Review: Split Second by Kasie West

Split Second
Kasie West
Series: Pivot Point, #2
Released: February 11th, 2014
Publisher: HarperTeen
Rating: 4 stars
Word Rating: TREVOR
Reviewed by: Blythe

Life can change in a split second.

Addie hardly recognizes her life since her parents divorced. Her boyfriend used her. Her best friend betrayed her. She can’t believe this is the future she chose. On top of that, her ability is acting up. She’s always been able to Search the future when presented with a choice. Now she can manipulate and slow down time, too . . . but not without a price.

When Addie’s dad invites her to spend her winter break with him, she jumps at the chance to escape into the Norm world of Dallas, Texas. There she meets the handsome and achingly familiar Trevor. He’s a virtual stranger to her, so why does her heart do a funny flip every time she sees him? But after witnessing secrets that were supposed to stay hidden, Trevor quickly seems more suspicious of Addie than interested in her. And she has an inexplicable desire to change that.

Meanwhile, her best friend, Laila, has a secret of her own: she can restore Addie’s memories . . . once she learns how. But there are powerful people who don’t want to see this happen. Desperate, Laila tries to manipulate Connor, a brooding bad boy from school—but he seems to be the only boy in the Compound immune to her charms. And the only one who can help her.

As Addie and Laila frantically attempt to retrieve the lost memories, Addie must piece together a world she thought she knew before she loses the love she nearly forgot . . . and a future that could change everything.

Kasie West can officially do no wrong; I am absolutely certain of it at this point. She is also the reigning Queen of Intense Endings, Lovable Characters, Snark, and Plot Twists. This, I am also certain of. I was initially unsure that anything could come close to evoking the same love I had for Pivot Point, but I'm glad I can say, also with certainty, that Split Second came pretty damn close. And even having come close to evoking the love I had for Pivot Point, that's not to say I didn't love Split Second.

Split Second takes off right where Pivot Point left off. Except now, instead of alternating Para and Norm chapters, we have alternating Addie and Laila chapters. Another thing Kasie West masters at? Writing two engaging and distinct perspectives, and ending them with little cliffhangers such that you never want to stop reading. But something I really love about Split Second is that, because of the dual perspectives, we really get a feel for Laila's character and how truly damaged and complex she is.

Also, Laila gets a love interest--Connor--in this one, and although I thought both he and his relationship with Laila were swoon-worthy, I did think it happened a little...spontaneously? Their chemistry was tangible throughout the entire novel, but it was really just a slow build-up to a kiss, and then Addie says they're in love, and bam, they are. I don't know, it was just a little weird for me. I, personally, would have liked to see more of Laila experiencing those feelings for herself, instead of being told how she feels and then realizing how she feels; granted, that is how Laila's character is built--she's stubborn (in a good way, of course), and doesn't want to realize things that may place her in a vulnerable position. Either way, I still found their relationship to be entirely sweet and worthy of my swoons. That's just one little thing I have to nitpick there.

Moving on to other romances in Split Second, we have Addie and Trevor. What I love about their relationship is that Kasie West is essentially building it from the ground up again, yet it doesn't feel boring or repetitive. With any other romance, written by any other author, it probably would have. But Kasie West has got this down, and she knows what she's doing with this relationship, and she does it damn well. Like Laila and Connor's romance, Addie and Trevor's is also a slow-build (much like it was in Pivot Point), but it's still just as swoony and adorable as it's always been.

The plot in Split Second, I feel, is also an improvement upon Pivot Point's. Throughout the novel, even behind all of the swoons and snark and cuteness, there is a definite intensity. Especially after the ending of Pivot Point, you know that Kasie West is going to end this with an intense bang, but you don't know exactly what that will be. On one hand, we have Laila dabbling with illegalities and a charming boy with big secrets, and on the other hand, we have Addie dabbling with some illegalities and trying to win back the charming boy she had already won over before (unbeknownst to him).

There's not much I can say about how intense Split Second's plot can be at times, but trust me when I say the intensity is there. Again, the ending isn't as big of a bang as the one in Pivot Point, but I think it's just as intense, if not more so. And, in my opinion, it's a perfect ending for this book. For this series? Really good, but not perfect, since there are still some loose ends to be tied up.

Ultimately, Split Second absolutely did not disappoint, and I have trouble believing any novel Kasie West writes will. With snark written like no other, characters written like no other, and romances written like no other, Kasie West truly can do no wrong. All of her books prove to be amazing, and I have no doubt that her upcoming novels will be amazing as well. This, I am also certain of.