must decide whether to embrace her powerful feline side and become a pack leader or go back to being a normal teenage girl. Can she land on her feet or will curiosity be her downfall?

What first caught my eye of this book was definitely the premise. Very cat-woman and original considering so many werewolves today. So of course, I dived in.

Mary is a fun narrator in Manhattan, one of my favorite places in the world. I liked her and despite the paranormal things, she was a very believable and relate-able character.

Then she discovers this whole other world and we're plunged in with her. I liked the descriptions of when she's turning. The book is per say is a good setup for the series and has enough plot substance to keep you entertained but it was a bit slow on some other parts and I kept waiting for the real action to begin.

Nick and Mary's relationship happens sort of out of the blue but it's very intriguing and different than other YA relationships so I was pretty satisfied with it.

Overall, I really liked this book and I can't wait for the rest of the series.

In one sentence:
"A perfect setup for an awesome story."

Plot: 4
Characters: 5
Writing: 5
Cover: 5
Overall Feeling: 4
Average: 4.6 stars