Holli Anderson the Five series

Through Curiosity Quills I was given the opportunity to read Five Out of the Dark and it's sequel Five Out of the Pit, now I'm hooked and can't wait for the next book in this series! Below is my review for each book.

Five Out of the Dark by Holli Anderson is a fast paced urban-fantasy thrill ride. Paige, a teenager realizes she has special abilities. When her parents witness these abilities they overreact and Paige is forced to run. She meets Johnathan who like her has the same abilities, then one by one three more teens with the same abilities enter the picture. The Five survive and grow, learning more about controlling their powers through the help of a couple of adults. Soon they find themselves patrolling, fighting evil, and infiltrating a high school that is experiencing a series of unexplainable suicides within the student body.

As a veteran teacher, I was most impressed by Holli Anderson's remarkable capacity for maintaining the book's content at a young adult level, while still making the reading enjoyable for adults. Her voice as the author is both relatable, and humorous with an ability to seize the realistic thoughts, and actions of teens. Chapter length and size of the novel also make it a sure win amongst the junior high and high school crowd. The plot is creative, and action packed as the teens move from one life threatening event to the next. With so many supernatural and urban fantasy books available on the market the plot she develops is unique, and interest peaking. She establishes characters that are loathsome, lovable, despicable, and downright gross (in some cases).

Not only did Five Out of the Dark hold my interest, but I found myself buried within the book until the last page was turned. I'm now anxiously waiting for an entire day I can devote, no interruptions, to reading the sequel Five Out of the Pit.

One of the finest, intriguing young adult novels I have ever read!

Five Out of the Pit   by Holli Anderson is a first class sequel.  The Five with their parental figure Joe jump into new adventures, meeting enemies whilst their old enemies lurk in the shadows. As part of their training they‘ve learned new spells, healing, fighting skills along with the ability to portal or travel quickly to any destination in which they have previously been. The saga begins where Out of the Dark left off. Paige is blind and they have travelled with Joe their guardian to Moab, Utah, where they have made a home within the rocks. No time is wasted in this sequel as suspense and action move right in as Paige is tormented by an incubus, a creature of incomprehensible sexual attraction whom has an odd connection to one of The Five.  It is this connection that lands them a new home and sends them spiraling into another adventure which terminates with a bombshell leaving the reader hankering for the next novel in the series.

Holli’s vivid imagination makes this book a playful, humorous, and a suspenseful read. She adds just enough details to leave the reader hanging on each word and unable to put the book down. She captures the essence of the teenage spirit through their dialogue, thoughts, actions and wittiness of the characters bringing them to life.  The  creatures she constructs I found myself cringing at their ugliness and chuckling at her use of descriptive language as she does an incredible job giving them flavor and soul. There are some new beasts such as an imp, the incubus as well as demons from their past, and a few types of creatures The Five were unable to identify, although colorful descriptions are provided. The playful tone of Five Out of the Pit makes it an entertaining read that you don’t want to miss.

Five Out of the Pit is a clever young adult novel that is truly fun for all ages.

Holli Anderson at Amazon