The Collector: Review

Author: Victoria Scott
Page Number:352
Publisher:Entangled Teen
Source:e-galley

Description:

 He makes good girls...bad. 
 Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag. 
 Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment: 
 Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days. 
 Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.

Review:
The Collector: one of the most talked about spring YA 2013 published books( yeah, that's a mouthful). I, myself, was excited as every other young adult reader, as one ought to be. I mean, when you hear the word hottie...of course, you are drawn to the story. But, there were also some other aspects of the story that I thoroughly enjoyed. However, there were some things that I didn't enjoy, like almost every book I have read. There are positives...and there are negatives.

First, we have Dante, the main character, the hot guy, the brooding type of male,etc. That in itself always draws readers in, who knows why(okay, we all know why). I had hopes for him, and I pretty much already knew how he would act in the beginning, since I read some( perhaps alot) reviews. Hey, don't judge me. I had to do...some research. In short, he is extremely harsh and cruel to Charlie, but he changes his opinion of her throughout the novel.

What had surprised me the most was the character development for Dante. He changes so much from the beginning to the end. But, that is what I found...unrealistic. I know, people, I know. Why should I judge the character development? Just having character development is enough! However, it just seemed too...maybe planned out to me? I understand that he fell for Charlie, but should he change SO much just for a girl. I know alot of people will disagree with me, but I really don't think so. I guess what I would have liked better is too have some slower character development. I know I'm getting really picky but that just bothered me throughout the book.

Charlie is everyone's complete idol. Opinion or fact? Fact, people. Everyone will most likely feel for this girl from beginning to end. She is awesome. Seriously, I think the summary should be changed into Charlie is flippin' awesome, and she knows it. There is a slight problem to that statement. Charlie doesn't exactly believe in herself( or at least not as much as Dante). Let me reword that: Charlie does believe in herself until some people bring her down. She still is the same Charlie, but I could detect that she thought more about her actions and appearances after some run-ins with said people. On to the point, Charlie is very admirable. She is strong, and isn't afraid to tell people her opinions.

The plot was my main concern with this novel. It just didn't seem strong. It wasn't entirely a new storyline. In some aspects, yes, there was some new, but tell me you haven't heard about a demon falling in love with a girl? Well, even if you haven't, I have.

The storylone is basic: there are 6 collectors( did I mention that seems kind of impossible to have only 6 people for the whole world!?), who collect souls for( did I mention the whole world? Oh, yeah, I did) their Bossman. Dante is assigned to collect Charlie's soul within 10 days, and you know the rest...or most of it.

Some things just did not seem...right. There were holes in the plot, I guess. Not big holes, but small holes are just as annoying as big ones( not AS annoying, but you get my point). Above, I mentioned that there was only 6 collectors for the whole freakin' entire world. How is that possible for them to collect SO many souls? I perhaps should say not holes in the plot, but missed things. I wish they would have gone more into detail about how everything is run with just 6 collectors, and I wanted to learn more about Dante's before life. So, I'm hoping that will show up in the next book.

I have saved the best thing for last...the epic romance everyone has talked about? Yeah, you know the one. Between Charlie and Dante. It was barely there in the beginning, what with Dante hating her and all. But, eventually, you could see they felt for each other. That is what I loved most about their romance: it wasn't insta-love( though it was within a 10 period, but I won't say anything). I won't say anything more about the romance, since I want you to experience it for yourselves!

Overall, this book is great for young adult readers, who especially enjoy romance, and some paranormal!

3/5