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Indigo

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A gift?

A curse?

A moment that changes everything. . . .

Caught in an unexpected spring squall, Corrine's first instinct is to protect her little sister Sophie after a nasty fall. But when Corrine reaches out to comfort her sister, the exact opposite occurs. Her touch--charged with an otherworldly force and bursting with blinding indigo color--surges violently from Corrine to her sister. In an instant, Sophie is dead. From that moment on, Corrine convinces herself that everyone would be better off if she simply withdrew from life.

When her family abruptly moves to New Orleans, Corrine's withdrawal is made all the easier. No friends. No connections. No chance of hurting anyone. But strange things continue to happen around her in this haunting, mystical city. And she realizes that her power cannot be ignored, especially when Rennick, a talented local artist with a bad-boy past, suggests another possibility: Corrine might have the touch. An ability to heal those around her. But knowing what happened to her sister, can Corrine trust her gift?

304 pages, Hardcover

First published October 22, 2013

6 people are currently reading
1473 people want to read

About the author

Gina Linko

8 books105 followers
writer, mom, believer in impossibilities
NOTHING ELSE IS LOVE (Oct 2021),
TRUSTING TRUE NORTH (April 2022)

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5 stars
43 (21%)
4 stars
67 (33%)
3 stars
48 (24%)
2 stars
30 (15%)
1 star
10 (5%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
Profile Image for Maja (The Nocturnal Library).
1,017 reviews1,959 followers
October 27, 2013
A year ago, Gina Linko’s very strong debut, Flutter, left me convinced that I’ve discovered an author worthy of attention. Today, after finishing Gina’s sophomore Young Adult novel, I’m thrilled to report that I wasn’t wrong in the least. Ms. Linko is a force to be reckoned with, an author you can rely on for excellent stories and quality prose.

Her writing has a certain easy elegance that’s very difficult to describe, but extremely easy to enjoy. Her sentences are clean and neat, but distinctive nevertheless. Not many authors have this skill, but Linko developed it to absolute perfection. It’s something I admire both as a reader and as a linguist.

Aside from the superb writing, Linko can always be counted on for excellent characterization. Indigo focuses on Corrine, a girl convinced that she killed her little sister with her touch. She remembers touching Sophie when she fell, she remembers an odd feeling and a strong Indigo light, and the next thing she remembers is waking up and finding her sister dead, clearly by Corrine’s hand. Corrine’s life is burdened with such terrible guilt and misery that it’s impossible not to like her right from the start. Not many could survive what she did, and her refusal to touch other people and the loneliness that stemmed from it brought tears to my eyes on several occasions.

When Rennick enters her life, he knows more about her than she’s willing to accept, but he doesn’t magically cure all her problems overnight. It is a long and painful battle, both for Corrine’s sanity and their romance, but Rennick is relentless. I love these quiet, gentle romances that aren’t flashy or overly dramatic, but that somehow make sense right from the start.

Through Corrine, Linko explored the moral questions that follow an unusual power. Being able to heal people brings with it a series of impossible questions, with no right or wrong answers. Who to save? How to choose? How to live with the guilt for all those you couldn’t save? I loved that no definitive answers were given.

Although Flutter remains my favorite, I recognize that Indigo is a superior novel in many ways. But whichever of these books you decide to read, I promise you won’t regret it. Linko is an author that deserves a chance.

Profile Image for Gina.
Author 8 books105 followers
March 21, 2013
I, in my humble authorly opinion, love this book. I hope you do too!
Profile Image for Wendy Darling.
2,250 reviews34.2k followers
October 28, 2013
2.5 stars This was... fine. But pretty predictable and not altogether all that memorable, from characters to plot to romance to writing. It almost got bumped up to a 3 at the end, because I thought something really interesting was going to happen--but that punch ended up getting pulled, too. Oh, well.
Profile Image for Becky.
67 reviews4 followers
May 5, 2013
i won this book on goodreads giveaways. i love to read ya so was really looking forward to this book. it didn't disappoint. i felt the characters were fleshed out and authentic. a couple of times i felt rushed by the author but it didn't take away from the story which I thoroughly enjoyed and i enjoyed it enough to buy a copy of another of her books, Flutter. Enjoy this book!
Profile Image for Lilybeezkneez.
2 reviews
September 13, 2016
Really solid four. The characters had some heft to them, the plot was surprisingly grounded given the "what if" nature of the premise, and the prose was just-lyrical-enough. Solid, solid, solid.
Yup. Officially charmed by Indigo and I'm about to read Flutter.
Profile Image for Megan.
376 reviews39 followers
July 10, 2018
This was just what I needed!

I picked this and a few others up at a used book store thinking its time I get back into reading. I started with this one since its the shortest of the three I got. I'm glad I did! It was such a fast paced, light, and sweet read. Corrine is a likable character that proves to be smart and realistic. She doesn't fall into the phenomenon that her powers appear to be. She questions them and tests them. That's pretty awesome! Usually young adult books have the main character instantly know how to do things and then they royally screw themselves over.

This book even made me tear up at times. Also, I didn't predict the Mia-Joy thing and that in itself is unbelievable because I usually predict everything in books. Lol

Great read. Recommend to anyone looking for something sweet and easy, yet still interesting.
Profile Image for Olivia .
7 reviews
August 6, 2017
This book started off pretty slow and I was losing interest but I am so glad that I read on because this book was absolutely wonderful! It had just the right amount of romance and the perfect amount of mystery. It was all about a girl finding her true self and not carrying around grief for something she thought she did. The protagonist is one that you will respect and admire for her bravery and attitude. I loved this book very much. I thought it would have to do with mermaids which it sadly did not but instead its all about a girl with a unique power and her learning to control it. I strongly recommend this fun read!
1 review
June 25, 2018
A very lovely book. I love it very much. If I could just convince my sister to read it, I know she’ll love it too.
Profile Image for Alice.
41 reviews34 followers
January 16, 2014
After her younger sister Sophie’s death, Corrine and her family move to their summer vacation home in New Orleans to rebuild their lives. Although Sophie's death is ruled to be cardiac arrest, Corrine truly believes that she killed her sister with her mysterious, high-voltage touch. Suffering from unbearable guilt, Corrine refuses to touch anyone and withdraws herself from her family and friends.

Through Corrine, Gina Linko explores an unusual power, raising moral questions of how it should be used and even if it should be used. There are many possibilities that could have been explored in more depth. Becuase of this, I really wish it could have played a bigger part in the story. As it is, the romance has more appeal.

Rennick, a local teen artist, knows about Corrine’s powers and their lethal nature. He starts to help Corrine to experiment with her touch and move past the grief of Sophie’s death. Soon, Corrine finds out her touch has a magical healing element. Undoubtedly, there is a romance going on between Rennick and Corrine, and I love the growth of her relationship with Rennick. Though it is a long road for Rennick drawing Corrine out of her terrible guilt and misery, he never gives up on her.

Through the book, it mainly focuses on the pain of Corrine losing her little sister, and how she overcomes it and moves on with her life. In the process, many human emotions are developed and explored from. Indigo has a lot of spark that will appeal to those who love a good romance. Overall, it is a good read.


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For more of my reviews, visit my blog Imaginary Reads.
25 reviews
October 13, 2013
I received a free copy of Indigo through a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

The concept behind Indigo is fascinating, and Linko lines up Corrine's story so well that I was itching to get through the next chapter the moment I'd finished the previous one. Captivating and profound – if a bit heavy-handed with metaphors – Indigo is a poignant reminder to live a life of "a million little yeses."
Profile Image for Melissa.
413 reviews10 followers
November 21, 2013
Linko has another hit on her hands with Indigo. One of the things I love about her writing is the way emotions run so true. Her treatment of death, grief, guilt, fear, love and hope in this book will resonate with readers. And teens, especially, will love the romance between Corrine and Rennick. Yummy. :)
Profile Image for Gin Yee.
15 reviews
September 20, 2014
After reading Flutter, I was looking forward to reading Indigo. And good thing I did because this was more riveting than Flutter in my opinion. I loved the way Corrine's charecter was portrayed and the 'power' she had was presented in a way that didn't seem too ridiculous, unlike in some other similiar books I've read.
Profile Image for Summer Peterson.
491 reviews5 followers
April 14, 2014
Touching story. I felt Corrine learned from her experiences and grew stronger from them. The end of the story left certain things open.
Profile Image for Nikki Gutierrez.
299 reviews10 followers
October 17, 2020
3.25 stars (spoilers)
So, I read this book without reading the synopsis. Corrine has the power of healing through touch but she didn't know that. What she believed for the longest time was that she was the reason why her younger sister, Sophie, has died. Fast forward to New Orleans and reconnecting with her friend Mia-Joy and meeting Rennick. Now Rennick can see people's aura, and this is one of the reasons why he got attracted to Corrine. But more so, he Googled her and even stalked her in a sense, because he believes that the same thing his mother did - which she did. Coincidentally, his brother's friend also has this magic touch that heals people. Basically, the book is about him convincing Corrine of her powers and of them doing experimentations on how to use this power. It also includes how Rennick falls for Corrine, and how Corrine keeps on pushing him away, even during the time that they figured out what she really can do. That didn't make sense.

During that time, because of Corrine's guilt with what happened to Sophie, she would cater to almost 20 people a day to try and heal them whe Rennick already explained to her that his mother died when she used up herself to save Rennick as he was a stillborn. It was completely insensitive of Corrine, and she hadn't even thought about what could happen to her and what that would mea to her parents - they could lose both daughters.

Anyway, in the end, Rennick drowns and Corrine saves him, and coincidentally uses up herself and she was the one who died. And maybe because Rennick has some sort of powers, he brought Corrine back to life, too???? I'm honestly still confused as to why and how that happened.

I think it was just too much of a coincidence for Rennick to know 3 people who had "the touch", and how he can also read people's aura. And for him to save Corrine from dying... How is that possible?

Also, I skimmed through majority of the book and I just finished it because I didn't want to DNF another book. BUT, I'm giving it 3 stars because I liked the romance part of thr story. No, I didn't like the insta-love part of it, but I like how Corrine and Rennick connected. Through the craziness, they genuinely liked each other. I wish they didn't say I love you just yet because they are too young and they are only starting to really get to know each other, but maybe it had something to do with their powers and how they can relate to each other.
Adding the .25 because I did finish it and the romance was tolerable to somewhat good. I wouldn't reread it, but it was an interesting story. :)
Profile Image for Lady Biblio.
110 reviews
May 18, 2017
I found nothing majorly wrong with this book yet at the same time it didn't leave an impression on me. I did like the supernatural aspect of the entire story but the timeline felt sluggish, dialogue was lacking and I just couldn't click with the main character, Corrine. I did finish the book (even if it took me a while) so I did find some enjoyment in it. Honestly, I am happy I found it at the dollar store for 1.25$ because it wasn't... well it wasn't a book I'd been happy paying full price for. Sorry to say.
Profile Image for ash.
524 reviews19 followers
April 24, 2018
Am very tired (it's currently 5:05 am and I haven't slept yet). Maybe will write a review later?
2 reviews
February 4, 2019
I love the book. It's the love story I've been searching for in every single book that i read. This book symbolizes a lot. But most of all it symbolizes change.
Profile Image for R.
2,258 reviews6 followers
January 2, 2020
Interesting story. Not very well written but has some very good quotes and sentiment at times.
Profile Image for ♡ Trishalyn ♡.
62 reviews
December 12, 2013
Review : Indigo Okay , I had some problems with this book hence the 1 star . Mostly, this problem revolves around our main character Corrine. Just a warning , this review is going to contain spoilers.
First off , I'll give you some background information about her . 
 
1. She has a sister who died because of some electric currents that surged from Corrine's fingertips a.k.a her indigo abilty. She believed she had killed her with her power. - Majority of the book is centered around her grief and her thoughts . And it pretty much get irritating . Okay, I know this is what the book is about but it just fell flat y'know? I just can't relate to her.



 
2. In the middle of the book , Rennick made her realise that this power can heal people or animals . It took like forever for her to accept that because of her grief and guilt for her dead sister. Honestly , it was really a struggle reading her POV.
 
But, before that she refused to touch people because she think she might kill them . And she stopped doing things that make her happy as a sort of punishment for "killing" her sister .
 
[spoiler]
 I
 
n the book, its revealed that lightning killed her sister, its not her. Somehow, her messed up brain forgot this information and she only remembered this during her near death experience (ugh) . So apparently, she's been living a lie. And she's whining about her pain and all for no reason at all. Somehow this had been made obvious in the middle part of the book. Predictable
 
[/spoiler]
 
 
 
3
. She met this guy Rennick who can see aura and who is much more expert in Corrine's power because her mom had the same ability. I actually like his character because I really feel he care about Corrine and I just like how real his character in the book (: 
 There are definitelt swoony moments bur Corrine kinda ruin it all for me.
 
 
 A
nyway, Rennick told Corrine his deepest secrets and when he confessed his love for her , she ran away because she's scared she might kill him. God, Rennick had already proven to her that her power can bring healing yet she ran away. 
And Rennick said she's so brave um what ?
 
 
Yes, she did heal people but mostly it  is to make up for the loss of her sister.
 
There are countless times where she is so stubborn and impulsive . She did not even listen to Rennick warnings , she only listened to herself. I mean Rennick know more about this than you. Urgh
 
 
 
 
 
 
I TELL YOU THIS IS A REAL STRUGGLE FOR ME TO FINISH. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The ending is a disappointment. The only thing I like about this book is Rennick and Mia Joy, Corinne's bestfriend who finally got her to move on from her guilt.
 
I like what she said :
 
 
 
 
 
" Nobody's normal. Nobody's perfect. Not you, not me. And none of us has it all worked out. We don't get to perfect and then that's it, ya know? It's about waking up each day and trying. Making better decisions. "
 
 
 
Profile Image for Alexandra.
382 reviews27 followers
November 10, 2013
Received Indigo as an e-ARC to review. Check out my full review at http://sleepsontables.blogspot.com/20...

Indigo follows Corrine as she moves back to where she spent time as a child. Everything is stressed because of the loss of Corrine’s sister. Corrine has a “special touch” (the burn of the tagline) and she believes that she killed her little sister. Even though she didn’t mean to, she still stresses out about it (understandably). In New Orleans, she meets a new guy, Rennick who is somewhat odd like her and actually knows about her “indigo” touch. He tries to help her cope with what she can do and help her move past what happened to her sister.

Let me start off by saying that this book is a weird one. It’s not weird in a bad way. But if you don’t like supernatural stories or find them hard to follow I think this is going to be one that’s hard for you to get through. I myself found the beginning somewhat hard to follow but then there’s so much going on that you get compelled to keep reading, so you can get the answers to what the heck is going on.

In terms of characters, they’re really very deep. Corrine is someone that you don’t want to be because of the situation that she is in. She starts off so sad and troubled and with the help of her friend and Rennick she evolves more as a person and grows as a character. Rennick is sooooo swoon-worthy to me. He’s trying to help the “damsel in distress” and I know that’s so cliché, but I can’t help but love it. I love the relationship that Gina created between these too and the way she wove their backstories and overlapped events to fit them together as two people with a solid relationship.


Overall I’d say that Indigo was a good read. In my opinion it wasn’t as good as Flutter (Gina’s previous release). It did create a different sort of paranormal story that I hadn’t read before so it was fresh enough that you didn’t feel like you were reading something that’d already been done. Personally, I wasn’t a big fan of the ending. It was an adorable ending but Gina had a chance to make it a ballsy ending (sort of similar to the now-famous Allegiant ending) but she didn’t do it and I was so hoping for it. It would’ve been glorious! That being said: Indigo’s a good read that may be difficult for some people to get through but once you get about a third of the way through, you’ll want to stick with it. I give it 3.5 out of 5.
Profile Image for Jessica .
2,646 reviews16k followers
January 21, 2014
Looking at this cover, I still don't know why I picked this one up. I'm sorry, but this cover just did not beg me to pick it up off the shelf. But it was sitting on my TBR pile at home and I decided, why not? I'm so glad I gave this a try despite the not-so-pretty cover, because it ended up having a pretty great story inside.

When Corrine and her sister Sophie are caught in a storm, Corrine immediately reaches out to save her sister. Instead of saving her, though, Corrine's touch causes a strange power to surge through Sophie, leaving her dead and Corrine to live with the guilt. In order to escape her haunted past, Corrine and her family move to New Orleans to start a new life where Corrine can withdraw and never hurt anyone again. What she doesn't expect to find, though, is Rennick, a boy who seems drawn to her as much as she's drawn to him. Soon, Corrine learns that Rennick knows more about her strange powers than she knows herself, and he may just have some powers of his own.

Wow, this book was pretty cool. Okay, I admit, the romance really made this one for me. Rennick is just so gosh darn amazing. No matter how stubborn Corrine is or how much she runs away, he'll always be there for her and hetruly wants her to discover more about herself with her mysterious powers.

In regards to the part of the novel where Corrine has strange powers and is harboring the guilt over how she thinks she killed her sister, I thought Corrine's abilities was a cool take on your typical superhero/superpower novel. No one really knew what exactly Corrine's abilities were, who she could hurt, or who she could help. As she discovers more about herself, she also discovers more about others who may have been in her situation, with Rennick's help of course. You really didn't know when she would push herself, or someone she tries to help, over the edge.

The only problem I had with this one was that some things were a bit rushed and thrown in at random to make the story move along in the direction the author was trying to go. If you overlook that little detail, though, this was a really great story. There's romance (a good romance that develops, grows, and ends up being super sweet), some mystery, and a supernatural element that makes this book impossible to put down. If you've got some extra time, I'd definitely recommend checking out a copy of Indigo to see for yourself the great story that's held inside.
Profile Image for YA Reads Book Reviews.
673 reviews270 followers
Read
November 20, 2013
Originally posted on www.yareads.com, reviewed by Nichole

Last year I fell in love with Gina Linko in her book, Flutter. I was naturally excited to read Indigo. The cover looks awesome, the synopsis sounds cool, and I’m always up for a paranormal fantasy book. I didn’t end up loving this book. I ended up DNF’ing it half way through for a couple different reasons. 1) This is not really a paranormal fantasy book 2) the characters and 3) the connection.

Goodreads has Indigo listed as young adult/fantasy/paranormal. The very first thing that should have been listed is contemporary followed by realistic fiction. Now, I want to point out that the writing was amazing. I don’t think Gina Linko can even write something that is bad. However, I’m not the biggest fan of contemporary…something that I’ve never been shy to admit. There are some contemp books out there that I love, but for the most part I don’t care for them. Indigo focuses heavily on Corrine’s pain over losing her little sister and coming to terms with it and moving on with her life. There is a paranormal aspect of the book, but it’s soooo minor. It’s there…but it’s not there.

As for the characters, I didn’t really connect with any of them. Corrine bugged the crap out of me. She whined constantly and a big majority of the book was dedicated to just her thoughts and her grief. I know that’s a huge part of what the book is about, but it got old. I was so tired of Corrine being down all the time. I was annoyed that there wasn’t a bigger paranormal aspect of the book. I just couldn’t handle the total sadness that envelopes this book.

I’ve pretty much covered the connection problem. I didn’t relate to the plot or the characters. It really just wasn’t for me. Again, though, the writing IS beautiful. And I think that Indigo is going to highly appeal to contemporary fans. I mean….if you love contemporary…GO GET THIS BOOK. You’re probably going to end up bawling your eyes out or something and love this book forever. I can totally see that happen. But if you’re going into this book expecting a huge paranormal read, you’re gonna be disappointed.

Profile Image for Rebecca Sofferman.
667 reviews5 followers
September 22, 2014
A teenage girl battles an alarming secret: she believes she accidentally killed her younger sister via a strange electrical energy transferred through touch. Now Corrine is afraid to touch anyone, and when her family moves to New Orleans she plans to hide away from nearly everyone. But soon things begin to happen in this mystical city, including a connection to a boy who may not be a stranger, and who opens Corrine’s mind and her heart to the possibility that she may be more of a healer than a killer.

This book has enough romance, mystery, and intrigue to engage teen readers as an independent read. It would also work well for teaching theme, as there are several to explore in this book.

This book has a really fascinating premise. The writing is engaging and the plot seems quite plausible despite the fantasy genre. The characters are well-developed and interesting. The reader truly sympathizes with the main character, and the romance is both sweet and mildly titillating (sex is implied, but nothing descriptive).

There are often two general approaches in YA literature: either the book is written fairly simply and sticks to a simple theme, which can appeal to reluctant readers or younger readers. Or, the book is more complex and doesn’t talk down to readers. I tend to prefer the latter but recognize the need for the first type. The problem with this book is that it starts out simply, tending to over-explain the characters’ motivations. However, the end of the book gets more complex, and tries to do too much. I would like to have seen the author stick to one theme, rather than trying to wrap up with multiple concepts. Also, the ending focuses on the main character’s emotional epiphany but doesn’t answer some of the more interesting practical and philosophical questions that arise from the story; for example, if you could heal people’s ills, how would you decide who to help? How would you handle all the people asking for help if you can’t help them all?

Overall, a good read. I was slightly disappointed since I think with more editing it could have been a really excellent book!
Profile Image for Angie.
2,367 reviews251 followers
September 2, 2015
Indigo was quite a quick, pleasant read. I didn't expect much going into it, but I did enjoy it. It all starts six months after Corinne's little sister died. Corrine believes it was her fault, because her vision went blue and she felt something electric within her, then next thing she knows she's being told her sister is dead. Since then her family has moved permanently to their Summer home in New Orleans, and Corinne has refused to touch (or even speak) to anyone for fear of killing them. At least until a strange boy somehow recognizes her power and attempts to help her understand it.

Indigo is a fairly typical YA Paranormal Romance. Special girl meets mysterious boy. Mysterious boy teaches special girl about her powers. Kissing. Special girl uses power to save mysterious boy. Happily ever after. There's nothing new or surprising here, but I had fun reading it, so I don't care. The story also becomes this "with great power comes great responsibility" tale, because news of Corinne's power gets out, so obviously everyone wants her to heal them. Corinne can't say no because she feels guilty about not being able to save her sister that first time, but thankfully, her parents are involved and tell her that their home is a safe space and she can turn people away. She's not obligated to save everyone as the cost of her herself.

I liked Indigo. There seems to be a lot of books lately with characters who can kill or heal with their touch, and it's all kind of samey. That didn't keep me from enjoying this one though. Maybe because it's more character and romance driven. There's no evil scientists or government agents after Corinne to take advantage of her ability. It's just one girl learning to live again after a trauma, while finding a balance in helping others without harming herself.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
Author 23 books32 followers
November 10, 2014
(foul language, adult situations) This author put a little too much into a book for Y.A. First, there aren't any sex scenes, but things do get hot and heavy between the heroine and hero. The biggest turn-off, though, was all the swearing. Because of that, I wouldn't recommend it to my pre-teen or teen. The story itself was interesting, but again, the author puts too much into it. The imagery was great, but it slowed the book down. I liked the music theme throughout, but when the art theme, electricity theme, and water theme were added into it, it seemed like nothing had a clear purpose. In the end, the heroine spends most of the book obsessing without resolving anything. The heroine felt younger than seventeen, too. If anything, this book was art for art's sake but that doesn't work well for a Y.A. either.
Profile Image for Whisper.
22 reviews10 followers
October 13, 2016
the best sad book ever it was amazing to read age of your seat



must read
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Sarah.
413 reviews1 follower
February 2, 2016
To be honest, me and this book just didnt get along.. At the beginning and up to 20 pages i just could not click with the book.. The main character annoyed me. I cant really describe why i disliked her..Her stubbornness irritated me..
So i just fell flat with this book and started skipping through reading bits and pieces. Jumped here and there..

I skipped pretty much the whole middle and read a little bit of the ending but honestly if someone told me what this book was about and what happened in it i would have settled with that..
Profile Image for Yuiko.
1,714 reviews21 followers
September 11, 2015
I thought it was alright
I wouldnt have keep reading if I didn't like it a bit :)

The healing factor was pretty cool
I mite read another book by her she has an intriguing writting style that works with me
448 reviews12 followers
March 15, 2015
I read a similar book a while ago but I can't remember what the other book was called. Both books were great and very different. I didn't absolutely love this book but it was a little bit hard to put down at times.
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