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Pulse #1
Pulse
From Book 1:
Fans of action-packed sci-fi thrillers such as I Am Number Four and The Maze Runner will love bestselling author Patrick Carman's Pulse, with its epic action scenes and memorable love story.
In the year 2051, Faith Daniels discovers that she can move objects with her mind. This telekinetic ability is called a "pulse," and her mysterious classmate, Dylan Gilmore, has the talent, too.
In riveting action scenes, Faith demonstrates her ability to use her pulse against a group of telekinesis masters who are so powerful they can flatten their enemies by uprooting streetlights and throwing boulders. But even with her unusual talent, the mind—and the heart – can be difficult to control. If Faith wants to join forces with Dylan and save the world, she'll have to harness the power of both.
371 pages, Paperback
First published February 26, 2013
About the author
Patrick Carman
94 books1,609 followersI have been a lifelong writer and storyteller. Salem, Oregon is where I spent my formative years and I graduated from Willamette University. After college, I spent a decade living in Portland, Oregon where I worked in advertising, game design, and technology.
I've written young adult and children's books for Scholastic, Little Brown Books For Young Readers and Katherine Tegen Books/ HarperCollins Publishers.
I've been fortunate enough to have had some bestselling series work: The Land of Elyon, Atherton, Elliot’s Park, 39 Clues, and Skeleton Creek. Here's a fun note...the books have been translated into approximately two dozen languages. Currently I'm developing a few new-media projects. Check out DARK EDEN to experience this type of cross-platform project.
When I'm not writing or creating a story, I spend my free time supporting literacy campaigns and community organizations, fly fishing, playing basketball and tennis, doing crosswords, watching movies, dabbling in video games, reading (lots), and (more than anything else) spending time with my wife and two daughters.
I've written young adult and children's books for Scholastic, Little Brown Books For Young Readers and Katherine Tegen Books/ HarperCollins Publishers.
I've been fortunate enough to have had some bestselling series work: The Land of Elyon, Atherton, Elliot’s Park, 39 Clues, and Skeleton Creek. Here's a fun note...the books have been translated into approximately two dozen languages. Currently I'm developing a few new-media projects. Check out DARK EDEN to experience this type of cross-platform project.
When I'm not writing or creating a story, I spend my free time supporting literacy campaigns and community organizations, fly fishing, playing basketball and tennis, doing crosswords, watching movies, dabbling in video games, reading (lots), and (more than anything else) spending time with my wife and two daughters.
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February 20, 2013
BookNook - Young Adult book reviews
1.5 Stars.... I think...
This books is one big UGH! Pulse was such a huge disappointment for me—so mush so that I'm really dreading writing this review. I really, REALLY wanted to love this book—and I thought I would—but it fell so flat for me, and that kind of breaks my heart.
This is going to be a long review, so if you want the quick and dirty, I'll give that to you first. There were just so many things that added up to make me not enjoy this book: the frustrating characters, the bad decisions, the complete lack of romance, the totally unnecessary almost-date-rape-drugged crush at the beginning, the slow moving plot, the shaky world-building, and topped off with a writing style that I couldn't click with. That's the super summarized version of all the things that bugged me. Read on for details.
Faith was not a likeable character; she was naïve, reckless, impulsive, and had HORRIBLE taste in men. There was honestly nothing I liked about her. I never cared about her and I never got invested in her. She did a lot of things that just made me think "What the hell? One example, she meets a new kid named Hawk at school, and maybe one month later she's inviting him to sleep in her bed with her. Not sex, just sleep, but still... WHAT?? I would never do that—would you?? Also, Faith was supposed to be a really smart girl, but the first thing she did was chase after a guy who Hawk informed her was "an asshole". And that's where the book's problems truly start.
The initial 'romance' (if you can call it that?) in this book was unnecessary on so many levels. Faith starts chasing after a fellow student named Wade. Hawk already told her he was an asshat, but she went after him anyway. Why? I have no idea. He acts like a bit of a douche, but she totally brushes it off. He takes her on a date and she chooses this assclown over her best friend. Come on, girl. Chicks before dicks. Then, while on the date, he DRUGS HER, and she's not that upset (until a bit later, maybe after it sank in?). Since Faith was so stupid about the whole thing, I didn't even feel bad for her; I kept thinking that she deserved it. She ignored her friend who warned her about him, she ignored all the signs of douchebaggery, and she went for the guy anyway. Come on.
But the main reason I thought the romance was unnecessary was because after the whole near-date-rape-drug thing, it just died. It was like "Chapter over, let's move on." I honestly think that entire stupid crush could have (and should have) been cut from the book.
Moving on, the first half of this book was really slow. For some reason, I thought Pulse was going to be brimming with telekinesis from page one. Unfortunately, the first half of the book reads more like a lame high school drama than anything else. The telekinesis doesn't even come into play until halfway through the book. And then when it finally did come, I just wasn't all that interested. Either it wasn't presented well, or maybe by that point I had already given up on the book so it couldn't redeem itself.
Plot-wise, I just couldn't get invested. At all. The world-building was a little shaky, but the main problem was that I didn't understand the main conflict at all. It almost seemed like it wasn't there. There's a war brewing and there are two sides to it, both of which have telekinetic powers and are equally dangerous. But I had no idea what the 'evil' side was fighting for AT ALL. We sort of get an answer at the very end, but it was so vague that I still had a million questions and never quite understood it. What are they fighting for? What's their cause? What's the problem here? I have no idea.
From the blurb:
First, "compulsively readable". I have no problem putting this book down during the climax at the end. That should speak for itself. If I don't mind putting a book down during what should be the height of the story, that's a problem.
And, I'm sorry, but there is no love story. There was that absurd crush at the beginning (Faith and Wade—already addressed), and that doesn't even count as a romance in my opinion. Then Faith and Dylan meet and I thought that would be the real love story in the book, but it is never developed. There is no flirting, no sexual tension, not even a tiny hint of a romance. Then, very suddenly, at the end, Faith and Dylan make a few comments that suggest they've been in love all this time. What??? Did I miss a ton of flirting and romantic build-up? Because it didn't exist at all, and suddenly they're claiming they love each other.
That is the first tiny hint that a romance ever exists. Note the page number (352 out of 384). Also, look at the last bit of that sentence: "to fix all the broken pieces of her life." That is the WRONG reason to want to kiss someone and start a romance. To fix problems in your life? That's just unhealthy.
Then we have Dylan:
Even Dylan and Faith's friendship had sketchy foundations; I never felt their connection, let alone any sort of romance/spark/chemistry between them. So when Dylan started spouting this, I was literally just confused. How did these feelings even come about? I just have no idea.
Finally, the writing style in this book just was not for me. This is mostly a personal preference thing, but I couldn't click with it AT ALL. I had two main problems with it. First, was the fact that we kept jumping from points of view, without any clear indicator or reason. The book was told in third person, but usually books in third person stick to one character. Even though it's from third person, we see from one person's point of view. We're privy to that one person's thoughts and feelings, but no one else's (unless there's very clearly a dual POV thing going on). But in Pulse , we were constantly aware of EVERYONE'S thoughts, feelings, and emotions. We didn't skip from one "POV" to the next at chapter separations, we would skip mid-paragraph. At times, it actually got really confusing. I kept losing track of which character we were 'following' or who we were focusing on, because there was no pattern or sense to the changes. They just occurred at random times.
And secondly, there was one style of sentence in particular that reoccurred A LOT but I absolutely despised it. Here are a few examples:
I really don't like the "if he could have.. then.." format. It drove me NUTS and it happened all the time. It made me feel like the narrator was getting involved in the story itself, and I didn't like that. In third person narration, I don't like to 'see' or 'feel' the narrator. I just want them to give me the facts. Tell me what the characters see—DON'T tell me what they don't see; if they can't see it, then I don't want to see it either.
I know I've been kind of harsh in my review, but please know that it really kind of crushed my soul to write this. I have been so excited about this book for months and the fact that it didn't deliver for me is a huge disappointment. If you decide to read it, I'm seriously sitting here praying that you will love it. I wish I could have been one of those people and I wish I could have such amazing, positive enthusiasm for this book. Unfortunately, I don't. I literally feel like as soon as I start a new book, I will forget about Pulse completely.
1.5 Stars.... I think...
This books is one big UGH! Pulse was such a huge disappointment for me—so mush so that I'm really dreading writing this review. I really, REALLY wanted to love this book—and I thought I would—but it fell so flat for me, and that kind of breaks my heart.
This is going to be a long review, so if you want the quick and dirty, I'll give that to you first. There were just so many things that added up to make me not enjoy this book: the frustrating characters, the bad decisions, the complete lack of romance, the totally unnecessary almost-date-rape-drugged crush at the beginning, the slow moving plot, the shaky world-building, and topped off with a writing style that I couldn't click with. That's the super summarized version of all the things that bugged me. Read on for details.
Faith was not a likeable character; she was naïve, reckless, impulsive, and had HORRIBLE taste in men. There was honestly nothing I liked about her. I never cared about her and I never got invested in her. She did a lot of things that just made me think "What the hell? One example, she meets a new kid named Hawk at school, and maybe one month later she's inviting him to sleep in her bed with her. Not sex, just sleep, but still... WHAT?? I would never do that—would you?? Also, Faith was supposed to be a really smart girl, but the first thing she did was chase after a guy who Hawk informed her was "an asshole". And that's where the book's problems truly start.
The initial 'romance' (if you can call it that?) in this book was unnecessary on so many levels. Faith starts chasing after a fellow student named Wade. Hawk already told her he was an asshat, but she went after him anyway. Why? I have no idea. He acts like a bit of a douche, but she totally brushes it off. He takes her on a date and she chooses this assclown over her best friend. Come on, girl. Chicks before dicks. Then, while on the date, he DRUGS HER, and she's not that upset (until a bit later, maybe after it sank in?). Since Faith was so stupid about the whole thing, I didn't even feel bad for her; I kept thinking that she deserved it. She ignored her friend who warned her about him, she ignored all the signs of douchebaggery, and she went for the guy anyway. Come on.
But the main reason I thought the romance was unnecessary was because after the whole near-date-rape-drug thing, it just died. It was like "Chapter over, let's move on." I honestly think that entire stupid crush could have (and should have) been cut from the book.
Moving on, the first half of this book was really slow. For some reason, I thought Pulse was going to be brimming with telekinesis from page one. Unfortunately, the first half of the book reads more like a lame high school drama than anything else. The telekinesis doesn't even come into play until halfway through the book. And then when it finally did come, I just wasn't all that interested. Either it wasn't presented well, or maybe by that point I had already given up on the book so it couldn't redeem itself.
Plot-wise, I just couldn't get invested. At all. The world-building was a little shaky, but the main problem was that I didn't understand the main conflict at all. It almost seemed like it wasn't there. There's a war brewing and there are two sides to it, both of which have telekinetic powers and are equally dangerous. But I had no idea what the 'evil' side was fighting for AT ALL. We sort of get an answer at the very end, but it was so vague that I still had a million questions and never quite understood it. What are they fighting for? What's their cause? What's the problem here? I have no idea.
From the blurb:
Compulsively readable, with thrilling action scenes and a tender love story.
—Pulse blurb
First, "compulsively readable". I have no problem putting this book down during the climax at the end. That should speak for itself. If I don't mind putting a book down during what should be the height of the story, that's a problem.
And, I'm sorry, but there is no love story. There was that absurd crush at the beginning (Faith and Wade—already addressed), and that doesn't even count as a romance in my opinion. Then Faith and Dylan meet and I thought that would be the real love story in the book, but it is never developed. There is no flirting, no sexual tension, not even a tiny hint of a romance. Then, very suddenly, at the end, Faith and Dylan make a few comments that suggest they've been in love all this time. What??? Did I miss a ton of flirting and romantic build-up? Because it didn't exist at all, and suddenly they're claiming they love each other.
"When he turned to her, [Faith] wanted nothing more than to feel his lips on her own, to fix all the broken pieces of her life."
—Faith, ARC of Pulse by Patrick Carman, page 352
That is the first tiny hint that a romance ever exists. Note the page number (352 out of 384). Also, look at the last bit of that sentence: "to fix all the broken pieces of her life." That is the WRONG reason to want to kiss someone and start a romance. To fix problems in your life? That's just unhealthy.
Then we have Dylan:
"[Dylan] needed [Faith] in order to keep breathing. Every day she was gone was like a death march, walking through the day in a fog, his heart heavy like the hammer."
—Dylan, ARC of Pulse by Patrick Carman, page 359
Even Dylan and Faith's friendship had sketchy foundations; I never felt their connection, let alone any sort of romance/spark/chemistry between them. So when Dylan started spouting this, I was literally just confused. How did these feelings even come about? I just have no idea.
Finally, the writing style in this book just was not for me. This is mostly a personal preference thing, but I couldn't click with it AT ALL. I had two main problems with it. First, was the fact that we kept jumping from points of view, without any clear indicator or reason. The book was told in third person, but usually books in third person stick to one character. Even though it's from third person, we see from one person's point of view. We're privy to that one person's thoughts and feelings, but no one else's (unless there's very clearly a dual POV thing going on). But in Pulse , we were constantly aware of EVERYONE'S thoughts, feelings, and emotions. We didn't skip from one "POV" to the next at chapter separations, we would skip mid-paragraph. At times, it actually got really confusing. I kept losing track of which character we were 'following' or who we were focusing on, because there was no pattern or sense to the changes. They just occurred at random times.
And secondly, there was one style of sentence in particular that reoccurred A LOT but I absolutely despised it. Here are a few examples:
"If he'd been watching the hammer fly, he would have seen that it was about thirty feet from landing."
"If he could have seen outside the long line of windows of the classroom, Hawk would have noticed that [..]."
I really don't like the "if he could have.. then.." format. It drove me NUTS and it happened all the time. It made me feel like the narrator was getting involved in the story itself, and I didn't like that. In third person narration, I don't like to 'see' or 'feel' the narrator. I just want them to give me the facts. Tell me what the characters see—DON'T tell me what they don't see; if they can't see it, then I don't want to see it either.
I know I've been kind of harsh in my review, but please know that it really kind of crushed my soul to write this. I have been so excited about this book for months and the fact that it didn't deliver for me is a huge disappointment. If you decide to read it, I'm seriously sitting here praying that you will love it. I wish I could have been one of those people and I wish I could have such amazing, positive enthusiasm for this book. Unfortunately, I don't. I literally feel like as soon as I start a new book, I will forget about Pulse completely.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2013
1.5 stars.
Summery of the book - Spoilers
Summery of the book - Spoilers
June 5, 2013
I am a sucker for Dystopian literature. This is not a big surprise, as I’m certain most of you have discovered my Dystopian Bucket List by now. But what you may not know is the why. While I think the relationships formed inside quality dystopian literature are easily some of the most compelling these days, it’s the social structures that keep me coming back.
Let’s face it, the world we live in is not perfect. Painfully so. And at any given moment we could be victims of an environmental meltdown, a historical study on the effects of nuclear fall out, or eaten by a few incredibly large, very angry killer tomatoes. And while the life changing event itself will be noteworthy (especially if our vegetables start to rebel) how we SURVIVE that event will define future generations.
How we rebuild. How we reestablish community. How we take our situation and morph it into a home.
THOSE are the elements that keep me coming back to dystopian literature. To read about “struggle through acceptance.” To envision NEW worlds – good or bad. To bask in the glory of differences. To picture buildings rising from the ashes, laws established and the challenged. To experience survival.
So imagine my disappointment when “Pulse” was 1% foundation, and 99% selfish girl – saddled with a creepy technoholic tween, and a quazi-superhero who harbors some very serious “Peeping Tom” tendencies.
Oh Mr. Carman…you broke my heart.
"In the year 2051, who has a pulse?
With the help of her mysterious classmate Dylan Gilmore, Faith Daniels discovers that she can move objects with her mind. This telekinetic ability is called a “pulse,” and Dylan has the talent, too.
In riveting action scenes, Faith demonstrates her ability to use her pulse against a group of telekinesis masters who are so powerful they can flatten their enemies by uprooting streetlights, throwing boulders, and changing the course of a hurtling hammer so that it becomes a deadly weapon. But even with her unusual talent, the mind—and the heart—can be difficult to control. If Faith wants to join forces with Dylan and save the world, she’ll have to harness the power of both."
Ok, first off…let me explain my dystopian rant before I get filleted by a hoard of my book-loving cohorts. Yes, I am aware this book is listed as Fantasy/Science Fiction, WHICH is pretty much the furthest you can get from dystopic lit. But I want to point out something. In not 1 but 4 quotes printed on the inside cover of “Pulse” literary bobble-heads around the world compared this book to “The Hunger Games.” Now, I don’t know about you, but those 3 words basically drop “Pulse” into a world filled with “overthrow the government!” “Damn the man…save the Empire!” territory. My thoughts were NOT unwarranted. As a matter of fact, I consider them next to necessary. Which is why I also think my next words should be viewed as the most important in this entire review.
If you plan to purchase “Pulse,” it is SCIENCE FICTION!
That said, I don’t mind Sci-Fi, so let’s set that aside and get down to the business of dissecting (I mean…lovingly reviewing) this book.
To start…it’s slow. Though only 379 pages, the first half will leave you feeling like it’s closer to 500. Why? Because, with the exception of a few floating tablets and a quick jog through an abandoned elementary school, the action is all but non-exsistant.
“Hey! Not everything can be Wham! Bam! Thank-you ma’am! Misty!”
I’m aware of that. But it also doesn’t (solely) need to be about a girl desperate to find a pair of killer jeans that make her ass look scrumptious.
Think I’m kidding? I’m not. Feeling much (too much) like a contemporary YA novel until page 300, Carman chose to focus his story on a boy obsessed social outcast, a drug addicted megalomaniac, and a desperately sad sub-character with abandonment issues. (For the sake of honesty, ”Abandonment Girl” – aka Liz – did have me tearing up in a few places.)
Because the focus was more on budding relationships, and boys (as in more than one) who are apparently experts at window-stalking, the “bigger plot” (or the Pulse – if you will) seemed almost inconsequential.
For example:
What is a “Wire Code” exactly? How does it work? I know it basically acts like a roofie (for any dude who needs to hide a mass murder) but is it like a program reboot for your brain?
What happened to Hawk’s parents?
Why is RED a difficult color to kenesteticly (um…is that a word?) manipulate?
How does the (oh so critical) 2nd pulse work? WHY does it work?
I can tell you what color Hawk’s eyes are. I can explain Liz’s need to hold hands. Hell…I can even tell you the training order of Noah’s bouncy balls. But ask me to explain why Wade and Clara had to throw their events and the Field Games and I’m a blank slate.
In short, the focus was in the wrong place.
The characters were also a huge problem for me (since I seem to be on a “cons” roll.) Showing a considerable lack of good sense, the forefront cast in “Pulse” (Faith, Dylan, Liz, Hawk, Wade and Clara) spent a little too much time defending (or at the very least trying to define) their deplorable behavior, than trying to correct it. Clara (who was a solid Grade-A Bitch from page 1) seemed to be the only character that stuck to her guns, everyone else came across as wishy-washy (or stale, like two day old Dr. Pepper after spending some time in the Texas sun. Ew.)
So let’s sum this up. 50 pages of rip-roaring X-men type action. 320 pages of sub-par, slightly whiney build-up.
Doesn’t sound appealing does it? Yeah…I didn’t think so.
My suggestion? Read Carman’s “Dark Eden” series instead. Because when it comes to “Pulse,” it barely has one.
Happy Reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember: sometimes you have to comprise, sometimes you have to just give in.
Let’s face it, the world we live in is not perfect. Painfully so. And at any given moment we could be victims of an environmental meltdown, a historical study on the effects of nuclear fall out, or eaten by a few incredibly large, very angry killer tomatoes. And while the life changing event itself will be noteworthy (especially if our vegetables start to rebel) how we SURVIVE that event will define future generations.
How we rebuild. How we reestablish community. How we take our situation and morph it into a home.
THOSE are the elements that keep me coming back to dystopian literature. To read about “struggle through acceptance.” To envision NEW worlds – good or bad. To bask in the glory of differences. To picture buildings rising from the ashes, laws established and the challenged. To experience survival.
So imagine my disappointment when “Pulse” was 1% foundation, and 99% selfish girl – saddled with a creepy technoholic tween, and a quazi-superhero who harbors some very serious “Peeping Tom” tendencies.
Oh Mr. Carman…you broke my heart.
"In the year 2051, who has a pulse?
With the help of her mysterious classmate Dylan Gilmore, Faith Daniels discovers that she can move objects with her mind. This telekinetic ability is called a “pulse,” and Dylan has the talent, too.
In riveting action scenes, Faith demonstrates her ability to use her pulse against a group of telekinesis masters who are so powerful they can flatten their enemies by uprooting streetlights, throwing boulders, and changing the course of a hurtling hammer so that it becomes a deadly weapon. But even with her unusual talent, the mind—and the heart—can be difficult to control. If Faith wants to join forces with Dylan and save the world, she’ll have to harness the power of both."
Ok, first off…let me explain my dystopian rant before I get filleted by a hoard of my book-loving cohorts. Yes, I am aware this book is listed as Fantasy/Science Fiction, WHICH is pretty much the furthest you can get from dystopic lit. But I want to point out something. In not 1 but 4 quotes printed on the inside cover of “Pulse” literary bobble-heads around the world compared this book to “The Hunger Games.” Now, I don’t know about you, but those 3 words basically drop “Pulse” into a world filled with “overthrow the government!” “Damn the man…save the Empire!” territory. My thoughts were NOT unwarranted. As a matter of fact, I consider them next to necessary. Which is why I also think my next words should be viewed as the most important in this entire review.
If you plan to purchase “Pulse,” it is SCIENCE FICTION!
That said, I don’t mind Sci-Fi, so let’s set that aside and get down to the business of dissecting (I mean…lovingly reviewing) this book.
To start…it’s slow. Though only 379 pages, the first half will leave you feeling like it’s closer to 500. Why? Because, with the exception of a few floating tablets and a quick jog through an abandoned elementary school, the action is all but non-exsistant.
“Hey! Not everything can be Wham! Bam! Thank-you ma’am! Misty!”
I’m aware of that. But it also doesn’t (solely) need to be about a girl desperate to find a pair of killer jeans that make her ass look scrumptious.
Think I’m kidding? I’m not. Feeling much (too much) like a contemporary YA novel until page 300, Carman chose to focus his story on a boy obsessed social outcast, a drug addicted megalomaniac, and a desperately sad sub-character with abandonment issues. (For the sake of honesty, ”Abandonment Girl” – aka Liz – did have me tearing up in a few places.)
Because the focus was more on budding relationships, and boys (as in more than one) who are apparently experts at window-stalking, the “bigger plot” (or the Pulse – if you will) seemed almost inconsequential.
For example:
What is a “Wire Code” exactly? How does it work? I know it basically acts like a roofie (for any dude who needs to hide a mass murder) but is it like a program reboot for your brain?
What happened to Hawk’s parents?
Why is RED a difficult color to kenesteticly (um…is that a word?) manipulate?
How does the (oh so critical) 2nd pulse work? WHY does it work?
I can tell you what color Hawk’s eyes are. I can explain Liz’s need to hold hands. Hell…I can even tell you the training order of Noah’s bouncy balls. But ask me to explain why Wade and Clara had to throw their events and the Field Games and I’m a blank slate.
In short, the focus was in the wrong place.
The characters were also a huge problem for me (since I seem to be on a “cons” roll.) Showing a considerable lack of good sense, the forefront cast in “Pulse” (Faith, Dylan, Liz, Hawk, Wade and Clara) spent a little too much time defending (or at the very least trying to define) their deplorable behavior, than trying to correct it. Clara (who was a solid Grade-A Bitch from page 1) seemed to be the only character that stuck to her guns, everyone else came across as wishy-washy (or stale, like two day old Dr. Pepper after spending some time in the Texas sun. Ew.)
So let’s sum this up. 50 pages of rip-roaring X-men type action. 320 pages of sub-par, slightly whiney build-up.
Doesn’t sound appealing does it? Yeah…I didn’t think so.
My suggestion? Read Carman’s “Dark Eden” series instead. Because when it comes to “Pulse,” it barely has one.
Happy Reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember: sometimes you have to comprise, sometimes you have to just give in.
October 4, 2021
Pulse takes place in the year 2051 and follows Faith Daniels who discovers that she can move objects with her mind, like her classmate Dylan Gilmore. But Faith will have to harness her powers and become stronger, because she may just be the key to winning a war that is on the horizon.
Before I started reading this book, I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it, just based on the reviews on Goodreads I’d seen for it. But I was so, so wrong. I loved this book. There was just something about the plot that had me hooked and kept me reading and even though you can argue that not a lot actually happens, to me the plot was just riveting and I couldn’t put the book down. I love any type of superpowers in a book, but especially when telekinesis comes into play in any story. The action scenes were also really well written and entertaining to read about, and coupled with that action-packed ending, it’s safe to say that I throughly enjoyed this book.
One of my favourite things about this book is the friendship between Faith and her best friend, Liz. I loved the way it was developed, especially when we got to see Liz’s perspective as well and the reasons as to why she was so clingy. And I feel like there were small undertones of Liz possibly being in love with Faith, even though she says herself that she thought at one point that she liked girls but that it might have just been because she was lonely and confused. I was so invested and interested in the development of the friendship between these two characters that I was really disappointed when Liz was killed off. I think this friendship had such potential to develop further and showcase a healthy relationship but it was cut short, and I wasn’t happy about that at all, especially because Liz was one of my favourite characters.
I wasn’t entirely invested in the romance. Faith flirts and goes out with Wade Quinn but things don’t work out and he bloody drugs her so that’s over. And then Dylan starts to teach her how to use her powers. I never really felt like there was any kind of love triangle in the book, since it was clear to me that the author was trying to set up something between Faith and Dylan right from the beginning. And I enjoyed the small development we got regarding the relationship between these two characters. It didn’t overshadow the plot but there wasn’t that much to begin with. It was more Faith stating that she was falling for Dylan rather than seeing it happen. And then at the end we had these declarations of love, more so from Dylan which confused me because he hadn’t really shown any sort of outward inclination towards loving Faith. So that was slightly jarring.
The characters are really interesting and my favourite, despite the fact that she is a villain and killed Liz, is Clara. I thought her characterisation was so interesting and I knew as soon as she was introduced that there was more to her than just playing the role of the mean girl. And I really hope we get to see more development for her character throughout the series, because I just feel like there’s more to her and that she is going to surprise me in some way, even though I have no idea what that way is.
Overall, Pulse was a really enjoyable first book in a series that had me hooked right from the beginning. I’m excited to see what direction the series goes in.
“In time someone would tell Faith Daniels the truth, but not yet. She wasn’t ready to know, but one day she would be told.”
Before I started reading this book, I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it, just based on the reviews on Goodreads I’d seen for it. But I was so, so wrong. I loved this book. There was just something about the plot that had me hooked and kept me reading and even though you can argue that not a lot actually happens, to me the plot was just riveting and I couldn’t put the book down. I love any type of superpowers in a book, but especially when telekinesis comes into play in any story. The action scenes were also really well written and entertaining to read about, and coupled with that action-packed ending, it’s safe to say that I throughly enjoyed this book.
“You can't be gone. I need you here, with me. What am I going to do without you?”
One of my favourite things about this book is the friendship between Faith and her best friend, Liz. I loved the way it was developed, especially when we got to see Liz’s perspective as well and the reasons as to why she was so clingy. And I feel like there were small undertones of Liz possibly being in love with Faith, even though she says herself that she thought at one point that she liked girls but that it might have just been because she was lonely and confused. I was so invested and interested in the development of the friendship between these two characters that I was really disappointed when Liz was killed off. I think this friendship had such potential to develop further and showcase a healthy relationship but it was cut short, and I wasn’t happy about that at all, especially because Liz was one of my favourite characters.
"Dylan needed Faith in order to keep breathing. Every day she was gone was like a death march, walking through the day in a fog, his heart heavy like the hammer."
I wasn’t entirely invested in the romance. Faith flirts and goes out with Wade Quinn but things don’t work out and he bloody drugs her so that’s over. And then Dylan starts to teach her how to use her powers. I never really felt like there was any kind of love triangle in the book, since it was clear to me that the author was trying to set up something between Faith and Dylan right from the beginning. And I enjoyed the small development we got regarding the relationship between these two characters. It didn’t overshadow the plot but there wasn’t that much to begin with. It was more Faith stating that she was falling for Dylan rather than seeing it happen. And then at the end we had these declarations of love, more so from Dylan which confused me because he hadn’t really shown any sort of outward inclination towards loving Faith. So that was slightly jarring.
The characters are really interesting and my favourite, despite the fact that she is a villain and killed Liz, is Clara. I thought her characterisation was so interesting and I knew as soon as she was introduced that there was more to her than just playing the role of the mean girl. And I really hope we get to see more development for her character throughout the series, because I just feel like there’s more to her and that she is going to surprise me in some way, even though I have no idea what that way is.
“Find love, for love in a broken world will comfort you. Hold on to hope; it will sustain you. Have faith, for in the end it will save you.”
Overall, Pulse was a really enjoyable first book in a series that had me hooked right from the beginning. I’m excited to see what direction the series goes in.
March 2, 2013
I was excited to read this book. I’m mean look at the cover. Read the synopsis. But, it was a let down. In my opinion, which is exactly that, MY opinion, this book has many flaws. I’m not going to get very detailed about any of them because I don’t want to spoil it for people that haven’t read it yet. But, I can’t help saying a little.
This book in written with an omniscient narrator. I really don’t like this style. It can make it very confusing, especially for kids. With this type of narrator the reader can be in everyone’s heads, see what everyone is doing and sometimes that is happening within the SAME paragraph.
Also, it is described as being a tender love story? Uhhhh, not in the least is this a tender love story. There is a bit at the end, but it is really one-sided. Not much going on really in that department.
There is also some big war brewing that our main characters Faith, Hawk, and Dylan are supposed to win in order to save the world. The problem is, by the end of the book the reader still doesn’t really know what the war is about. Sure there are two opposing views about living inside the super cool, super efficient walled city, but other than that we don’t know what the big deal is.
Character development was a problem, too. I had absolutely no connection with the characters. In fact, the one I liked the most was the super evil chick that wants to kill Faith. Faith isn’t likeable at all. I guess I did like Hawk, her younger, geeky sidekick, but there is a problem with him to in the sense that instead of keeping him the good friend, Carman conveniently worked Hawk into the world-saving team. When it was revealed that he was going to help Dylan and Faith with this mission I was like, “Of course his is.”
In addition to saying this book is a tender love story, it is also being sold as “compulsively readable.” Again, nope! By the last 1/4 of the book I was almost skimming description and reading dialogue only. I just wanted it to be over!
But you might be saying, “But Karin, there was a huge, exciting fight at the end.” Well, I thought it was stupid. Throwing vans around and football goalposts? And, the whole 2nd pulse thing was silly, too.
Oh, and to top it all off, about 3/4 of the way through we start getting some pretty heavy handed preaching about the dangers of Global Warming. Carman worked it in as a way to give the readers some backstory, but it didn’t work well.
Finally, I have a problem with the revealing of Dylan’s parentage at the end. I understand who his mother is. I understand who his father is. But, I also understand who the evil twins, Wade and Clara’s dad is. Does anyone else feel like there is something wrong here? I mean Clara really like Dylan. Wouldn’t they know??? Someone contact me and help me out with this one.
For those of you who have read my other reviews you know this is unusual for me. I like most of what I read. So, why am I being so harsh with this one? This is a poorly written book. And, it is going to be a series. Patrick Carman is a popular author with a huge fan base so kids are going to automatically buy it. Gosh, I was totally excited for this book. But, this is the type of book that will turn kids off. They’ll be confused and say, “Forget this.” and shut it!
Like I said, this is my opinion. Others will like the book.
This book in written with an omniscient narrator. I really don’t like this style. It can make it very confusing, especially for kids. With this type of narrator the reader can be in everyone’s heads, see what everyone is doing and sometimes that is happening within the SAME paragraph.
Also, it is described as being a tender love story? Uhhhh, not in the least is this a tender love story. There is a bit at the end, but it is really one-sided. Not much going on really in that department.
There is also some big war brewing that our main characters Faith, Hawk, and Dylan are supposed to win in order to save the world. The problem is, by the end of the book the reader still doesn’t really know what the war is about. Sure there are two opposing views about living inside the super cool, super efficient walled city, but other than that we don’t know what the big deal is.
Character development was a problem, too. I had absolutely no connection with the characters. In fact, the one I liked the most was the super evil chick that wants to kill Faith. Faith isn’t likeable at all. I guess I did like Hawk, her younger, geeky sidekick, but there is a problem with him to in the sense that instead of keeping him the good friend, Carman conveniently worked Hawk into the world-saving team. When it was revealed that he was going to help Dylan and Faith with this mission I was like, “Of course his is.”
In addition to saying this book is a tender love story, it is also being sold as “compulsively readable.” Again, nope! By the last 1/4 of the book I was almost skimming description and reading dialogue only. I just wanted it to be over!
But you might be saying, “But Karin, there was a huge, exciting fight at the end.” Well, I thought it was stupid. Throwing vans around and football goalposts? And, the whole 2nd pulse thing was silly, too.
Oh, and to top it all off, about 3/4 of the way through we start getting some pretty heavy handed preaching about the dangers of Global Warming. Carman worked it in as a way to give the readers some backstory, but it didn’t work well.
Finally, I have a problem with the revealing of Dylan’s parentage at the end. I understand who his mother is. I understand who his father is. But, I also understand who the evil twins, Wade and Clara’s dad is. Does anyone else feel like there is something wrong here? I mean Clara really like Dylan. Wouldn’t they know??? Someone contact me and help me out with this one.
For those of you who have read my other reviews you know this is unusual for me. I like most of what I read. So, why am I being so harsh with this one? This is a poorly written book. And, it is going to be a series. Patrick Carman is a popular author with a huge fan base so kids are going to automatically buy it. Gosh, I was totally excited for this book. But, this is the type of book that will turn kids off. They’ll be confused and say, “Forget this.” and shut it!
Like I said, this is my opinion. Others will like the book.
February 11, 2013
Okay, so...wow, this blurb was so very promising. I loved the idea of kids with PK (psychokinesis) abilities along with a devastated earth, but unfortunately, much like Carman's previous effort "Dark Eden", for me, "Pulse" really failed to deliver in pretty much all technical areas. If you're looking for something new and exciting, you may want to look elsewhere.
Where to start? There was so much about this book that really needed a few more drafts. I guess I'll start with the narration - it feels like Carman had a really big problem with decisions concerning narration. He kept switching between 3rd close and 3rd omniscient, and eventually seemed to settle on the latter, and it just didn't work. With a huge cast, you may be able to do that successfully (and even then, I feel like it's incredibly hard to do so), but because the main cast within "Pulse" was pretty small, it just didn't work. The result? It made things incredibly hard to follow in terms of who was thinking what and doing what and generally just kind of a jumble.
Second, the world. While the world was probably the best built out of the technical arenas of this book, it still needed a LOT of work to make it work well. In the ~90 pages I did manage to get through before giving up, the world was very fuzzy and vague. By page 90, the world and its rules should be clear, or should start to become clear to the audience. I was still pretty lost, especially when the Drifters were thrown into the mix - as before then no real mention of them was made. And they seemed to be kind of important to the world, a major factor in which that world was shaped and formed alongside the main cast. The concept was good, but it just needed way more fleshing out than in the ARC copy I did read. And that was incredibly disappointing. By page 90 I expect that the characters and the world should be living up to the blurb, and aside from the two PK incidents mentioned by page 90, nothing else really even started to come close.
Sensory language. This was perhaps the worst part of the book - 90% of what I did read was telling over showing. I hate that. I seriously can't stand that. I can understand that it's allowed in a first draft, but when you're getting to the ARC stage of things? It needs to be edited. There needed to be a lot more sensory input. While I could imagine the barren fields and the crows and the generally large, empty space around the MC and her friends, the rest was just kind of a blur. And that's not really acceptable at this point in things.
Finally, the characters. The MC felt extremely bland - with the exception of the PK incidents early on within the book, I didn't feel like there was much that made her stand out and make her matter. Harsh? Yeah, probably, but I feel like Carman could have done so much more with this book, and didn't. I can only hope that by the time this gets pubbed, there'll have been a nice overhaul of things in all technical areas.
Final verdict? An incredible disappointment. If you're a YA veteran of dystopian/post-apocalyptic/etc settings, you're going to want to skip this one. But that's just my take on it. "Pulse" is out February 26, 2013 from HarperTeen, so be sure to check it out when you get the chance and make your own decision about how you feel about this book.
(posted to goodreads, shelfari, and birthofanewwitch.wordpress.com)
Where to start? There was so much about this book that really needed a few more drafts. I guess I'll start with the narration - it feels like Carman had a really big problem with decisions concerning narration. He kept switching between 3rd close and 3rd omniscient, and eventually seemed to settle on the latter, and it just didn't work. With a huge cast, you may be able to do that successfully (and even then, I feel like it's incredibly hard to do so), but because the main cast within "Pulse" was pretty small, it just didn't work. The result? It made things incredibly hard to follow in terms of who was thinking what and doing what and generally just kind of a jumble.
Second, the world. While the world was probably the best built out of the technical arenas of this book, it still needed a LOT of work to make it work well. In the ~90 pages I did manage to get through before giving up, the world was very fuzzy and vague. By page 90, the world and its rules should be clear, or should start to become clear to the audience. I was still pretty lost, especially when the Drifters were thrown into the mix - as before then no real mention of them was made. And they seemed to be kind of important to the world, a major factor in which that world was shaped and formed alongside the main cast. The concept was good, but it just needed way more fleshing out than in the ARC copy I did read. And that was incredibly disappointing. By page 90 I expect that the characters and the world should be living up to the blurb, and aside from the two PK incidents mentioned by page 90, nothing else really even started to come close.
Sensory language. This was perhaps the worst part of the book - 90% of what I did read was telling over showing. I hate that. I seriously can't stand that. I can understand that it's allowed in a first draft, but when you're getting to the ARC stage of things? It needs to be edited. There needed to be a lot more sensory input. While I could imagine the barren fields and the crows and the generally large, empty space around the MC and her friends, the rest was just kind of a blur. And that's not really acceptable at this point in things.
Finally, the characters. The MC felt extremely bland - with the exception of the PK incidents early on within the book, I didn't feel like there was much that made her stand out and make her matter. Harsh? Yeah, probably, but I feel like Carman could have done so much more with this book, and didn't. I can only hope that by the time this gets pubbed, there'll have been a nice overhaul of things in all technical areas.
Final verdict? An incredible disappointment. If you're a YA veteran of dystopian/post-apocalyptic/etc settings, you're going to want to skip this one. But that's just my take on it. "Pulse" is out February 26, 2013 from HarperTeen, so be sure to check it out when you get the chance and make your own decision about how you feel about this book.
(posted to goodreads, shelfari, and birthofanewwitch.wordpress.com)
December 5, 2012
Another book that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Filled with action, love, secrets and drama there is nothing more you can ask for in this book.
Faith really burrows her way into your heart, as well as the other characters but her more so than them. She is strong, beautiful and not afraid to tell it ow it is, she loves fiercely and will do what it takes to keep them safe. When she starts a new school she catches the eye of not one but two boys who are completely different. Wade who is sexy, arrogant, and all about himself. She gives him a chance and he ruins it, but seems to think everything will be fine. Then there is Dylan, the strong, silent handsome type who also has a HUGE secret.
When all of them get thrown together. It is a little crazy, Faith is finding new things out about herself, Dylan, Wade and Clara. Dylan is slowing bringing Faith out of her shell, showing her a whole new side to herself, and she is falling fast. When things take a turn and get a little ugly, anger is all she has and she will take it out on the one person who deserves it. Again everything goes a little out of control, but you are on the edge waiting to see what happens.
In the end you are not disappointed but ecstatic about what will happen next. Where will Patrick take this book, and how soon can you get your hands on it! I was so in love with this book and know you will love it too!
September 2, 2013
Cover Blurb: Yes or No? Admittedly, it was the cover that first caught my interest. A floating tree isn't something one sees every day. That and it also eerily looks like the cover of Insurgent (hmmm). Here's a fun activity for you guys. Hold Pulse and Insurgent up to each other. Deja vu? No; they're just that similar.
Characters: I am saving the protagonist for last, and beginning with Hawk, the nerdy little dude who also has a tendency of talking way too much and cracking jokes that, in the hands of a different character, might be a little funny, but were mostly annoying in this. I liked Hawk literally for half a second. And then he started invading the two main girls' personal space and sniffing their perfume and their grape bubblegum-scented breath and eyeing their bottoms in tight jeans . . . Um, when did creepy little twerp become a positive trait in potential friends? After that, I just knew that Hawk was one of those geeks who used his ridiculous techie talents to hack into people's personal lives and probably access porno, and it's impossible for me to feeling anything but revulsion for such a slimy little creature. Wade is a jerk, and at least we're supposed to agree with this feeling. But he is so obviously a jerk that not only is he no fun to hate, but it also calls into question our protagonist's good sense. You have to be completely brain dead to want to hang out with a guy like Wade - and his inexplicably power-hungry sister Clara, whose obsession with power and force was so ridiculous that she could audition to be the next Sith Lord (and yes, she was that horribly cliche as well). Then there's Liz, our protagonist's best friend. I didn't really care either way about Liz, until the Author introduced her obsession with touch. And just the way the Author talked about Liz's attraction to how things feel running through her hands came across as majorly creepy. Now, my mind does not jump in that direction in general. Something has to come across as seriously wrong for my radar to go up. Liz touching things and holding Faith's hand and dating the guy she did simply because his hands were softer than a baby's bottom . . . . It just felt so very wrong. And I am not the sort of person who, when seeing two girls holding hands, I think they're a couple. I have nothing against best friends holding hands. But in this case, it felt like it was supposed to be more. Dylan, the obvious love interest, was okay. Yeah, he watched Faith sleep every night and had a tendency of stalking people, but compared to everyone else in the book, he really didn't seem all that creepy. He was quiet, matter of fact, kept to himself, and just didn't really do anything that set off alarm bells. Though he was described as looking like a skater dude and had a bad propensity towards wearing V-neck T-shirts, that isn't how I pictured him. So Dylan, at least, I liked relatively well. As for Faith, the protagonist. Talk about a bland heroine, not to mention pretty flaky. I got really tired of her drooling over tall people, tight jeans, and going off with complete strangers when common sense screamed, "Hold it right there, missy! Are you begging for something bad to happen to you? Again?" Yes, because the very first time Faith just goes off with someone, something bad happens to her. So what does she do? Goes off again with someone she doesn't know, in the middle of night! Brilliant, Faith, just brilliant. Other than her magnificent lack of street smarts, she was just dull. There wasn't much of a personality in her, even though the Author kept insisting that she had all of these traits. Sorry, but I didn't see 'em.
The Romance: There are two love triangles: Wade, Faith, and Dylan. And then Clara, Dylan, and Faith. Wade likes Faith, and Faith thinks she likes Wade for a while, but then discovers that Dylan is way hotter (the book's words, not mine). Clara likes Dylan, but Dylan likes Faith. Oh, and Hawk has a crush on Faith as well, because she's just totally the best-looking girl in the school and everyone is just dying to date her. There's a bit of posturing between Wade and Dylan, but Wade does most of it and Dylan just kind of ignores him (smart boy). Clara dreams of power and having Dylan at her side while she takes over the world - because she hates her twin brother for some reason that isn't made clear. Faith, thankfully, doesn't spend too much time drooling over Dylan's looks. I was actually surprised at how few eye-humping sessions there were. Except when the narration switched viewpoints and one of the guy characters was oodling Faith's butt. Evidence that this was written by a male author, I suppose. For the most part, the romance itself didn't bother me all that much. I didn't get why Faith liked Wade so much, since it was so glaringly obvious that he was a jerk, and I knew that she and Dylan would end up together eventually. The romance between Faith and Dylan happens fast and with very little actual emotion. That is, the Reader doesn't feel their attachment. The Author states that it's there, but I didn't tune into it at all. It was flat.
Plot: You will have noticed that the official synopsis is pretty vague. I think this is because the person writing it didn't know what the book was about any more than I do. I expected a dystopian novel with teens finding out about their amazing powers and having to face down a government. That's not exactly what happens, so the Author should get points for originality, right? Well, maybe, except that whatever new idea he chose wasn't made very clear in the book. The year is 2051. Global warming has wiped out a good portion of the population (of the world, I think, not just the US, though that isn't made entirely clear). In order to save what remains of humanity, a brilliant scientist had the idea of creating these bio-dome-like places called States. They are basically massive cities contained in force fields, where people live in perfect little houses and in perfectly clean and safe cities. So global warming doesn't spread, things like fossil fuels are outlawed. But not everyone lives in these States. Some have chosen to live outside of them. But because this well-intentioned governmental body (that isn't explained, either) is so benevolent and only wants what's best for humanity, they have supplied the world with Tablets (no, the Author doesn't bother to change the name, which is both good and bad), so the outsiders can be monitored and sent "this is what you're missing" propaganda films that really aren't propaganda at all. And when an outsider decides to go into the city, they can contact the States and this friendly regime sends white vans out to collect them. I kept waiting for something sinister; it didn't come. I also kept waiting for it to be explained why living outside of the States was such a bad thing. No one was starving, kids were still being educated, they had homes - it all seemed perfectly fine outside of the States. Faith Daniels is living outside of the States, and when she starts attending a new school, she meets Wade and Clara - unbelievably tall and beautiful twin brother and sister. Faith also meets Hawk, the creepy little hacker who we're supposed to think is cute and funny, and Dylan - the quiet kid of the school who is labeled as a troublemaker, even though he doesn't seem to cause any trouble whatsoever. Pulse takes a hefty 175+ pages to actually get into Faith and Dylan's amazing telekinetic powers. The first 175 pages are spent on daily life at the school, interjecting ineffective bits of foreshadowing, and not explaining the economics/politics/structure of this futuristic 2051 America. And when we finally get to learn about the telekinetic stuff (which is the only thing Readers will care about), it's pretty lame. Laughable, in fact. It's just . . . silly. Nothing like The Darkest Minds. The rules feel like they were made up on the spot, sudden plot twists are revealed that just come across as pathetic attempts at - well, a plot twist, there's more worthless foreshadowing, and then the whole book dissolves into - you guessed it! Futuristic Summer Olympics! Just what I want to read about in a story with telekinesis! Boredom went straight to sheer agony. I wanted to scrape my nails across my brain; at least the pain caused by such an act would have been more interesting than the sharp headache pounding against my skull from dullness.
Believability: If you're going to go with a natural disaster scenario, don't choose global warming. Whether you believe it's real or not, as soon as an Author goes with global warming, it automatically feels like they're pedaling their personal political opinions, and no Reader likes that. And this whole idea that the nations of the world will come together to save humanity in such a crisis is laughable. Sorry, but nations don't work like that. Something happens to weaken a country, another country is there to take advantage of that. And can I just say: a huge, thoroughly clean city? Really? Cities aren't clean! They are some of the dirtiest places on Earth!
Writing Style: Third person, past tense. However, the point of view kept changing mid-narration. One minute, we would be following Faith's thoughts and feelings (in third person), and then we would suddenly be receiving Hawk's thoughts and feelings. The writing style itself really felt juvenile. The Author tried too hard to create a sense of foreboding without actually delivering on that. He kept hinting at higher powers, people working behind the curtain, ominous dealings, and it all fell flat. The dialogue felt like something a kid would write - or an adult who was trying to write what they thought was believable teen dialogue, when in fact all of their expressions have gone out of fashion several years ago. When he tried to sound profound, that's exactly what it sounded like: a writer trying to sound profound.
Content: 4 s-words
Conclusion: It was just silly. Just absolutely hilarious - and it's not supposed to be. There was one plot twist that did surprise me - - but that was it. If Pulse hadn't left me feeling so bored, I might actually care that there were questions that were not answered: how exactly to Wire Codes work? How can a string of computer code (which is what Wire Codes were, I think) become a drug that actually affects the mind like cocaine or meth? What's the political regime exactly? So if the rebels aren't wanting to get rid of the States, who exactly are they fighting? What's this about Clara and Wade being invincible against everything except living things? Okay, that deserves double question marks. The bottom line is, though, that I didn't care about any of the characters, nor the plot, nor the world, so I don't even care that these questions aren't answered. Will I read Book #2? Only if you pay me.
Recommended Audience: Guy-read, sixteen-and-up.
Characters: I am saving the protagonist for last, and beginning with Hawk, the nerdy little dude who also has a tendency of talking way too much and cracking jokes that, in the hands of a different character, might be a little funny, but were mostly annoying in this. I liked Hawk literally for half a second. And then he started invading the two main girls' personal space and sniffing their perfume and their grape bubblegum-scented breath and eyeing their bottoms in tight jeans . . . Um, when did creepy little twerp become a positive trait in potential friends? After that, I just knew that Hawk was one of those geeks who used his ridiculous techie talents to hack into people's personal lives and probably access porno, and it's impossible for me to feeling anything but revulsion for such a slimy little creature. Wade is a jerk, and at least we're supposed to agree with this feeling. But he is so obviously a jerk that not only is he no fun to hate, but it also calls into question our protagonist's good sense. You have to be completely brain dead to want to hang out with a guy like Wade - and his inexplicably power-hungry sister Clara, whose obsession with power and force was so ridiculous that she could audition to be the next Sith Lord (and yes, she was that horribly cliche as well). Then there's Liz, our protagonist's best friend. I didn't really care either way about Liz, until the Author introduced her obsession with touch. And just the way the Author talked about Liz's attraction to how things feel running through her hands came across as majorly creepy. Now, my mind does not jump in that direction in general. Something has to come across as seriously wrong for my radar to go up. Liz touching things and holding Faith's hand and dating the guy she did simply because his hands were softer than a baby's bottom . . . . It just felt so very wrong. And I am not the sort of person who, when seeing two girls holding hands, I think they're a couple. I have nothing against best friends holding hands. But in this case, it felt like it was supposed to be more. Dylan, the obvious love interest, was okay. Yeah, he watched Faith sleep every night and had a tendency of stalking people, but compared to everyone else in the book, he really didn't seem all that creepy. He was quiet, matter of fact, kept to himself, and just didn't really do anything that set off alarm bells. Though he was described as looking like a skater dude and had a bad propensity towards wearing V-neck T-shirts, that isn't how I pictured him. So Dylan, at least, I liked relatively well. As for Faith, the protagonist. Talk about a bland heroine, not to mention pretty flaky. I got really tired of her drooling over tall people, tight jeans, and going off with complete strangers when common sense screamed, "Hold it right there, missy! Are you begging for something bad to happen to you? Again?" Yes, because the very first time Faith just goes off with someone, something bad happens to her. So what does she do? Goes off again with someone she doesn't know, in the middle of night! Brilliant, Faith, just brilliant. Other than her magnificent lack of street smarts, she was just dull. There wasn't much of a personality in her, even though the Author kept insisting that she had all of these traits. Sorry, but I didn't see 'em.
The Romance: There are two love triangles: Wade, Faith, and Dylan. And then Clara, Dylan, and Faith. Wade likes Faith, and Faith thinks she likes Wade for a while, but then discovers that Dylan is way hotter (the book's words, not mine). Clara likes Dylan, but Dylan likes Faith. Oh, and Hawk has a crush on Faith as well, because she's just totally the best-looking girl in the school and everyone is just dying to date her. There's a bit of posturing between Wade and Dylan, but Wade does most of it and Dylan just kind of ignores him (smart boy). Clara dreams of power and having Dylan at her side while she takes over the world - because she hates her twin brother for some reason that isn't made clear. Faith, thankfully, doesn't spend too much time drooling over Dylan's looks. I was actually surprised at how few eye-humping sessions there were. Except when the narration switched viewpoints and one of the guy characters was oodling Faith's butt. Evidence that this was written by a male author, I suppose. For the most part, the romance itself didn't bother me all that much. I didn't get why Faith liked Wade so much, since it was so glaringly obvious that he was a jerk, and I knew that she and Dylan would end up together eventually. The romance between Faith and Dylan happens fast and with very little actual emotion. That is, the Reader doesn't feel their attachment. The Author states that it's there, but I didn't tune into it at all. It was flat.
Plot: You will have noticed that the official synopsis is pretty vague. I think this is because the person writing it didn't know what the book was about any more than I do. I expected a dystopian novel with teens finding out about their amazing powers and having to face down a government. That's not exactly what happens, so the Author should get points for originality, right? Well, maybe, except that whatever new idea he chose wasn't made very clear in the book. The year is 2051. Global warming has wiped out a good portion of the population (of the world, I think, not just the US, though that isn't made entirely clear). In order to save what remains of humanity, a brilliant scientist had the idea of creating these bio-dome-like places called States. They are basically massive cities contained in force fields, where people live in perfect little houses and in perfectly clean and safe cities. So global warming doesn't spread, things like fossil fuels are outlawed. But not everyone lives in these States. Some have chosen to live outside of them. But because this well-intentioned governmental body (that isn't explained, either) is so benevolent and only wants what's best for humanity, they have supplied the world with Tablets (no, the Author doesn't bother to change the name, which is both good and bad), so the outsiders can be monitored and sent "this is what you're missing" propaganda films that really aren't propaganda at all. And when an outsider decides to go into the city, they can contact the States and this friendly regime sends white vans out to collect them. I kept waiting for something sinister; it didn't come. I also kept waiting for it to be explained why living outside of the States was such a bad thing. No one was starving, kids were still being educated, they had homes - it all seemed perfectly fine outside of the States. Faith Daniels is living outside of the States, and when she starts attending a new school, she meets Wade and Clara - unbelievably tall and beautiful twin brother and sister. Faith also meets Hawk, the creepy little hacker who we're supposed to think is cute and funny, and Dylan - the quiet kid of the school who is labeled as a troublemaker, even though he doesn't seem to cause any trouble whatsoever. Pulse takes a hefty 175+ pages to actually get into Faith and Dylan's amazing telekinetic powers. The first 175 pages are spent on daily life at the school, interjecting ineffective bits of foreshadowing, and not explaining the economics/politics/structure of this futuristic 2051 America. And when we finally get to learn about the telekinetic stuff (which is the only thing Readers will care about), it's pretty lame. Laughable, in fact. It's just . . . silly. Nothing like The Darkest Minds. The rules feel like they were made up on the spot, sudden plot twists are revealed that just come across as pathetic attempts at - well, a plot twist, there's more worthless foreshadowing, and then the whole book dissolves into - you guessed it! Futuristic Summer Olympics! Just what I want to read about in a story with telekinesis! Boredom went straight to sheer agony. I wanted to scrape my nails across my brain; at least the pain caused by such an act would have been more interesting than the sharp headache pounding against my skull from dullness.
Believability: If you're going to go with a natural disaster scenario, don't choose global warming. Whether you believe it's real or not, as soon as an Author goes with global warming, it automatically feels like they're pedaling their personal political opinions, and no Reader likes that. And this whole idea that the nations of the world will come together to save humanity in such a crisis is laughable. Sorry, but nations don't work like that. Something happens to weaken a country, another country is there to take advantage of that. And can I just say: a huge, thoroughly clean city? Really? Cities aren't clean! They are some of the dirtiest places on Earth!
Writing Style: Third person, past tense. However, the point of view kept changing mid-narration. One minute, we would be following Faith's thoughts and feelings (in third person), and then we would suddenly be receiving Hawk's thoughts and feelings. The writing style itself really felt juvenile. The Author tried too hard to create a sense of foreboding without actually delivering on that. He kept hinting at higher powers, people working behind the curtain, ominous dealings, and it all fell flat. The dialogue felt like something a kid would write - or an adult who was trying to write what they thought was believable teen dialogue, when in fact all of their expressions have gone out of fashion several years ago. When he tried to sound profound, that's exactly what it sounded like: a writer trying to sound profound.
Content: 4 s-words
Conclusion: It was just silly. Just absolutely hilarious - and it's not supposed to be. There was one plot twist that did surprise me - - but that was it. If Pulse hadn't left me feeling so bored, I might actually care that there were questions that were not answered: how exactly to Wire Codes work? How can a string of computer code (which is what Wire Codes were, I think) become a drug that actually affects the mind like cocaine or meth? What's the political regime exactly? So if the rebels aren't wanting to get rid of the States, who exactly are they fighting? What's this about Clara and Wade being invincible against everything except living things? Okay, that deserves double question marks. The bottom line is, though, that I didn't care about any of the characters, nor the plot, nor the world, so I don't even care that these questions aren't answered. Will I read Book #2? Only if you pay me.
Recommended Audience: Guy-read, sixteen-and-up.
July 17, 2013
Now sometimes you just need a good ol', genetically-engineered-teenagers-in-post-global-warming-world book.
That's what I was expecting, and that's what I got.
First of all, it's pretty clean. A couple minor swears, and yes, a kiss at the end (or two or three, I kinda skipped that kissing-in-the-hospital, after-heroine-has-almost-died-saving-the-hero part [epitome of stereotypical genetically-engineered-teenagers book, right?]) but really? way better than most trash out there.
BAD THINGS.
A lot of flaws here, my friends, and I won't pretend.
I have a huge problem with this vague and cheesy paragraph:
"Faith . . . . produced a harsh but brilliant drawing. There was no doubting an artistic ability that blossomed most powerfully during times of grief. There had been a lot of grief lately, and her work had turned darker and more mature" (116).
How much worse can you get? HOW MUCH WORSE
The author overstates things, especially his characters' feelings. Since I'm a fast and thoughtless reader, I don't mind, because half the time I'm gonna miss when he repeats it anyways.
The whole aspect of Faith and her tattoos and Glory needed to just go away. That was an unnecessary and flat side-theme which totally distracted from the whole book. Plus, the first time Faith gets the big tattoo (which doesn't really serve a purpose at all, except for some vague "beginning of the loneliness going away" thing) it sounds like Carman is setting up for some smutty .... well . . . . smut.
HERE is a big one.
Carman has a constant propensity to write the whole chapter in one POV and suddenly, BANG! into another POV to wrap up the chapter, just a short paragraph. Once I figured out this whole deal (he don't give no line breaks or nothin') I liked it. Because it made the characters seem like impersonal pawns, instead of the paradoxical complex emotional messes that your standard YA character is these days.
Surprisingly, Carman errs little in the area of making his characters really dumb. One thing. It was obvious, and Faith is a smarty-pants. Still, it took barely 20 pages before all was made right.
One last point. TIMING. Carman is frankly not a very good technical writer. Half the time, he packs a flourishing punch; the other half, he stodges along in the mire of bad explanations. Carman especially has not mastered the art of putting things in context when they need to be in context. For example, Wade changes his haircut and does the big reveal at the Olympics. We're in Liz's point of view as she watches the crowd go wild. Then he reports:
"Girls in the State ate it up, gossiping endlessly about the hot young star...." (268)
But-but -- how is there time for these girls to eat him up when he's only just been put on their plates? And what time frame does "endlessly" connote?
GOOD stuff.
It's a stereotypical book. And I found it refreshing, because it's 3-years-ago stereotypical. I can even forgive the global warming thing. (Barely.) It was not written in first person, and furthermore, it was in third-person omniscient, and in past tense. There were more than 3 well-developed characters. I know right. Blast from the past.
I guess I mostly liked this book for the characters. The book starts off with an interesting tone to it, making everyone seem like tools. This tone appears on and off throughout and actually depletes towards the end. The love interest was lame and oddly Edward-Bellaish . . . . the evil girl was great . . . . the best friend was surprisingly good in a bad way, everything I'd expect of a stereotypical genetically engineered teenagers book. In fact, the female antagonist is pretty stellar. I actually cheer for her because she's so evil. The main character is the-key-to-saving-the-world type, yes, but I found enough faults in her to actually not mind entirely. She is an above-average, gorgeous female, but unlike most current female characters in YA fic, she has her obvious faults, and Carman puts them out there without rushing the other characters to her side to coddle her.
Pulse doesn't pretend to be something it's not, except for the cover. But that's not what we judge by, so read it.
That's what I was expecting, and that's what I got.
First of all, it's pretty clean. A couple minor swears, and yes, a kiss at the end (or two or three, I kinda skipped that kissing-in-the-hospital, after-heroine-has-almost-died-saving-the-hero part [epitome of stereotypical genetically-engineered-teenagers book, right?]) but really? way better than most trash out there.
BAD THINGS.
A lot of flaws here, my friends, and I won't pretend.
I have a huge problem with this vague and cheesy paragraph:
"Faith . . . . produced a harsh but brilliant drawing. There was no doubting an artistic ability that blossomed most powerfully during times of grief. There had been a lot of grief lately, and her work had turned darker and more mature" (116).
How much worse can you get? HOW MUCH WORSE
The author overstates things, especially his characters' feelings. Since I'm a fast and thoughtless reader, I don't mind, because half the time I'm gonna miss when he repeats it anyways.
The whole aspect of Faith and her tattoos and Glory needed to just go away. That was an unnecessary and flat side-theme which totally distracted from the whole book. Plus, the first time Faith gets the big tattoo (which doesn't really serve a purpose at all, except for some vague "beginning of the loneliness going away" thing) it sounds like Carman is setting up for some smutty .... well . . . . smut.
HERE is a big one.
Carman has a constant propensity to write the whole chapter in one POV and suddenly, BANG! into another POV to wrap up the chapter, just a short paragraph. Once I figured out this whole deal (he don't give no line breaks or nothin') I liked it. Because it made the characters seem like impersonal pawns, instead of the paradoxical complex emotional messes that your standard YA character is these days.
Surprisingly, Carman errs little in the area of making his characters really dumb. One thing. It was obvious, and Faith is a smarty-pants. Still, it took barely 20 pages before all was made right.
One last point. TIMING. Carman is frankly not a very good technical writer. Half the time, he packs a flourishing punch; the other half, he stodges along in the mire of bad explanations. Carman especially has not mastered the art of putting things in context when they need to be in context. For example, Wade changes his haircut and does the big reveal at the Olympics. We're in Liz's point of view as she watches the crowd go wild. Then he reports:
"Girls in the State ate it up, gossiping endlessly about the hot young star...." (268)
But-but -- how is there time for these girls to eat him up when he's only just been put on their plates? And what time frame does "endlessly" connote?
GOOD stuff.
It's a stereotypical book. And I found it refreshing, because it's 3-years-ago stereotypical. I can even forgive the global warming thing. (Barely.) It was not written in first person, and furthermore, it was in third-person omniscient, and in past tense. There were more than 3 well-developed characters. I know right. Blast from the past.
I guess I mostly liked this book for the characters. The book starts off with an interesting tone to it, making everyone seem like tools. This tone appears on and off throughout and actually depletes towards the end. The love interest was lame and oddly Edward-Bellaish . . . . the evil girl was great . . . . the best friend was surprisingly good in a bad way, everything I'd expect of a stereotypical genetically engineered teenagers book. In fact, the female antagonist is pretty stellar. I actually cheer for her because she's so evil. The main character is the-key-to-saving-the-world type, yes, but I found enough faults in her to actually not mind entirely. She is an above-average, gorgeous female, but unlike most current female characters in YA fic, she has her obvious faults, and Carman puts them out there without rushing the other characters to her side to coddle her.
Pulse doesn't pretend to be something it's not, except for the cover. But that's not what we judge by, so read it.
March 7, 2013
OH MY GOSH PATRICK CARMAN HAS ANOTHER BOOK COMING OUT!
I can't wait for this. Patrick Carman can do no wrong!
UPDATE MARCH 2013: Patrick Carman has to be one of my favorite authors EVER. I don't think there's been one book that he's written that I haven't read and loved. And PULSE is no exception. I loved everything about it! It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and kept me guessing until the end.
All in all, a superb novel. I can't wait to see what Patrick Carman comes up with next!
CONTENT: Violence.
I can't wait for this. Patrick Carman can do no wrong!
UPDATE MARCH 2013: Patrick Carman has to be one of my favorite authors EVER. I don't think there's been one book that he's written that I haven't read and loved. And PULSE is no exception. I loved everything about it! It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and kept me guessing until the end.
All in all, a superb novel. I can't wait to see what Patrick Carman comes up with next!
CONTENT: Violence.
November 3, 2023
This book wasn't that good.
No offense, but I don't think that men write very good romance books. Exception is John Green. But by the end of the book Dylan was somehow in love with her when he didn't even spend that much time with her.
No offense, but I don't think that men write very good romance books. Exception is John Green. But by the end of the book Dylan was somehow in love with her when he didn't even spend that much time with her.
February 27, 2013
Review Originally Posted at The Society's Bookshelf
The very first thing that struck me in Pulse was the world built around the characters. Everything seemed crafted so well, and I was drawn into the story immediately. I wasn’t sure where it was going, but I was along for the ride. I’m honestly not sure how I feel about the book, as there were definitely pros and cons to the book.
I really loved the characters. I felt that Faith was a strong female lead that really carried the book and brought me through the slow or moving parts of the books. I loved her relationship with Liz and Hawk, both of whom I adored and really felt a connection to in the book. I loved that this was a dystopian without a weird or pushing love triangle and instead spent a lot of time focusing on their friendship.
On the other hand, what I did notice is that things didn’t really pick up until I was almost halfway through. I remember sticking my bookmark in for the night and thought “What’s actually happened in this book?” Patrick is great at introducing us to the characters and the world they live in, but it seemed like way too many pages flipped by until we got to the meat of the story.
That being said, I was still drawn into the story and was entranced with what was going on. I loved Faith, Liz and Hawk. I hated Wade and Clara. I couldn’t help but feel a pull towards Dylan. But I felt that their development was delayed in the same problem that the plot was; I felt it took way too long to further their story. I think part of the problem is that even though this is the first in a trilogy, there was just too much going on.
Despite some of the shortcomings I found with this book, there was so much more I fell head over heels with. There were multiple points where I seriously sat there with my mouth open in shock with the turns Patrick was taking me on and I loved it. Overall, this was a fresh new take on the dystopian genre and I can’t wait for the sequel.
The very first thing that struck me in Pulse was the world built around the characters. Everything seemed crafted so well, and I was drawn into the story immediately. I wasn’t sure where it was going, but I was along for the ride. I’m honestly not sure how I feel about the book, as there were definitely pros and cons to the book.
I really loved the characters. I felt that Faith was a strong female lead that really carried the book and brought me through the slow or moving parts of the books. I loved her relationship with Liz and Hawk, both of whom I adored and really felt a connection to in the book. I loved that this was a dystopian without a weird or pushing love triangle and instead spent a lot of time focusing on their friendship.
On the other hand, what I did notice is that things didn’t really pick up until I was almost halfway through. I remember sticking my bookmark in for the night and thought “What’s actually happened in this book?” Patrick is great at introducing us to the characters and the world they live in, but it seemed like way too many pages flipped by until we got to the meat of the story.
That being said, I was still drawn into the story and was entranced with what was going on. I loved Faith, Liz and Hawk. I hated Wade and Clara. I couldn’t help but feel a pull towards Dylan. But I felt that their development was delayed in the same problem that the plot was; I felt it took way too long to further their story. I think part of the problem is that even though this is the first in a trilogy, there was just too much going on.
Despite some of the shortcomings I found with this book, there was so much more I fell head over heels with. There were multiple points where I seriously sat there with my mouth open in shock with the turns Patrick was taking me on and I loved it. Overall, this was a fresh new take on the dystopian genre and I can’t wait for the sequel.
July 22, 2013
I really liked that the main character was tall :) I'm not sure why but it made it super awesome.
Also, I really liked that the book was written in third person and that you got to do different perspectives. it wasn't a difficult way though. I have a hard time when authors do different perspectives every chapter, because it always ends up being too long or too short and i end up feeling annoyed. But in this book, Patrick Carman smoothly would transfer to someone else's perspective without any warning and in a sense, it almost made me more intimate with all the characters--it brought them to a more personal level somehow. And he didn't have a pattern to it. You simply switched to different perspectives when you needed to know something for just the right amount of time. And, of course there were a couple times when you would get a different perspective to keep up the suspense for the reader :)
Also, I really liked it because it varied from all the many dystopian books by
And then you add the factor of and it becomes a fabulous book.
However, there were swears in the book. :( Not my favorite :( :(
Honestly, this book might actually have been more like a three star book, but I just have not come across a good book for a while that it was a really refreshing thing to read this book and feel thoroughly entertained.
Any way, million stickers to patrick carman.
Also, I really liked that the book was written in third person and that you got to do different perspectives. it wasn't a difficult way though. I have a hard time when authors do different perspectives every chapter, because it always ends up being too long or too short and i end up feeling annoyed. But in this book, Patrick Carman smoothly would transfer to someone else's perspective without any warning and in a sense, it almost made me more intimate with all the characters--it brought them to a more personal level somehow. And he didn't have a pattern to it. You simply switched to different perspectives when you needed to know something for just the right amount of time. And, of course there were a couple times when you would get a different perspective to keep up the suspense for the reader :)
Also, I really liked it because it varied from all the many dystopian books by
And then you add the factor of and it becomes a fabulous book.
However, there were swears in the book. :( Not my favorite :( :(
Honestly, this book might actually have been more like a three star book, but I just have not come across a good book for a while that it was a really refreshing thing to read this book and feel thoroughly entertained.
Any way, million stickers to patrick carman.
July 5, 2013
Global warming has led to the establishment of enclosed States that are gobbling up land by expanding their walls. Outside the State, Faith Daniels tries to enjoy a little bit of freedom by sneaking into an abandoned school to read books. At her high school she takes classes on her tablet with only a few adults at the school to monitor the students. The tablets are used for more than just education; they are used by the States to draw people inside by enticing them with entertainment that can only be viewed inside the State, and they provide access to goods such as designer pants which are not affordable to those outside the State. There is something unusual about Faith, at night when she’s cold a blanket will miraculously float down to cover her. After a bizarre incident with a dangerous boy named Wade she discovers that she has the ability to move things with her mind, a “pulse.” Faith is trained by Dylan, who also has the pulse, in how to control this new power and about how to protect herself. He isn’t telling her everything; there are secrets behind the half truths he tells her. Another friend, Hawk, is a hacker with some unique abilities including being able to hack the tablets for things he wants. Faith, Dylan, and Hawk will combine their talents against unforeseen forces. The suspenseful plot twists, good versus evil, and budding romance will keep readers fully engaged. The realistic future setting will draw flocks of dystopia fans. This book is the first in what will certainly be a successful series. Readers will early await the next installment.
June 7, 2013
Carmen did an amazing job of writing not only a believable story but amazing as well. With its time frame only 30 years from now, you could actually imagine a world such as this. It's a little scary to think about.
Faith is one of a kind. I loved how you were thrown in her "normal" life only to watch it get turned upside down by the unthinkable. You really got to know her and understand her need for Liz and then Hawk.
Tablets and natural disasters? Sounds familiar. I think that was the best part of this book. The similarities you can pull from to our own modern way of life. The believability here is what makes this story. The only twist on reality is the Pulse.
The only thing I wasn't quite sure about was how he went about it. You were like clueless up until the end. Secrets and half truths left you needing to read more. Which is why I came to like this book. The mystery and suspecting left you with only glimpses of what was going on but in the end it was totally worth it. I cannot wait for the next installment to find out more about this cataclysmic world so close to what could actually happen.
Carman definitely delivered with this adventurous, suspenseful tale of great characters and evolving relationships. If you haven't read it, do it.
Faith is one of a kind. I loved how you were thrown in her "normal" life only to watch it get turned upside down by the unthinkable. You really got to know her and understand her need for Liz and then Hawk.
Tablets and natural disasters? Sounds familiar. I think that was the best part of this book. The similarities you can pull from to our own modern way of life. The believability here is what makes this story. The only twist on reality is the Pulse.
The only thing I wasn't quite sure about was how he went about it. You were like clueless up until the end. Secrets and half truths left you needing to read more. Which is why I came to like this book. The mystery and suspecting left you with only glimpses of what was going on but in the end it was totally worth it. I cannot wait for the next installment to find out more about this cataclysmic world so close to what could actually happen.
Carman definitely delivered with this adventurous, suspenseful tale of great characters and evolving relationships. If you haven't read it, do it.
January 9, 2015
2.5 stars
This book wasn’t what I was expecting, and I didn’t really enjoy it.
The characters in this were all pretty immature, and I didn’t really like any of them. They irritated me a bit in places, and I didn’t really care much what happened to them.
The storyline in this bored me a bit, there was some action, and things happened that I didn’t see coming, but I just felt bored most of the time, and there were some predictable moments too. Things weren’t explained well, even with the info dumps, and it was really difficult to know what the heck was going on. Wire codes were both a sort of drug and a way of hacking? States were created to keep people living a clean life all in one place? What?
The ending again had a bit of action, but I was really bored by that point. Not looking forward to the other books in the series.
5 out of 10
This book wasn’t what I was expecting, and I didn’t really enjoy it.
The characters in this were all pretty immature, and I didn’t really like any of them. They irritated me a bit in places, and I didn’t really care much what happened to them.
The storyline in this bored me a bit, there was some action, and things happened that I didn’t see coming, but I just felt bored most of the time, and there were some predictable moments too. Things weren’t explained well, even with the info dumps, and it was really difficult to know what the heck was going on. Wire codes were both a sort of drug and a way of hacking? States were created to keep people living a clean life all in one place? What?
The ending again had a bit of action, but I was really bored by that point. Not looking forward to the other books in the series.
5 out of 10
November 23, 2012
I loved this book so much! Originally I only wanted to read it because the main character's name was Faith, but I am so happy that it was much more. It reminded me of Divergent plus a better version of vs. Reality. It was just great I wanted to thank Mr. Carman for giving me this great masterpiece of writing that left me with so much longing for the next that I felt like crying. I kept on saying, NO! Whenever the character fell into something bad. The characters emotions were my emotions because of the passion that they held. A MUST READ! !!
March 25, 2016
We had to read this book for class and it started out all kissy-kissy goo-goo, but then it picked up and was actually pretty fantastic. I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn't mind all the lovey dovey stuff, and likes science-fiction.
August 1, 2013
The year. 2051. Dystopian world. Cause. Environmental kaputz. People stay in dome like states in order to safeguard the earth, or something along those lines. The book was rather vague into all the world building. We only get the gist at the end, all neatly tied in a few pages. Faith is special because she can move things with her mind. There are bad people in the world. Dylan is a boy that helps her discover her powers and her mission. Blah.
I had high hopes for this book. It had received great buzz in many of the book blogs and it had a great media campaign. It was a dystopian book, right up my alley. Well....You know how you sometimes can't put down a book? Well, this wansn't it. I couldn't stop putting this down. I had to force myself to finish it. This book was so dull and boring, full of two dimentional character who are suddenly the most important people ever. Yawn.
The writing....Lemony Snickett's books have more mature writing than this. (i loved those books.) But, those are for kids, you may say. Well...that should tell you something. Let me put it this way, the world building, characterization, show of emotions is done mostly by the author, Patrick Carman, telling you ...no, spelling it out for you: Faith is sad, but she doesn't know it is about to get worse. Faith was scared, little did she know things were about to get worse. And so on. This is not a young adult book, it is barely a middle school one, 6th grade reading level. Actually, this is way below a 6th grader's level.
The characters. As mentioned, they were two dimentional, never fully developed characters that did things just because. We are never really treated to their motivations, (except when specifically spelled out by the author) and sometimes they just show up doing things and we have no context as to how they got there (Hawk at the end, anyone?)
The plot. I am still not sure what the motivations behind the antagonists are, other than anarchy. The plot was vague and crumbly.
I really disliked this book and except for the random good one liner,it had no other redeeming qualities. I did not like the characters, I didn't care for them, nor was I invested in their future. They were mere shadows of what mediocre characters should be. Pass on this. Really. Don't waste your time.
I had high hopes for this book. It had received great buzz in many of the book blogs and it had a great media campaign. It was a dystopian book, right up my alley. Well....You know how you sometimes can't put down a book? Well, this wansn't it. I couldn't stop putting this down. I had to force myself to finish it. This book was so dull and boring, full of two dimentional character who are suddenly the most important people ever. Yawn.
The writing....Lemony Snickett's books have more mature writing than this. (i loved those books.) But, those are for kids, you may say. Well...that should tell you something. Let me put it this way, the world building, characterization, show of emotions is done mostly by the author, Patrick Carman, telling you ...no, spelling it out for you: Faith is sad, but she doesn't know it is about to get worse. Faith was scared, little did she know things were about to get worse. And so on. This is not a young adult book, it is barely a middle school one, 6th grade reading level. Actually, this is way below a 6th grader's level.
The characters. As mentioned, they were two dimentional, never fully developed characters that did things just because. We are never really treated to their motivations, (except when specifically spelled out by the author) and sometimes they just show up doing things and we have no context as to how they got there (Hawk at the end, anyone?)
The plot. I am still not sure what the motivations behind the antagonists are, other than anarchy. The plot was vague and crumbly.
I really disliked this book and except for the random good one liner,it had no other redeeming qualities. I did not like the characters, I didn't care for them, nor was I invested in their future. They were mere shadows of what mediocre characters should be. Pass on this. Really. Don't waste your time.
March 4, 2014
Maybe I'm getting old and fantasy romances like this about the not so far away future make life more interesting but to all you folks that dissed it Pulse beware because this middle-age mama loved it !
Since reading Carrie I thought it would be really cool to move things with my mind and in this story Faith has this power along with a handful of others who live outside the dense super city "States " post global warming crisis. Everybody has a tablet that shrinks down to pocket size but does everything from teach students in mass to order jeans (not so futuristic really) There are some great teenage heroes, including the mysterious (but not Edward-like Twilight vacancy) Dylan, and the super nerdy he's almost cool Hawk. There are evil twins, Clara and Wade, who are the mean and beautiful cool kids with their own powers.
Yup it's Hunger Games meets Breakfast Club... And this is only book ONE in best selling author Patrick Carman's trilogy. Moving on to TREMOR... The sequel. Get it now!
Since reading Carrie I thought it would be really cool to move things with my mind and in this story Faith has this power along with a handful of others who live outside the dense super city "States " post global warming crisis. Everybody has a tablet that shrinks down to pocket size but does everything from teach students in mass to order jeans (not so futuristic really) There are some great teenage heroes, including the mysterious (but not Edward-like Twilight vacancy) Dylan, and the super nerdy he's almost cool Hawk. There are evil twins, Clara and Wade, who are the mean and beautiful cool kids with their own powers.
Yup it's Hunger Games meets Breakfast Club... And this is only book ONE in best selling author Patrick Carman's trilogy. Moving on to TREMOR... The sequel. Get it now!
March 1, 2014
Oookkkaaayyyy. The only excitement in this book took place maybe the last 10%. It's as if this book was written just to set us up for the second. There are no answers given up until the last segments and by then I was turned off completely. Characters were so boring. No joke. The only one who had some saving grace was Hawk. He's a cutie. Hot hero stud muffin mysterio boy had as much personality as a brick. Oh and cue Twilight for the creepy sleep watcher. Le sigh. If you need a sleeping pill, read this book before bed.
January 1, 2015
Actual rating - 2.5
This wasn't a very enjoyable read for me.
The characters were all rather dull, so i didn't love any of them.
The storyline in this was quite weird and confusing, and it just couldn't keep my interest. I was glad when the book was over!
Overall, Weird, confusing, not a great read for me.
This wasn't a very enjoyable read for me.
The characters were all rather dull, so i didn't love any of them.
The storyline in this was quite weird and confusing, and it just couldn't keep my interest. I was glad when the book was over!
Overall, Weird, confusing, not a great read for me.
March 25, 2016
This book didn't really get exciting till the end. It was very sad to learn that she lost many people she loved, but she turned out to be really powerful in the end. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes science fiction.
March 25, 2016
I was really bored and confused with this book but I kind of liked it. It was a very interesting story the author came up.
February 20, 2018
This book seemed to be fantastic during the first 280 pages, but then turned around and started to tell another story. It felt as if the author was trying to cram the last section into the book just to set it up for a sequel which left a bad taste in my mouth. After looking at other series from the author I'm starting to think that he's just trying to make every series three books long so he can get as much money as possible from them.
May 22, 2020
Great book want to keep reading for the whole day lot's of information, action, love, and others! Overall great book!
February 2, 2020
Great book! I can't wait to read the next installment in the series!
October 27, 2017
Review
I liked this book a lot because I thought the setting was very interesting, and I wanted to know more about where the characters lived. I liked how relatable Faith's friendship with Liz is to me. One thing I did not really like was when characters that were developed, died. However, I loved how developed all the characters are towards the end of the book. The author does a really nice job with characterization.
Plot
Faith has moved around to many different schools over the course of her life, because she lives outside the States. People that live outside the states gradually move to the States because it has promises of a better and longer life, that will guarantee survival of the human race. Faith finds out she can move things with her mind, when a boy in her class named Dylan, shows her how to. Dylan works on training Faith, and while she was training her best friend, Liz, moved to the states. Liz gets killed by Clara, an evil girl in Faith's school, so Faith wants revenge on her.
Characterization
Faith changed over the course of the book because at first she was content with everything the way things were, now she has to plot revenge. In the beginning of the book she had a best friend Liz and a new friend named Hawk. When Faith meets up with a boy she kinda likes, her best friend leaves her which makes her very sad. While her best friend is in the states she gets killed by Clara, which makes Faith very angry and hateful towards the world. At the end of the book she is still plotting her revenge on Clara and on her brother also.
Recommendations
I would recommend this book to middle and high schoolers because this book does not have any inappropriate things that happen (As in foul language.) This book could be for both genders because it isn't that romantic. The book has an interesting setting which is very cool to acquire more information on it during the course of the book, which a boy or girl could like.
I liked this book a lot because I thought the setting was very interesting, and I wanted to know more about where the characters lived. I liked how relatable Faith's friendship with Liz is to me. One thing I did not really like was when characters that were developed, died. However, I loved how developed all the characters are towards the end of the book. The author does a really nice job with characterization.
Plot
Faith has moved around to many different schools over the course of her life, because she lives outside the States. People that live outside the states gradually move to the States because it has promises of a better and longer life, that will guarantee survival of the human race. Faith finds out she can move things with her mind, when a boy in her class named Dylan, shows her how to. Dylan works on training Faith, and while she was training her best friend, Liz, moved to the states. Liz gets killed by Clara, an evil girl in Faith's school, so Faith wants revenge on her.
Characterization
Faith changed over the course of the book because at first she was content with everything the way things were, now she has to plot revenge. In the beginning of the book she had a best friend Liz and a new friend named Hawk. When Faith meets up with a boy she kinda likes, her best friend leaves her which makes her very sad. While her best friend is in the states she gets killed by Clara, which makes Faith very angry and hateful towards the world. At the end of the book she is still plotting her revenge on Clara and on her brother also.
Recommendations
I would recommend this book to middle and high schoolers because this book does not have any inappropriate things that happen (As in foul language.) This book could be for both genders because it isn't that romantic. The book has an interesting setting which is very cool to acquire more information on it during the course of the book, which a boy or girl could like.
September 15, 2023
4/5 Stars
Date Reviewed: 30 August 2016
This Review was first posted on It’s All Anthony. For more reviews, check out the blog here.
If you knew me, I am a major telekinesis geek and anything related to that instantly grabs my attention. When I saw the summary of this story, I immediately threw it into my "to be read" list without a second thought. I knew it was going to be a good read, and I knew I was going to be right about it. (Guess what, I was!)
Having a "Pulse" was a creative take in describing or calling a super-power, or just the telekinetic abilities. Reading about the pulse, was better than reading someone saying "you have telekinesis." Reading it as a "pulse" was like reading something new and different.
Before I began to review this book, I looked at previous reviews by others to see what others said this book. I was sort of surprised where most people believed that this wasn't even a good point. So I decided to take some of their points that I agreed or disagreed with.
"Pulse is full of action" was the first point I came across. Here, I agreed with the person saying there was not much of it. I wished that there was more action through out the book. At first, I let it slide due to my thoughts saying the story is only building, the action will come through towards the middle. When I got through the middle, not much was happening, except doing little movements and stuff. It was finally getting somewhere, but it missed a level. It wasn't until the complete ending the action fully picked up and was worth reading. The progress of the actions was nice overall, but it could have used more actions, and overall, could've been wrote in at a somewhat faster pace.
Hawk as a character was another point I've came across. I've seen many pointing out that he was a completely useless character. I believe otherwise. If it was just Faith and Liz, and Wade and Dylan, I would have thought the story would be like almost all other books, and possibly boring. Hawk offered a different setting to the book, he added something to make it different. Others that he wasn't needed at all, but trust me when I say, as part of the story, he was and is a needed character. I don't think I could have seen it any other way.
I have seen others commenting on the romance and how there wasn't even much about. To a point, I have to agree on this. I know it was stated in the summary, that it should have been expected. It was in the story, the plot, but I just think people expected to much of the romance. I believe the amount of romance was just the right amount. Any less, it would have been to weird. Any more, it would have been to much and distracting away from the story. In this kind of story, I do not think the romance should have been a major plot. Of course it was a part, but it was just not a big part of it. The big part was the Pulse and how to deal with it, not the romance.
This was one of the best, simplest book I have read. I think people have expected to much in the story and set high bars before reading it, and in return for that, they did not enjoy the book as much. I have read this book with an open-mind, excited to see how the topic of telekinesis would be used. In return for that, I really enjoyed this book. Keep an open mind, and enjoy the book. After all, telekinesis is about using the mind.
Date Reviewed: 30 August 2016
This Review was first posted on It’s All Anthony. For more reviews, check out the blog here.
If you knew me, I am a major telekinesis geek and anything related to that instantly grabs my attention. When I saw the summary of this story, I immediately threw it into my "to be read" list without a second thought. I knew it was going to be a good read, and I knew I was going to be right about it. (Guess what, I was!)
Having a "Pulse" was a creative take in describing or calling a super-power, or just the telekinetic abilities. Reading about the pulse, was better than reading someone saying "you have telekinesis." Reading it as a "pulse" was like reading something new and different.
Before I began to review this book, I looked at previous reviews by others to see what others said this book. I was sort of surprised where most people believed that this wasn't even a good point. So I decided to take some of their points that I agreed or disagreed with.
"Pulse is full of action" was the first point I came across. Here, I agreed with the person saying there was not much of it. I wished that there was more action through out the book. At first, I let it slide due to my thoughts saying the story is only building, the action will come through towards the middle. When I got through the middle, not much was happening, except doing little movements and stuff. It was finally getting somewhere, but it missed a level. It wasn't until the complete ending the action fully picked up and was worth reading. The progress of the actions was nice overall, but it could have used more actions, and overall, could've been wrote in at a somewhat faster pace.
Hawk as a character was another point I've came across. I've seen many pointing out that he was a completely useless character. I believe otherwise. If it was just Faith and Liz, and Wade and Dylan, I would have thought the story would be like almost all other books, and possibly boring. Hawk offered a different setting to the book, he added something to make it different. Others that he wasn't needed at all, but trust me when I say, as part of the story, he was and is a needed character. I don't think I could have seen it any other way.
I have seen others commenting on the romance and how there wasn't even much about. To a point, I have to agree on this. I know it was stated in the summary, that it should have been expected. It was in the story, the plot, but I just think people expected to much of the romance. I believe the amount of romance was just the right amount. Any less, it would have been to weird. Any more, it would have been to much and distracting away from the story. In this kind of story, I do not think the romance should have been a major plot. Of course it was a part, but it was just not a big part of it. The big part was the Pulse and how to deal with it, not the romance.
This was one of the best, simplest book I have read. I think people have expected to much in the story and set high bars before reading it, and in return for that, they did not enjoy the book as much. I have read this book with an open-mind, excited to see how the topic of telekinesis would be used. In return for that, I really enjoyed this book. Keep an open mind, and enjoy the book. After all, telekinesis is about using the mind.
February 3, 2014
This review can originally be found at The Twins Read.
You know how this book promised riveting action scenes as stated on the flap of the book jacket? Yeah. That's probably what drew me in along with the promise of telekinesis and flying boulders and general chaos all around. I mean, bad guys that can throw people and objects around like a rag doll? Count me in yo.
Did I get what I was promised? Nope. Not at all. This was a total downer, my friends.
Let's start with the characters - Faith, the protagonist, is an airhead. She's bratty and I don't like her and I really wouldn't trust her to be able to save a life, much less the whole world. She falls instantly in love with this jerk named Wade. At least the book admits its love at first sight, quote "They were having a moment, both of them instantly attracted to each other." On page 21. I don't exactly hate love at first sight in books because sometimes its actually kind of cute, but this? Just no.
And aside from Wade there's also Dylan who I wanted to like but he just had to go and do the watching-people-sleep thing which is unbearably creepy. I get that he was watching over her but come on Dylan, stop being such a creeper.
What I also didn't like about Faith was how she treated Hawk, one of the guys at her new school. I mean he's a little forward but she's never actually talked with the guy and she's already pegged him as the crown prince of dorks. He's a geek and a great hacker for one but there's no need to call him a stalker just because he wanted to strike up conversation. (Why are you so full of yourself, Faith? You're nothing special. Not to me.) And you know how they became friends? I don't, but I'm betting it involved him buying her clothes.
Obviously I'm not a fan of the relationships in this book, they're all so messed up I can't even. If I could, I'd slap Faith because I don't get why she's so special. I can't wrap my head around why people fawn over her.
I also don't understand why it took so long for Faith's powers to manifest and until they did, it was a boring trek through Faith's everyday life of hanging with her friend, boys and clothes and Dylan and Wade plus a not on her table with the words YOU MOVED ME which I still don't understand and won't even try to.
Now let's move on to that thing where I was promised "riveting action scenes". It wasn't until the second half of the book where all the action started happening and it was very, very boring. Come on guys, tossing around cars with the power of your mind should be fun. And the world building? Poor. The education system is a strange, if everyone's using tablets to study why even bother going to school? It isn't like as if the teachers there actually administer tests or anything.
I guess my favorite parts in the book were when Faith got hurt and things weren't going her way. Like that part when she and Dylan were training and he tossed things at her face and she got hit. That was a definite highlight of this book. I hope she gets hurt more often.
With its poor world building, slow pace and unlikable characters, you can bet that I won't even bother with the second book. You guys are better off looking for your fix of dystopian books elsewhere.
You know how this book promised riveting action scenes as stated on the flap of the book jacket? Yeah. That's probably what drew me in along with the promise of telekinesis and flying boulders and general chaos all around. I mean, bad guys that can throw people and objects around like a rag doll? Count me in yo.
Did I get what I was promised? Nope. Not at all. This was a total downer, my friends.
Let's start with the characters - Faith, the protagonist, is an airhead. She's bratty and I don't like her and I really wouldn't trust her to be able to save a life, much less the whole world. She falls instantly in love with this jerk named Wade. At least the book admits its love at first sight, quote "They were having a moment, both of them instantly attracted to each other." On page 21. I don't exactly hate love at first sight in books because sometimes its actually kind of cute, but this? Just no.
And aside from Wade there's also Dylan who I wanted to like but he just had to go and do the watching-people-sleep thing which is unbearably creepy. I get that he was watching over her but come on Dylan, stop being such a creeper.
What I also didn't like about Faith was how she treated Hawk, one of the guys at her new school. I mean he's a little forward but she's never actually talked with the guy and she's already pegged him as the crown prince of dorks. He's a geek and a great hacker for one but there's no need to call him a stalker just because he wanted to strike up conversation. (Why are you so full of yourself, Faith? You're nothing special. Not to me.) And you know how they became friends? I don't, but I'm betting it involved him buying her clothes.
Obviously I'm not a fan of the relationships in this book, they're all so messed up I can't even. If I could, I'd slap Faith because I don't get why she's so special. I can't wrap my head around why people fawn over her.
I also don't understand why it took so long for Faith's powers to manifest and until they did, it was a boring trek through Faith's everyday life of hanging with her friend, boys and clothes and Dylan and Wade plus a not on her table with the words YOU MOVED ME which I still don't understand and won't even try to.
Now let's move on to that thing where I was promised "riveting action scenes". It wasn't until the second half of the book where all the action started happening and it was very, very boring. Come on guys, tossing around cars with the power of your mind should be fun. And the world building? Poor. The education system is a strange, if everyone's using tablets to study why even bother going to school? It isn't like as if the teachers there actually administer tests or anything.
I guess my favorite parts in the book were when Faith got hurt and things weren't going her way. Like that part when she and Dylan were training and he tossed things at her face and she got hit. That was a definite highlight of this book. I hope she gets hurt more often.
With its poor world building, slow pace and unlikable characters, you can bet that I won't even bother with the second book. You guys are better off looking for your fix of dystopian books elsewhere.
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