Review: Snap

Snap by Carol Snow
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: August 25, 2009
Pages: 224
Age Level: 13+

Synopsis
Madison Sabatini thought she knew who she was: an almost-sophomore with a bright future. The newest photographer on her school paper. A shopaholic with great hair and a fabulous wardrobe. Then, in a flash, everything changed.

Now she's stuck in Sandyland, a gloomy beach town in the middle of nowhere, living with her parents in a crappy hotel "suite." Instead of spending the summer with her friends at home, she's hanging out with pink-haired Delilah, an artist who works in a shop called Psychic Photo, and a skater boy named Duncan who's totally not her type. Except, maybe he is . . .

Determined to make the best of things, Madison throws herself into her one passion: photography. But when strange figures start appearing in her pictures—people who weren't there when she snapped the shots, people who are later reported dead—she begins to question everything about who she is . . . and who she wishes she could be.

Review
When I first read the premise of Snap, I automatically thought, “Wow! I’m going to love this book. The main character has a passion for photography just like I do. Plus there is a supernatural twist to it.” Needless to say, I was somewhat disappointed when this book failed to live up to my expectations.

Snap was a lot more about Madison adjusting to her new life in a new town than it was about the mysterious people showing up in her pictures. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a fairly good, fun book, it just wasn’t quite what the synopsis lead me to believe and it was extremely predictable.

Madison wasn’t my favorite character in this. I don’t know what exactly, but there was something about her that just rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it was the way she thought badly about Delilah, Leo, and Duncan because of their money circumstances. Yeah, I definitely think that was it. I mean they were so nice to her, trying to be her friend, but she still thought she was way better than them. She was also very whiny. However, Madison did have her moments when I liked her a little better.

I definitely would have to say that I liked the other characters better. They were more interesting and seemed like the kind of people I could hang out with.

In the end, this was a quick read that kept me occupied and mildly entertained. It wasn’t the worst but it sure could have been better. I don’t know if I’ll re-read this one or not. I recommend this to anyone looking for a fast-paced, interesting read. Just because I wasn’t that crazy about it doesn’t mean you won’t like it better. All I can say is if you think it sounds good, then give it a try.

Grade
Characters: C+
Writing: C
Plot: C+
Ending: C
Cover: B+
Recommendable: C

Overall: C