The Turning Book One: What Curiosity Kills Review

The Turning Book 1: What Curiosity Kills by Helen Ellis

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release date: May 1, 2010

Source: Publisher

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?

Review:

The Turning was an original and unique story, but it didn't really live up to it's potential. The plot was extremely original and I did enjoy reading it overall, but it did have it's flaws.

Mary was an interesting character and her family was definitely unique. She and her sister, Octavia, were both adopted at age eight, but they both formed a swift connection with each other and their parents. I liked how close the Richards family was with each other. The other characters were a bit... empty, in my opinion. I would have loved to get to know not only Mary and Octavia better, but also some of the minor characters.

I applaud Helen Ellis for writing such a unique book in all, though. The plot was mainly what kept me reading. The idea of the different groups of cats and the whole idea of "the turning" was very original. There was excitement and intrigue at points and the ending was quite suspenseful. I'm interested in seeing where the sequel goes, as the ending to this book was a little loose.

The "romantic interest" was a little fast paced for me- it seemed as though at one point Nick wasn't even looking at Mary and the next he was abandoning his girlfriend, Ling Ling, and going after Mary. I liked the diversity in this novel- Nick was Greek, Ling Ling (and many others) Asian, Octavia African-American, etc. This was mainly due to the fact that many of the characters were adopted, and this was definitely an interesting sub-plot.

As this was the first in a series, I'm still going to check out the sequel, as I'm interested in seeing where Mary goes next and how the plot progresses. This was an original novel, although a bit slow at times, but I overall enjoyed it and loved the idea of transforming into a cat- how cool is that?

Overall: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Interview: Helen Ellis

1. How did The Turning come to be?

I had a dream that I woke up, went to my bathroom, and splashed cold water on my face. Splashing cold water in my face is something I have never done in real life, but the action must be ingrained in my subconscious—and now unconsciousness—because I’ve seen it done in so many movies and on TV. Anyway, when I stood up straight and looked in my medicine cabinet mirror, I saw that my face was no longer my own. It was inhuman. And very, very furry.

No matter what I tried, I couldn’t get the fur to come off. Days following the dream, no matter what I tried, I couldn’t get the memory to leave my head. So I sat down and wrote. And tried to figure out how my dream-self wound up in the condition she did.

2. In what ways do you relate to Mary, your main character?

Mary is a high school student, which is an age in my life I remember quite well. A secret nobody will tell you, but I will: for the rest of your natural born days you are in high school.

Maybe you won’t look the same, but often you’ll think that you do. My handsome husband still sees himself as a chubby, short kid. I’m still shocked when I don’t get carded for beer. Maybe you won’t act the same way you did at sixteen, but you’ll remember how you used to act, and then act identically or adjust your adult attitude.

So be brave! Mary doesn’t start out that way, but as a result of “the turning” she gets her nerve up. And I don’t mean she bungee-jumps or cusses out her teachers—that’s dumb. Her bravery means that she kisses a boy she’s had a crush on for years and chooses a fate that is the ultimate awkward phase!

I suggest you be equally brave as soon as you can. The earlier you’re fearless, the easier it is to stay that way.

3. What exactly does "the turning" mean?

“The turning” is an affliction that makes certain 16 year-old seasonally turn into something inhuman for five years.

4. If you could meet any of your characters for a day, who would it be?

I would meet Kathryn Ann, the mother of Mary’s twin best friends, Marjorie and Mags. Kathryn Ann has a call-in nightly TV talk show, Chime In with Kathryn Ann, in which she rants and raves over social injustices. These crimes may include anything from drunk driving to leaving your kid in a car with rolled-up windows to talking on a cell phone while your plane is taxing to the gate. She has opinions and she ain’t afraid to share them. Her catchphrase is: “People have been shot for less than that!”

5. Are any of your characters inspired by people you know in real life?

Mary’s parents are based on my husband and me. Her dad is Managing Editor of a financial news website and her mom is a cozy mystery writer. While The Turning isn’t a cozy, I adore them. Cozies are serials about mostly non-law-enforcement women falling butt-backwards into scenes of crimes. Think Jessica Fletcher of Murder She Wrote reruns.

6. Do you have any pets? And if so, have they impacted your writing at all?

We have two tuxedo cats, Shoney and Big Boy, who you can see on my website banner at: www.helenelliswrites.com. Want to see a video about how I trained Big Boy to answer the phone? Click http://tinyurl.com/y2afd6g. Want to see Shoney help address an envelope? Click http://tinyurl.com/y29odew.

Last year, twenty-pound Big Boy was startled by the sound of my husband whipping the shower curtain rings across the rod, and he jumped straight up into the air and came down on my face! That’s twenty pounds of cat and claws scrambling to get off my face. Let’s just say I made sure Mary had a similar, but much more traumatic experience!

7. Is there one place in the world you really want to travel to?

I would like to go to Asia: Japan, China, South Korea – I’m not picky!

8. What's next for the series?

After a bizarre series of ritualistic killing in Manhattan, the mayor enforces an 8:00 curfew. Thanks to the turning, Mary can sneak undetected about the city to find out who’s responsible. Mary has the markings of a ruler and thus must choose which side in a citywide turf war to be on. Strays or domestics? But then she finds out that there are more than two sides.

9. Your cover is beautiful- is it what you imagined?

It is MORE than I imagined. The artist took my story and interpreted it beautifully!

10. If you were trapped on a deserted island, what three books would you want with you?

Three big sagas:

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber

Middlesex by Jeffery Eugenides

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Thanks so much, Helen!

My review of The Turning will be posted soon. :)