Touched by Cyn Balog

Posted 13 August, 2012 by Danny in Blog, Danny, Danny's Book Review / 25 Comments

Touched

byĀ Cyn Balog
Genre: YA, Para/Supernormal aspects
publication: August 14th 2012 by Delacorte Press
copy from publisher
Get your own: amazon | BookDepository
Rating:
Touched by Cyn Balog, synopsis from goodreads:Ā Nick Cross always listens to the voice in his head. Because if he doesn’t? Things can go really, really wrong. Like the day he decided to go off script and saved a girl from being run over . . . and let another one drown. Trying to change the future doesn’t work.But this summer at the Jersey Shore, something’s about to happen that Nick never could have predicted. He meets a girl named Taryn and finds out about the Book of Touch. Now the path that he thought he was on begins to shift . . . and there’s no way to stop things from happening. Or is there?

In a life where there are no surprises, nothing has prepared Nick for what he’s about to discover–or the choice he will be forced to make. . . .

Guys POV always rock!There are tons of Girls POV’s out there, which makes the Boys even more stand out. This in combination with this gorgeous cover made me pick up this book with enthusiasms.Ā In addition, the premise was intriguing. A Guy with voices in his head?

Nick –Ā unusualĀ hero, and how to deal when seeing the future – constantly!

Nick was an awesome hero – although we might not call him a hero yet. Nick and his mom are different, they hear voices and see the future and all the possibilities this a certain future holds in her heads. Constantly! Even the tiniest details like walking down a street.It’s hard to explain and truthfully I had some difficulties understanding this concept in the beginning. We jump right in Nick’s characters and for him, these voices are normal. But we need some time to fully comprehend Nick’s ability, or … curse.

It is easy to understand why Nick is considered an outside, why he is the perfect loner. No friends and no girlfriend. I felt sorry for him and it was actually heartbreaking to see how this curse manages slowly to ruin his life. He’s very closed up of course, not eager to let someone in. I highly enjoyed his voice, he was easy to like and he’s one of those hero’s you will cheer for – hoping he will get the girl, change his life and just come out stronger.

Nick’s Savior or The Girl that changes everything

Taryn is the girl that changes everything and for some reasons also seems to know about his curse and even more, together with her he can finally have a little peace. Taryn was a girl that was just a little too nice, and a little too perfect – trying to get close to Nick even though he was a jerk more often than he was nice. It might be just her being able to see behind the facade but it sometimes didn’t make sense for me.

Oddly paced but great ending!

The story was nice, but not ground breaking and although the pace quickened towards the end I was never completely emotionally invested. I realized exactly this, when something terrifying happened in the last pages. Normally, with me being me, I would have cried yet I didn’t.Ā The ending was phenomenal and one of the best features of this book! I love it when a book wraps up nicely and gives me a happy ending!

Bewitched Rating

Bottom Line:

Touched by Cyn Balog was a compelling read with a fantastic protagonist. Nick was awesome, he was such a genuine character is a character who struggled hard with his ability, yet never seemed to give up! I can recommend this book to all fans of Boy POV’s with a nice paranormal twist in the story!
Ā 

Additional Notes:

This is my first book by authorĀ Ā Cyn BalogĀ and I am looking forward checking out her other books! She had a unique way of storytelling and I think her idea’s were really great and unique! EspeciallyĀ Fairy TaleĀ andĀ SleeplessĀ are books I have seen before but never picked up!

Did you read any of her booksĀ before?Ā 

Much Love!

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25 Responses to “Touched by Cyn Balog”

  1. Sounds like an interesting book although I doubt I’m going to pick it up anytime soon. I enjoy guys POVs too. Like you said, it’s very refreshing, but it has to be done well for me to truly enjoy it. šŸ™‚
    Nick sounds like a very genuine character. Plus, the ending seems fabulous!
    Great review, Danny. šŸ™‚

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    Danny 8/15/2012

    Nick’s voice was perfect! It was perfectly played and I truly adored his voice. But, the story was kind of confusion and the final epic factor was missing..
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  2. Love that its from a male pov. Reviews have been kinda mixed on this, so I am glad you enjoyed it, I love the cover. Awesome review Danny!
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    Gosh yes the cover is amazing!!!! And the guy POV was so damn great, there was just a lot of confusion going one that failed to completely grab me!
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  3. Something terrifying and cry-inducing happens at the end? That makes me all nervous for this one Danny! I’ve read a couple reviews that have been along the same lines – interesting story and characters but it lacks the emotional investment most of the reviewers have wanted. You know that would be me too. I read to experience that emotional connection, and am always disappointed when it eludes me! Thanks for the review Danny!

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    Danny 8/15/2012

    You and me are both this emotional readers that need to feel when reading. Here, I just read and didn’t feel much. Which is not saying something about the storyline wich was nice!
    Also, the ending was the perfect happy ending you and me both crave, so this made up for the cry at the end :))
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  4. The cover for this book is really eye-catching! Nick sounds like an interesting protagonist and I like the fact you can root for him. Hooray for a great ending! Fantastic review, Danny. šŸ™‚
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    The cover is amazing just as Nick! And, I am a sucker for happy endings and I love how this one ended:)
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  5. KM

    Cyn Balog’s books take some getting used to, I think. A lot of people don’t like her style, but I sort of like it. SLEEPLESS is my favorite of hers that I’ve read – I loved the premise! And it’s good to know that this one has a good protagonist. That’s one of the most important parts to liking a story!
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    I do really like her style, but I think it takes some time getting used to it! I will try Sleepless – thank you so much for this recommendation!
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  6. Like most books..I’m curious about this one. šŸ˜‰ I’ve read some of Cyn’s other books and they just didn’t do it for me.

    I’m always a fan of male POVs though, so I’ll have to give it a try! Thanks for the review, Danny!
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    Hm.. maybe this is then not a book for you. I found her style intriguing but only be handled in small doses šŸ™‚ It was a little confusing – but I loved Nick!
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  7. Too bad the pacing wasn’t completely grasping, but this sounds like a really enjoyable read anyway! Yes, you’re so right about Guy POVs! They all become specials that stand out just a bit more. The premise of this one sounds really intriguing as well! Awesome review! <3
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    Thanks Vivian! and it was a great book and I can happily recommend it even though it didn’t completely woo me over!
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  8. Great review. I love it being from a male point of view. I haven’t read any of her books, my library doesn’t carry very many of them. This sounds pretty intriguing.

    Jenea @ Books Live Forever

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    Danny 8/15/2012

    It has such a great idea and the main character Nick was incredibly awesome! Just the whole story was a little confusing and I did not really taryn..
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  9. I haven’t heard the best things about this book, but I’m still intrigued to try it out. Nick sounds like a great character and I love male POV so I’m really excited for that! This will be my first Cyn Balog book too, so I’m curious to see her raved about writing.
    Graet review:))
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    I really think Cyn Balog has something unique about her stories. I think it’s just a little getting used to it, but I am eager to see what’s next from her!
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  10. Wow. What a crazy curse! Sounds really lonely and hard to deal with. Kind of wonder what was up with the strange pacing. With such a fantastic ending, it seems the rest would have fallen into place. I’ll have to check Cyn Balog out!
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    I just love when an ending makes up for the rest and here, I was beginning to be really fed up with the book when the ending made me so happy.
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  11. I didn’t really care for Nick or Taryn. Hated Mom. I loved Nana. She was the only person I could get behind. And the plot. Now that was fantastic and something completely different. But I like characters, so this one fell short for me. But I’ll try her other books, too.

    Great review!

    Heather
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    Danny 8/15/2012

    I know!!! The story was great if it wasn’t for the characters.. lol!! It’s so torn with the book, there was a lot of positive about it and just a lot I didn’t care for…
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