c3

46. Ascending #4

by Sherrie R. Cronin

A Texan teenager develops an unusual ability when she becomes an exchange student in India. Once human trafficking touches her world, her mysterious talent shows hope for locating her friends. If she only knew what the talent was and how to use it.

A stranger makes her an unexpected offer. He will train her to find her missing friends, but she will need trust in ideas she barely believes and more courage than has ever been expected of her. Also, she’ll never be normal again.

She accepts his offer, intending to show those guilty of unspeakable crimes just how powerful a young woman can be.

(Author's note: This is an updated and shortened version of the book previously published as c3.)

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Paranormal, Fiction

340 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 29, 2014

About the author

Sherrie Cronin is the author of a collection of six speculative fiction novels known as 46. Ascending and is now in the process of publishing a historical fantasy series called The War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters. A quick look at the synopses of her books makes it obvious she is fascinated by people achieving the astonishing by developing abilities they barely knew they had.

She’s made a lot of stops along the way to writing these novels. She’s lived in seven cities, visited forty-six countries, and worked as a waitress, technical writer, and geophysicist. Now she answers a hot-line. Along the way, she’s lost several cats but acquired a husband who still loves her and three kids who’ve grown up just fine, both despite how odd she is.

All her life she has wanted to either tell these kinds of stories or be Chief Science Officer on the Starship Enterprise. She now lives and writes in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where she admits to occasionally checking her phone for a message from Captain Picard, just in case.

Reviews

[Dorottya · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, I'd like to give a huge shoutout and thanks to the lovely Sherrie Cronin, who chose me as a beta reader for this book back - writing this review in July 2014. It is the first ever opportunity like this for me, and it was a really amazing experience to be kind of a part of a process to publish a book (let alone a book that is not written in my mother tongue) - and yes, I am a child at heart, and I screamed out in joy when I saw my name in the thank you section :).
I am giving nothing but my honest opinions - but honestly, I did love this book... even more than I liked z1, the first book of hers I have read. Also, Sherrie is a sweetheart, really - she was really responsive to criticism... she really appreciated when I pointed out some editing mistakes, typos and things like that.

Here are the main things I loved about c3:
-how it dealt a serious topic like human trafficking... most paranormal-ish books do not deal with anything but love and friendships... it is a refreshment to read something like c3 - and Sherrie's other books in this series
-how again, a different, unique superpower was chosen (not something boring or overused like flying or being invisible) for the main character
-I loved how Teddie's character was executed, she felt real (like how she was questioning her skills, how she wasn't brave enough and was scared sometimes)
-I also loved how a modelesque, blond, tall, slim, athletic bombshell character wasn't immediately an evil, fame-obsessed mean girl (and she kicked ass :D, which is quite rare from really attractive characters in fiction, they are usually either dumb or the human devil)
(so, all in all, I loved how there are no stereotypical characters in the book)
-I loved how the love stories were real and not cliché - like someone struggling with some beliefs of theirs about love and passion... and how the 2011 story didn't end with a monumental kissing seen for Teddie with an unbelievably hunky man... and I love how there was no insta-love, just slowly emerging emotions
-again, I love the structure, and I love how every little puzzle piece is coming together as a whole... also, it was interesting and fast pace, a book that "made itself read"
-also, with a series like this, where every book is someone else's own story, and is not an arch type series with the same characters, I like it when an author does not rely heavily in information used in the previous books. Of course, it makes sense, and it is not anything outrageous to do so, but I like it when the information pieces used are not complete spoilers, yet tell the story clear enough for a newbie reader without reading the preceding books - and Sherrie did an amazing job at that
-loved the family dynamics - also that there is a family existing and living in this book

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review *

Even before I started reading Teddie's story, while reading the introductory notes, I would already give the book 5 stars. This is not just a story about courage, family and friendship or about superpowers, but it also calls attention at the human trafficking problem, and I think that's really amazing.

But the 5 stars also go, obviously, for the story itself. It's so well written and with a very accessible english (since english is not my home language). Also loved the fact that it didn't always focused on Teddie, but it gave different perspectives of a lot of characters.

The powers that they had are also incredible. Not something that I had ever heard about, and they were quite complex but explained and understood.

And all the characters were so well developed. Specially the girls. It's a book filled with courage and amazing achievements!

Also, thank you for the sneak peek into Teddie's life in the future!

Needless to say, all the other books are now in my wishlist :)

[S. Jeyran Main · Rating 4 out of 5]

C3 is the fourth book of its series. The story is about a teenage girl from Texas. She possesses some powers that are uncontrollable. When a stranger offers her a chance to be more than what she is, the opportunity is hard to pass.

Human trafficking is taking place, and the protagonist wishes to save her missing friends. With the help of a stranger, she accepts his challenge and displays her powers taking revenge on everyone who derived it.

I found the story to be very interesting to read. The concept was great. However, there were moments when I was a little confused. The plot was intriguing, and the mystical aspects of the work were described well. I sometimes had to re-read certain parts to understand what exactly had happened. This did not take away much from experience but, it could have been avoidable.

Another interesting aspect of this book was that it focused on the mental issue of human trafficking. This made the sexual or physical aspect of the encounter to be lessened and more suitable for all ages.

I recommend this book to people that care about educating girls from developing countries.

[Analis · Rating 5 out of 5]

C3 is my 3rd English-written book (excluding lecture books, of course) and my 1st book I got from Goodreads Giveaways (Thank you, Sherrie!). Since I had decided to start my extensive reading, I have tried to read as many English-written books as possible. I was eagerly hoping this book could develop my English skill, especially in reading. The fact that the story of C3 set in India was another reason that made me wanted to read this book, even more than before. Maybe it was destiny that the book was about something happened in India, since I am a die hard fan and so attached to anything about India. Haha.

At first, I was kinda confused because the main characters from the book were described to live in different places from different backgrounds. I wasn’t able to connect the relationship among those characters until the moment they gathered together in Darjeeling, India. Since then, the story of each characters started to be linked into the same issue: woman trafficking. Most of the main characters were female, (only Lhatu, Olumijii, and Jampa who weren’t) so I concluded this is a woman-oriented book. The female characters were somehow special in their own ways since each of them had shown us how powerful a woman could be. Teddie was a talented out-of-body traveler, Haley was badly passionate about mountain trekking, Amy dedicated her life to help the victims of woman trafficking, Usha struggled to realize her parents’ dream, Vanida got herself out of prostitution after many years surviving in it, and Michelle survived from the worst situation of her life by kept being logic and rational no matter how fear she was. Somehow that made me proud as a woman.

Well, this book opened my eyes that woman trafficking is such an issue in India and other Asia countries. Even in a such high-tech and modern world that we’re live in now, woman trafficking, as one form of slavery, does exist. It is globally growing, accrossed the nation borders. And humans (I think it’s more appropriate to call them monsters), who sell and buy humans, are also exist. To some extent, they are more animal than the real animals, since even animals don’t sell their blood.

Knowing a slight fact about woman trafficking, I opened the humantrafficking.org, the site Sherrie mentioned in the back of the book, to explore more about woman trafficking in my country, Indonesia. As I have expected before, Indonesia was one of source as well as destination of human trafficking. Well, no wonder about it, since I have already heard and or read from the media many issues about non-skilled women labor from Indonesia who worked in more developed Asia countries such as Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Hongkong, Singapore, etc. often faced rape or murder cases. Unfortunately, according to humantrafficking.org, Indonesia had Batam and Karimun island, Bali, and Riau island which were known to have its sex tourism. That was what made Indonesia not only source but also destination of human trafficking. Such an ugly truth.

Having the reality that human trafficking increased year by year, education definitely should come to our priorities since it is the only way to solve the problem. We can see how Usha didn’t want to become a prostitute and how badly Vanida wanted to stop being prostitute as a proof of how education had changed their point of view regarding their lives. Luckily, at the end both of them could get what they really wanted in their lives. In my opinion, the government and the society should make serious efforts in promoting education for all the citizens so that we can hope there will be no more Usha and Vanida who have to struggle from such conditions in the future.

Beside woman trafficking, out-of-body experiences written in the book was also something that made me courious to know more about. I had heard before that there were people who had telepathy ability, but this out-of-body traveling was really new for me. I didn’t believe in the telepathy gift, and out-of-body traveling was even more harder to believe. But Sherrie made those gifts became a little bit more look real for me. Since it was something that my religion had never taught before, so I just left it to the extent that it was somehow fit to the characters yet would never happened in real life, at least in my life. If I had more free time, perhaps I will read more about this metaphysic thing.

Not only the young women trafficking issue, it’s clearly shown that Sherrie also had researched thoroughly the topic of mountain trekking, out-of-body experiences, and the demography of Asia countries, especially India, Thailand, and Bhutan. The way she linked the various material related to different topics into one blended C3 story is an ability that I believe not everyone in this world has.

Even though the book is volume four of six in the collection, I still could enjoy it without significant difficulties. But, I guess reading the whole collection will help the readers to understand a comprehensive story about the metaphysic abilities since the other volume of the books is about other Zeitman family members who has specific metaphysic abilities beside out-of body traveling.

I appreciate Sherrie as she had shown us that woman trafficking issue is crucial and needs serious efforts from us, regardless wherever country we are live in. I also appreciate her that even she’s an American, she highly concerned to this issue that happened in developing countries. Again, I want to thank her for giving me this wonderful book :)

[Keilani Ludlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, first of all, I was a beta reader for this book - if that somehow skews your opinion of my review.

This is a hard book. Not hard to read - hard subject. It left me in tears in several spots. I've read all of the books in the series and I find it to be an interesting concept, kind of a evolution of senses so to speak. Each book focused on a different sense or "ability" and I use that word loosely because this is not an Avengers or X-Men type of ability but more as if we were slowly evolving, or even as if these things were inherent in all of us but more keenly developed in some people than others, rather like the ability to mentally compute quantum physics or perform incredible gymnastics feats. In this case, the element is astral projection, with a bit of the mental telepathy back from a previous book.

Anyway, back to the subject, slavery prostitution. Young girls kidnapped and sold into prostitution rings. There would be no actual way to write about this subject without hitting some painful and graphic details. Now, I'm a person who watches my R movies (and most PG-13) edited, I don't like books with a lot of sex or swearing or graphic violence, if there aren't some characters with some moral integrity - something to make me want to invest my time into them - I'm not interested. So, that all being said, this book has some subject matter that is hard, but it is relevant and it is true. The R rated movies I do watch unedited are the historically accurate etc, the ones you can't possibly learn the truth from without seeing some ugly. So this fits in that category. It's not graphic nastiness all the way through, don't get me wrong, there is a lot of other story going on as well, I just want to forewarn you about the hard stuff but also say that it's not in there for splash or impact, it's because it's true and it's worth reading to know and to understand.

Aside from that part of the story, there is another major plot line going on and of course some smaller bits and they all eventually twist and meld together nicely. Great characters, interesting premise. I like that her characters "abilities" (again, I just haven't come up with a term that works for me yet) aren't superheroish. They're real feeling. You could see this being something that actually is possible and they're not perfect, just because someone has mental telepathy doesn't mean they're reading minds right and left or having long chatty conversations with anyone anywhere. It's very nicely done.

I'm not sure if I would say start here or get the first one from Amazon (ebook) and start there. They're all available as ebooks and most or all are paperbacks also (nice, saves on cost) and I think they're all definitely worth reading. If you start with this one, there will be little things you miss that are from the first books, but you probably won't know you missed them - the books go together but nearly stand alone as well.

[Jennifer Laube · Rating 5 out of 5]

***this review contains SOME spoilers from the beginning of the story

C3 is the forth novel in a series of 6 written by Sherrie Cronin that can be read independently or in order about the Zeitman family whom each discovers that they possess unique abilities. The unique thing about this book is that it can be interactive should you chose to use the links on the pages (typed in blue font, but not at all necessary to enjoy the story). This is 16 year-old Teddie's story. When first reading about Teddie, you discover that one night after thinking her older brother Zane was in trouble, a frightened 4 year-old Teddie appears in her brothers bathroom overlooking him retching into the toilet. Looking over at the doorway, she notices a green string of sorts, pulls it and "pops" instantly back into her own room safely secured under her blankets. Fast forward 9 years, we again encounter 13 year-old Teddie. This time at an underaged drinking party where she awakens to see herself looking down not only on a hatching nest of birds, but also her lifeless body being raped by a friends older brother. She had no idea how she was able to "detach" herself from her own body again, but eventually was able to forgive herself for allowing herself to blank out.

As a twist if fate might have it, 15 year-old Teddie gets accepted to a foreign exchange program to Darjeeling, India along with her good friend, Michelle. This is a chance to have a fresh start at a prestigious boarding school at the foot of the Himalayas. There, they meet Haley, another American teen who is training to scale a local mountain and Usha, an Indian teen sent to boarding school to escape the torments of having to repay her uncle for her deceased fathers medical bills. At the same time in the story, we follow the tale of two twins, separated when their mother was brutally murdered. Jampa is eventually dropped of at a monastery and Vanida is sold, raised and trained in the sex slave trade industry. Both twins discover that they can communicate with each other by mind teleportation. All of these characters have separate back stories, but eventually mingle together when Usha disappears and Teddies best friend, Michelle, is kidnapped in broad daylight. The plot is not too complicated given that there was a lot going on but the author keeps it rolling without the story becoming long or stalling out. Everything comes together flawlessly & the story was an unexpected good read. I also like the fact that I can pick up any of the other stories in the series in any order. This is not my typical type of book that I usually read but I can honestly say that I enjoyed it and will read the others in the series called "46. Ascending".



*I WAS GIVEN A COPY OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST OPINION. I DO NOT PROFIT FROM MY REVIEW IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never heard of Sherrie Cronin as an author until I was able to review this novel. It is the fourth in a series of six, but they can be read independently, which is nice. The books are about the Zeitman family and their unique abilities that they possess. I felt that it was awesome that I could have interacted with the book, if I chose, with the blue links that were listed on the pages. Pretty snazzy! I will have to go back through for another reading and do that. For the sake of the review time frame, I chose to just read the book straight through. This novel is about Teddie who is a 16 year old. The story starts off with a pretty weird scenario of a four year old Teddie watching her brother get sick in the bathroom and then get scared to death by an occurance. The story then moves forward nine years to where we are experiencing the Teddie when she is thirteen. She again is able to see herself in kind of an out of body experience and is frightened but also stunned that she is able to do this.

We follow multiple girls stories as they are thrown together in a foreign exchange program in India including Teddies' best friend, Michelle. The twins that we meet on a side note in the story discover that they can talk to each other through telepathy. which is awesome. We get to know all of the characters separately that way when they come together in the story we know more about them. Michelle is kidnapped and Usha disappears. This is when the girls are brought together in the story. It was nice that for so much going on the athor made it nice and simple to follow. I hate for there to be different back stories and characters and then you end up confused. That is not the case with this novel. Everything is put together beautifully and I will be going back to do the interaction with the story that I did not do on the first read. I like that the books are able to be read independently from one another because there are times where you just can't read a whole series. I usually am not drawn to this type of story but I loved it and will be huntin down the others in the series!

Disclosure: I was given a copy of this novel in exchange for my review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book in a goodreads giveaway in return for an honest review.

This is an absolutely wonderful book! I'm going to try not to gush, but I had to at least say that. This is the fourth book in a six book series, but they can be read out of order. This is the first one I read, and I didn't feel lost at all. There were parts where I'm sure reading the others would have added an element of awesomeness, but nothing in this story was lacking.

This book does deal with hard subjects such as human trafficking and rape. I appreciated seeing this though, and this is mentioned on the back of the book so everyone should know what they're getting into. I am currently working towards my MSW hoping to work with trafficking survivors, and have studied this quite a bit. It's clear Sherrie Cronin also has. I was very impressed by the amount of research she has done for this book, not just regarding trafficking, but also things like mountain climbing, out of body experiences, relevant cultures, and even animal sex habits to add some humor.

She also consulted a sociologist/psychologist for insight into the trauma and how it would affect the characters undergoing it. This shows. All of her (many) characters are well developed and grow during the story. I loved reading about them all, especially Haley who is an inspiring mountain climber. The plot was interesting and well realized. The mystical aspects were explained well and believable within the story. It was also written well. I did not want this book to end and know I'll reread it many times in the years to come. I highly recommend this book, and cannot wait to read more in the series.

[Angel Hatfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thirteen year old Zane Zeitman fumbled with the cork of the bottle of an exotic liquor he took from his parents liquor cabinet days before. Zane’s best friend was Bhadra who was an only child and suspicious of siblings. Bhadra sat alone in her family’s upstairs game room. She’d only been able to sneak one unopened can of beer. She and Zane needed to get this party going, Bhadra and Zane toasted and Bhadra closed her eyes and made herself swallow. As did Zane. the second and third gulps weren’t so bad. This whole party by phone thing was clever. He had to stay home with his sister, and Bhadara had to stay alone on New Year's Eve. Za huddled with her four year old twins where the borders of China, India, and burma all met. Tomorrow they were leaving with her family to a more protected valley holding her first born boy and girl close to her body. Then she heard the harsh war cry and knew they’d been discovered. Four year old teddie Zeitman was in a light sleep with an overactive imagination. Ariel was her wise eleven year old sister and her big brother was Zane. Then she heard Zane throwing up. She didn’t stand up because she didn’t have to. She floated up without thinking about it, then floated through her door and down the hall. She came to Zane’s door and floated through the wood. It tickled and made her giggle. Then it hit her she was floating in Zane’s room while her body was back in bed. Then she saw a thin green sparkly cord running from her floating self back down the hall. She headed for the pretty cord and felt herself snap back in her body, no floating required. They killed the adults but took the twins with them. The older brother said now they are ours. Teddie’s parents treated her like an adult when she was thirteen. Teddie was to get her homework done and than make dinner also. Teddie was to stay at Shawn’s while her parents went on a canoeing trip for the weekend. Shawna had once been a friend but there are a dozen good reasons Teddie no longer wanted anything to do with her. She thought Shawna’s creepy dad was one of the reasons they grew apart. Amy Levitt liked to wear froeign looking clothes and she had a passion for wanting to help her sisters who’d suffered violence. Her fever was fueled by some internal sense of justice that was outraged from monsters she personally hadn’t encountered. Amy had a Masters degree in Social Work. At twenty six she worked for NGO dedicated to stopping human trafficking. She was being sent overseas to run an office of six people- three were volunteers. She was going to Darjeeling, india. Jampa was a young monk in training and he knew meditation was important. He slowed his breathing and slipped into a deep trance. He had been doing it as long as long as he could remember. Jumpa had little memory of living with the traveling caravan that dumped him at the monastery door. He thanked them every day for their mercy He was told he was purchased at the age of six or seven at the time. He had been purchased by the caravan to fetch water and do shores. The caravan said he was useless because he’d go into deep trances. They offered him to the monastery as a gift. The monks accepted him and made him one of their own, named him , making him a Buddist, and a citizen Of Bhutan before he was eight. For five years now, he had hidden his real secret behind his meditative abilities from the monks. Vanida curled up on her sleeping palette and hoped she'd get to see her friend tonight. She’d known him since before Pim and Noi had become her mothers and owners. Pim and Noi were strict but they fed her everyday and gave her a soft place to sleep and that was more than the man did her sold her to them. They had hurt her between her leg. Than she had to start practicing with the other girls there. They got very good at it , because those who didn’t do the exercises well didn’t get fed. She persuaded Pim and Noi to let her practice writing with her hand and practice reading to. Than she got the women to let her learn three languages- english, japanese , and French and learn them she did with a with a speed that surprised her owners. By the time she was thirteen she could read and write in Thai, English, Japanese, and French. Shawna got her parents to agree to a sleepover at the lake camo. Shawna invited every girl in her eight grade class who drank, smoked weed, or otherwise partied , they were going to be there. The girl always joined Jumpa when he entered his trance.They never spoke, but they played together as long as he could remember. Than he arrived once naked. He snapped back to his body. The last couple of times he entered a trance she wasn’t there. Than his special body traveled to a clearing in the woods. He saw her naked and shivering, he was dressed in a light weight black robe. He saw she was crying. She’d never been crying or anything ever than happy before. He had a black robe on his hands and put the robe around her shoulders. She accepted it and pulled it tight. She knew she was of him, somehow like him . He knew he must call her sister. Amy’s organization focused on aiding former victims of human trafficking. Obvious preventing human trafficking was part of their mission. Amy got the reputation of the crazy American who charged in to save girls. Asha’s teacher encouraged her to apply for the scholarship to the English boarding school last year and her mother had her do it. Than she worked harder than she ever worked to get into the school. Usha uncle goes looking for her at school but she leaves and goes into hiding. Teddie. Michelle and haley look into Usha’s disappearance. They ask Amy to help.
I had mixed feelings about this book. I loved how the author showed the horror of human trafficking and the mental and physical toll on the females that are forced into this. How the girls are sometimes gotten, kidnapped, how some are trained to be sold.I advise everyone to read the series in order for a smoother read. But this can be read as a standalone. I loved Amy and how she wanted to help these female victims of human trafficking.How cruel people can be is shown like Usha’s uncle after her father died. The monsters and evil people there are in this world. I also liked the paranormal aspect of this book. But this drag for me at times. And I also got confused at times and I didn’t enjoy that. It's sad how real this problem is. Education needs to be given to parents and girls especially in the target countries . But I still had mixed feelings.

[Mickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. It is so much more than a fantasy/paranormal book, because as all her books, Sherrie Cronin is discussing an important topic in this one as well. In contrast to the various books that deals with slave/sex trafficking, this book is not focused on graphic physical or sexual descriptions to shock the reader, but rather on the mental aspects of the topic.
The message following all her books is that love conquers all whether it is the love of a family, friends, siblings or the one and only, and what a beautiful message it is. Through trials and difficulties friendships grows and hearts heals but the human spirit never gives up and hope is always present. I cannot agree more.
I do not want to get into the plot and wish to avoid spoilers, but i can say that the book, even though it is a standalone, is a part of a series that evolves around a very unique family. Each of the books tells the story of one of the family members who are all posses a special ability. These abilities are not making their lives easier though, and the heroes and heroins of the series struggle immensely to not only come to terms with their abilities, but learns how to benefit others as well.
C3 is very recommendable for all ages, as well as the rest of the books in this series.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is just amazing. Lately, all I have been reading is stories about teen drama mixed with a little bit of fantasy but this was just...refreshing. I think refreshing is the right word to describe it.
I loved how this book focused on bigger issues such as human trafficking. To be honest, I've never really thought about the issue in much depth until I read this book. The whole issue instantly pulled me in and I will be honest and say that I read at least 3 articles and watched 3 documentaries regarding the issue after I finished the book.
Apart from the message of C3, I liked the way the book did not only focus on one character but instead showed different point of views.
The only downer for me is that when I first began reading it, it did not grab my attention as fast as most books I read. However, I reckon that's because the books I usually read involve supernatural romance.
C3 was just so different and it has actually encouraged me to read more books regarding the issue of human trafficking.
Anyways, thanks to Sherrie Cronin for sending me a copy:)
I rate it 4.5 out of 5

[Ally Swanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was thrilled to catch back up with the Zeitman family and join them on another adventure!

This book is jam packed with science fiction, fantasy, action, adventure, mystery, suspense, intrigue, and real-world issues!!!

This book is intriguing, captivating, compelling, well-researched, with complex characters, and skillfully crafted plot points!!!

This is the fourth book I’ve read from the talented writer, S. R. Cronin. Over the past few months, I have had the privilege of delving into her Book Series, 46. Ascending and reading the first three books. I really enjoyed them, so I was excited to read her latest work – which also happens to fall in the same series. “Layers of Light,” is Book Four in the 46. Ascending Book Series.

Like with the rest of this book series, this book follows the Zeitman family. This particular book focuses on the daughter, Teddie and a semester she studies abroad in India with her best friend, Michelle.

I really like Teddie’s persistence to want to help her friends and rescue them. Teddie is still new to her family’s hidden special talents as well as being unfamiliar with her own gift and how to use it. Teddie’s special ability is being able to have a psychic connection by communicating telepathically and have out of body experiences. This is exactly the type of skill she needs to track down her missing friends that have recently been taken before they are gone forever. However, Teddie isn’t sure how to control this power so when a stranger offers her guidance to train her, she knows she must trust him, if she going to be able to save her friends in time.

I found myself completely wrapped up with the characters and immersed in their storylines!!!

I couldn’t help but cheer for Teddie and the safe return of her friends!!!

Like with the other books in this series, there are many characters thrown at you at the beginning of the book and it’s somewhat difficult to determine who to pay attention to and remember all their details. However, it isn’t long before the book mellows out enough that you’re able to catch up and realize what you need to know. Besides, that’s Cronin’s writing style and although perhaps chaotic at first, I’m not sure I’d change it, because that’s her signature.

I really enjoyed reading this book as it shined light on the grotesque, but ever so realistic issues of current day human and sex trafficking. As a Community Health Professional this topic has always been near and dear to my heart and I’ve had the personal opportunity to work with trafficking victims. This is a real matter that is affecting our country – yes, the USA, and it is NOT something that is going away overnight. I really appreciated that this book painted an honest, genuine account and didn’t sugar coat what these victims truly go through. There are some very dark elements of abuse on mental, physical, and emotional levels that stay with these survivors for the rest of their lives.

Cronin’s book’s provide real-life quandaries that inspire you to think, empathize, and connect with the characters.

There is so much going on in this book – and all in just 330 pages!!!

I love the in-depth amount of research the author did while constructing this book. It was clear she was very familiar and well-versed on the culture, customs, and traditions of India and Thailand. The author provided so much detail and such vivid descriptions it made the scenes easy to picture.

I think one of my favorite things about Mrs. Cronin’s writing is her research. I always seem to learn something from her books, and I know when she writes something in context there is no need to check her references. She always seems to find a way to tell a sci-fi fantasy story with real facts and intriguing educational content.

Mrs. Cronin’s tenacity for providing accurate and authentic facts truly takes her writing skills to the next level.

This book genre is marketed as a science fiction/fantasy book and yet the author found a way to throw in adventure, mystery, intrigue, and suspense elements into the book. It definitely added a fascinating extra component to the story!

I really liked all the additions to the book besides the story. This book included a map of Southern Asia. This book also included a list of resources the author used while researching and writing this book that includes songs, cultural, historical, and scientific information, etc. The website links and books are listed for easy access to follow up on the data. Also, at the end of this book is a list of all the places mentioned in the book and a short description of how they played into the book. In addition, at the end of this book is a list of characters names and their role in the book. These additions provided readers a little something extra. Plus, it allows the reader the chance to decide if they want to follow up with more information instead of having too much information forced on them.

This book is book four in the 46. Ascending Book Series. It can be read as a standalone. There is a total of six books in this book series and all them have already been released for sale. All six books feature the Zeitman family and their special abilities. According to the author, all of these books in this series can be read as a standalone.

All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and would absolutely recommend it! I think all science fiction and fantasy readers will like this book too! So, add it to your TBR List and get to reading - you won't be disappointed!

I will be reading and reviewing additional books in this series and look forward to sharing my take on those books with you soon!

**WARNING** Please note that this book does contain non-graphic mature content and references to human trafficking and the sex trade.

**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book and have voluntarily provided an honest, and unbiased review in accordance with FTC regulations.**

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book was very well-written, though it did move a little slow for my tastes. The basic subject of the book was an emotionally rough one that many of us shy away from, namely the profits in the sex trade. This book hits some of the bigger facets, including the sexualization of female athletes, the inequality given to women, and the sex slave trade business that is dominant through the darker parts of our world, even the first world countries.The author put a spin on the story so that it wasn't as dark and horrible as it could have very well been, but didn't shy away from the deeper aspects of the subject. She definitely gets kudos for even approaching such a sensitive subject.
I enjoyed the characters, though my favorite had to have been Teddie. She was the one that really tugged on my empathy the most, and while I felt for Haley's situation, hers seemed almost too first-world-y for me to really empathize with.

[Mercedes · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book!

This book was fascinating on so many fronts. The characters are well developed and enjoyable. There is a rich education for the reader on a vast array of subjects and how all of these blend together to sustain the action in the book is great. The pace of the book flows at exactly the right rate as the story unfolds. And in retrospect while the author might have other books of the differing family members of the main character - at no time does that intrude on this book (many authors fail to do this leaving the writer as feeling that they have missed out on something). It was only at the end when satisfied with such an excellent read that in looking up the author that I am pleased to find the others as I definitely want to read more that this writer has produced. Thanks for having taken the time to write this delicious book. Found it hard to put down.

[Arlene Mullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this book is so amazing. It starts out introducing you to all these different people around 10 years before everything happens. The all end up together and work together to end a very horrible situation.
This story is told from so many points of view. It is written in a way that you are able to keep up and tell them apart. Every time it switches it makes sure to say the name of the person. Usually I do not like when stories are told like this, but here it worked. I was able to keep up on what was going on and see the story from all sides.
The one thing that is hard is that this issue is a sensitive one. As a parent its hard to think that this really happens. I like how not only is the story told in a tasteful way, it is interactive. There are links to information that help you know more about the story. It is a must read about a very important topic.

[dianne b. · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging and somewhat creepy story, well told. i do hope that the world doesn't really need untold thousands with incredible superpowers for there to be a radical decrement in trafficking, institutionalized misogyny, and sexual / gender based violence; but maybe it does.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

“Layers of Light” by S.R. Cronin focuses on Teddie Zeitman as she discovers her special power and becomes pivotal in a struggle against sex trafficking that encompasses multiple countries and requires an eclectic group of individuals to work together. The danger strikes too close for comfort, and Teddie will have to learn who to trust and who to be wary of.

This book is part of the ’46. Ascending’ series and is a science fiction/fantasy tale for mature audiences set in the contemporary world with its all-too-dismaying evils. Once again, the author follows several points of view, each with a separate storyline, but weaves a mesmerizing tapestry that is both thought-provoking and somewhat disheartening as it highlights the challenges that face females the world over. Due to the frank description of some of the horrific aspects of sex trafficking, the story is not recommended for younger readers nor those who have triggers related to sexual abuse.

I appreciate that the books in this series can indeed be read as stand-alone tales but are all connected. It’s a little surprising that Teddie was kept in the dark about the other members of her family for so long but I enjoyed getting a chance to see another side of her after her pivotal role in helping take down racists at her high school that is depicted in “Twists of Time.”

The multiple threads in this story…the impoverished girl whose virginity makes her such a valued commodity, the orphaned child groomed for the sex trade, the attractive teen whose gender threatens to derail her dream of climbing mountains, and Teddie’s very memorable visit to an exotic foreign land, all combine to make a compelling and eye-opening tale. I enjoy the psychic elements and the chance to see different cultures and I can only hope that there are groups of people who are able to access talents beyond the norm. There are delightful reminders that attraction can occur for the unlikeliest of pairs and chilling interludes that underscore that there are truly evil beings in the world…in other words, there’s a little something for everyone. I’ve enjoyed all of the stories in this series that I have read thus far and I look forward to discovering what other amazing talents are showcased.

A copy of this title was provided for review

[Nancy (The Avid Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Layers of Light is about one Texas teenager who decides to go to India to attend to school as an exchange student. Teddie becomes fast friends with her three roommates Usha, Michelle and Haley.

Usha turns up missing after the earthquake. She is hiding from her uncle. Usha’s father passed owing her uncle money leaving Usha, her mother and her siblings to pay the debt. Her mother becomes suspicious of how her uncle wants the debt to be repaid so she sends Usha away to school in India hoping he would not come after her. When he does Usha leaves the school and goes into hiding.

Teddie, Michelle and Haley look into Usha’s disappearance. They ask Amy for help in trying to find Usha as they believe her to be in trouble. Teddie has these special abilities that allow her to see her friends when she is asleep. Teddie witness’ Michelle’s abduction after too many questions are asked while the girls are looking into Usha’s disappearance,

Teddie is approached by a stranger that offers to help her train in using her abilities so she can become stronger and to also know how to use her abilities to aide in finding her friends before it is too late.

While they are looking for their friends they find evidence of a human trafficking ring. It is a race against the clock to find the girls before they are taken away and they disappear forever never to be seen again.

Layers of Light is a very fast paced read that kept me glued to my seat with all the action and the twists and turns that Teddie led me on. Once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down. The world that was created for Layers of Light is so awesome I love it. I love all the characters in the 46 Ascending series. I love reading about them and learning who they are and about their abilities. I can’t wait to read the next book in the 46 Ascending series to see which family member is up and to learn about their abilities.

All of the 46 Ascending novels can be read as stand-alone so pick a favorite and begin the journey into this amazing world. I highly recommend all books in the 46 Ascending series.

[Ileana Renfroe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Human trafficking is a serious business and unfortunately still happens today. The author has done a great job in spinning a story where the girls come out as heroines.

Layers of Light is the first book I have read from this author and I'm looking forward to more in the future.

Delve into the mind of the author as she weaves a story with some colorful characters. Heavy at times, overall, it was a good read.

[M.T. DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Read an excerpt and follow the Goddess Fish book tour here.
Again, I was drawn in by Cronin’s effortless weaving of seemingly unrelated storylines. So many characters. So many different aspects of life. So many social and cultural issues. And in the end, it all just comes together. Add in the various powers, and it’s a puzzle of epic proportions.
I loved the particular struggles Teddie’s power came with. Being unable to communicate from her astral self put bumps in her road many times. Every one, she or someone she was working with found a clever work-around. I also loved the idea that sometimes the gift has control. I’d be waiting (rather impatiently) to see how Teddie would help a character, only to have her appear where someone else was. This served both to increase tension and show the vast array of ways Teddie could help people.
There is a warning at the beginning of the book about sensitive topics. It doesn’t lie. This book features details of human trafficking that some may find difficult to read. It never fails to amaze me how people will treat other human beings. Those details fascinated me from a point of “wow.” Unfortunately, I had no trouble believing it.
Lastly, I want to mention Michelle, Teddie’s friend. She is a brilliant character who I feel could get less recognition. She has no special power. She only has her intelligence and quick thinking to help her survive some impossible odds. I think she’s a shining example of how life can go so wrong but turn out at least okay if you understand how to fight. She rang as such a true person.

[Bob Craton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the first three books in Ms. Cronin's "46. Ascending" series, and if this review seems similar to those I wrote for "x0," "z1," and "y2," it should not be a surprise. Each book features one member of the fictional Zeitman family (in this case teenage daughter Teddy). The genre is 'magical realism' which isn't exactly fantasy and not exactly science fiction either. The main characters are real, believable people who just happen to have a special power.

Once again the author tackles a very serious and harsh subject, in this case the sex trade. Other reviews have given outlines of the plot so I won't repeat those. Despite certain similarities among the four books in the series, none of them are repetitive. Like the others, "c3" is a unique story. I like books with multiple plot-lines and those here are easy to follow. Some of the scenes are severe -- as I said, this is about the sex trade -- but I think anyone from the late teens to adults would benefit from reading this. Anyone who has read "x0" will understand what I mean.

As are the other volumes, this is a stand-alone story but if you are new to the series, I do suggest reading "x0" first. That way, the 'sudden' appearance of Teddy's mother's special talent won't be a surprise. (It really wasn't sudden.)

I remain very impressed with Ms. Cronin's talents and have thoroughly enjoyed each book. I did receive a free copy of 'C3" but was under no obligation to write a review for it.

[Qukatheg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

Teddie goes to India as an exchange student. While she gets used to the new culture and surroundings she discovers she is a 'traveller'; she can leave her physical body while she is asleep to visit places and people far away. As she struggles with her new gift, her friends Michelle, Hayley and Usha all have problems of their own. Usha's uncle sells her virginity and leaves her on the run from the man who bought her. Hayley aspires to climb a nearby mountain, but runs into all sorts of obstacles because of her gender. Michelle just joined the foreign exchange to get some distance from her father's anger issues but ends up in more trouble than she could ever have imagined. Teddie does her best to use her gift to help find her friends and get them back to safety.

This novel deals with a lot of sensitive topics. From human trafficking and prostitution to numerous small counts of gender inequality many women run into on a day to day basis. Needless to say, this includes some painful scenes, but I found the author deals with these topics very well.

I thought the novel was wonderfully written. The characters and their struggles felt very real and the fantasy elements did not distract from the gravity of the story at all.
While I can't exactly call it a fun read I utterly loved it!

[Tanya · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from a goodreads giveaway which I entered as this book is nothing like what I normally read and I was intrigued by the unique way of tackling the tough issue of human trafficking in a book.

I found this book quite hard to get into to begin with as the story starts off at what seems a completely random point in the main character Teddie's life and then there is a bit of skipping to other points in her childhood (however as the story continues you can see how these are relevant.)

There are many characters in this book with interlinking plots and it can be quite confusing to begin with to remember who is who so it is lucky that there is a list of all of the characters at the back of the book to help remind you.

The aspect of human trafficking throughout the book shows how it can permeate through all of society where it is common and highlights how devastating this can be in someone's life. The supernatural storyline does not take away from the serious nature of the plot and is interesting and original.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

C3 is the fourth book in which we find yet another Zeitman family member with a new "paranormal" ability. I must say, this is quite the family. The story takes place in Darjeeling India. And again, much research must have taken place to be able to find yourself actually there as you read. Teddies' ability draws her into a place where one of her school friends is kidnapped and made ready for the sex trade. Teddies' out of body experiences, with the assistance of many seasoned and gifted acquaintances takes us on this long journey safely back home. Anyone that has an interest in the field of the paranormal would enjoy these novels. It is almost like Star trek, some things do come to pass that in history were scoffed at. As for Teddies' friend Haley, got to love her information on the reproduction life of the small sea creatures. It made me smile.

Although this is a work of fiction, the heartbreaking truth is the sex trade is very much alive. With any points to be made regarding the trade, I thought it to be done in "good taste".

Keep them coming Sherrie.

[Andretta Schellinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

C3 starts off with two separate stories as they progress through the years . As the families are split up it becomes more than two stories. It is a really good format, and one that not a lot of authors use. It can be confusing, but Sherrie makes sure that you can keep up with what is going on.

This book is has some pretty frank talk about human trafficking and what young girls and women have to do if they are sold into the sex trade. There is also frank talk about what young girls will do for gifts and such. I was honestly not ready to learn about how many 8th grade girls are having sex.

This is a good book, a little strange in the sense that it is about having a second body, or a spirit that you can detach yourself from your physical body and communicate with others if so desired. This is also about how individuals that suffer from physical, emotional, or mental abuse are able to rise above it.

[Michaela · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the first giveaway I've ever won so getting it was a really nice surprise.This is where the nice surprises for me ended,unfortunately.I feel kind of bad for not liking this,and I really wanted to because the premise of it is interesting and promising.I do agree with the author's ideas of social justice but the execution of the idea was not good.The chapters are too short and jump from character to character,it is very predictable, all the dialog falls flat to me and some phrases simply don't make sense like '(the woman) was petite and just a bit on the wrong side of chubby' and 'she smelled the musty non-flower smell of her mother's geraniums in her head'.There are characters introduced for no purpose whatsoever like Xuha.This would be a good read for people who enjoy chick-lits but I'm afraid I'm not into that genre and for me it didn't live up to its potential.

[Aya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book through LibraryThing, and thank God I did. What would my life have been without this book in my life? Horrible- that's what. Anyways, this book had a very important topic that I thought was very important; which is human trafficking. I usually, do not see much books that goes through the topic, or maybe it's the fact that I haven't read them..yet.

This story has a lot of courage, strength, friendship, family, and we of course cannot forget about those superpowers!

The author wrote this book very well; it captivated me in many ways, and I loved it quite dearly. The stories were not clique at all; it gave you that realism feel to it, which is why I admire this book very much!!

I recommend it to everyone! Like you have to read it now, it is just great.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won C3 By Sherrie Cronin through goodreads for a review, and I am very happy I got to read from this author for the first time.
I very much enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more from this author (past, present and future) I will admit that this author had me only a couple of pages in, I was not able to put it down for long once I got started reading it. I am very grateful to live in a more controlled part of the world. This book goes to show you how fast something could happen right under or noses. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book on LibraryThing, which is always exciting and even though it turned out to be the fourth book in a series I've never read, it was capable of being a stand alone novel. To begin with I was incredibly deterred by the amount of rape and prostitution, but once the initial few chapters concluded I began to really enjoy the plot and the easy to sympathise with characters.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads

I really liked this book.
The begining was a little confusing because of the many characters but fortunatly there's a list of all the characters at the end of the book.
Highly recommended.