**I was granted a digital ARC of this book and read it a month ago. Thank you Harlequin Teen for the advance**
Four books in and we finally learn what makes Ember so darn special and it’s creepy. I won’t spoil it but let’s just say I look forward to seeing the leader of Talon being taken down. She’s a real piece of work. I also think she’s another argument as to why immortality or really Really long life spans are not a good idea. It makes people do some really crazy insane things. Anyways, fans of this series will be happy with this installment. It picks up right where the cliffhanger ending of Soldier ended. The stakes are higher now that the truth of the Order of St. George and Talon have been exposed. The Order is complete disarray but Talon has a secret that we as readers know about but the characters don’t. So while, it was a good idea at the time to expose the leader of the Order, it also played right into Talon’s hands. Talon has become the real big bad of the series. The Order, while not at all innocent, has been played just as much as everyone else. Their own prejudices and inability or willingness to try to think differently was their ultimate undoing. As for our heroes. They all do some growing up. Constant near death experiences will do that to you. The biggest lesson they have learned is if they are going to defeat Talon, they are going to have to work together and reach out to new allies, even if that means reaching out to old enemies too. I believe there is only one more book left which is good because the ending really seems to have set up a potentially epic final battle between our heroes and Talon. It’s been a fun ride. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.
If you are not immediately charmed, heartbroken and uplifted after reading this then you should check your pulse. This is the perfect blend of romance, coming of age story and social commentary. It centers around a day in the life of Natasha and Daniel, two teenagers on the cusp of major changes in their lives. It also touches on the minor interactions that seem meaningless at the time but how that connection could and some times do change someone’s life. Natasha and her family are illegal immigrants from Jamaica who are being deported at 10 o’clock that night. She is trying to stop their deportation when she meets Daniel, a Korean-American boy who has the day off so he can prepare and meet for an interview for admission to Yale. From the moment they meet there is an immediate connection. They both share the immigrant experience of being from two places at the same time. Even, though Daniel was born in the US, he is often assumed to be from someplace else. He’s never Korean enough or American enough. Natasha was born in Jamaica but now has lived most of her life in the US. Her friends are here, her future is here she doesn’t want to leave. When they meet though, their futures couldn’t be different. Daniel’s life has already been planned out for him while Natasha’s is now unsure. Daniel’s parents are dead set on him and his brother to have a better life then they did, which means, Yale and becoming a doctor and marrying a Korean girl. Natasha, was planning on going to college and was going to be a data scientist and now all of that is uncertain. Anyway, they meet and while they don’t know anything about each other they know they have a special bond from the beginning. Daniel is a poet and romantic. He’s convinced that their meeting was fate. That they are meant to be. Natasha is a scientist and a realist. She doesn’t believe in love is real or anything that can’t be scientifically proven. As Natasha tries to kill time before she meets with an immigration lawyer Daniel convinces her to spend time with him to prove that love can be scientifically proven and so they go allover New York, getting to know each other and becoming first friends and then falling in love. They meet each other’s parents and face each other demons. While the story focuses on them, we get glimpses into the lives of the people around them. From their own family but the random people that they briefly come in contact with. The security guard that scans Natasha’s bag, the secretary of the lawyer. They all paint a picture of how we all relate to each other and how our decisions big and small can change a complete strangers life. It’s something to think about. It was talks about how racism presents itself in other communities. Daniel’s Korean parents own a black hair care store in Harlem but when his father and his brother meets Natasha they treat her in their shop. They own a shop that caters to black shopper and yet they can’t even hide their own negative biases. This was a beautiful novel that not only tells a perfect story of two kids struggling to figure out who they are while dealing with the forces outside of their control but also doesn’t shy from taking on tough issues of racism, immigration, depression and even family. You need to read this book is all I’m saying.
Waverly is perfect except so can’t sleep so she spends her nights running. Marshall is loser burn out, who spends his nights drinking and smoking pot. They have nothing in common and since they don’t run in the same social circles they have no reason to interact, until Waverly decides to try an experiment to help her sleep and ends up in Marshall’s room. I’m wrong they do have one thing in common. They both have terrible coping habits. Waverly has created this kind of ice princess persona. She is the perfect student, the perfect social butterfly, the perfect daughter and the perfect citizen. Since junior high, she has planned her and her best friend’s ascent up the social hierarchy. Now that she is there, she is trapped in this persona she has created and doesn’t know what to do with herself. Her own fears of people seeing through her carefully crafted facade keeps her up all night. She runs, she does homework, she watches horror movies late at night. Marshall is the opposite, he’s almost too open. He cares too much. His home life is a mess. He’s parents were going to get divorce but then his dad gets sick so they decide to stay together even though it makes them unhappy and everyone else unhappy. To deal with it he does everything to know the pain. He drinks until he gets sick. He smokes until his stoned. He makes out with a girl that he knows he doesn’t like but that she likes him. He rarely goes to class because what’s the point? He’s not going to college. Things start to change when Waverly magically appears in Marshall’s room. It’s weird and uncomfortable and awkward as neither of them know what’s going on and Marshall is the only one who can see her. To Waverly it’ a dream that helps her sleep but when she wakes up their remnants of the dream remain. She has leaves on her feet from walking outside or a gigantic hickey from last night’s make out session. At night they can be open and honest with each other but in the bright of day they can barely acknowledge each other existence. Marshall wouldn’t fit in Waverly’s world. However, they are just want each other needs. Waverly shows Marshall that he matters, that he could be so much more then what he is right now. And Marshall shows Waverly that she doesn’t have to be perfect all the time. I was really drawn into these characters and I wanted them to find a way to each other. It was satisfying when they both stood finally stood up for themselves to their various bullies. For them to both realize what was truly making them feel unhappy and finally doing something about it. At times I found myself identifying with both Waverly and Marshall. There are times in my life that I felt I had a certain ways to fit in with my friends, especially in high school. You say and do things that you know the other person wants to hear and do because it’s just easier to go along. I also know the feeling of just trying to numb the pain instead of dealing with it. I like to think that I have good coping mechanisms but not always. This book is just a reminder that sometimes the biggest obstacles to being happy is ourselves. Literature is great like that. It’s entertaining and full of life lessons.
So let’s talk the controversy. I was excited about reading this book because I thought it sounded interesting and was curious how Veronica Roth would follow up her Divergent series. That was until reviews started to come in and people began talking about the racism surrounding the plot. Now, I don’t necessarily think it is intentionally racist but it is definitely problematic. So the plot revolves around two different races of people who share the same planet. The fair-skinned, peaceful Thuve people and the dark-skinned warrior race Shotet. Right there raised flags for me. That the more violent people are described as being dark in skin, eyes and curly hair versus the more light skinned, blue eyed, straight hair peaceful neighbors. Everything about the Shotet’s is described violently from their language to their tradition of marking their arms with every kill. It brings up images in our society about we are programmed to think that those with darker skinned are more dangerous then those of us who have lighter skin tones. That the lighter skinned people are somehow inherently just better people. And that is why at first I felt a little uncomfortable reading it. However, it didn’t turn me off either. As the story continued, I became more invested in the characters Akos and Cyra. I don’t think ever really got past the uncomfortableness of it but I did want Cyra to best her abusive brother and Akos to rescue his. They compliment each other really well. Cyra has a gift for pain. Pain that she inflicts on others but also lives in her while Akos gift is that he nullifies the current. In this world, everyone has a gift granted by the current. Each gift is different depending on the person. Cyra brother is the ruler of the Shotet people and has been using her as his own personal torturer. She has gained the reputation of being cruel when she is only doing what she is told to do but deep down she knows that she deserves the pain she feels thanks to her painful history. Akos is kidnapped by the Shotet with his brother when their fates clash with the Shotet ruler. Both Cyra and Akos really grow throughout the novel. They both see in each other that they don’t have to be what they raised to be. That they can choose their own paths. The ending was a little meh but it did pose one interesting question that makes me at least interested in the sequel. It might be too late for Veronica to fix the unfortunate world building choices in the sequel but I do hope that in the future she takes more time to ask herself, why she is making these choices in her writing. Is it because this is who the character really is or something that has been internalized in herself coming out on the page.
2 Women, So Many Books 