The Veil by Cory Putnam Oakes

The Veil by Cory Putman Oakes

(Synopsis from Goodreads)
Seventeen-year-old Addison Russell is in for a shock when she discovers that she can see the invisible world of the Annorasi. Suddenly, nothing is as it appears to be the house she lives in, the woman who raised her, even the most beautiful boy in town all turn out to be more than what they seem. And when this strange new world forces Addy to answer for a crime that was committed long ago, by parents she has never known, she has no choice but to trust Luc, the mysterious Annorasi who has been sent to protect her. Or so he says . . .


Oakes' The Veil has real potential as a first novel, despite some bumps (and bruises) here and there.

Let's talk about what I loved first. I liked Addy's "voice" first and foremost. I immediately took to her character and enjoyed reading the story from her point of view. Her crush on Luc is written well and Addy, in general, is very believable. I also liked the relationship that Addy and Luc have in the story, They must pretend to be dating so that Luc has an excuse to stay close to Addy and protect her. Its clear to the reader that these two feel the same way about each other, and they are just totally blind to it. I also like the overall fantasy element of The Veil. The Annorasi are very similar to the Fae, in my opinion. That made the idea easy to identify with, but...

The Annorasi and their world are not well-described at all in the book. I was left feeling a bit confused about the idea that their world 'overlaps' ours. There was not very much explanation and the Annorasi characters were lacking depth. I wasn't really on board with why the "bad guys" were doing what they were doing. The quality of this story would have rocketed up if their had been stronger world building.

I will read the sequel to this one to find out more about the Annorasi world, with the hope that the next one will build that alternate world a little better.