It's a Crewel World for a Woman or a Girl

 

Published: October 16th, 2012

Crewel (Crewel World # 1)

By: Gennifer Albin

Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

ISBN-13: 9780374316419

 

Enter a tangled world of secrets and intrigue where a girl is in charge of other’s destinies, but not her own.

Sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has always been special. When her parents discover her gift—the ability to weave the very fabric of reality—they train her to hide it. For good reason, they don’t want her to become a Spinster — one of the elite, beautiful, and deadly women who determine what people eat, where they live, how many children they have, and even when they die.

Thrust into the opulent Western Coventry, Adelice will be tried, tested and tempted as she navigates the deadly politics at play behind its walls. Now caught in a web of lies and forbidden romance, she must unravel the sinister truth behind her own unspeakable power. Her world is hanging by a thread, and Adelice, alone, can decide to save it — or destroy it.

 

Review

 

     Adelice Lewys has just turned sixteen years old and taken the test that will decide her future.  Because of her hidden talents Adelice is in demand by the branch of the government that recruits Spinsters - women who weave the fabric of reality.  But because of her parent's training her to hide her abilities and trying to run away with her when they came to retrieve Adelice, her entire family is ripped away.  Her Mom and Dad are dead and her little sister is re-woven into another life - and another family.  Adelice will do anything to protect Amie, even if it means playing along and pretending that she's given in.  But when it's revealed just how much power Adelice really does have over her future, she's in a race against time to break free of the trap she's been caught in.  But will it mean death and destruction for her new friends, her sister and their entire world?  I had never thought of the possiblity that someone could weave the fabric of space and time, to keep reality running smoothly.  It's a very original idea and the execution was beautifully done.  I did feel that Adelice was a bit bland as a heroine, but the novel was character driven in a way that a lot of dystopians (even sci-fi oriented ones) are not.  I LOVE a character driven novel.  It sucks me in and gets me involved, making me care what happens.  In the novel, women are second-class citizens and oppressed beyond belief.  They really only have two viable choices - marriage or to become a Spinster.  I loved that Adelice didn't just give in to their demands and bribes after they'd destroyed her life and left her with nothing.  The relationships with Jost and Erik were very different and it was easy to tell which was the more real of the two.  I can definitely say I was NOT expecting the revelation at the end of the book about how they were connected to each other.  Cormac the villain seemed a little too 'muhahaha' for my taste, which is saying something.  Maybe I'm just tired of villains whose only motive is power.  It just seems weak to me as a reader.  The other revelation about Arras and Earth was interesting, but more than a little confusing.  I guess I'll just have to read the next one to find out more!  Overall, an enjoyable sci-fi, dystopian YA debut novel with a fresh idea and good execution.  Not anything above and beyond the norm though.  I wasn't 'wowed' by it's awesomeness.

 

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

 

**No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book is now available in stores, online, or maybe even at your local library.**

Even Better Than The Original

Expected Publication: October 16th, 2012

Beta (Annex # 1)

By: Rachel Cohn

Disney-Hyperion

ISBN-13: 9781423157199

Elysia is created in a laboratory, born as a sixteen-year-old girl, an empty vessel with no life experience to draw from. She is a Beta, an experimental model of a teenage clone. She was replicated from another teenage girl, who had to die in order for Elysia to exist. 
Elysia's purpose is to serve the inhabitants of Demesne, an island paradise for the wealthiest people on earth. Everything about Demesne is bioengineered for perfection. Even the air induces a strange, euphoric high, which only the island's workers--soulless clones like Elysia--are immune to. 

At first, Elysia's life is idyllic and pampered. But she soon sees that Demesne's human residents, who should want for nothing, yearn. But for what, exactly? She also comes to realize that beneath the island's flawless exterior, there is an under-current of discontent among Demesne's worker clones. She knows she is soulless and cannot feel and should not care--so why are overpowering sensations cloud-ing Elysia's mind? 

If anyone discovers that Elysia isn't the unfeeling clone she must pretend to be, she will suffer a fate too terrible to imagine. When her one chance at happi-ness is ripped away with breathtaking cruelty, emotions she's always had but never understood are unleashed. As rage, terror, and desire threaten to overwhelm her, Elysia must find the will to survive. 

Review

     Elysia lives on Demesne, an island paradise that can only belong to the wealthy of the world.  She's sixteen years old and has live their her whole life - which is only the past few weeks.  Elysia is a beta model, an experimental model of a teenage clone.  She was cloned from another girl, who is now dead (the real person has to die before a clone can be made).  The purpose of the clones in general is to serve the residents of Demesne in any way they wish, once they are bought by their "owner."  Elysia is no different and when she is bought to be a companion to the children of one of the most important couples on the island, in essence to replace their own daughter who is away at collge, Elysia is glad that she has found a purpose.  But then she starts having strange visions, memories that belong to her First and shouldn't be available to her.  Elysia starts showing Olympic swimming abilities (another quality of her First) and has a sense of taste that should be absent as a clone.  She begins to feel discontent with being treated like a cross between a pet and a slave, like many of the other Demesne workers and begins to feel lust, anger, happiness and other forbidden emotions.  How can she find a way to survive, when if discovered she will be recycled as defective?  And why is she displaying the qualities of a soul when she supposedly doesn't have one?  

     This book was something that I have been dying to read for months, ever since I first saw the cover.  But I am a major fan of Rachel Cohn's to begin with, especially her Cyd Charisse Trilogy.  I was excited to see her expand into the realm of science fiction.  I was not disappointed in the least.  The book starting out with Elysia working in a boutique as living merchandise and waiting to be bought, elicits a very strong reaction and caused me as a reader to instantly connect to this poor being who is caught between being an object and a real person.  I liked the in-depth world building that explains why regular people can't serve the rich residents of Demesne and they "need" to engineer clone slaves for their menial tasks.  The differences between the clones were also highlighted when Elysia interacted with the Governor's secretary clone (who was also his sexual slave), one of the house clones who is an active member of the rebellion, and the other 'defective' Beta clone, Becky who lashes out at her creators.  The development of Elysia into her own person over time is very gratifying and especially heartbreaking when she is mistreated near the end of the book in an unforgivable way.   Her adoptive 'brother' Ivan and his friends play a big part in her development, especially his friend Tahir who was in a horrific accident and almost died.  Elysia and Tahir start a romantic relationship and he, Greer, Dementia and Ivan introduce her to the drug 'raxia' which puts you in a blissful state and allows clones to "wake up."  There were a few very good plot twists involving the identity of another, secret clone among the wealthy families, but there was major plot twist near the end that I thought was highly unnecessary.  Overall, a very interesting sc-fi debut and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

*I received this book as part of Around the World ARC Tours, run by the lovely Princess Bookie. No favors or money were exchanged for this review. It will be available for purchase on October 16th, 2012.*

Looking Beneath the Surface

Published: September 3rd, 2012

How to Date a Henchman

By: Mari Fee

Carina Press

ISBN-13: B008JK0MV0

Gina Hall is a college dropout with big dreams. Working as the receptionist at EnClo Corp isn't one of them, but she needs the paycheck, and she amuses herself by speculating what the mysterious company actually does. She's even more intrigued when the owner arrives, bringing with him a very attractive man named Burke.

Burke's job is more deadly than dead-end: as head henchman for Gina's boss, aka supervillain Static, he makes sure his boss doesn't end up in jail—or worse. But Static's latest scheme is way more legitimate than either of them are used to. This time they have a real office—with a smart, sexy receptionist.

Unfortunately, Gina isn't the only one curious about EnClo Corp's business. When a superhero starts sniffing around, he proves to be less than heroic, and the lines between good and evil blur. Only Gina and Burke can foil his investigation...provided they can keep their hands off each other long enough to save the day.

Review

   Gina Hall is a small-town, Canadian girl who is working as a receptionist at the mysterious Enclo Corp - so mysterious that she still doesn't know what they do and she's been working there for months!  All she wants is for something exciting to happen in her life, or to possibly see a superhero.  But since Canada passed anti-vigilante legislature unlike the U.S., that is highly unlikely.  So she just reads about Glimmer and his arch-nemesis Static.  When Mr. Sparks (the company's owner) and his right hand man Burke arrive, the shit starts to really hit the fan.  It turns out that Enclo Corp is a front for supervillain Static a.k.a "Mr. Sparks" and his latest scheme, which involves using his brain to gain more power in the international market.  Of course, this causes Glimmer to follow him to Canada in the hopes of foiling his 'nefarious' plans.  But is everything really is black and white as it seems?  Who is really the villain when it comes down to it?  And how on Earth will everything turn out, especially with Gina and Burke's explosive chemistry and Gina being shoved into the middle of the supers' fighting?  I thought this sounded interesting and I love books about superheroes/villains. Usually I don't read novellas, but this one is on the long end clocking in at 76 pages or thereabouts.  So I figured I would give it a go.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well the characterizations were done, the plot was fleshed out and how little of it was focused on the sexual aspect of the romance (usually when a story is this short and a romance, there's at least one or two sex scenes).  Mari Fee managed to write a compelling story about the shades of grey involved in right and wrong, a cute romance, the tribulations of super powers and it was funny too.  If you're a fan of comic books or superheroes in general, I'd recommend this one.  It's a quick, fun read and definitely time well spent.  

VERDICT:  4.75/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book was published September 3rd, 2012.*