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Threader
Welcome to the Helios Academy: evolve or die
It's the year 2050 and life is increasingly hard for 'non-citizens'. A slowly emerging young minority has been exposed as 'talents'; they harbour mutations that give them special gifts – super strength, regenerative powers, psychic gifts or the ability to sink through shadows and travel through time and space. As governments unite to form a global talent registry and powerful corporations step in to take control, a 'talent' can be a passport to citizenship and a better life, but there is a cost as Josie Ryder is about to discover.
Orphaned at six, Josie Ryder has been raised by her uncle. Her talent is an unusual one: she is a threader, able to weave a combination of psychic talents around others to manipulate their powers. Working in her uncle's antique store and dreaming of a better life, Josie has done everything to keep a promise to her late father: stay off the global talent registry and keep her talents hidden. But as Josie tries to make ends meet with the occasional illegal act, she risks a third strike with local law enforcement and, desperate for a better life, Josie finally breaks her promise to her father's memory and sends an enquiry to the prestigious Helios Academy, a training facility in a distant country for talents. When the Helios Academy respond by sending mysterious slider, Blake Galloway to extract Josie, then offer her a position at their select and highly competitive institution, things begin to get really interesting, and more than a little dangerous...
It's the year 2050 and life is increasingly hard for 'non-citizens'. A slowly emerging young minority has been exposed as 'talents'; they harbour mutations that give them special gifts – super strength, regenerative powers, psychic gifts or the ability to sink through shadows and travel through time and space. As governments unite to form a global talent registry and powerful corporations step in to take control, a 'talent' can be a passport to citizenship and a better life, but there is a cost as Josie Ryder is about to discover.
Orphaned at six, Josie Ryder has been raised by her uncle. Her talent is an unusual one: she is a threader, able to weave a combination of psychic talents around others to manipulate their powers. Working in her uncle's antique store and dreaming of a better life, Josie has done everything to keep a promise to her late father: stay off the global talent registry and keep her talents hidden. But as Josie tries to make ends meet with the occasional illegal act, she risks a third strike with local law enforcement and, desperate for a better life, Josie finally breaks her promise to her father's memory and sends an enquiry to the prestigious Helios Academy, a training facility in a distant country for talents. When the Helios Academy respond by sending mysterious slider, Blake Galloway to extract Josie, then offer her a position at their select and highly competitive institution, things begin to get really interesting, and more than a little dangerous...
320 pages, Paperback
First published May 23, 2016
6 people are currently reading
703 people want to read
About the author
Rebekah Turner
7 books57 followersWith a degree in graphic design and a raging coffee addiction, Rebekah escaped the corporate world to freelance in between sensible adult jobs. She rides a motorcycle called Fat Betty, owns two dogs who don’t get walked enough, and can never seem to find a blue pen when she wants one. She’s a dedicated movie gal, with a special affection for classic horror and action movies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
December 28, 2016
Before I left for my trip to Australia, my Australian publisher asked me to read Threader for a possible blurb. Rebekah is an Australian author and I was happy to read the book as it sounded really cool. It didn't disappoint - a nice twist on a dystopian world and I especially liked the idea of the shadow biosphere. I did give the book the following cover quote: "This story threaded its way into my heart and wouldn't let go! Be prepared for a late night."
June 28, 2016
I wish there was more here! Either a longer book or just a series tbh. I feel like there's so much to explore and it was v quick to wrap it all up after such a slow burn at the start. Still super interesting.
December 29, 2023
Yay I finished a book! Thank the book gods! It feels like I have been reading so much lately but getting nowhere.
So I liked Threader. It was interesting and engaging and funny at times, but I felt like it had so many subplots going on that it really couldn't fully develop or help us to come to understand any of them. The main storyline of the book was great, outcast poor girl goes to a rich school for mutants on scholarship. The selling point of being YA X-men was spot on, but I couldn't help feel like all of the areas of the book that should have made it unique, just weren't there
Maybe this is just me saying to myself, Cait you like big books, so maybe its just the fact that it was only 300 pages thats bugging you, but I feel like its more than that. The length didn't bother me, we had quite a large character arc for our main character Josie, but things that were mentioned like the four cool mutant categories, her best friends more than friendship and Blake (*swoon*) just weren't developed at all. Like at the start of the book Josie has a confrontation with a big bully guy who claims he will come after her..... but never really does. No confrontation, no soppy sap story from him saying he was bullied himself once... nothing. He just comes, goes and does nothing.
Overall, I really liked Threader. Considering that I didn't even know about this book until I received an ARC of it and that I actually read the whole thing says a lot. I think it has an amazing concept and the potential to become a real hit series, but if there is a next book there needs to be More. Of. Everything.
(and OMG a Young Adult book set in Australia ... for some of it at least.... just give me a minute to be happy *book shimmys*)
So I liked Threader. It was interesting and engaging and funny at times, but I felt like it had so many subplots going on that it really couldn't fully develop or help us to come to understand any of them. The main storyline of the book was great, outcast poor girl goes to a rich school for mutants on scholarship. The selling point of being YA X-men was spot on, but I couldn't help feel like all of the areas of the book that should have made it unique, just weren't there
Maybe this is just me saying to myself, Cait you like big books, so maybe its just the fact that it was only 300 pages thats bugging you, but I feel like its more than that. The length didn't bother me, we had quite a large character arc for our main character Josie, but things that were mentioned like the four cool mutant categories, her best friends more than friendship and Blake (*swoon*) just weren't developed at all. Like at the start of the book Josie has a confrontation with a big bully guy who claims he will come after her..... but never really does. No confrontation, no soppy sap story from him saying he was bullied himself once... nothing. He just comes, goes and does nothing.
Overall, I really liked Threader. Considering that I didn't even know about this book until I received an ARC of it and that I actually read the whole thing says a lot. I think it has an amazing concept and the potential to become a real hit series, but if there is a next book there needs to be More. Of. Everything.
(and OMG a Young Adult book set in Australia ... for some of it at least.... just give me a minute to be happy *book shimmys*)
May 14, 2017
THREADER by REBEKAH TURNER
Welcome to the Helios Academy: evolve or die
It's the year 2050 and life is increasingly hard for 'non-citizens'
Oh, my word bookworms this is a nice twist on a dystopian world.
I’m not even sure how to explain this book, its super cool like Xmen cool.
I really love me some YA every now and then,and this didn’t disappoint.
Its set way into the future and the world has fallen to crap, and then some humans have talents like of the psychic kind.
They have evolved from supernatural creatures maybe, I’m sure I remember reading that. I gobbled this down in one day. I really like the unique twist the author put on creating her own world.
There are all sorts of psy we have Primals, Hyras, sliders and threaders, the list goes on.
This is the story about Josie Ryder, she is a THREADER. This is an unusual ability where she can use own her TK and TP abilities two psychic talents around others to manipulate their own or control.
She was orphaned when she was little at the age of 6 and her Uncle raised her. She now works with her uncle in his shop, she also has two strike against her and for her to become a citizen she can’t get another strike.
Something critical happens and we find ourselves on this sick ride with Josie the leather jack guy who's beennlingering around the shop, a.k.a Blake and she ends up in at the elite Helios Academy. Josie gets a chance to make something out of herself, though her uncle Bobby is not to happy that the path has led to this but it is what it is and life happens and Josie is now at Helios with the humans like herself and other psychics.
Straight away we can feel the chemistry and pull that Josie and Blake have towards each other, but as always one had to fight the other one. I adored both characters, this story is told just in one POV and that is Josie, I didn’t mind it to be honest. I loved that it read quite quickly and the story flowed well, enough that it kept me invested to see what would happen next.
I love all the interaction with all the characters that we meet, her to new closet friends Cora and Darsh are fantastic mates (friends) I’m an Aussie so my lingo would be throughout my review/s any who.
The encounters she has with Blake throughout the story is enough to keep me happy, as you all know I love romance (sex) and even though this isn’t the main focus in this story it really did keep me satisfied. There are a few little sub plots and all that jazz, one being that she accidently bonded with her power with Blake and that the director wants it to be broken, so they can get her to thread with not just Blake but other psy.
Considering that I didn’t even know what this book was about until I brought the book got home and read the blurb, YES, I brought the book because the cover was calling to me.
Just look at it, *sigh* I just had to have it!
This isn’t usually my normal jam, and I mean that because I am always reading adult pnr I like more of a romantic twist on books like this; but hey, in the end I really liked it and thought the writing was good, the characters a cool and hopefully the author would consider more, because I do feel that the story ended quickly like it was a great size story but I thought for the size it was (300 pages) maybe not so much slow at the start and finished with like a oh it is finished now but what about so and so and what about this and that. But it worked I read it and I loved it for what it is. I really am going to check out if the author has more work out.
Overall, it’s a 4 star for the story and a 1 star for the that cover!
PNR Book Lover Reviews
Brought my own copy, these are my own thoughts.
Welcome to the Helios Academy: evolve or die
It's the year 2050 and life is increasingly hard for 'non-citizens'
Oh, my word bookworms this is a nice twist on a dystopian world.
I’m not even sure how to explain this book, its super cool like Xmen cool.
I really love me some YA every now and then,and this didn’t disappoint.
Its set way into the future and the world has fallen to crap, and then some humans have talents like of the psychic kind.
They have evolved from supernatural creatures maybe, I’m sure I remember reading that. I gobbled this down in one day. I really like the unique twist the author put on creating her own world.
There are all sorts of psy we have Primals, Hyras, sliders and threaders, the list goes on.
This is the story about Josie Ryder, she is a THREADER. This is an unusual ability where she can use own her TK and TP abilities two psychic talents around others to manipulate their own or control.
She was orphaned when she was little at the age of 6 and her Uncle raised her. She now works with her uncle in his shop, she also has two strike against her and for her to become a citizen she can’t get another strike.
Something critical happens and we find ourselves on this sick ride with Josie the leather jack guy who's beennlingering around the shop, a.k.a Blake and she ends up in at the elite Helios Academy. Josie gets a chance to make something out of herself, though her uncle Bobby is not to happy that the path has led to this but it is what it is and life happens and Josie is now at Helios with the humans like herself and other psychics.
Straight away we can feel the chemistry and pull that Josie and Blake have towards each other, but as always one had to fight the other one. I adored both characters, this story is told just in one POV and that is Josie, I didn’t mind it to be honest. I loved that it read quite quickly and the story flowed well, enough that it kept me invested to see what would happen next.
I love all the interaction with all the characters that we meet, her to new closet friends Cora and Darsh are fantastic mates (friends) I’m an Aussie so my lingo would be throughout my review/s any who.
The encounters she has with Blake throughout the story is enough to keep me happy, as you all know I love romance (sex) and even though this isn’t the main focus in this story it really did keep me satisfied. There are a few little sub plots and all that jazz, one being that she accidently bonded with her power with Blake and that the director wants it to be broken, so they can get her to thread with not just Blake but other psy.
Considering that I didn’t even know what this book was about until I brought the book got home and read the blurb, YES, I brought the book because the cover was calling to me.
Just look at it, *sigh* I just had to have it!
This isn’t usually my normal jam, and I mean that because I am always reading adult pnr I like more of a romantic twist on books like this; but hey, in the end I really liked it and thought the writing was good, the characters a cool and hopefully the author would consider more, because I do feel that the story ended quickly like it was a great size story but I thought for the size it was (300 pages) maybe not so much slow at the start and finished with like a oh it is finished now but what about so and so and what about this and that. But it worked I read it and I loved it for what it is. I really am going to check out if the author has more work out.
Overall, it’s a 4 star for the story and a 1 star for the that cover!
PNR Book Lover Reviews
Brought my own copy, these are my own thoughts.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2016
I'm so disappointed by this book. It had a great premise and idea but the execution is lacking to the extreme.
The setting could have been in a hotel in Vegas and I wouldn't have noticed any differences. It's supposed to be at the famous Helios Academy but maybe we get a few throwaway paragraphs about classes (meditation and P.E) but apart from that who could tell it was a school? Apparently there are limited spaces for work at Galloway Industries after but we're not told/shown enough about it to care about that whole system. Josie also used to live in Australia with her uncles but it could have been a backwater town in Africa/Asia/Europe/America for all it mattered.
The characters were bland and predictable.
Josie started out promising in the first couple of pages but...do all girls in YA books really need a saviour complex? Her motives for going to Helios in the first place is to gain citizenship (more on that later) but that whole thing is barely touched on except to manipulate her. Her whole relationship with Blake is just laughable, and she doesn't seem to care much for her new friend Cora (doesn't listen to Cora at all, thinks she talks about unimportant stuff all the time) eeexcept for when she needs saving then all in. Author likes to say that Josie is really good at physical puzzles but...even though it was a crucial aspect towards the end, I felt like it didn't fit with her character and the only reason she was good at puzzles was for the scene near the end to unlock the gate. I don't expect her character to be built around this ability but...it just didn't fit.
It may be just due to the over abundance of dark brooding men being love interests in other YA stories, but as soon as Blake comes into the picture being all "urgh, you're so beneath me" I instantly knew he'd be the love interest. Urrrrgh. Their whole...thing was just boring and pointless in character development and care factor. I don't think Josie knows anything significant about Blake except for his abilities and that he was in the armed forces. nothing about hobbies or hopes and dreams yet she's totally drawn to him. Sure there is the thing with the mental lock but after that? Still just all Lust. *sigh*
Cora and Darsh were decent enough secondary characters but more background would have been great for both of them. Couldn't care less about Aaron or his sister Olivia which Josie keeps referring to as a bitch for the smallest thing. However, she is a random filler character, just like Josie's uncle who I found was a good character but a waste in this book. He only appears to humanise Josie it seems. Eckhart...oh man that character got reaaaally interesting towards the end so props for that.
The interesting parts of the story were not developed nearly enough compared to the "forbidden romance". A secondary world discovered that gives people super abilities? Terraforming technology? A world order of citizens and non citizens? A hive entity bent on consuming this world (i think?) GIVE ME MORE OF THIS! I'm so curious about this world order and how things world in this world but we're not shown anything. Just a mention of quick transport from Australia to the US, robot nurse booths, terraforming technology, different tiers of society...all this cool stuff but it's just glossed over. As mentioned before, a big motivation of Josie's is to get Citizenship because that'd help her out, but we're never told enough to care. Why is it so important? How was the system created? What is going on?
In conclusion, the premise and idea was good, but the world building was tantalisingly lacking and the book focused too much on the romance that due to bad character building I couldn't care less about.
The setting could have been in a hotel in Vegas and I wouldn't have noticed any differences. It's supposed to be at the famous Helios Academy but maybe we get a few throwaway paragraphs about classes (meditation and P.E) but apart from that who could tell it was a school? Apparently there are limited spaces for work at Galloway Industries after but we're not told/shown enough about it to care about that whole system. Josie also used to live in Australia with her uncles but it could have been a backwater town in Africa/Asia/Europe/America for all it mattered.
The characters were bland and predictable.
Josie started out promising in the first couple of pages but...do all girls in YA books really need a saviour complex? Her motives for going to Helios in the first place is to gain citizenship (more on that later) but that whole thing is barely touched on except to manipulate her. Her whole relationship with Blake is just laughable, and she doesn't seem to care much for her new friend Cora (doesn't listen to Cora at all, thinks she talks about unimportant stuff all the time) eeexcept for when she needs saving then all in. Author likes to say that Josie is really good at physical puzzles but...even though it was a crucial aspect towards the end, I felt like it didn't fit with her character and the only reason she was good at puzzles was for the scene near the end to unlock the gate. I don't expect her character to be built around this ability but...it just didn't fit.
It may be just due to the over abundance of dark brooding men being love interests in other YA stories, but as soon as Blake comes into the picture being all "urgh, you're so beneath me" I instantly knew he'd be the love interest. Urrrrgh. Their whole...thing was just boring and pointless in character development and care factor. I don't think Josie knows anything significant about Blake except for his abilities and that he was in the armed forces. nothing about hobbies or hopes and dreams yet she's totally drawn to him. Sure there is the thing with the mental lock but after that? Still just all Lust. *sigh*
Cora and Darsh were decent enough secondary characters but more background would have been great for both of them. Couldn't care less about Aaron or his sister Olivia which Josie keeps referring to as a bitch for the smallest thing. However, she is a random filler character, just like Josie's uncle who I found was a good character but a waste in this book. He only appears to humanise Josie it seems. Eckhart...oh man that character got reaaaally interesting towards the end so props for that.
The interesting parts of the story were not developed nearly enough compared to the "forbidden romance". A secondary world discovered that gives people super abilities? Terraforming technology? A world order of citizens and non citizens? A hive entity bent on consuming this world (i think?) GIVE ME MORE OF THIS! I'm so curious about this world order and how things world in this world but we're not shown anything. Just a mention of quick transport from Australia to the US, robot nurse booths, terraforming technology, different tiers of society...all this cool stuff but it's just glossed over. As mentioned before, a big motivation of Josie's is to get Citizenship because that'd help her out, but we're never told enough to care. Why is it so important? How was the system created? What is going on?
In conclusion, the premise and idea was good, but the world building was tantalisingly lacking and the book focused too much on the romance that due to bad character building I couldn't care less about.
April 21, 2016
Absolutely loved the proof read of this new YA novel. Maria V. Snyder was right, I was in for a late night with this novel, unable to put it down till the very last page. Can't wait for its release June 2016!
July 4, 2016
DNF at page 100.
wasn't for me, was slow and poorly written.
wasn't for me, was slow and poorly written.
October 25, 2017
I read this pretty quickly when I was supposed to be doing a lot of other things. It was engaging and a good page turner with some new sci fi ideas I liked exploring. I thought I had figured out the twist but I hadn't so that was a good surprise :)
June 25, 2016
This tale of a future with acid rain, an even bigger divide between the haves and the have-nots, and people with a range of 'talents' that were either useful or a curse if not properly controlled or trained - was fantastic!
Sorry if that sounds confusing. It's really not.
Josie lives with her uncle Bobby, helping him run his little store in the year 2050. She is a threader - someone who can 'thread' (join) with others and either help them strengthen their talents or take them over. She's been told all her life to hide her talents - especially from any authorities as the government insists everyone register them. Talents can include telepathy, telekinesis
When she is nearly caught using her talent illegally (for the 3rd time) her life suddenly changes and she finally faces the people who can tell her about her dead parents.
With a love story, an unlikely friendship, her parent's hidden past and an experiment that went terribly wrong - all 'threaded' through this narrative, this was a riveting read.
This isn't usually my flavour but I'd love to read more about these characters. Is there any chance of a sequel Rebekah?
Sorry if that sounds confusing. It's really not.
Josie lives with her uncle Bobby, helping him run his little store in the year 2050. She is a threader - someone who can 'thread' (join) with others and either help them strengthen their talents or take them over. She's been told all her life to hide her talents - especially from any authorities as the government insists everyone register them. Talents can include telepathy, telekinesis
When she is nearly caught using her talent illegally (for the 3rd time) her life suddenly changes and she finally faces the people who can tell her about her dead parents.
With a love story, an unlikely friendship, her parent's hidden past and an experiment that went terribly wrong - all 'threaded' through this narrative, this was a riveting read.
This isn't usually my flavour but I'd love to read more about these characters. Is there any chance of a sequel Rebekah?
January 12, 2018
**Actual rating is 2.5 stars**
I was looking forward to this book at first, but at about halfway, I stopped reading and just skimmed through the rest. Most of the characters were shallow and hardly developed over the course of the novel, or only appeared where necessary and were neglected otherwise. The plot overall sounded fantastic, however the end was rushed and packed up too quickly, and left many loose threads and unanswered questions.
If this had been written as a series, it would have allowed for further exploration and depth of the talents, the shadow biosphere (which I'd really like to know more about) and further development of the characters.
I was looking forward to this book at first, but at about halfway, I stopped reading and just skimmed through the rest. Most of the characters were shallow and hardly developed over the course of the novel, or only appeared where necessary and were neglected otherwise. The plot overall sounded fantastic, however the end was rushed and packed up too quickly, and left many loose threads and unanswered questions.
If this had been written as a series, it would have allowed for further exploration and depth of the talents, the shadow biosphere (which I'd really like to know more about) and further development of the characters.
September 27, 2019
Despite at first thinking this book was called 'the reader' (title page illusion?) and not being entirely motivated to actually read it, I absoulutly adored this book! Josie and Blake are my otp and the whole idea of the story was so well thought out. I can definatly recommend this to young adults. You should carefully read each detail or you might get a bit lost in some parts, and I won't forget the serious plots twists and funny themes. Can't wait for the next book! Hope its as great as the first or even better ;).
November 5, 2016
3.5******
Although this story was thrilling, I feel as if it didn't live up to its possible potential?
For example some events of the novel i feel would be better understood and felt if they were stretched out more as they felt to rushed and you couldn't get the whole feel of the environment as well as the emotion and anticipation of the characters.
However despite this, this novel was was still enjoyable and the story itself was captivating!!:))))
Although this story was thrilling, I feel as if it didn't live up to its possible potential?
For example some events of the novel i feel would be better understood and felt if they were stretched out more as they felt to rushed and you couldn't get the whole feel of the environment as well as the emotion and anticipation of the characters.
However despite this, this novel was was still enjoyable and the story itself was captivating!!:))))
September 13, 2018
Josie is an unregistered talent Threader who must keep her unusual talent hidden from the government. Being a Threader meant that she’s got the rare ability to enhance and manipulate other people’s “talents” (aka special powers); her talent is powerful and her past is a mystery. Set in the year 2050, in a world filled with robots, emerging “Mars” colonies, non-citizens and people with special genetic abilities; Josie desperately wants to find her place in the world, and through a series of unfortunate events finds herself at Helios Academy, a prestigious corporate facility that trains many of the genetically “talented” people. Will she survive?
I enjoyed the mystery and world building in this book. Most books with good world building tends to be a bit slow and very descriptive, but this book had the perfect pace. Josie’s Threader power is also quite imaginative and fascinating. I also liked the fact that even though Josie is deemed “special”, she still made some wrong, shameful choices. Our protagonist however is nonetheless a courageous character who goes after what she wants and is unafraid to wear her heart on her sleeve. The plot is fast paced and the book can be read in one setting. If you like to escape reality and like a good plot-driven YA read with a side of romance, you will enjoy Threader. Also, if you’re a fan of Four from the Divergent series, you will absolutely fall for Blake. You have been warned.
- NJ
I enjoyed the mystery and world building in this book. Most books with good world building tends to be a bit slow and very descriptive, but this book had the perfect pace. Josie’s Threader power is also quite imaginative and fascinating. I also liked the fact that even though Josie is deemed “special”, she still made some wrong, shameful choices. Our protagonist however is nonetheless a courageous character who goes after what she wants and is unafraid to wear her heart on her sleeve. The plot is fast paced and the book can be read in one setting. If you like to escape reality and like a good plot-driven YA read with a side of romance, you will enjoy Threader. Also, if you’re a fan of Four from the Divergent series, you will absolutely fall for Blake. You have been warned.
- NJ
December 17, 2022
Sometimes when I have a run of DNF books, I think it must be me. Maybe I'm too bored and unfocused to read. Maybe work is distracting me. Maybe it's some other issue I don't realize. So, even though this book annoyed the living hell out of me, I stuck with it for days thinking it might just be me.
Set in the most generic dystopian world ever, the most generic female-character-in-a-dystopian-world was, of course, living in the poorest section. She, of course, had a super special magic talent. She, of course, was picked to go off to some super special rare magic school.
She, of course, got magically bound to the hottest, edgiest, most powerful man in the school. He, of course, spent all his time thinking about her, wanting her, lusting after her. They, of course, couldn't be together.
This was the most annoyingly generic book I have read in a long time. Nothing original in it. I got to about the halfway point of the book and had predicted every single beat of the story at each step. Nothing new, nothing surprising.
Maybe it isn't me after all...
Set in the most generic dystopian world ever, the most generic female-character-in-a-dystopian-world was, of course, living in the poorest section. She, of course, had a super special magic talent. She, of course, was picked to go off to some super special rare magic school.
She, of course, got magically bound to the hottest, edgiest, most powerful man in the school. He, of course, spent all his time thinking about her, wanting her, lusting after her. They, of course, couldn't be together.
This was the most annoyingly generic book I have read in a long time. Nothing original in it. I got to about the halfway point of the book and had predicted every single beat of the story at each step. Nothing new, nothing surprising.
Maybe it isn't me after all...
August 4, 2018
I went into this book thinking it was going to be the first in a series, but it wasn't. This book (as far as I know) is a standalone novel and that is very confusing because the way it ended and read felt like it should be the start of a trilogy.
Regardless, after a relatively slow start, I instantly fell in love with the story as soon as Blake entered the scene and I was captivated from that point onward. Yes it has tropes of dystopian YA that are very familiar, but they're familiar because they work. I would have really liked to see development in Helios in general, as to why its hidden the way it is, and how the talented people survive if they're kicked out, but again that would have been something to explore if it had gone to series.
If you enjoyed Divergent then I'd say this book is definitely for you, it's definitely something I'd reread as well.
Regardless, after a relatively slow start, I instantly fell in love with the story as soon as Blake entered the scene and I was captivated from that point onward. Yes it has tropes of dystopian YA that are very familiar, but they're familiar because they work. I would have really liked to see development in Helios in general, as to why its hidden the way it is, and how the talented people survive if they're kicked out, but again that would have been something to explore if it had gone to series.
If you enjoyed Divergent then I'd say this book is definitely for you, it's definitely something I'd reread as well.
December 30, 2016
I'm giving this book a 4.5 stars. It's a well-written book with a completely engaging story. To me it reads like a cross between Hunger Games and Divergent, but Turner adds her own elements that make it something special. I loved the main character Josie and the sense of mystery that kept the pacing bowling along. The hero Blake seemed mighty fine too. Thoroughly recommended.
August 18, 2020
3.5
4 stars for the first half, 3 for the second half.
Great character building in the beginning. I think the plot was squished though to get it in before the pages ran out and I think that maybe this would have been better as a more fleshed out series.
4 stars for the first half, 3 for the second half.
Great character building in the beginning. I think the plot was squished though to get it in before the pages ran out and I think that maybe this would have been better as a more fleshed out series.
October 8, 2017
Easy reading. Reminded me a little vampire academy...
The ending was a nice surprise and tied everything up cleanly. A prequel would be interesting.
The ending was a nice surprise and tied everything up cleanly. A prequel would be interesting.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 29, 2019
If you can imagine yourself in a book then you know its worth reading
March 22, 2019
Very interesting dystopia
August 2, 2019
This was actually quite enjoyable! I really liked the characters and the fast pace of the story. Why isn't there a second one?
October 25, 2019
Was a bit slow to start and I just wish I could read more of Josie and Blakes relationship.
August 24, 2021
Great read! Highly recommend
May 23, 2020
I loved the premise of this book but I feel like the second half was a complete let down. I think this book would have been better as a series so they could have thoroughly broke down all aspects that were brought up in the first half. An interesting read but missed the mark for me.
July 26, 2019
I’ve been in a reading slump recently and I just couldn’t get into this book.
March 10, 2017
A very new and strange world that I enjoyed visiting, but I didn't fully understand it. (There were so many more aspects and talents that we didn't get to comprehend. Were her parents murdered?) The book felt more like a start of a series, because it didn't really feel finished to me.
February 4, 2017
http://jessjustreads.com
Set in the year 2050, Threader by Australian author Rebekah Turner is a near-future dystopian novel about a slowly emerging minority group who have been exposed as harbouring mutations that give them special talents – super strength, regenerative powers, psychic gifts of the ability to sink through shadows and travel through time and space. This minority group includes our protagonist, Josie Ryder, who was orphaned at six years old and has been raised by her uncle. She possesses an unusual skill: she is a threader and is able to weave a combination of psychic talents around others to manipulate their powers.
Rebekah has built a world that is like a corporate dystopia. The cities are heavily polluted and very overcrowded. The world features advanced technology but there is a distinct line between the rich and the poor and if you in the latter group you live a really hard life and almost have no way of advancing to be alongside the other elite within society.
Josie and the other ‘talents’ join the prestigious Helios Academy, a training facility in a distant country. But when Josie joins the academy, she starts to uncover secrets about its history and also about her dead parents and their involvement many years earlier. She sets out to uncover the truth.
Threader is a bit of a slow build and it does take a bit to really grasp the world that Rebekah Turner has built, but it does bring a lot of intrigue and entertainment and the characters and the dynamic between them is fantastic and really well-written.
Presumably, this is the first book in a series because there is a lot of the world and the characters that is yet to be discovered. The story does, however, draw the reader in and excite them for what’s to come. The tension between Josie and the other trainees in the academy helps build the characters and the quick pace of the novel makes for a fast read. It’s only a couple of hundred pages and can be read fairly quickly.
Josie spends most of the book trying to unravel the mystery surrounding her parents’ death, and as she learns, her uncle has been keeping a lot of secrets from her. She joins forces with Blake Galloway, and the two end up developing feelings for each. Their relationship became very hot-cold moments and I struggled to feel the chemistry between the characters, but I assume this is something that will be built upon in the sequel.
Josie Ryder is a great protagonist. She’s feisty, bold, tough and she’s a fighter. Although Rebekah has left a lot unsaid in this novel, it’s fast-paced, interesting and easy to read. I look forward to reading more about Josie. I recommend this book to readers aged over the age of twelve.
Set in the year 2050, Threader by Australian author Rebekah Turner is a near-future dystopian novel about a slowly emerging minority group who have been exposed as harbouring mutations that give them special talents – super strength, regenerative powers, psychic gifts of the ability to sink through shadows and travel through time and space. This minority group includes our protagonist, Josie Ryder, who was orphaned at six years old and has been raised by her uncle. She possesses an unusual skill: she is a threader and is able to weave a combination of psychic talents around others to manipulate their powers.
Rebekah has built a world that is like a corporate dystopia. The cities are heavily polluted and very overcrowded. The world features advanced technology but there is a distinct line between the rich and the poor and if you in the latter group you live a really hard life and almost have no way of advancing to be alongside the other elite within society.
Josie and the other ‘talents’ join the prestigious Helios Academy, a training facility in a distant country. But when Josie joins the academy, she starts to uncover secrets about its history and also about her dead parents and their involvement many years earlier. She sets out to uncover the truth.
Threader is a bit of a slow build and it does take a bit to really grasp the world that Rebekah Turner has built, but it does bring a lot of intrigue and entertainment and the characters and the dynamic between them is fantastic and really well-written.
Presumably, this is the first book in a series because there is a lot of the world and the characters that is yet to be discovered. The story does, however, draw the reader in and excite them for what’s to come. The tension between Josie and the other trainees in the academy helps build the characters and the quick pace of the novel makes for a fast read. It’s only a couple of hundred pages and can be read fairly quickly.
Josie spends most of the book trying to unravel the mystery surrounding her parents’ death, and as she learns, her uncle has been keeping a lot of secrets from her. She joins forces with Blake Galloway, and the two end up developing feelings for each. Their relationship became very hot-cold moments and I struggled to feel the chemistry between the characters, but I assume this is something that will be built upon in the sequel.
Josie Ryder is a great protagonist. She’s feisty, bold, tough and she’s a fighter. Although Rebekah has left a lot unsaid in this novel, it’s fast-paced, interesting and easy to read. I look forward to reading more about Josie. I recommend this book to readers aged over the age of twelve.
November 11, 2016
Threader is a fast-paced science-fiction novel for young adults who love The X-Men.
I’ll confess I’ve had this book sitting on my TBR pile for a few months - it was a complete impulse buy because the cover is gorgeous - but I didn’t really know what it was about and so I hadn’t picked it up. I’m so glad I did because I read this book in a single sitting, I was so engaged in the story. It is, for me, what I hoped Red Queen (Aveyard) would be: a story about humans with mutations, or 'super powers'.
In Threader, people with extraordinary abilities are registered. There are different classes of talents, and our main character Josie is a ‘Threader’ - meaning she can link with and enhance other people’s talents. She lives with her uncle as a ‘non-citizen’ in the year 2050. For the first part of the narrative, we are exposed to a dystopian-like world, where non-citizens are the lower class, subject to being rejected for ‘citizenship’ based on a strike system. Citizens, on the other hand, live a life in futuristic cities and have a much better life. Registering as a ‘talent’ can lead to citizenship, but corporations run this world and the consequences of joining with them can be, at best, unpredictable.
Risking her third strike, Josie finds herself accepted to the Helios Academy, where she can be trained to use her talent effectively and safely. The Helios Academy is sort of like Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, with murkier intentions. Josie finds herself caught up in the plans of those around her who wish to use her abilities to further a project that has been closed down for years, because Threaders are rare.
I really liked the characters - there were some really interesting personalities, and there was a great connection between those personalities and their talents. Josie was fun, tough and a great lead. Blake was quite fascinating to read about - we only learned his story in small parts and I was eager to get a better picture of him. There is a love triangle in this book, but it’s fairly one-sided, and didn’t detract from the overall story.
This was a perfect, fast-paced book that filled a need for a young adult book that was just a little bit different, and tiny bit creepy at the end. My only complaint is that I wish there were more to the story, because I want to know what happens next!
I’ll confess I’ve had this book sitting on my TBR pile for a few months - it was a complete impulse buy because the cover is gorgeous - but I didn’t really know what it was about and so I hadn’t picked it up. I’m so glad I did because I read this book in a single sitting, I was so engaged in the story. It is, for me, what I hoped Red Queen (Aveyard) would be: a story about humans with mutations, or 'super powers'.
In Threader, people with extraordinary abilities are registered. There are different classes of talents, and our main character Josie is a ‘Threader’ - meaning she can link with and enhance other people’s talents. She lives with her uncle as a ‘non-citizen’ in the year 2050. For the first part of the narrative, we are exposed to a dystopian-like world, where non-citizens are the lower class, subject to being rejected for ‘citizenship’ based on a strike system. Citizens, on the other hand, live a life in futuristic cities and have a much better life. Registering as a ‘talent’ can lead to citizenship, but corporations run this world and the consequences of joining with them can be, at best, unpredictable.
Risking her third strike, Josie finds herself accepted to the Helios Academy, where she can be trained to use her talent effectively and safely. The Helios Academy is sort of like Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, with murkier intentions. Josie finds herself caught up in the plans of those around her who wish to use her abilities to further a project that has been closed down for years, because Threaders are rare.
I really liked the characters - there were some really interesting personalities, and there was a great connection between those personalities and their talents. Josie was fun, tough and a great lead. Blake was quite fascinating to read about - we only learned his story in small parts and I was eager to get a better picture of him. There is a love triangle in this book, but it’s fairly one-sided, and didn’t detract from the overall story.
This was a perfect, fast-paced book that filled a need for a young adult book that was just a little bit different, and tiny bit creepy at the end. My only complaint is that I wish there were more to the story, because I want to know what happens next!
July 15, 2016
An interesting take on paranormal abilities, with the ability to enter a shadow world parallel to our own.
Review posted on Tea in the Treetops in July 2016:
In the not-too-distant future, in a satellite town outside Sydney, the lower classes struggle to make ends meet, while the wealthy Citizens live inside the walls of the city. Josie, a young girl with a special ‘talent’, is keen on improving her position in life, and when she sees an ad for the Helios Academy, a place for talented youngsters like herself, she applies. What she finds there is not at all what she expected.
The students at the Helios Academy have one or a combination of four talents: Hydra, Primal, Esper, or Slider. You can find out more about these talents and take the quiz to work out which one you have at the Helios Academy website! Josie has a special brand of Esper talent, making her a Threader, able to augment others’ talents or take control of them completely. Her talent causes all sorts of drama for her at the school.
Rebekah Turner has created a fabulous futuristic world, which unfortunately doesn’t get explored that much in this story (although I’m hopeful for the rest of the series!), but I was fascinated by concepts like the Doc-in-a-Box (an automatic medical diagnosis and drug-dispenser for the lower classes) and the idea that there is a parallel shadow biosphere that Sliders can access to teleport between shadows.
Josie’s unravelling of the mystery surrounding her parents was a big part of this story, and as she discovers more, her motivation and perspective changes. I loved her tenacity, and I also loved her friends, Cora and Darsh!
I wasn’t really sure about the hot-cold relationship with Blake, though. Having their ‘bond’ act like a love potion was a little awkward, with Josie unable to keep herself away from him despite telling herself repeatedly that she hated him.
Threader is a nail-biting and gripping debut from this local Aussie author. I can’t wait to see what’s next in store for Josie and her friends!
Review posted on Tea in the Treetops in July 2016:
In the not-too-distant future, in a satellite town outside Sydney, the lower classes struggle to make ends meet, while the wealthy Citizens live inside the walls of the city. Josie, a young girl with a special ‘talent’, is keen on improving her position in life, and when she sees an ad for the Helios Academy, a place for talented youngsters like herself, she applies. What she finds there is not at all what she expected.
The students at the Helios Academy have one or a combination of four talents: Hydra, Primal, Esper, or Slider. You can find out more about these talents and take the quiz to work out which one you have at the Helios Academy website! Josie has a special brand of Esper talent, making her a Threader, able to augment others’ talents or take control of them completely. Her talent causes all sorts of drama for her at the school.
Rebekah Turner has created a fabulous futuristic world, which unfortunately doesn’t get explored that much in this story (although I’m hopeful for the rest of the series!), but I was fascinated by concepts like the Doc-in-a-Box (an automatic medical diagnosis and drug-dispenser for the lower classes) and the idea that there is a parallel shadow biosphere that Sliders can access to teleport between shadows.
Josie’s unravelling of the mystery surrounding her parents was a big part of this story, and as she discovers more, her motivation and perspective changes. I loved her tenacity, and I also loved her friends, Cora and Darsh!
I wasn’t really sure about the hot-cold relationship with Blake, though. Having their ‘bond’ act like a love potion was a little awkward, with Josie unable to keep herself away from him despite telling herself repeatedly that she hated him.
Threader is a nail-biting and gripping debut from this local Aussie author. I can’t wait to see what’s next in store for Josie and her friends!
December 21, 2016
Finally. This is the kind of ending I've been needing for ages. The ending left me a few questions that could be answered if this were to be continued as a series but I hope it's not because I like the fact that it leaves a nice amount to the imagination.
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