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kblincoln's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars, actually.
I downloaded this during a freebie promo. As some mindless entertainment for a few hours-- perfectly acceptable Paranormal kid-with-powers-pursued-by-gov't kind of story. As an American, the British locale gave it an extra hint of interest for me.
Although everyone's use of "what the skank" and "where's the skanking (insert noun)" became a little too noticeable after a while.
Michael wakes up with amnesia, lives on the streets, and then meets two youngsters, Jennifer and Otis, who are squatting in an apartment and give him shelter-- but are Perceivers. In the last few years, the number of teenagers who are Perceivers, and can feel emotions, basic thoughts, have grown.
And here's the basic issue I had with suspension of disbelief. Although maybe I'm naive and optimistic. The way adults and society instantly rejected the teens, kicked them out, forcefully "cured" them, etc. seemed a little too harsh. Although, now as I'm writing this, I suppose if you swapped "perceiver" for "gay" it's not too hard to believe....
Somehow Michael, Jennifer, and Otis have to stay ahead of powerful gov't factions after them, investigate the mystery of the "cure" clinics suddenly sprouting up and leaving former Perceivers shadows of themselves, and find out who Michael really is.
There's a bit of one-sided attraction on Michael's part over Jennifer, but it's not really a factor in the story.
The other suspension of disbelief I had issues with were the character of Otis (has the ability to like produce anything they need, contacts to conduct serum analysis, is a Perceiver but attacks Michael even when he can Perceive Michael's telling the truth) and Michael's father (quite passive despite being a high powered business man with a scheming agenda of his own, seems content to allow his son to be used and flip flops on the single most important decision of Michael's life).
I'm all about the characters. So for me, this is where the story lost half a star, I never quite connected with them. For people who enjoy plot more, this novel probably would be 4 star.
I downloaded this during a freebie promo. As some mindless entertainment for a few hours-- perfectly acceptable Paranormal kid-with-powers-pursued-by-gov't kind of story. As an American, the British locale gave it an extra hint of interest for me.
Although everyone's use of "what the skank" and "where's the skanking (insert noun)" became a little too noticeable after a while.
Michael wakes up with amnesia, lives on the streets, and then meets two youngsters, Jennifer and Otis, who are squatting in an apartment and give him shelter-- but are Perceivers. In the last few years, the number of teenagers who are Perceivers, and can feel emotions, basic thoughts, have grown.
And here's the basic issue I had with suspension of disbelief. Although maybe I'm naive and optimistic. The way adults and society instantly rejected the teens, kicked them out, forcefully "cured" them, etc. seemed a little too harsh. Although, now as I'm writing this, I suppose if you swapped "perceiver" for "gay" it's not too hard to believe....
Somehow Michael, Jennifer, and Otis have to stay ahead of powerful gov't factions after them, investigate the mystery of the "cure" clinics suddenly sprouting up and leaving former Perceivers shadows of themselves, and find out who Michael really is.
There's a bit of one-sided attraction on Michael's part over Jennifer, but it's not really a factor in the story.
The other suspension of disbelief I had issues with were the character of Otis (has the ability to like produce anything they need, contacts to conduct serum analysis, is a Perceiver but attacks Michael even when he can Perceive Michael's telling the truth) and Michael's father (quite passive despite being a high powered business man with a scheming agenda of his own, seems content to allow his son to be used and flip flops on the single most important decision of Michael's life).
I'm all about the characters. So for me, this is where the story lost half a star, I never quite connected with them. For people who enjoy plot more, this novel probably would be 4 star.
kathy_d's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ujwalnk's review against another edition
4.0
Amazing book. Michael's intro suspense could have been better. And some parts of mind reading could also be improvised.
aly36's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book! I don't find too many books on telepathy so this one was fun to read. I loved the characters and the story. Michael is a great character! * I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review*
jadegreen15's review against another edition
4.0
3.5
This was good! I haven't read sci-fi in a while, so it took me a little bit to get into, but I really enjoyed it. The plot was very original, and there were enough twists to keep you turning the page. The writing was really vivid, which also pulled you in. It's set in London, which was a nice change since most of the books I read are placed in the U.S. I appreciate the social commentary with the perceivers fighting for civil rights, as well.
However, I do think the characters could have been stronger, as I wasn't super invested in any of them, even Michael (the main character). If you like character driven stories, then I would probably avoid this, as the plot is the main thing that keeps you reading.
Still, this does have me wanting to read more sci-fi...
This was good! I haven't read sci-fi in a while, so it took me a little bit to get into, but I really enjoyed it. The plot was very original, and there were enough twists to keep you turning the page. The writing was really vivid, which also pulled you in. It's set in London, which was a nice change since most of the books I read are placed in the U.S. I appreciate the social commentary with the perceivers fighting for civil rights, as well.
However, I do think the characters could have been stronger, as I wasn't super invested in any of them, even Michael (the main character). If you like character driven stories, then I would probably avoid this, as the plot is the main thing that keeps you reading.
Still, this does have me wanting to read more sci-fi...
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