John Smith is not your average teenager. He regularly moves from small town to small town. He changes his name and identity. He does not put down roots. He cannot tell anyone who or what he really is. If he stops moving those who hunt him will find and kill him. But you can't run forever. So when he stops in Paradise, Ohio, John decides to try and settle down. To fit in. And for the first time he makes some real friends. People he cares about - and who care about him. Never in John's short life has there been space for friendship, or even love. But it's just a matter of time before John's secret is revealed. He was once one of nine. Three of them have been killed. John is Number Four. He knows that he is next...
Amazon Best Books of the Month, August 2010: John Smith has just arrived in Paradise, Ohio, just another stop in a string of small towns where the 15-year-old has been hiding out from the Mogadorians. Those terrifying aliens are hellbent on destroying him and the other nine Loric children who have sought refuge on Earth. The Mogadorians are picking off the surviving kids in numerical order. The first three are dead and John's number is up. Will his Legacies, his defining super powers, develop in time for him to fight against the enemy?
I Am Number Four is a breathless page-turner of a sci-fi novel that will have readers rooting for the teen alien who must unleash his fire power to save himself, his human friends, and the planet. This is the first of a slated multi-book series that, judging by this first book, will help reinvigorate a traditional YA genre that's grown a bit light on strong character development. So, gear-up sci-fi fans, the battle for Earth is on and there's a new kid in town!
--Lauren Nemroff Will Hill and Pittacus Lore: Author One-on-One Will Hill's new thrilling trilogy kicks off with Department Nineteen. Recently he was able to ask some questions of the mysterious Pittacus Lore. Read the resulting Amazon-exclusive interview below, or turn the tables to see what happened when Pittacus interviewed Will.
Will: Number Four is told to blend in but he finds this a difficult task. Being a mysterious figure yourself, has this ever happened to you?
Pittacus: I have always taken great care to conceal my identity. I change my appearance regularly. I do not speak or correspond with many people. No one has ever suspected me of being what I am, which is an alien military leader with superpowers. If anyone ever does, it will be a bad day for me.
Will: Why is now the time to write the unknown history of the planet Lorien and the Nine? What do you think the people of Earth can learn from the Lorien Legacies?
Pittacus: We are in the middle of a war to save the remaining Lorien, and to save earth. We thought the people of earth might want to know about it. I hope humanity does not make the same mistake we did on our planet, which was to be unprepared the day war arrived on a grand scale.
Will: Who do you think would win in a fight, Dracula or a Mogadorian?
Pittacus: Dracula wouldn’t stand a chance. If he tried to drink Mogadorian blood he’d poison himself. It’s would be like drinking battery acid.
Will: Number Four has his legacies as his best weapon. Do you think John could be an agent of Department Nineteen?
Pittacus: Once we have vanquished the Mogadorians, maybe that is what he will become. He certainly has some mad skills.
Will: Sarah in I Am Number Four is in love with an alien. Jamie in Department Nineteen is falling for a vampire named Larissa. What makes young love just so difficult? Do you think these crazy kids/vampires/aliens will ever make it work?
Pittacus: Love is a beautiful and confusing thing. I hope they all live happily ever after.
Will: I Am Number Four has made the perfect action sci-fi movie. What has it been like to see this come to life on the big screen?
Pittacus: It’s been thrilling and fun and very cool. We’re hoping to see all six of the books become films.
Will: What can we expect in The Power of Six?
Pittacus: Six is a powerful young woman. Mogadorians fear her. In The Power of Six, we see why.
