Book Review: The Line by Teri Hall

Book: The Line by Teri Hall
Published: 2010, Dial Books
Genre: YA Dystopian Fiction
Pages: 219 pages
Where I got it: the library
Buy It: Amazon

Summary (from Goodreads): Rachel lives with her mother on The Property. The good thing about living there is that it's far from the city, where the oppressive government is most active. The bad thing, at least to most people, is that it's close to the Line - an uncrossable section of the National Border Defense System, an invisible barrier that encloses the entire country.

She can see the Line from the greenhouse windows, but she is forbidden to go near it. Across the Line is Away, and though Rachel has heard many whispers about the dangers there, she's never really believed the stories. Until the day she hears a recording that could only have come from across the Line.

It's a voice asking for help.

Who sent the message? What is her mother hiding? And to what lengths will Rachel go in order to do what she thinks is right?

Written in mesmerizing prose, this futuristic debut examines one girl's struggle to risk crossing - not just the barrier, but the lines her mother has drawn to keep her safe from the secrets that Rachel is only just beginning to discover.

My thoughts: The Line is one part dystopian fiction, one part paranormal. Rachel and her mother, Vivianne, live on The Property owned by the prim and curmudgeonly Ms. Moore. The government has been redesigned to rule all but Rachel has begun to question the sheltered life she has always known at The Property. The book starts out pretty slow but the action in the last 75 pages or so really redeemed it for me. I didn't love The Line, but I think it did a decent job pulling me in for at least the next book in the series. Once Rachel learned about the past of her family and her mom's employer, Ms. Moore, I was hooked. 

I read this book in about a day, as it's a pretty short novel at only 219 pages and each chapter is on average 5-8 pages. I really liked Rachel's character. She was so brave to offer to Cross the Line in order to save a man she has never met. We see her character beginning to grow into a young woman as The Line progresses. I do find it a little unbelievable that Rachel's mom, Vivianne, would actually let her go knowing that she may never be able to Cross back to their side. I'm definitely going to pick up the sequel, Away, when it is released sometime in 2011. I'm looking forward to finding out if Rachel's father is alive somewhere among the Others, what exactly the Others are, and if she'll be able to be reunited with her Mom.

The verdict: 3 stars