Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collections
Publication
Walker Childrens (2013), 368 pages
Description
Haunted by disturbing dreams and terrifying visions, a teenaged girl in a paranormal witness protection program must remember her past and why she has strange abilities before a magic-wielding serial killer hunts her down.
User reviews
LibraryThing member Bduke
When I started this book, I was looking for the imagination, creativity and dreamlike quality that was the signature of The Night Circus , by Erin Morgenstern. Instead, it was just weird and creepy. Sarah Beth Durst (the author) thanked her nightmares for the ideas for this book in the Afterward.
Show More
The whole book felt strangely like a nightmare. Like Meredith Grey, it was "dark and twisty". I never felt any sort of connection to the main character, and the love interest was incredibly annoying. I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, and the only reason I kept reading it was so I could give an informed review. Here is my review... Yuck! Show Less
LibraryThing member Nightwing
Conjured, Sarah Beth Durst's latest work, is unlike anything I have read by her before. It is, and I never lie, unlike anything I have ever read by anyone before. It resembles a very many other tales, in bits and pieces, and odd phrases, but no other story is quite like it. When I first started
It is the tale of an Eve who begins by knowing nothing of who she is or where she came from, but with an ability to do magic. The drawback? It throws her into a bout of unconsciousness in which she relives pieces of a past that she does not want to remember, a past that the government agency who is taking care of her are *very* interested in her remembering. Aided by a boy she works with in a library who has more words than sense, she fights against unfathomable odds, and her fractured memories, to discover who she really is and where she came from.
I can say nothing more about the story, the magic has sewn my lips shut. What I can say is, buy Sarah Beth Durst's Conjured, clear your calendar, and settle in for a truly memorable journey.
Show More
reading it, I was not sure I would even finish it, it seemed a touch disjointed and without the calm flow of words I have come to expect from Durst. That quickly changed. Within a few more pages, I was finding it ever more difficult to put down. I finally gave in to the spell, and sitting myself comfortably, finished it in one final afternoon of escape.It is the tale of an Eve who begins by knowing nothing of who she is or where she came from, but with an ability to do magic. The drawback? It throws her into a bout of unconsciousness in which she relives pieces of a past that she does not want to remember, a past that the government agency who is taking care of her are *very* interested in her remembering. Aided by a boy she works with in a library who has more words than sense, she fights against unfathomable odds, and her fractured memories, to discover who she really is and where she came from.
I can say nothing more about the story, the magic has sewn my lips shut. What I can say is, buy Sarah Beth Durst's Conjured, clear your calendar, and settle in for a truly memorable journey.
Show Less
LibraryThing member kmartin802
CONJURED was breath-taking, amazing, compulsively compelling, and totally awesome. I run out of superlatives when I think about this story. The main character is Eve who begins the story in a new home, with a new face, and no memories of her past. She is told that she is a witness to a crime and
She is given a job as a library page and gets to meet Zach who is a wonderful character as well. He is constantly spouting trivia and totally honest and accepting. Zach is the one piece of her life that she can count on despite her horrifying visions and memory lapses. And together they can do amazing magic.
We gradually learn that the Marshals are trying to track down a serial killer and that there are multiple worlds with all sorts of amazing beings. Earth just happens to be the one without magic which should make it a safe place for Eve. Eve's visions help the marshals track down the killer.
Durst thanks her nightmares for her inspiration for this story. It is true that the story unfolds something like a nightmare with abrupt transitions and surreal events. But at heart for me this is the story of what it means to be real and what it costs too.
I highly recommend this amazing story to all fans of fantasy.
Show More
under the protection of the US Marshall's service. Malcolm is one of the marshals who are protecting her and he is the one she can trust who helps orient her to the world around her. She is given a job as a library page and gets to meet Zach who is a wonderful character as well. He is constantly spouting trivia and totally honest and accepting. Zach is the one piece of her life that she can count on despite her horrifying visions and memory lapses. And together they can do amazing magic.
We gradually learn that the Marshals are trying to track down a serial killer and that there are multiple worlds with all sorts of amazing beings. Earth just happens to be the one without magic which should make it a safe place for Eve. Eve's visions help the marshals track down the killer.
Durst thanks her nightmares for her inspiration for this story. It is true that the story unfolds something like a nightmare with abrupt transitions and surreal events. But at heart for me this is the story of what it means to be real and what it costs too.
I highly recommend this amazing story to all fans of fantasy.
Show Less
LibraryThing member DarkFaerieTales
Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Quick & Dirty: Magical story filled with mystery and romance. It was a little confusing at times and I had a hard time connecting with the characters, but it was still an enjoyable read.
Opening Sentence: Your name is Eve.
The Review:
Eve only has a few memories
Eve has strange magical powers, but whenever she uses them she is instantly swept away into a vision. The visions are cryptic and something about them feel so familiar to Eve. But whenever she wakes up afterwards she finds that days and weeks have gone by and she has no recollection of what has happened in that time. She lived her life just like normal, but she once again can’t remember any of it. If Eve wants to survive she is going to have to dig up her past, but will remembering destroy her future?
Eve was a very interesting character. Since she has no idea who she was in her past, it’s like she is starting over. Everything she experiences seems like her first time. When she uses her magic she is able to remember glimpses of her past, but by doing so she is giving up the few memories she has gained of her new life. It is very frustrating for her because she feels like she is a stranger in her own life. Personally, I liked Eve, she was different and easy to like. But I had a hard time connecting with her story since big chunks of her life were missing. I realize it was written that way on purpose, but it made me feel a big disconnect with Eve and her relationship with all the other characters. All her interactions and the things that make you love secondary characters were missing. Personally, I think I would have liked it better if her short-term memory had stayed intact.
Despite the flaws in the story, I still found it to be an enjoyable read. The plot kept you guessing, but there were a few times I felt a little lost as well. The idea was very original and it kept me intrigued the whole way through. Because of Eve’s memory loss there were times when things felt a little rushed and it made it hard to fully connect with the story. By the end of the story Durst wrapped everything up nicely, and overall, I did end up liking the book. I do think that there will be people who will love this book. If you like a good mystery mixed with magic and fantasy, I would recommend you give this one a try.
Notable Scene:
EVE’S HANDS WERE WRAPPED around a glass of orange juice. She blinked at the pulp that swirled in the orange. Aunt Nicki was talking as she buttered toast. “. . . doesn’t matter. If Lou says jump, we fetch the trampoline. You have to try harder.”
She didn’t remember coming into the kitchen, sitting down at the table, or drinking the orange juice. She didn’t remember anything since the cafeteria and her last vision. Her hands tightened around the glass. Calm, she told herself. Stay calm. She looked out the window. Outside was bathed in pale yellow, as if it were morning.
“Are you even listening to me?” Aunt Nicki asked.
The clock over the refrigerator said 7:05. She swallowed. It was hard to breathe. Her lungs felt constricted, and the air in her throat felt as if it had hardened. It was morning. It had been late afternoon at the agency. She’d lost all her memories of last night, plus any memory of what she’d done since she woke— everything since her last vision.
FTC Advisory: Walker Childrens/Bloomsbury provided me with a copy of Conjured. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Quick & Dirty: Magical story filled with mystery and romance. It was a little confusing at times and I had a hard time connecting with the characters, but it was still an enjoyable read.
Opening Sentence: Your name is Eve.
The Review:
Eve only has a few memories
Show More
and they are all from the last few weeks. Anything beyond that is a complete blank. She is currently in the witness protection program because she is the prime witness in a very important case. There is a magic-wielding serial killer on the loose and Eve is the only person that witnessed all his crimes. Unfortunately, she has no recollection of the time she spent with the killer. The people that are protecting her will do anything to make her remember, or she will be of no use to them.Eve has strange magical powers, but whenever she uses them she is instantly swept away into a vision. The visions are cryptic and something about them feel so familiar to Eve. But whenever she wakes up afterwards she finds that days and weeks have gone by and she has no recollection of what has happened in that time. She lived her life just like normal, but she once again can’t remember any of it. If Eve wants to survive she is going to have to dig up her past, but will remembering destroy her future?
Eve was a very interesting character. Since she has no idea who she was in her past, it’s like she is starting over. Everything she experiences seems like her first time. When she uses her magic she is able to remember glimpses of her past, but by doing so she is giving up the few memories she has gained of her new life. It is very frustrating for her because she feels like she is a stranger in her own life. Personally, I liked Eve, she was different and easy to like. But I had a hard time connecting with her story since big chunks of her life were missing. I realize it was written that way on purpose, but it made me feel a big disconnect with Eve and her relationship with all the other characters. All her interactions and the things that make you love secondary characters were missing. Personally, I think I would have liked it better if her short-term memory had stayed intact.
Despite the flaws in the story, I still found it to be an enjoyable read. The plot kept you guessing, but there were a few times I felt a little lost as well. The idea was very original and it kept me intrigued the whole way through. Because of Eve’s memory loss there were times when things felt a little rushed and it made it hard to fully connect with the story. By the end of the story Durst wrapped everything up nicely, and overall, I did end up liking the book. I do think that there will be people who will love this book. If you like a good mystery mixed with magic and fantasy, I would recommend you give this one a try.
Notable Scene:
EVE’S HANDS WERE WRAPPED around a glass of orange juice. She blinked at the pulp that swirled in the orange. Aunt Nicki was talking as she buttered toast. “. . . doesn’t matter. If Lou says jump, we fetch the trampoline. You have to try harder.”
She didn’t remember coming into the kitchen, sitting down at the table, or drinking the orange juice. She didn’t remember anything since the cafeteria and her last vision. Her hands tightened around the glass. Calm, she told herself. Stay calm. She looked out the window. Outside was bathed in pale yellow, as if it were morning.
“Are you even listening to me?” Aunt Nicki asked.
The clock over the refrigerator said 7:05. She swallowed. It was hard to breathe. Her lungs felt constricted, and the air in her throat felt as if it had hardened. It was morning. It had been late afternoon at the agency. She’d lost all her memories of last night, plus any memory of what she’d done since she woke— everything since her last vision.
FTC Advisory: Walker Childrens/Bloomsbury provided me with a copy of Conjured. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Show Less
LibraryThing member taleofnight
I will read anything Sarah Beth Durst writes. I love her books. With that said, I enjoyed Conjured, but it wasn't my favorite of hers.
Conjured is a very strange book. I could not figure out what was going on and why Eve was so special and had to be in this Witness Protection Program. And then there
The book starts off right away with the weirdness. Eve has visions of being at a carnival and watching magical kids getting killed in some magical way and being shrunk to fit inside this very small box that keeps you from doing magic and dead bodies being cut up to fit inside these very small boxes and DOLLS THAT YOU CAN HEAR BREATHING. I mean, what is going on?! Who thinks of this kind of stuff?!
I never knew who to trust. There's Malcolm, who watches over Eve and makes sure she's safe and is pretty much a big teddy bear. I loved him. Then there's Aunt Nicki, who absolutely hates Eve, but is assigned to stay in the house with Eve and act like her guardian. And then there were these 3 kids who had some type of magic, like Eve. I didn't trust them at all because they were the ones telling Eve not to trust Malcolm or the program.
One thing that kind of threw me off from the story was the relationship between Eve and Zach. Zach, who is a normal human being, was so weird. The first time we meet him, he tells Eve he wanted to kiss her. That's just a little too assertive for me. Their relationship happened just a little too fast, and I never really got on board with it.
Eve has amnesia, she only knows what she see's in her visions, and she doesn't even know if those are memories or dreams. She had to be taught how to read and talk and everything, which means she doesn't really have a personality. A lot of the book is her trying to figure out this world she is in, and why she's in it. So a lot of it is her absorbing everything and trying to figure out who she can trust. This is another reason why I never liked the idea of her and Zach. She doesn't know anything, but yet she knows enough to be in a relationship.
I really enjoyed all the weird magical stuff that was happening and trying to figure out what was going on. There were some things that kept me from the story, like Eve's lack of personality, but the strangeness of it all kept me entertained.
Conjured is a very strange book. I could not figure out what was going on and why Eve was so special and had to be in this Witness Protection Program. And then there
Show More
were people with magic and Eve could magically make wallpaper come to life and change her eye color. It was all so strange and all this magical stuff happened like it was normal.The book starts off right away with the weirdness. Eve has visions of being at a carnival and watching magical kids getting killed in some magical way and being shrunk to fit inside this very small box that keeps you from doing magic and dead bodies being cut up to fit inside these very small boxes and DOLLS THAT YOU CAN HEAR BREATHING. I mean, what is going on?! Who thinks of this kind of stuff?!
I never knew who to trust. There's Malcolm, who watches over Eve and makes sure she's safe and is pretty much a big teddy bear. I loved him. Then there's Aunt Nicki, who absolutely hates Eve, but is assigned to stay in the house with Eve and act like her guardian. And then there were these 3 kids who had some type of magic, like Eve. I didn't trust them at all because they were the ones telling Eve not to trust Malcolm or the program.
One thing that kind of threw me off from the story was the relationship between Eve and Zach. Zach, who is a normal human being, was so weird. The first time we meet him, he tells Eve he wanted to kiss her. That's just a little too assertive for me. Their relationship happened just a little too fast, and I never really got on board with it.
Eve has amnesia, she only knows what she see's in her visions, and she doesn't even know if those are memories or dreams. She had to be taught how to read and talk and everything, which means she doesn't really have a personality. A lot of the book is her trying to figure out this world she is in, and why she's in it. So a lot of it is her absorbing everything and trying to figure out who she can trust. This is another reason why I never liked the idea of her and Zach. She doesn't know anything, but yet she knows enough to be in a relationship.
I really enjoyed all the weird magical stuff that was happening and trying to figure out what was going on. There were some things that kept me from the story, like Eve's lack of personality, but the strangeness of it all kept me entertained.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bpress
Pinocchio meets Alice and Wonderland and crosses into a plot line from the TV show Once Upon a Time.
A magical and bizarre book that makes you feel dizzy at times.
For my full review of this novel, you can go to my blog here:
A magical and bizarre book that makes you feel dizzy at times.
For my full review of this novel, you can go to my blog here:
LibraryThing member wealhtheowwylfing
Eve wakes up in a new body, on a new world. She's in Witness Protection hiding from a supernatural serial killer, but although she's apparently a very important witness, she's lost all her memories. She tries to piece her past together, with weird visions of a magical carnival as her only clues.
I
I
Show More
like the concept a lot, but I was bothered by the fact that until the last two chapters, the reader has no idea at all what's going on. Then everything is explained in one big dump of text. Show Less
LibraryThing member tldegray
Eve is in Witness Protection. She ought to feel safe, but she doesn't. She doesn't because she can't remember anything, not one thing, from the time before she met her federal handlers. All she knows is they very much need her to remember and will do nearly anything to make that happen. And that
As part of her agreement with her handlers, they've gotten her a Summer job shelving books at the local library. It's there she meets the boy who literally makes them float when they kiss. Somehow, Eve is magic, and he can use it.
When things get more dangerous for Eve--more memory losses, more frightening visions, and the knowledge that the serial killer she's trying to help the feds find might just be trying to find her--she starts to learn where she comes from. What she never imagined is what she'd learn about what she is.
There's something about Durst's writing that captured my attention and held it. She made the magic seem truly magical and showed us Eve's world, where frightening things lurk beneath the everyday.
This book is about trust and family, about blame and justice. And it's about Eve, wanting and having a life of her own.
(Provided by publisher)
Show More
makes her afraid.As part of her agreement with her handlers, they've gotten her a Summer job shelving books at the local library. It's there she meets the boy who literally makes them float when they kiss. Somehow, Eve is magic, and he can use it.
When things get more dangerous for Eve--more memory losses, more frightening visions, and the knowledge that the serial killer she's trying to help the feds find might just be trying to find her--she starts to learn where she comes from. What she never imagined is what she'd learn about what she is.
There's something about Durst's writing that captured my attention and held it. She made the magic seem truly magical and showed us Eve's world, where frightening things lurk beneath the everyday.
This book is about trust and family, about blame and justice. And it's about Eve, wanting and having a life of her own.
(Provided by publisher)
Show Less
LibraryThing member jennybeast
There's something very wrong with Eve. She can remember nothing, almost nothing, tantalizing creepy visions and moments of her life. She's in a witness protection program, but she doesn't know why, she doesn't know who to trust, she has magic that she can't control. All the elements are there, but
Show More
it takes some dedication to get into the story. Slow going, confusing, creepy. Also difficult to put down and ultimately a very unexpected story. Show Less
Awards
Mythopoeic Awards (Finalist — Children's Literature — 2014)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2013
Physical description
368 p.; 6.17 inches
ISBN
0802734588 / 9780802734587
Local notes
Eve has a new home, a new face, and a new name—but no memories of her past. She’s been told that she's in a witness protection program. That she escaped a dangerous magic-wielding serial killer who still hunts her. The only thing she knows for sure is that there is something horrifying in her memories the people hiding her want to access—and there is nothing they won’t say—or do—to her to get her to remember.
Ex-library.
Ex-library.
Similar in this library
Wake by Lisa McMann