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A review by piecesofamber
Starters by Lissa Price
4.0
The Spore Wars have wiped out most of the people between the ages of twenty and sixty, leaving on the young and the old (who are living longer and longer). As a result, there is a huge disconnect between the two remaining generations: the Starters (young) and the Enders (old). Enders view the Starters with distrust while Starters view the older generation as out-of-touch creeps. Many of the unclaimed Starters (the ones without family), like sixteen-year-old Callie Woodland, live on the streets in poverty. All she wants to do is get a better life for her younger brother, Tyler. When she hears about the secret Body Bank and how much money she can make by lending Enders her body to play out their own fantasies she has her reservations but goes for it.
Everything works out fine, until she wakes up in her renter’s mansion before the rental is over with an odd side effect that clues her into her renter’s murderous mind.
There is very little I can say without spoiling the book for everyone, so I will be brief. As I began reading, I noticed that the process of renting teen bodies was reminiscent of the Matrix except there were two people connected to each other with the Ender in control of the Starter’s body while the Starter’s mind just kind of hung there and the Ender’s body slumbered under anesthesia. It is all a bit mind-blowing and difficult to explain unless you are Lissa Price. But very cool and very creepy.
I enjoyed the main character, Callie, who spoke in the first person, as well as the good Enders she came into contact with throughout the book. There was almost a love triangle, and I say almost because Callie never dated the first boy and she was never officially with him, while she started something with the other boy. Be careful while you read though; Price was great at making me believe one thing and then tearing it apart at the end. I never saw it coming.
Starters is full of mystery, disappearances, and murder in a bleak, creepy post-apocalyptic world. There were definitely a few things that I did not see coming. It is a wonderful debut with a great start and I will be reading the second book, Enders, when it is available.
Recommended for young adult readers ages fourteen and up, especially for those who are fans of Beth Revis’ books.
Read this review in its original format here.
Everything works out fine, until she wakes up in her renter’s mansion before the rental is over with an odd side effect that clues her into her renter’s murderous mind.
There is very little I can say without spoiling the book for everyone, so I will be brief. As I began reading, I noticed that the process of renting teen bodies was reminiscent of the Matrix except there were two people connected to each other with the Ender in control of the Starter’s body while the Starter’s mind just kind of hung there and the Ender’s body slumbered under anesthesia. It is all a bit mind-blowing and difficult to explain unless you are Lissa Price. But very cool and very creepy.
I enjoyed the main character, Callie, who spoke in the first person, as well as the good Enders she came into contact with throughout the book. There was almost a love triangle, and I say almost because Callie never dated the first boy and she was never officially with him, while she started something with the other boy. Be careful while you read though; Price was great at making me believe one thing and then tearing it apart at the end. I never saw it coming.
Starters is full of mystery, disappearances, and murder in a bleak, creepy post-apocalyptic world. There were definitely a few things that I did not see coming. It is a wonderful debut with a great start and I will be reading the second book, Enders, when it is available.
Recommended for young adult readers ages fourteen and up, especially for those who are fans of Beth Revis’ books.
Read this review in its original format here.