I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore Levithan
Publisher : Harper

Pages :  440

Series : Lorien Legacies Book 1

Rating: 4/5

Nine of us came here
We look like you
We talk like you
We live among you - but
We are not you
We have powers you dream of having
We are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books -
But we are real.
They caught number one in Malaysia, number two in England, and number three in Kenya.
They killed them all.
I am number four.  I am next.

I loved this book. It was way more than I expected.  I assumed that this book could not possibly live up to the hype it receives in my head but it surpassed that hype.  The roundness of the story, the way that nothing was lost and the development of the characters are perfect.

During the final battle of a war between the Mordagians and the Loriens, the Loriens send 9 kids and their Cepan, mentor, to earth to ensure the survival of their species.  A spell is placed on the kids that they can only die in order of their numbers as long as they are separated from one other.  However the Mordagians have followed these kids to earth and they are killing them one by one.  One, two, and three have already died, but number four, John, the protagonist, is still alive.  After moving to Paradise, Ohio his legacies, powers, begin to emerge and so do the Mordagians.

I loved the characters most of all. I really liked Sam and Mark.  I really lived how they were given time to develop and evolve as characters.  You also really have time to learn about all of the characters and why they are motivated which was great and something I don’t see a lot in what I read.  You get to learn about John before the Mordagians show up and before his legacies arrive and you get to see him uncover, train and learn to control his powers.  Also, Berni was also just a fabulous addition who is just perfect and if the author kills him I will cry.

I loved the antagonists.  The Mordagians aren’t jumping out of every corner attacking.  They’re a real threat. They plan and stalk and figure out the best way to kill the Lorien.  And when John actually fights them they aren’t easily killed which is nice when you consider how many books have a ‘huge’ threat above the protagonist’s head but when that threat arrives the protagonist has no problem killing it cause they’ve trained for it.  John had trained but he still has major difficulties and almost dies a couple times.  

The only thing I didn’t love about it was the romance.  It was entirely unnecessary in my opinion and it gets really obnoxious in the 2^nd book (spoilers?).  Yeah, the immediate love and cuteness really bothered me and I really wish it just wasn’t a part of this book because I Am Number Four would have been better without it.

Overall, you should definitely read this book.  It’s one of the best superhero/alien books I have ever read.