The Rise Of Nine (Lorien Legacies #3)
By Pittacus Lore
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Ages: 14+

The Mogadorians who destroyed the planet Lorien continue to hunt for the Garde, the small group of Loric survivors who have taken refuge on Earth. During a dangerous mission at a Mog base in West Virginia, John found and rescued the brutish Nine. But even with their combined powers, special abilities known as Legacies, the pair barely escaped with their lives. And in the process, John’s best friend, Sam Goode, was lost and taken captive by the enemy.
In order to save him—and our world—John and Nine must join forces with Six and Seven who have been battling the Mogs in Spain, and who are now trying to locate Number Eight in India. The Garde must come together before it is too late. They are Lorien and Earth’s only hope.
The battle for Earth’s survival wages on.

The Gist:

The Rise of Nine offers a fun and high-energy addition to the Lorien Legacies series. It has lot of witty and humorous banter between Four and Nine and offers more displays of the immense power each Garde member has. It’s a good, fast paced read. What is lacks in engaging writing, it makes up for in an intense and fast-paced storyline.

What I Liked:

I always enjoy meeting new characters and learning about their powers.  The characters introduced in this book had personalities that stood out compared to the others yet complemented well with their teammates. I also loved the interactions between Four and Nine.  They were like an old married couple but slightly more explosive which made their scenes very entertaining. They played well off each other two. Nine is much more intense and hot-headed than Four but they were still able to find a way to work together.

Each Lorien Garde is showcased in some way and has a vital importance to the group as a whole. The Rise of Nine does an excellent job of making the reader see what each person brings to the table and that each person has a role and is important. Different powers, same importance.

While Marina isn’t my favorite character, I have to admit that she does get a lot of character development in this book. She comes into her own and finds an inner strength and courage she didn’t know she had.

What I Didn’t Like:

Number Four feels a bit cliched at times. His always the nice guy routine and declarations of love for Sarah are a little too John Hughes movie for me (I LOVE John Hughes movies by the way, but it feels overdone in this book).

Given Crayton’s role in the story, I didn’t think he was necessary. Or put a different way, I had higher hopes for him but they weren’t met. I think I would have enjoyed him more if he was a wise mentor or fierce warrior who could train the Garde. But none of those things really came to fruition in this book.

Six and Seven’s storylines dragged for me in parts, especially in the beginning. Sure, there was action, but it didn’t advance the plot in my opinion and it took a while to get to the interesting parts.

The story is great. It’s full of action and has a great cast of characters. But I still have a hard time getting over the okay writing. I think the book lacks good descriptions of what their world is and what they’re processing internally. I haven’t been able to really connect to the writing that much and never find myself thinking “What a great way to say that!” It feels a tad juvenile.

LunasLuckyRating: 3/5 Lunas