Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Mia Price can’t count the number of times she’s been struck by lightning. She couldn’t begin to guess what will happen to her the next time it happens. The one thing she does know is that being struck by lightning makes her feel more alive than she’s ever felt. She craves this intense sensation, but when she realizes the true cost to those close to her and the constant threat of danger that she poses, she and her family move to Los Angeles, a place where lightning rarely strikes. But LA is not the safe haven Mia desperately needs, especially after a major earthquake devastates the city. The aftermath transforms Mia’s new home into a place she can barely recognize, where crumbling ruins line most streets and shantytowns of tents cover the beaches—a place blinded by fear where the only hope for salvation rests in two extreme and opposing cults. Mia finds herself caught between the warnings of one group and the persuasive power of the other, but if the doomsday prophecies are true, then Mia may not have a choice after all—in creating or preventing the largest disaster the world has ever seen, in saving the lives of the people she cares about most, or even in being able to save herself.

Struck is one of those books that reels readers in with its unique premise. Mia’s history of being struck by lightning innumerable times is certainly intriguing, especially with the hint that this history is an indication that Mia has a mysterious power. Unfortunately, I was a little less satisfied with the story itself. I won’t deny that Struck has a fascinating backdrop, that of a nearly post-apocalyptic cityscape, and an engaging plot that is full of interesting and exciting twists, although some were more predictable than others. My issue was that I didn’t think Bosworth delved deep enough into her own story; I wanted to know more about how Mia felt about each complication in her life, the histories of the Followers and the Seekers and how they grew into cults, and how exactly lightning strikes correlated with some sort of elevated inner electrical power in certain people. The plot was interesting, but it felt like it only began to scratch the surface of this scary new world. Additionally, for all that Mia’s story kept amounting to even more dramatic danger and tragedy, the story wrapped up rather too neatly. Nonetheless, Struck is still an enjoyable read from a promising debut author.

Struck will be enjoyed by fans of Fracture by Megan Miranda, Numbers by Rachel Ward, The Pledge by Kimberly Derting, and Betwixt by Tara Bray Smith.

Rating: 3.5

Review copy from publisher Macmillan