Invisible Things

Author: Jenny Davidson

Pages: 272

Published: 11/23/10, HarperTeen

Genre: Historical fiction/Mystery

Cover Score: B

Overall Grade: B

15 year old Sophie knows that there is more to the story of her parents' death than what she has been told.

Now that she is living in Denmark (safely away from the secrets of her life in Scotland), Sophie is on a mission

to uncover what really happened. On her side is Mikael, her best friend who has turned into something more.

Along the way, Sophie will realize that the only person who can help her is her parents' former employer: Alfred Nobel,

the billionaire, reclusive scientist. However, Sophie quickly learns that nothing--and no one--in her life is what it seems.

And coming to terms with dark secrets means imagining a truth that she never dreamed possible.

My thoughts: Invisible Things was shorter, quicker, and easier to read than its predecessor, The Explosionist. A mere 272 pages compared to 400-something, I felt that Invisible Things covered more material and was easier to understand.

The mystery aspect was more apparent: Sophie wanted to uncover what really happened to her parents in the mysterious factory explosion that they died in. This, combined with a string of events involving the possibility of war add to suspense, danger, and adventure in the plot. I loved the developments in the lives of the characters, like how Mikael and Sophie's relationship flourished, and the introduction of Albert Nobel.

However, it is hard to follow along in the book, difficult to figure out what is going on, and confusing to understand where the plot is going.

Once again, I felt that the mystery sort of fizzled out in the end of the information-packed story. There seemed to be a lot of leadup and suspense for a rather disappointing ending. I felt like there was still so much left to cover!

Even though the ending of Invisible Things left me unsatisfied, the actual body 0f the story was written beautiful and in great detail. The setting was absolutely amazing, and I felt transported to a different time. Definitely give this one a try, but wait until it comes to your public library.