Claim to Fame by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Lindsay Scott was a childhood actress who had everything—until the day her horrible new skill showed up. From that day on, Lindsay was able to hear everything that anyone said about her not matter where they were. And with everyone talking about her, it nearly drove her crazy. She escaped from the public eye when her show was cancelled and she moved to a small town in Illinois with her father. Now sixteen, Lindsay’s still hiding out at home, her only refuge from the onslaught of voices she normally hears. Everything changes when Lindsay is “rescued” by a couple of local teens. She is forced to face all she’s been running from, the very nature of her strange talent. Are there other like her? And what does it really mean to hear others the way Lindsay does?

I was primarily interested in reading Claim to Fame because I enjoyed Haddix’s Shadow Children series when I was younger. From what I remember, not much has changed about Haddix’s writing, and if anything, I actually think her earlier writing was better. I did enjoy reading this story, but despite the uniqueness of Lindsay’s interesting skill and her kidnapping in this book’s opening scenes, it just wasn’t very exciting or interesting. In addition, the characters weren’t the most realistic either. Most of them, Lindsay included, felt only partially developed. And sadly, what was one of the original selling points for me, Lindsay’s ability to hear what others said about her, wasn’t nearly as intriguing as I hoped it would be. The whole effect was rather anticlimactic and flat. Overall, this novel could’ve been much better.

Claim to Fame may be enjoyed by fans of Haddix’s earlier writing. Based on my lack of enthusiasm for this story, I don’t think I’d pick up a sequel if there ever is one.

Rating: 3.25

Review copy from Amazon Vine