Customer Reviews

The Uninvited

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Mimi Shapiro, who just finished her freshman year of college at NYU finds herself running away from her problems. She runs off to Ontario, to stay at a house owned by her father, a famous artist who abandoned Mimi as a baby but has recently reentered her life. Mimi gets a rude awakening when she discovers that her father's house is already inhabited by 22 year-old Jay. Despite an awkward introduction to each other, they quickly find out that they have a deeper bond than either of them had originally expected. Soon after, Mimi and Jay discover that someone has been sneaking into their house and taking their possessions while they were gone. As Mimi and Jay deal with the intruder, the reader is also introduced to Cramer and his mother, Ontario natives who live not to far from Mimi and Jay. As the book progresses, Mimi and Jay discover the truth behind not only about their intruder, but also about their family.

As the book begins, after a shaky prologue, the reader immediately becomes attached to Mimi and Jay, both likable characters. Unfortunately, beyond our protagonists, most of the other characters come across quite two-dimensional and a bit cartoonish. Also, this novel depends on the mystery at the core, and at the beginning the mystery is quite intriguing, but it quickly becomes quite boring as more characters become involved. The worst part of this novel is the subplot involving Cramer and his mother, Mavis. Not only are these two characters quite unlikable, Author Tim Wynne-Jones fails to make these characters interesting at all, making their scenes quite a chore to read. Even when the reader is supposed to feel sympathetic for one of these characters, you have trouble feeling that because because of how they were portrayed through the entire novel. Also, a subplot featuring Mimi and the reason she escaped to Ontario seemed quite silly and a bit unrealistic. While the novel had quite a bit of promise at the beginning, it quickly unravels until it reaches a fairly ridiculous climax that is sure to get many readers unsatisfied.

I have a hard time trying to figure out the target audience of this book. While it is being marketed as a Young Adult novel, I feel that many teens would be bored out of their mind reading this novel. I do not think their is enough to not only get a teen to pick up this book, but also to finish it to it's conclusion. Older teens and adult readers who like mild suspense will appreciate this novel much more.

"The Uninvited" starts out quite strong with some interesting characters and an intriguing mystery, but it quickly devolves as the plot progresses and more characters are introduced. While not an awful book, I have trouble recommending this novel because the second half is a chore to read and the climax and resolution comes across as quite insipid.

This book started out with the best of intentions: a creepy plot-line, intriguing characters etc. But the author killed EVERY story line. Towards the end, everything made me say "ARE YOU SERIOUS?" I wish I had the time back that I spent reading this book. Rather than buy this book, I suggest that you burn the money. I wish I could give this book negative stars.

I thought that this book was going to be paranormal, like a ghost or something from reading the back, but it was not. It was an okay read and anyone whom likes a psychological thriller, would probably love it!

Mimi is running away from something at college, she has packed up her belongings and headed to her father's old cottage in Canada. There she can do some thinking and figure out her next move.

Jay enjoys the old cottage down on the snye. He likes to play his music and uses the house for rest and concentration. But someone is playing an ugly trick on him. They keep leaving awful things in his bed.

Cramer's mother is really depressed. Sometimes, even tries to harm herself. He works 2 jobs to try to keep the money flowing to pay the bills. His only solace is his canoe, the only birthday present he had ever remembered getting.

These three young adults have more in common than they realize when their worlds clash one summer.

The book kept my interest enough to finish and put all the pieces together. It was interesting to read how someone elses mistakes can end up being everyone elses biggest problems.

*Special thanks to Candlewick Press for this review copy.

Mimi Shapiro is running. Running away from a disturbing first year at NYU to a small and creepy town in Nowhere, Canada. She hopes that while there for the summer, she can get her first screen play written, while coming to turns with what happened to her in the previous year.

Though nothing can stay perfect for long. When arriving at her father's deserted old summer house she finds that someone else is living there too. Her long lost half brother, a half brother that has been having his own problems, as of lately. Problems that involve a mysterious stalker who has been leaving him "presents" of dead birds and snake skin.

Can the two of them make it through the summer? Will they get to know each other the way only siblings can? Will they catch the stalker before their lives come to a crashing halt? Well, I guess you'll have to find out for yourself, in The Uninvited by Tim Wayne- Jones.

Only one adjective comes to mind after reading this page turning thriller: Wow! The Uninvited is a book that mixes mystery and getting to know long lost siblings in a fresh and fantastic new way. I was constantly trying to figure out how everything tied together. The characters were my favorite part of this story. They were well developed, likable, and funny. Plus, Tim Wayne-Jones' writing was pretty darn good. I loved how he slowly told the past of the characters and the stalker by reveling their secrets one at a time. Overall, The Uninvited is a definite must read for all teens and adults.

Grade: A+

* Reviewed For Flamingnet

The Uninvited by Tim Wynne-Jones is a most excellent read. It is well written with full characters and rich dialogue.

Two people looking for peace and solitude find each other at a house on the snye (look it up, I had too!), but there is something else, someone else about. Or is there?

The Uninvited will grab you by the back of your mind and leave you with goosebumps of unconscious dread. All the while teaching, revealing how people, even family interact and react to one another and their environment.

When NYU student Mimi Shapiro arrives at her father's cottage in far-away Ontario, she finds a beautiful, relaxing place to escape from her life in New York City. She really needs a retreat right now, after fleeing from a sordid affair with her college professor, and this quaint, broken-down home is a sight to see. It is quiet, charming and peaceful.

But after she finds that her hide-a-key doesn't fit the lock, she realizes that the locks have been changed recently and the windows are no longer boarded up as they should be. So she sets out searching for a second hide-a-key in the back shed and here runs into a stranger who is apparently now living in the house and is not expecting her. In fact, this man startles her and seems strangely suspicious of her creeping around the house.

Mimi and her new acquaintance, Jackson Page (Jay), are equally puzzled about what the other is doing at the cottage. It seems very mysterious that they both are certain they have a right to be there, as each of them has received permission from their father to use the place. And it appears odd to Mimi that Jay is so anxious about a young girl being on the property. But he is very good-looking and charming, and there is something about him that draws her to him.

It's not long before they are sharing tea together in the cottage and sorting out the mystery of an uninvited visitor who has been breaking in and leaving disturbing items for Jay to find. There has been a dead bird and a snakeskin, and, even more menacing, a computer recording of an intruder breathing loudly in the background. Like Jay, Mimi is spooked and unsettled about being there, but she likes her new friend very much, and her trip to Ontario isn't something she wants to give up on. So she decides to stay, yet can't help wondering who this unwelcome guest is and if it could be the very man she fled New York City to escape from.

THE UNINVITED is an exhilarating mystery that will keep you deeply captivated as the story unfolds. Award-winning author Tim Wynne-Jones cleverly exposes the story little by little, and yet you still wonder right up until the end who this uninvited visitor really is and what he is up to. It is a chilling, suspenseful novel that, once you start, you won't want to put down.

--- Reviewed by Melanie Smith

An interesting plot and with varied and likable characters, this book was enjoyable from the start. A definite departure from the books that I normally read but I have to say it was a pleasure read!

Mimi has just left college in NYC on break from both academics as well as the married professor she has been having an affair with. Needless to say things did not end well and she needs to get out of Dodge! She's heading to her fathers lazy summer house in Canada to get away from it all and spend some time with herself to sort things out. Supposedly the house has been empty for the last twenty years but Mimi finds out quite the contrary. Upon her arrival she finds someone else living there, someone pretty cute! Jay and Mimi are fairly close to the same age and they soon find out that is not all they have in common.

A mystery unfolds as someone keeps breaking in and leaving weird things around the house including a dead bird. When the trespasser goes too far and starts stealing things, expensive things, Jay and Mimi know they need to figure out what is going on. As their plan unfolds they have no idea what is in store for them and the secrets revealed will change both their lives forever.

If you like a good mystery with a dose of creepiness this book is for you! I would recommend this book for high schoolers and above. There is nothing more than a few expletives but middle schoolers may get lost in the plot and various narratives.

When New Yorker Mimi drives all the way up into the Canadian wilderness to find the little house her artist father once used as a studio, she's just looking to spend some time alone - and away from an affair with a professor that has taken a nasty turn.

The last thing she expects is to find someone already occupying the house. Jay, a young musician struggling to find his muse, is more connected to Mimi than she first realizes. And so is the shy young man who watches them in secret from the river.

As Mimi and Jay divide up the house, the idyllic setting in the countryside is disrupted by a series of intrusions that become more and more destructive and apparently hostile. Why would anyone want to disturb them? How can they be stopped? And just how many secrets lie hidden in that long-abandoned house?

THE UNINVITED is a tense mystery broken by occasional bits of peace and beauty. The three narrators become more and more sympathetic as the reader gets to know them, and all of the supporting characters are well-developed and full of personality as well. Some of the best scenes are when Mimi, Jay, and Jay's girlfriend, Iris, are just hanging out, getting to know one another. But the gripping, suspenseful scenes are equally well done.

Wynne-Jones does a masterful job of letting certain moments stand as they are, without pushing them into melodrama, like the subtly creepy chapter end when Mimi discovers someone's filmed her on her own camera.Readers will enjoy fitting the pieces together as they learn about each of the characters, but the most important questions will keep them eagerly turning pages right until the end. They may find it a little confusing that Jay's narrative is nearly completely dropped part of the way through the book, and the brief sections in italics don't seem to completely integrate into the story, but those are minor quibbles.

Highly recommended to all fans of mystery and suspense.

Reviewed by: Lynn Crow

Mimi Shapiro is running away from New York. From the NYU professor who went too far, from life. Mimi drives up to Canada where she plans to stay in her father's old cabin. The snye is a beautiful place, almost fairy-like, that is until she discovers someone else-someone uninvited-is already living there. Jay Page, a young musician, has been staying at the cabin for some time-and someone has been leaving little "surprises" around the house: a dead bird, a snake skin, and sounds embedded in his latest compositions.
If Mimi isn't the intruder, who is?
When Cramer Lee first saw Mimi pull up in that shiny red Mini Cooper, he just had to meet her. There is something about Mimi he just can't forget. He must meet her, even if it means pulling some elaborate tricks.

In this suspenseful story of drama and mystery, three characters must find the link that binds them together-before things get entirely out of hand. Everyone was uninvited.....but not for long.

..........

This is really an amazing book. The plot was crafted from merely three characters, a lonely cabin, and an artist who had many hidden secrets. The book was pretty long, but once I got to the third or fourth chapter, I was hooked. The Uninvited is fast-paced and a nail-biting page turner; and the complexity of Mimi, Jay, and Cramer was outrageous yet extremely enjoyable till the very last page. I really connected with the characters and I was sad the book had to end.
My first impression of The Uninvited was that it was a scary thriller like book, but I was wrong. It goes somewhere in the category of suspense and family drama, which made a great combination. The ending of this great novel was surprising but prefect. Told by a master story teller, The Uninvited is a story you won't want to miss.




Genre: Suspense/Drama/Realistic
Age Group: YA, age 14+
Content: Language, mild sexual references, mild violence/graphicness
Recommend? Yes