A review by thebeardedpoet
Fade by Robert Cormier

4.0

I picked up Fade by Robert Cormier knowing nothing about it except that a boy discovers he has the power of invisibility. I was thoroughly unprepared for the dark depiction of human depravity. Being unseen, Paul witnesses what people do behind closed doors, in the dark, when they think no one is watching--sexual depravity and cruelty. Murder too is handled in a horrific fashion. Paul's ability to fade is more of a curse than a superpower. And the curse gets more awful as the novel progresses. What did I like about it? It surprised me multiple times (and I won't spoil it for anyone.) Also it was extremely well written with solid literary prose. There's even a postmodern "story within the story" device that works quite well. The story as a whole held me mesmerized. Even though I was horrified by several scenes, I kept wanting to know how it was going to turn out.