The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

 

I downloaded a sample of this onto my Kindle while I was killing time a few days ago (my iPhone had died and apparently I self-destruct without some form of technology) and was hooked after the first chapter. I definitely need a paper though - some books just need to sit on a shelf!

Amazon - 'A seventeen-year-old girl wakes from a year-long coma and is told her name is Jenna Fox. She doesn't remember the accident; she doesn't remember her life; she doesn't remember herself. Her parents show her home movies of her past, but is she really the same girl she sees on the screen? When the memories start to come, they come with questions – questions no one wants to answer. How did the accident happen? Why does her own grandmother hate her so? And why does she feel her parents are hiding her away? Who is Jenna Fox?'

At first glance (and second, actually) I assumed that the title was referring to a love interest. A stalker, maybe. But its actually nothing like that. Jenna's parents are almost obessed with their daughter, having documented her entire life on camera. She can do no wrong in their eyes - she is the most perfect creature on the planet and nothing must ever, ever happen to her. But when their precious daughter is about to die after a terrible car accident, they go to profound lengths to save Jenna at whatever cost. The underlining question throughout the novel is how far will a parent go to save their child?

At times it seems as though you've actually inside Jenna's head - sometimes phrases of disjointed phrases are just thrown at you as she frantically tries to piece together what's happened to her. She irritated me at times as she can be quite nasty and selfish, but I guess waking up after a year in a coma would leave me a little testy too. Her mood swings and concerns are obvious though - you're never left wondering why she's acting in such a way.

The twists in this book just don't stop. There's some new revelation coming at you every other page and each one is as shocking and moving as the last. Just when Jenna thinks she understands whats going on... something new is revealed. It's so fast-paced and unnervingly shocking.

Why on earth do I have an urge to call her Bella?

My ultimate favourite thing was the relationship between Bella Jenna and her grandmother, Lily. They adored each other before the accident but Lily disagreed with the actions taken to preserve Jenna's life and resents the 'new' Jenna - she feels that this 'version' is an imposter. 

'"Eighteen months ago, I let go of my granddaughter," she says. "I said good-bye. I grieved. Then a few hours later, your parents told me what they had done."
"And you thought it was wrong?"
"I'm not like your parents. I think there are worse things than dying.'

It's wonderful. Lily actually wants what's best for Jenna and considers the quality of life she'll end up having. She's possibly the most real person in the entire book, as she comes to terms with how her grand-daughter has changed and how she's the only one who can help her.

I didn't see the ending coming, but it was wonderful when it did. So perfect in every way. Apologies for the vague-ish review as it's very difficult to write about The Adoration of Jenna Fox without mentioning all the discoveries and twists - I'm dying to talk about them but I can't!

You can look at it on Amazon here.