Take a photo of a barcode or cover
2.9 AVERAGE
2.9 AVERAGE
I RECEIVED THIS BOOK FROM NETGALLEY FOR REVIEW IN EXCHANGE FOR MY HONEST THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS. I CAN GUARANTEE AND PROMISE YOU THAT THIS HAS NOT IN ANY WAY HAD AN IMPACT ON WHAT I THOUGHT OF THE BOOK AND THAT EVERYTHING STATED IS WHAT I THINK.
Overall Plot:
The book has a very interesting premise and it was something that made me really want to read it. The plot was played out greatly and it totally lived up to what was promised in the books description.
Characters/Development:
I liked being able to see the different types of characters that were presented in the book. For example, there wasn’t just the seekers, there were the Dreads as well. I loved seeing the characters developing and changing as the story went on. It was something that was pleasing to see. We got a lot of backstory for most of the main characters without having it just sprung on us. It was written in a way that could let us know about the characters but over the span of the book and not just in one simple go. I loved the character of Shinobu. He was definitely someone I liked watching develop. The character of John though really irked me. At first I was rooting for John hardcore, I thought he was the greatest. As the story unfolded I was a bit iffy. He seemed controlling and manipulative and I didn’t like that about him. He tried to control Quin a lot and she wasn’t having it.
Layout: The layout of the book was nice. I love the many viewpoints presented in the story and how it originally just started out as John and Quin then Shinobu and then Maud and a couple more people. It was nice seeing how everything panned out in the view of everyone and we got everyone’s thoughts and opinions and it wasn’t just biased and one sided.
Likes: Something I really liked about the book was the differences in the characters. We have Shinobu who was from Hong Kong. Quin’s mother who has red hair. Then we have the Dreads who all look a like but are different from everyone else. I loved the differences between everyone. It was refreshing to have main characters who weren’t just the standard white people, I love books with diversity, especially in the character of Shinobu.
Dislikes:
Two words: Briac Kincaid.
Overall Rating: Overall I would give this book a 4/5 stars. It was action packed and there was also a mix of everything within it. We even have some romance, which, at first I didn’t really like the whole Shinobu liking Quin thing, but as everything panned out I came to like it a lot more than Quin and John. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes fantasy and action.
Overall Plot:
The book has a very interesting premise and it was something that made me really want to read it. The plot was played out greatly and it totally lived up to what was promised in the books description.
Characters/Development:
I liked being able to see the different types of characters that were presented in the book. For example, there wasn’t just the seekers, there were the Dreads as well. I loved seeing the characters developing and changing as the story went on. It was something that was pleasing to see. We got a lot of backstory for most of the main characters without having it just sprung on us. It was written in a way that could let us know about the characters but over the span of the book and not just in one simple go. I loved the character of Shinobu. He was definitely someone I liked watching develop. The character of John though really irked me. At first I was rooting for John hardcore, I thought he was the greatest. As the story unfolded I was a bit iffy. He seemed controlling and manipulative and I didn’t like that about him. He tried to control Quin a lot and she wasn’t having it.
Layout: The layout of the book was nice. I love the many viewpoints presented in the story and how it originally just started out as John and Quin then Shinobu and then Maud and a couple more people. It was nice seeing how everything panned out in the view of everyone and we got everyone’s thoughts and opinions and it wasn’t just biased and one sided.
Likes: Something I really liked about the book was the differences in the characters. We have Shinobu who was from Hong Kong. Quin’s mother who has red hair. Then we have the Dreads who all look a like but are different from everyone else. I loved the differences between everyone. It was refreshing to have main characters who weren’t just the standard white people, I love books with diversity, especially in the character of Shinobu.
Dislikes:
Two words: Briac Kincaid.
Overall Rating: Overall I would give this book a 4/5 stars. It was action packed and there was also a mix of everything within it. We even have some romance, which, at first I didn’t really like the whole Shinobu liking Quin thing, but as everything panned out I came to like it a lot more than Quin and John. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes fantasy and action.
I have no idea what I just read.
**SPOILERS AHEAD**
The plot didn’t make sense to me. The story starts with the Seekers training and taking their oaths, great. Then John decides to attack the estate and force everyone to relocate, okay. But then at the end there’s a battle that I just can’t help wondering what was gained. Because there wasn’t any character development.
I really do believe the ending would have made more sense if Part 2 had set up the events that happened later in the end. Part 1 did an okay job describing the background of the Seeker world, but I never felt like the story expanded on those original ideas. So to me, Part 2 of the book was a waste.
Here’s what happened in Part 2 that bugged me:
- Quin loses her memory
- Quin regains her memory two pages later when John randomly shows up (Like seriously. How did he find her?)
- Quin remembers John but she can’t remember her BEST FRIEND Shinobu
- I still had no idea what a Seeker was by the end
So, I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book. The only character I really liked was Maud, the Young Dread, and she only showed up for a few chapters.
**SPOILERS AHEAD**
The plot didn’t make sense to me. The story starts with the Seekers training and taking their oaths, great. Then John decides to attack the estate and force everyone to relocate, okay. But then at the end there’s a battle that I just can’t help wondering what was gained. Because there wasn’t any character development.
I really do believe the ending would have made more sense if Part 2 had set up the events that happened later in the end. Part 1 did an okay job describing the background of the Seeker world, but I never felt like the story expanded on those original ideas. So to me, Part 2 of the book was a waste.
Here’s what happened in Part 2 that bugged me:
- Quin loses her memory
- Quin regains her memory two pages later when John randomly shows up (Like seriously. How did he find her?)
- Quin remembers John but she can’t remember her BEST FRIEND Shinobu
- I still had no idea what a Seeker was by the end
So, I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book. The only character I really liked was Maud, the Young Dread, and she only showed up for a few chapters.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, Death of parent
This is by far one of the worst books I have ever read. I couldn’t even place the time and the era when it all happened. That technology wasn’t placed right; there were times that the things are super high-tech and then there were times that they will living in cottages and barn and then stone houses. Everything just didn’t fit like it should have. Also the whole book the weapons were being talked about, keeping it safe and hidden, but it was never explained why they were significant. The whole time the reader is faced with questions with no answers and then more and more questions and at the end of the book there were no answers at all. I had to drag myself through 400 pages plus of nonsense because I wanted to give the book a chance but then now I regret wasting my time.
Reviewed by: Rabid Reads
My mother and I were at constant loggerheads when I was growing up, and the reason for that was simple: she hated being questioned as much as I hated being expected to blindly follow orders.
It was a problem.
Stubbornly, she'd rail at me, demanding I do things "b/c I said so" (<------not a reason), and equally stubbornly, I'd demand to know why . . . and despite her having all the power, and my stubbornness resulting in constant groundings, I never stopped demanding to know why I should or shouldn't do a thing.
NEVER.
Am I comparing my mother to the particularly nasty breed of mercenary that Quin (our MC)'s father Briac is?
No . . . well, maybe a little bit . . .
I'm kidding! *whispers* Kind of . . .
But I am explaining why I have a hard time being sympathetic to Quin and Shinobu (her cousin . . . sort of . . . )'s situation.
As hard as I tried to walk in their shoes, being "raised to obey Briac's word as law," was never going to be a circumstance I could empathize with.
Add to that the willful memory loss of one, and the rampant drug use/general recklessness of the other as coping mechanisms, and . . . yeah . . . REALLY not feeling these characters.
But there's a reason for that: the more a work of fiction resembles reality, the less I am likely to enjoy it.
I know that about myself. It's not a good thing or a bad thing, it's just a thing. So if you like grittier plot lines where the characters behave disreputably, either b/c they are in fact disreputable and embrace it, or b/c they are weak, and deal with their guilt in realistic, vice-filled ways, then you might really like this book.
I didn't have the same problems with Seeker that a lot of other readers had. As brief as the synopsis is, I actually read it (for once), and I thought it explained the situation fairly well. Quin has been trained all her short life to be a Seeker. She's been told countless stories detailing the noble exploits of past Seekers. But when she actually becomes a Seeker herself, she discovers that she has been misled (<------gross understatement).
What exactly is a Seeker?
Well, I'll grant you that it was never said outright, but it was pretty obvious to me that a Seeker was a member of an organization of highly trained warriors whose purpose was to objectively right wrongs (whatever that means).
BUT.
Over time, that organization has become corrupt, and they are now nothing more than an unscrupulous band of assassins. This transpired without intervention from the leadership, b/c, as is often the case with supremely long-lived beings, the person in charge is almost completely removed from the world, trusting his younger (though still very, very old) mentees to alert him to anything warranting his attention. BUT the elder of the two mentees is clearly corrupt himself.
Another complaint I've seen a lot is poor world-building, and it was definitely not a strength. However, as the world pretty clearly resembles our own, I didn't find the lack of explanation too upsetting. I just assumed it was 100(ish) years in the future. The end. *shrugs*
Doesn't sound so bad, does it?
And yet . . .
Seeker is pitched as a book that defies genres. And that's true. But unlike other genre-defying books, for example, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, the various genres didn't really mesh together well. DoS&B is part urban fantasy, part fantasy, and it works b/c it takes place in two separate worlds. In comparison, Seeker tries to be both science fiction and fantasy in the same world . . . and it's a house divided against itself.
The problem with trying to write a traditional "high" fantasy-type book, but having it take place in the modern (or slightly in the future) world is that who cares about a magic ATH-uh-may that cuts through space (like a . . . knife *rolls eyes*) when you could just take an airplane like a normal assassin? I mean, there are "air cars" that presumably fly, and I'm pretty sure they still have normal airplanes in addition to the weird airship thing that one of the characters lives on (and if they don't, that's stupid). And yeah, a magical cuts-through-space-like-a-Stargate-wormhole-knife is slightly more convenient . . . but only slightly. *shrugs*
Modernity kind of steals fantasy's thunder . . .
And then there's John. John is also an MC, but he's a bit separate from Quin and Shinobu, b/c his main goal is vengeance. So focused is he on restoring his family to its former glory, and avenging his ancestors, including, but not limited to his mother (whom he watched die at the hands of a rival Seeker when he was child) that he justifies the basest of tactics to achieve his goal.
So the best bet of a sympathetic character becomes as disgusting and pathetic as all the others.
Overall, I had too many objections to enjoy Seeker. The writing was mediocre at best, the mashup of genres made the individual elements less compelling, and the MCs behaved abominably, either b/c they didn't have the strength of character to disobey a clearly treacherous leader, or b/c they're so fixated on retribution that they willfully become that which they hate. Not recommended.
My mother and I were at constant loggerheads when I was growing up, and the reason for that was simple: she hated being questioned as much as I hated being expected to blindly follow orders.
It was a problem.
Stubbornly, she'd rail at me, demanding I do things "b/c I said so" (<------not a reason), and equally stubbornly, I'd demand to know why . . . and despite her having all the power, and my stubbornness resulting in constant groundings, I never stopped demanding to know why I should or shouldn't do a thing.
NEVER.
Am I comparing my mother to the particularly nasty breed of mercenary that Quin (our MC)'s father Briac is?
No . . . well, maybe a little bit . . .
I'm kidding! *whispers* Kind of . . .
But I am explaining why I have a hard time being sympathetic to Quin and Shinobu (her cousin . . . sort of . . . )'s situation.
As hard as I tried to walk in their shoes, being "raised to obey Briac's word as law," was never going to be a circumstance I could empathize with.
Add to that the willful memory loss of one, and the rampant drug use/general recklessness of the other as coping mechanisms, and . . . yeah . . . REALLY not feeling these characters.
But there's a reason for that: the more a work of fiction resembles reality, the less I am likely to enjoy it.
I know that about myself. It's not a good thing or a bad thing, it's just a thing. So if you like grittier plot lines where the characters behave disreputably, either b/c they are in fact disreputable and embrace it, or b/c they are weak, and deal with their guilt in realistic, vice-filled ways, then you might really like this book.
I didn't have the same problems with Seeker that a lot of other readers had. As brief as the synopsis is, I actually read it (for once), and I thought it explained the situation fairly well. Quin has been trained all her short life to be a Seeker. She's been told countless stories detailing the noble exploits of past Seekers. But when she actually becomes a Seeker herself, she discovers that she has been misled (<------gross understatement).
What exactly is a Seeker?
Well, I'll grant you that it was never said outright, but it was pretty obvious to me that a Seeker was a member of an organization of highly trained warriors whose purpose was to objectively right wrongs (whatever that means).
BUT.
Over time, that organization has become corrupt, and they are now nothing more than an unscrupulous band of assassins. This transpired without intervention from the leadership, b/c, as is often the case with supremely long-lived beings, the person in charge is almost completely removed from the world, trusting his younger (though still very, very old) mentees to alert him to anything warranting his attention. BUT the elder of the two mentees is clearly corrupt himself.
Another complaint I've seen a lot is poor world-building, and it was definitely not a strength. However, as the world pretty clearly resembles our own, I didn't find the lack of explanation too upsetting. I just assumed it was 100(ish) years in the future. The end. *shrugs*
Doesn't sound so bad, does it?
And yet . . .
Seeker is pitched as a book that defies genres. And that's true. But unlike other genre-defying books, for example, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, the various genres didn't really mesh together well. DoS&B is part urban fantasy, part fantasy, and it works b/c it takes place in two separate worlds. In comparison, Seeker tries to be both science fiction and fantasy in the same world . . . and it's a house divided against itself.
The problem with trying to write a traditional "high" fantasy-type book, but having it take place in the modern (or slightly in the future) world is that who cares about a magic ATH-uh-may that cuts through space (like a . . . knife *rolls eyes*) when you could just take an airplane like a normal assassin? I mean, there are "air cars" that presumably fly, and I'm pretty sure they still have normal airplanes in addition to the weird airship thing that one of the characters lives on (and if they don't, that's stupid). And yeah, a magical cuts-through-space-like-a-
Modernity kind of steals fantasy's thunder . . .
And then there's John. John is also an MC, but he's a bit separate from Quin and Shinobu, b/c his main goal is vengeance. So focused is he on restoring his family to its former glory, and avenging his ancestors, including, but not limited to his mother (whom he watched die at the hands of a rival Seeker when he was child) that he justifies the basest of tactics to achieve his goal.
So the best bet of a sympathetic character becomes as disgusting and pathetic as all the others.
Overall, I had too many objections to enjoy Seeker. The writing was mediocre at best, the mashup of genres made the individual elements less compelling, and the MCs behaved abominably, either b/c they didn't have the strength of character to disobey a clearly treacherous leader, or b/c they're so fixated on retribution that they willfully become that which they hate. Not recommended.
Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton is a Fantasy, SciFi, Steampunk mash-up that stops off in rural Scotland, bustling Hong Kong and the rooftops of London. Confused? Well when I first started reading it I was expecting a typical YA fantasy complete with whining, pining and a love triangle. While it delivers on some of my expectations it also blows them out of the water.
First of all, I wish books would stop comparing themselves to other books in advertising. Especially when referring to a genre that is packed full of love triangle shaped cliches. And if every single book that advertised itself as similar to The Hunger Games was actually like The Hunger Games then there would be a lot fewer crappy books but also a lot fewer good ones too.
Read the rest of the review at SpEx Reviews
First of all, I wish books would stop comparing themselves to other books in advertising. Especially when referring to a genre that is packed full of love triangle shaped cliches. And if every single book that advertised itself as similar to The Hunger Games was actually like The Hunger Games then there would be a lot fewer crappy books but also a lot fewer good ones too.
Read the rest of the review at SpEx Reviews
Disclosure: I received this free from NetGalley
Story Summary: The night Quin Kincaid takes her Oath, she will become what she has trained to be her entire life. She will become a Seeker. This is her legacy, and it is an honor. As a Seeker, Quin will fight beside her two closest companions, Shinobu and John, to protect the weak and the wronged. Together they will stand for light in a shadowy world. And she'll be with the boy she loves--who's also her best friend. But the night Quin takes her Oath, everything changes. Being a Seeker is not what she thought. Her family is not what she thought. Even the boy she loves is not who she thought. And now it's too late to walk away.
Characters: I really liked the depth of each character, especially Shinobu who I really didn't expect to like all that much. Through the story I felt he had an amazing amount of growing, becoming himself. I think the only slightly odd point with the characters is that it reminded me of The Hunger Games but I don't see that as a bad thing, intended or not.
Writing: The whole book is written in a style where you switch perspectives between the different characters and I loved this. I really appreciated being able to see things from specific points of view but also noticed who we were able to do this with and who we weren't. Having read the book now I'd be incredibly curious to get a prequel that would perhaps be in some of the perspectives we didn't get this time.
Favorite Moments: There's a scene when Shinobu reaches a turning point in what he's choosing to be and what he's choosing to not become. I love how after he's had this epiphany it's like his entire way of presenting himself just changes and it's noticeable for everyone - especially for Quin.
Overall: I liked the book, and I liked the story line. Perhaps because I wasn't needing clarification of absolutely every single detail (i.e. I'm still not able to define what exactly a seeker.. is). I think a lot of these details are vague because the characters themselves don't know and we are reading in their perspective (but that could also be my own interpretation, no clue). As for some of the other complaints I've seen - like how the author sounds out some of the various words, words many people who speak english already know. Well, I never felt like she was teaching 'me' anything. I felt it was perfectly understandable that the children might not know how to pronounce the words. Even if she was doing it for her readers.. I didn't care that much, it's something I didn't take much notice of. As for John knowing in a way what was going to happen and not warning her, I think this is something that if you stop reading you won't understand. The fact is John didn't tell her for reasons that really fit his character, and in the end it's just another example of the lengths he's willing to go to get what he wants. All of that said, I didn't find quite a bit of the first half really slow, confusing, and even hard to get into. When I look at it as a whole though I appreciated being able to be literally in the confusing mess with the characters. I am looking forward to the next book and will probably keep an eye out.
Story Summary: The night Quin Kincaid takes her Oath, she will become what she has trained to be her entire life. She will become a Seeker. This is her legacy, and it is an honor. As a Seeker, Quin will fight beside her two closest companions, Shinobu and John, to protect the weak and the wronged. Together they will stand for light in a shadowy world. And she'll be with the boy she loves--who's also her best friend. But the night Quin takes her Oath, everything changes. Being a Seeker is not what she thought. Her family is not what she thought. Even the boy she loves is not who she thought. And now it's too late to walk away.
Characters: I really liked the depth of each character, especially Shinobu who I really didn't expect to like all that much. Through the story I felt he had an amazing amount of growing, becoming himself. I think the only slightly odd point with the characters is that it reminded me of The Hunger Games but I don't see that as a bad thing, intended or not.
Writing: The whole book is written in a style where you switch perspectives between the different characters and I loved this. I really appreciated being able to see things from specific points of view but also noticed who we were able to do this with and who we weren't. Having read the book now I'd be incredibly curious to get a prequel that would perhaps be in some of the perspectives we didn't get this time.
Favorite Moments: There's a scene when Shinobu reaches a turning point in what he's choosing to be and what he's choosing to not become. I love how after he's had this epiphany it's like his entire way of presenting himself just changes and it's noticeable for everyone - especially for Quin.
Overall: I liked the book, and I liked the story line. Perhaps because I wasn't needing clarification of absolutely every single detail (i.e. I'm still not able to define what exactly a seeker.. is). I think a lot of these details are vague because the characters themselves don't know and we are reading in their perspective (but that could also be my own interpretation, no clue). As for some of the other complaints I've seen - like how the author sounds out some of the various words, words many people who speak english already know. Well, I never felt like she was teaching 'me' anything. I felt it was perfectly understandable that the children might not know how to pronounce the words. Even if she was doing it for her readers.. I didn't care that much, it's something I didn't take much notice of. As for John knowing in a way what was going to happen and not warning her, I think this is something that if you stop reading you won't understand. The fact is John didn't tell her for reasons that really fit his character, and in the end it's just another example of the lengths he's willing to go to get what he wants. All of that said, I didn't find quite a bit of the first half really slow, confusing, and even hard to get into. When I look at it as a whole though I appreciated being able to be literally in the confusing mess with the characters. I am looking forward to the next book and will probably keep an eye out.
Seeker
I ended up enjoying this book a little more than I thought that I would, but I still had some issues. Like, It felt too all over the place. It felt as though I was reading the second book in a series and a lot of things either dragged or it felt like I was missing something.
Now let's move onto the love triangle. The main relationship between Quinn and John was so problematic that I actually found myself shipping her and her own cousin more than I could ever ship her and John.
Ah John, I literally physically hated John like he was so damn irrelevant and problematic and I'm supposed to believe he feels bad for all the shit he does? There was things I barley understood about his backstory too where I couldn't feel any sympathy for him.
Maud, Quinn, and Shinobu... (Hell even Fiona) were my babies, and even though it felt like it took forever to get through this book, these lovely characters and the books magic system were enough to make me want to keep reading, and hell maybe I'll even read the second one eventually.
My earlier comment about shipping Quinn and Shinobu together obviously made me uncomfortable at first (I mean it doesn't matter if you're "barley" related... You're still related) but shit man... They had so much chemistry and by the second half of the book where Quinn started to give him the side eye, I was like yassss.
So this was kind of all over the place but I appreciated it for what it was.
I ended up enjoying this book a little more than I thought that I would, but I still had some issues. Like, It felt too all over the place. It felt as though I was reading the second book in a series and a lot of things either dragged or it felt like I was missing something.
Now let's move onto the love triangle. The main relationship between Quinn and John was so problematic that I actually found myself shipping her and her own cousin more than I could ever ship her and John.
Ah John, I literally physically hated John like he was so damn irrelevant and problematic and I'm supposed to believe he feels bad for all the shit he does? There was things I barley understood about his backstory too where I couldn't feel any sympathy for him.
Maud, Quinn, and Shinobu... (Hell even Fiona) were my babies, and even though it felt like it took forever to get through this book, these lovely characters and the books magic system were enough to make me want to keep reading, and hell maybe I'll even read the second one eventually.
My earlier comment about shipping Quinn and Shinobu together obviously made me uncomfortable at first (I mean it doesn't matter if you're "barley" related... You're still related) but shit man... They had so much chemistry and by the second half of the book where Quinn started to give him the side eye, I was like yassss.
So this was kind of all over the place but I appreciated it for what it was.
I was not a huge fan of this book. It took me three times as long to read it as any other book I read this summer - as in I had absolutely no problem putting it down for days at a time. The story line itself isn't terrible (albeit not exactly what was advertised in the jacket cover), but a good story doesn't always make a good book. The settings were the most interesting part of the reading experience - and that is not usually the highlight of books for me. The jumping back and forth in place and character was just distracting and at times utterly unnecessary. The character development was lacking and superficial. About halfway through, I wasn't rooting for any of the characters at all and just waiting for the book to be over. Its not the worst book I've ever read, but I probably won't be holding out for a sequel.