"If you were addicted to Hunger Games, your next fix is here."
My father was born in 1891, my mother in 2091, and me, well, it was somewhere in-between. Tareus’s mother wrapped him in a blanket on the day he was born, placed him in a wicker basket, and sent him 200 years into the past to be raised by his father. Then, on his sixteenth birthday, she arrived to bring him home. Parthas is the only remaining city after chemical warfare has decimated the earth. Shaders (mutated citizens who time traveled one time too many) attack any who leave the protection of the wall. Tower guards patrol the future, crime is stopped before it happens, offender’s minds are wiped, and they are shipped to prison colonies. Tareus joins the guard and is partnered with Cael, a hyperactive boy from the other side of town. He meets Haven, a girl so fair she gives silk a new synonym, and a friendship turns to romance. Tareus discovers it isn’t just criminal’s minds they are erasing. Anyone speaking against Parthas’s leaders are cast out. When he witnesses one of these arrests, he fights back, and is given the same punishment of those he was trying to protect. One He remembers everything. Tareus escapes to Revere colony and meets Quin, the young, beautiful leader (love triangle, anyone?). It doesn’t take long for her to realize he is the missing piece of their rebellion. Now he has to make a stay silent and protect those he loves or become the symbol of a revolution.
This is book one of the Suspended Animation series. Book two is set to release in 2018.
I won this book in a Goodreads First Read Giveaway!
I was excited to get an opportunity to read it because the tagline hooked me. I had to know what was going down and how everything came to be. I was blown away by the writing and how well it flowed through naturally. Many things happened but it just seemed so organic that by the end you stop think about the journey you just travelled. The characters were likable and my favorite character is Quin. I will be recommending this book to my friends. It is different and has some plot twists that will catch off guard.
Basically, a decent story. It could definitely use a pass by an editor and proofreader to correct many misspellings and improper word usage (past and passed are used interchangeably and are more often incorrect as used). Also, get rid of the pseudo-philosophical quotations and flowery wording which interrupt the flow and do no not really enhance the story.
I also had a bit of problem with the passage of time in the story that had nothing to do with the time travel aspect of the story. Things happen, other things happen and it is unclear of the passage of time. Also, I would expand upon the training aspect. The new recruits are sworn in, given a 5 minute presentation on guard duty and the time travel device and left on their own, although later passages refer to training.
If you enjoy reading raw material, then this is a perfectly good story. I'll be interested in reading the second installment to find out more about why things are as they are in Parthas and the surrounding colonies.
I will start by saying that the plot is great and I think this book has a lot of potential.
... However ...
It needs editing bad. I don’t think anyone proofread this book. Ever. At times it was so bad I could not figure out what was going on. Even the POV changes. There is punctuation where it isn’t necessary and no punctuation where it is needed terribly. This is sooooo disappointing because, as I said, the storyline is great. It’s fresh. It’s different from anything I’ve ever read before.
I received a copy of this book for free through Goodreads giveaways.
This book would benefit from a careful editor. I got through the first chapter, but I couldn't read any more. It was pretty bad. Clunky, hard to follow, characters weren't super interesting. I feel terrible for leaving a bad review, but YIKES.