Find my reviews on Blogger ~ Literary Meanderings 
 - - - 
 Sixteen-year-old Claire has always felt alone in the world. She goes through life ignored, forgotten, and altogether unnoticed. She doesn't have friends, and even her parents seem to forget she exists; leaving her places her whole life, forgetting they even brought her along. Claire deals with this life by creating what she calls "Situations" - events that she imagines; events in which people notice her, remember her, see her. 
 Then, one day, someone does see her. His name is Nix, and he is a "Nobody" - an assassin trained and raised by what is called The Society. His whole life he's been conditioned to believe he is nothing. No one could ever love him, nor he them. His only purpose in life is to kill "Nulls" - people without feelings or remorse, sociopaths and murderers. So he does his job without question; assassinating his targets without a second thought. 
 "I am everything. I am nothing. I am powerful. I am forgotten." 
 Until his target is Claire. This time he can't bring himself to pull the trigger. Something about her is different, and the reason surprises them both. 
 - - - 
 I think I am going to do this list-style. This book confused me a bit, and in the end, I didn't know whether I liked it or not, so I went for middle ground. 
 ~SOME SPOILERS AHEAD!~ 
 Dislikes: 
 * Repetition. The act of "fading," of making themselves invisible, was a really cool idea, but I became irritated quickly by the constant inner chanting that preceded this. It was not necessary to do it every single time one of the characters faded. Too many times I read the phrase "Less than shadow. Less than air." -- Or a variation of it. It was to the point where I was rolling my eyes every time one of them faded. 
 * I think the idea that Nix and Claire are the only Nobodies around is a little too convenient for my tastes. I think it would've been better if there were more of them. Maybe some hidden community packed full of 'em or something. I don't know. It was just too perfect that the only two Nobodies around found each other. 
 * Insta-love. Sigh. Why?! WHY?! Not only is this romance formed much too quickly, but it's completely insane. Claire falls for a boy who tried to kill her. He kidnapped her and tried to kill her. But she decides kissing him and making love to him is a good idea. ARE. YOU. KIDDING. ME. No. Just no. This was just awful. 
 Likes: 
 * The background story. This was one of the most interesting and unique ideas! 
 "For thousands of years, men with the ability to sense evil in others have banded together to hunt the monsters in their midst." 
 "The Society protects Normals from the Nulls." 
 "You are the right hand of The Society. You are a weapon. You are a tool." 
 When Claire and Nix realize that The Society has been creating Nulls to place into positions of power; Nulls to use toward their own ends, the action picks up to a fantastic pace. The two go on a whirlwind of a mission to find out the truth and stop them. It's all quite nicely written. 
 * With this being a standalone read in the paranormal genre, I appreciated the way Barnes was able to tied up all the loose ends just right. That way the readers aren't left with questions; unsatisfied. I swear, every paranormal read these days is a series or a trilogy. It was actually a nice breath of fresh air to have a standalone. I like not having to play the waiting game. 
 Overall, I liked this book. It wasn't a showstopper, but it was good. The repetition and insta-love can be overlooked once you learn some of the unique background story and get to the action. It's fast-paced and mysterious. It's unlike and other book I've read. It's a creative and poetic story. I recommend this to readers who want something that is outside of the proverbial box in YA fiction. This book is definitely what you need. It's a fresh idea, a unique standalone, and an action-packed sci-fi tale. 
 - - - 
 Book source: From the publisher for review 
 Publisher: EgmontUSA