I Am Number Four

John moves around a lot. But not because of his dad’s job—because he’s an alien. He is one of the few survivors of the Loriac, who are being hunted to extinction by the Mogadorians, a race of conquering aliens who have now set their eyes on Earth.

John tries to blend in among the Earthlings, something that isn’t difficult at first. He looks just like you and me. But then his Legacies start to appear.  Glowing hands, fire-proof skin, and more. With the appearance of his Legacies, his life becomes a lot more complicated. Will he have to move again? It has never been a problem before, but now John has a best friend and girlfriend, and refuses to flee when the Mogadorians start to close in.

I Am Number Four is an interesting story. The story is told from John’s mind, which feels like the mind of any normal teenage boy. John learns about the death of his planet, his parents, and his race. At first, he wishes that he could just be human and not have to hide anymore. But as he learns more about his heritage, John begins to realize he is a part of a much bigger battle.

This book is fun, but lacks suspense until the very end. The characters are extremely likable though, and following their lives is enjoyable. I Am Number Four is a good introduction to Lorien series.

Sexual Content

• John and Sarah kiss several times. “I kiss her good night, a lingering kiss while holding both her hands gently in mine.”
• “When we get to her room, she closes the door and kisses me. I’m surprised, but thrilled.”
• Sarah and John make out on his bed. “We fall back on the bed, on our sides…all at once we’re kissing again. Entangled. Meshed. Our arms tightly around the other…Sarah and I fall on the bed kissing each other, falling into each other.”

 Violence

• A man is killed. “ ‘No,’ the man whispers, and in that instant the blade of a sword, long and gleaming…comes through the door and sinks deeply into the man’s chest . . . The man takes a single breath, and utters one word: ‘Run.’ He falls lifeless to the floor.”
• John gets into a fight with some bullies. “I bring my knee straight up into his crotch. His breath catches in his throat, and he doubles over.”
• John sees visions of his planet’s destruction. “People are running everywhere, fighting back. As many Mogadorians as Loric are being killed . . . I turn around and face a beast that must be forty feet tall…[it] takes out dozens of Loric around me.”
• John sees another vision of his planet. “Mounds of bodies, not all of them intact, not all of them whole. On top of one mound is the man in silver and blue, dead like all the rest.”
• Sarah is dragged off in the darkness of a hayride. John is attacked but finds Sarah and fights back. “I throw him and he hits the side of a tree twenty feet away . . . I pick him up and lift him a foot off the ground with my hand again around his throat. His legs kick wildly.”
• John challenges a group of bullies to a fight. “Two of the guys come at me, both bigger than me. One swings but I duck his punch and send one of my own into his gut . . . I shove the second guy and his feet leave the ground. He lands with a thud five feet away.”
• Sam points a gun at John because he thinks he isn’t human. John talks Sam into putting the gun down, and Sam admits, “it wasn’t actually loaded.”
• Henri disappears. John goes after him and follows him to a certain address. When he goes in, he is attacked by a man with a bat. “He swings the bat. I duck and it hits the wall with a thud, leaving a large splintered hole in the wood panel.”
• A man points a gun at John. Later, John points the gun at the man to get him to share information.
• John is attacked by Mogadorians. “Henri fires the shotgun. The sound is deafening…He cocks the gun again, keeps it aimed. I twist my body to look out. Two fallen scouts are lying in the grass, unmoving.”
• During the final fight, there is a lot of shooting, fighting, and running away from Mogadorians with swords. “A golden glinting object that speeds through the air with violence. It hits the scout so hard that its skull cracks on impact, and then it falls to the ground and lies motionless…Henri takes Sarah’s knife and thrusts it through its chest, reducing it to a pile of ash.” “Henri cries out in pain. I turn. One of the scouts has thrust a knife into his gut . . . The soldier raises its sword in the air. The blade tastes death, starts glowing in the night sky behind it.”

 Drugs and Alcohol

• John goes to a party where there is beer.
• There is a substance that looks like a stone. When placed under a Loriac’s tongue, it dissolves and gives the Loriac strength.

Language

• Hell, dick, shit, and damn are said many times in daily conversation.
• Son of a bitch, ass, bitch, asshole, and bullshit are said one or two times.

Supernatural

• The protagonist of the story is an alien. There are many aliens living on Earth, hailing from two different races and two different planets. One race is trying to drive the other to extinction.
• John starts developing powers such as being fire-proof and telekinetic. “I put all my power into the pit of my stomach and direct it towards him…he goes flying backward and crashes into the wall.”
• John’s race of aliens develops a myriad of powers. Some are universal, such as super strength, while some are specialized, such as invisibility. John trains to increase his powers’ strengths.
• John has visions of his planet’s destruction.
• On Loriac the animals can change their shapes.
• The Mogadorians can make people see horrible visions, such as, “My own death, and the deaths of all the people I know and love . . . Not only did I have to witness the deaths, but I could feel them, too . . . then came things I’ve always feared as a kid . . . werewolves. Demonic clowns. Giant spiders. I viewed them all through the eyes of a child, and they absolutely terrified me. And every time one of those things bit into me, I could feel its teeth rip the flesh from my body . . . I couldn’t stop screaming.”

Spiritual Content

• None