This was one of those books that started out on the eh... side but grew on me as it progressed (moving it from a 2 star to a 3 star rating). I think one of the major issues I had was with how it was marketed as "dystopian" with "urban fantasy" and "mythological realism" - that made me expect one kind of story, but really this story is more accurately described as survivalist with a healthy dose of science fiction.
Freya Catten is running from the Takers ever since her mother left her five years ago. It seems that no matter where she goes, the Takers follow, and she knows that she must not get caught at any cost. Freya doesn't know where her mother is, why she disappeared, or really anything about her current situation, and she won't rest until she finds answers.
I thought Freya was an interesting heroine. She is fiercely independent, almost to a fault - she's so used to making it on her own that she runs away from much-needed help. She was very realistic - her thoughts and feelings and worries were all very realistic, and she doesn't spring out random superpowers or kick-ass fighting moves - which made her refreshing in a genre where the main character usually has some sort of special skill or trait. That isn't to say Freya isn't special - she is in fact far more valuable and unique than she realizes - but she's very relatable as an average girl.
As I mentioned earlier, this book didn't start out so great for me. The chapter endings were really abrupt sometimes, and I didn't think there was a good flow. The dialogue seemed forced or awkward at times, which also broke up the flow. A bunch of descriptions were awkward or redundant - I think the author is very fond of adverbs and adjectives:
"[A] slender woman in her mid-thirties with light chocolate skin beautifully accented by her orange sundress smiled brightly as we walked past" (and that's a character who never appears again!). Generally, the writing style felt clumsy to me, and it was distracting enough that I didn't really connect with the story as much as I would have liked to. There was also a customary romance, which I found a bit cheesy but sweet all the same.
Still, the second part of it had a lot more action, more revelations, and more of the heart of the story, and I really enjoyed it. I thought the whereabouts of Freya's mother and the reasons for everything that had happened until that point were handled really well. I also liked the allusions to Norse mythology and the goddess Freya (although again, I wouldn't really call it mythological realism).
This isn't an amazing read, but I did like it. If you like stories about people on the run and or ones that have twists along the science fiction route (not the paranormal/fantasy one), you will enjoy this book!