Review: Duplex

Duplex by Orson Scott Card
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Ryan’s life has been turned on its head.  His dad has moved out and he also divided their house into a duplex so that they could rent out part of it.  He now sleeps on the couch and dreams about the girl next door, Bizzy.  Ryan works up the courage to ask to walk her home from school and during one of these trips he pulls a bee out of Bizzy’s hair so quickly she didn’t know what happened.  Unfortunately, someone did notice this action and he learns that what he can do is considered a micropower.  Bizzy and her mother also have powers, though theirs are different.  They are on the run from witch hunters who have been after them for a while.  Will Ryan be able to protect Bizzy and her mother?  How can a group of people with micropowers that seem uninteresting stop these people?

 

Duplex is a stand-alone fantasy that fell far short of the mark.  Card has written many fantasy and science fiction stories that are wonderfully complex, yet this novel felt forced and written by a new author.  The majority of the story is about teenagers coming to terms with supernatural powers and an organized group whose mission is to stop them, but most of the action seems contrived.  Young readers don’t need simple books and this book could have used more complexity and more pages.  Duplex was an easy read that was also not satisfying.

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