Me on Transparent

Title: Transparent
Author: Natalie Whipple
Release Date: May 21, 2013
Publisher: HarperTeen

Plenty of teenagers feel invisible. Fiona actually is. An invisible girl is a priceless weapon. Fiona's own father has been forcing her to do his dirty work for years, everything from spying on people to stealing cars to breaking into bank vaults. After sixteen years, Fiona's had enough. She and her mother flee to a small town, and for the first time in her life, Fiona feels like a normal life is within reach. But Fiona's father isn't giving up that easily. Of course, he should know better than anyone: never underestimate an invisible girl.

Transparent is a curious mix of contemporary and paranormal, entertaining and amusing while also fast-paced and dangerous. This is Fiona's first chance at living a normal life, with high school and classmates, but she can't help but be suspicious of anything and everything. Being the invisible girl means everyone knows who you are.

Fiona's story begins in a dangerous place. She's the prize tool of her crime syndicate boss father, the infamous invisible girl who can spy and steal from anyone he wishes. But a girl will only do so much in the name of familial love. She's tired of being used by her father. He feels no love or affection towards her, he only thinks of greed, manipulation, and control. Her and her mother leaving, hiding out in a small town, raise two new problems. They run the risk of her father coming after them, forcing his will upon them even harder than before, but they also have to keep an eye on the town they end up in. Who are the new 'friends' of Fiona's? Who must she watch out for?

What is it like being invisible? Fiona wants to be recognized as a person, as a girl, as a normal girl and not as an attraction or a tool. She's still existing, living, experiencing the world and all its ups and downs. She's right there. But no one can see her face, her expressions of happiness or sadness. No one can see the real Fiona. Even in huge crowds of people, she's all alone.

When you have a world where people have unique abilities, those with criminal leanings, with manipulative or controlling personalities, are bound to want to use those abilities to their own advantage. They're the wrong kind of people to have the abilities. With the abilities, they crave power and control, and when they have it, they want more. And they will go to any lengths to have it.

What hooked me initially was the book's premise, the escape from the criminal underworld to a small town with a paranormal twist. It means double the issues for Fiona: teenage real like plus the impossible invisible girl life. These are the books I enjoy the most, the ones that weave back and forth across the line that separates real and not real, realistic and magical realism. What if, on top of high school, family, and friends, life was just that much more complicated? I'm looking forward to the sequel, I'm curious as to what else is coming after Fiona.

(I borrowed a copy of this book from the library.)