The Seven Rays [Hardcover]

Jessica Bendinger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 24, 2009

The creator of Bring it On, Jessica Bendinger, brings her teen savvy writing to this paranormal romance, The Seven Rays.

You are more than you think you are.

THAT IS THE ANONYMOUS MESSAGE that Beth Michaels receives right before she starts seeing things. Not just a slept-through my-alarm-clock, late-for-homeroom, haven't had-my-caffeine-fix kind of seeing things. It all starts with some dots, annoying pink dots that pop up on and over her mom and her best friend's face. But then things get out of control and Beth is seeing people's pasts, their fears, their secrets, their desires. The images are coming at Beth in hi-def streaming video and she can't stop it. Everyone thinks she's crazy and she's pretty sure she agrees with them. But crazy doesn't explain the gold envelopes that have started arriving, containing seeing keys and mysterious tarot cards. To Beth, it all seems too weird to be true. You are more than you think you are? But here's the thing: What if she is?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 10 Up—Beth, a straight-A Columbia University-bound senior from Illinois, suddenly begins seeing odd images that do not make sense. Pink dots cover her best friend, and woven braids appear to jump around her mother. When she receives a letter postmarked from New York City that reads "You are more than you think you are," Beth wonders if that is indeed true—or if she is losing her mind. In the midst of all this, Beth falls for an older troubled classmate in one her elective college courses. A first kiss leads to literal electricity, extreme heat, and Richie's entanglement in Beth's mysterious and terrifying life. He aids her in an elaborate escape from a mental-health facility and a cross-country trip complete with a not-quite-sex (but still graphic) scene in a motel. Beth's journey ends when she encounters the group that sent her the puzzling letter. They give her a series of elaborate tests, most of which are a typical teen's worst fears realized, including stripping in public and getting an extreme haircut. Beth's baffling challenges are explained by weak and contrived metaphors. Bendinger's overly complicated, lackluster first novel fails to engage readers. Clever quips reminiscent of the author's Sex and the City writing career do little to spice up the reading experience of this odd fantasy/adventure. Too many convoluted plotlines arise with answers too few, and the characters do not engender much sympathy or interest.—Tara Kehoe, Plainsboro Public Library, NJ
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From Booklist

Seventeen-year-old Beth, who grew up in boring New Glen, Illinois, finds out that the woman she believed was her mother has been lying to her the whole time. A mysterious group called 7RI contacts Beth, warning her that she must come to New York or her mother will die—but is it her real mother or the person she grew up loving? Accompanied by new boyfriend Richie, Beth heads east to unravel the mysteries surrounding her clairsentient (energy-sensing) abilities and unusual family. In her first YA novel, Bendinger (screenwriter for Bring It On and Stick It) has created quite a ride: part steamy romance, part adventure story. Tarot, the Pleiades, parapsychology, music-induced orgasms, intriguing characters, and a sense of incompleteness—it’s all here. But, most importantly, it works. The only clunky bits are the poems that introduce the Tarot card–character connections and Bendinger’s occasional fake words (e.g., “live-agnosis” as the opposite of diagnosis). Inventive writing, sexy interludes, and the paranormal elements will attract readers who enjoy Melissa Marr and Carrie Jones. Grades 9-12. --Cindy Welch

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (Juv) (November 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416938397
• ISBN-13: 978-1416938392
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,071,539 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jessica Bendinger is an acclaimed Hollywood screenwriter who launched onto the scene with her original script for the hit hip hop cheerleading comedy, Bring it On. Never shying away from challenges and new opportunities, Bendinger has also added the title of producer, director, and most recently, novelist to her repertoire. A self described "creative seeker," Bendinger relies on her enthusiasm and curiosity when choosing the next frontier she would like to explore.

Bendinger is slated to release her first and highly-anticipated novel, The Seven Rays on November 24, 2009 with Simon & Schuster. The story follows 17 year-old, Beth Michaels, who uncovers elements of the supernatural on her journey of self discovery. The words: "You are more than you think you are" mysteriously present themselves to Beth and ultimately drive her quest. The novel reaches well beyond the interest of young adults, appealing to all as it explores the universal question--"Are we making the most of our lives?"

"It's a fun, paranormal, metaphysical, coming-of-age adventure based on the hope in all of us that we are more than we think we are. And perhaps our lives have a greater destiny than we anticipated," says Bendinger.

A former journalist for Spin Magazine and MTV News, Bendinger covered the hip-hop movement while at Columbia University. On her first assignment with Spin Magazine, Bendinger interviewed Chuck D and Flava Flav, members of one of the greatest hip-hop groups, Public Enemy. Her interview with Salt n' Pepa appears on the liner notes of their second album, A Salt With A Deadly Pepa. Bendinger's love of music was fostered at an early age as she grew up in the "margins of the music business" where her mother was a renowned Dixieland jazz trombonist and her father wrote commercial jingles.

It was her love of hip-hop and ESPN cheerleading competitions that propelled her into the idea of Bring it On. Bring it On was rejected 27 times by various Hollywood studios, but Bendinger's conviction ultimately drove the remarkable success of the film, which debuted at number one at the box office for two straight weeks, and grossed a combined $300 million in theaters and DVD sales. Following the success of Bring it On, Bendinger went on to write for Season Four of the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning HBO series, Sex in the City, and for films such as The Truth About Charlie with Thandie Newton and Mark Wahlberg; First Daughter starring Katie Holmes; and Aquamarine starring Emma Roberts. Bendinger produced The Wedding Date starring Debra Messing, Amy Adams and Dermot Mulroney.

In 2006, once again seeking her own creative opportunities, Bendinger next went on to write and direct the hit comedy Stick It, starring Jeff Bridges and Missy Peregrym. Exemplifying Bendinger's connection with the youth demographic, Stick It was the #1 movie download on iTunes for 7 weeks in a row, during the film's home video release.

A former model who worked for the legendary designer Stephen Sprouse and appeared on the runway in "Slaves Of New York," Bendinger was named by Glamour Magazine as one of Hollywood's "Most Powerful Women Under 40". Yet for all her success, she is always mindful to avoid complacency.

"I'm a seeker. I'm always interested in what's new, what's exciting, and what's fulfilling for me. And that allows me to keep ahead of the curve as a creative explorer," says Bendinger.

Jessica Bendinger currently resides in Los Angeles with her two dogs, where she is writing her next feature film and working on the sequel to The Seven Rays.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Pretty average with some irritations, February 9, 2010

By 

AlexJouJou (D.C.) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Seven Rays (Hardcover)

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Without rehashing everything others have said I can say I agree about many of the points. The language used, while seeming innocuous at first, quickly grows irksome bordering on making the book a chore to read. I have a teenager and we even live in CA and she doesn't talk like that. However I was a bit worried that it was just me and I was too "old" for the book -- so I didn't deduct majorly for language.

What I did deduct for is the main character. She was very unappealing to me. I have a gifted teen who is looking to graduate early so I spent much of the book trying to find some similarities (probably in the back of my head to make more sense of actions and words of the characters) but it just never came. I read alot of young adult and juvenile fiction and generally I enjoy it (provided it is not the "OMG he's, like, soo cute" type!). This one failed to sustain my interest in a way that kept me invested in the story. I was able to continue in the book but the spark was just not there. I think there is a good story in there somewhere and the premise again is very interesting. There are moments when you think the book is getting better and then it just doesn't. It's that type of book.

In the end I can say it was just allright. My teen read a few pages and flat out told me she would not read further (she is reading The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Bradley to give you an idea of what she likes). However this is the same thing she told me about the Twilight book so I can't say she seems representative of other teens.

2 stars for the interesting premise-it really is intriguing. Unfortunately nothing else would merit any higher of a rating than that.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Just a mess, February 27, 2010

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The Book Muncher (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Seven Rays (Hardcover)

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Beth Michaels might be going crazy. One day she's perfectly normal, and the next, she starts seeing these strange pink dots everywhere. Unfortunately, it doesn't even stop there. Ropes, chains, and disgusting black gunk show up on virtually every person she sees, as well as glimpses into a people's minds, memories, secrets, and fears if she looks at someone for too long. But even though other people think Beth is crazy too, the thing is, she might not be. Because along with this strange new vision, Beth also starts receiving gold envelopes with mysterious message, envelopes Beth soon finds out she's been receiving her whole life but hasn't been aware of until now. The first message Beth gets says "You are more than you think you are." And as Beth soon finds out, that's probably true.

The Seven Rays is one confusing jumbled mix mash of too many things at once. Yes, there are paranormal occurrences, lots of them in fact, the period of doubting sanity, and romance, among other things. That's precisely the problem with this book. Bedinger tries to include way too many things into her debut novel that the story loses its sense of purpose. On one hand, Beth has normal everyday problems with her mother and best friend. On the other, there's this romance with Beth and Richie. Then, on an imaginary third hand, there's all that supernatural stuff. It's this imaginary third hand that screws this book up the most. There's just so much about destiny and special skills as well as some kind of special prophecy or organization that's never adequately explained that floods the story in the worst possible way. This is the kind of novel where I really wonder how it got published considering the story is such a mess. Is it because Bedinger is a moderately well known screenwriter? If that's so, I think Bedinger better stick to that.

The Seven Rays may be enjoyed by fans of Swoon by Nina Malkin and The Hollow by Jessica Verday. I doubt I will read any sequel to this novel.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fair, February 20, 2010

By 

S. Lipson - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Seven Rays (Hardcover)

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**Spoiler alerts here** I didn't think this book was very well written. The story idea has good potential, but the story clips along at too rapid of a pace-read total lack of character/story depth. I just can not see who might really enjoy this book and who the author was writting it for. Perhaps young adult (over 18 yrs) who are just looking for mindless fluff to read. I really don't think all of the topics coverd in this book are appropriate for those younger than 18. The two main characters want to have sex after their first kiss?! So they end up having mutual orgasm via the use of music from an ipod and connected headphones, on a motel bed, while they are "on the run"... I would not recommend this book to anyone. The dynamics of the mother daughter relationship are bizarre. Decite, lies, and lack of trust; it's like their whole lives crumble to pieces in an instant. It really makes no sense whatsoever. That relationship is just dropped and we never look back. Too bad some other author didn't think up the story line which does have some potential, but now only for those who have not read this book. For me, the story went like a rock skipping the surface of water; "touch, touch, touch, touch, gone!" Sketchy, shallow, and over.