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A review by amandagstevens
Quicksilver by R.J. Anderson
4.0
NOTE: Spoilers below for [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670].
Tori Beaugrand's life is a composite of secrets. From her intellect to her emotions to her origin, nothing is safe to reveal. To anybody. Not her friends, new or old. Not her parents. Certainly not her enemies. And for a seventeen-year-old, Tori's attracted some interesting enemies. There's the obsessed ex-cop who wants to know what really happened when she disappeared months ago. There's the curious genetics lab who got a peek at her unearthly DNA. And of course there's Mathis, to whom she is an experiment, not a person.
Tori is alone. But by now, she's used to it.
She doesn't let things faze her, not even running for her life (maybe literally), restarting in a new town, choosing a new name. Then Sebastian Faraday materializes (quite literally) in her world again with a message: Tori's in danger. Again.
This book never stops moving. Not until I browsed other reviews did I realize that, like [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670], the physical action takes awhile to pick up. Tension propels this book even when Tori is working at Value Foods or pushing her parents for permission to explore her engineering skills at the local "makerspace." The plot takes several unexpected turns but is always driven by credible character choices, and I love Tori for her inner insecurities and her desire to be seen for who she is even as she weaves constant lies to protect herself.
As a well-rounded secondary character, I also love Milo. That Ms. Anderson wrote him and Tori as friends, not a teen romance, and that the characters themselves acknowledge to each other the difference--I don't know that I've read a young adult novel that deals as well with the complexities of teenage sexuality and peer pressure. Tori's disdain for the phrase "just a friend" is refreshing and perfectly fits who she is as a young woman forced to pretend her way through life, desiring friendship more than she'll admit even to herself.
Then there's the return of Alison and Faraday. Wow. I love them, too, this time around (yes, even Faraday). So much is hinted at in Faraday's reactions, and I salute the author for not spelling it all out.
As for the Crazy Ending Twist ... the She's Not Really Going To--OMGOSH moment ... well, like [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670], this book is brilliant. Is it extreme? A little out there? Nudging a toe against the suspension-of-disbelief line? Absolutely. But with a tamer (dare I say more plausible?) climax, this book wouldn't measure up to its prequel.
Speaking of the prequel, these two books must be read together (I recommend in order) for full appreciation. Not only do they tie off threads left loose by the other, but their themes also blend beautifully. Both Alison and Tori reach a point of helplessness with nothing left to do or give, and in that emptiness, from that emptiness, they are saved. Redemption (though never named as such) glimmers in both books, more brightly when they are considered side by side.
As for the ending, knowing Ms. Anderson doesn't intend to continue with these characters ... sigh. There's a lot still unexplored, a lot of fallout, including that of Faraday's unforgivable choice, which happens too late in the book. Way too late, because then the story is over. And again (see my review of [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670]), I was not ready. Apparently, this author believes in limited closure.
Can I choose to be satisfied with that? Can I recommend these books anyway, especially to readers in search of young adult fiction that will bend genres and push boundaries and shatter formulas?
Sure thing.
Tori Beaugrand's life is a composite of secrets. From her intellect to her emotions to her origin, nothing is safe to reveal. To anybody. Not her friends, new or old. Not her parents. Certainly not her enemies. And for a seventeen-year-old, Tori's attracted some interesting enemies. There's the obsessed ex-cop who wants to know what really happened when she disappeared months ago. There's the curious genetics lab who got a peek at her unearthly DNA. And of course there's Mathis, to whom she is an experiment, not a person.
Tori is alone. But by now, she's used to it.
She doesn't let things faze her, not even running for her life (maybe literally), restarting in a new town, choosing a new name. Then Sebastian Faraday materializes (quite literally) in her world again with a message: Tori's in danger. Again.
This book never stops moving. Not until I browsed other reviews did I realize that, like [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670], the physical action takes awhile to pick up. Tension propels this book even when Tori is working at Value Foods or pushing her parents for permission to explore her engineering skills at the local "makerspace." The plot takes several unexpected turns but is always driven by credible character choices, and I love Tori for her inner insecurities and her desire to be seen for who she is even as she weaves constant lies to protect herself.
As a well-rounded secondary character, I also love Milo. That Ms. Anderson wrote him and Tori as friends, not a teen romance, and that the characters themselves acknowledge to each other the difference--I don't know that I've read a young adult novel that deals as well with the complexities of teenage sexuality and peer pressure. Tori's disdain for the phrase "just a friend" is refreshing and perfectly fits who she is as a young woman forced to pretend her way through life, desiring friendship more than she'll admit even to herself.
Then there's the return of Alison and Faraday. Wow. I love them, too, this time around (yes, even Faraday). So much is hinted at in Faraday's reactions, and I salute the author for not spelling it all out.
As for the Crazy Ending Twist ... the She's Not Really Going To--OMGOSH moment ... well, like [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670], this book is brilliant. Is it extreme? A little out there? Nudging a toe against the suspension-of-disbelief line? Absolutely. But with a tamer (dare I say more plausible?) climax, this book wouldn't measure up to its prequel.
Speaking of the prequel, these two books must be read together (I recommend in order) for full appreciation. Not only do they tie off threads left loose by the other, but their themes also blend beautifully. Both Alison and Tori reach a point of helplessness with nothing left to do or give, and in that emptiness, from that emptiness, they are saved. Redemption (though never named as such) glimmers in both books, more brightly when they are considered side by side.
As for the ending, knowing Ms. Anderson doesn't intend to continue with these characters ... sigh. There's a lot still unexplored, a lot of fallout, including that of Faraday's unforgivable choice, which happens too late in the book. Way too late, because then the story is over. And again (see my review of [b:Ultraviolet|8843789|Ultraviolet (Ultraviolet, #1)|R.J. Anderson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1338688532s/8843789.jpg|13718670]), I was not ready. Apparently, this author believes in limited closure.
Can I choose to be satisfied with that? Can I recommend these books anyway, especially to readers in search of young adult fiction that will bend genres and push boundaries and shatter formulas?
Sure thing.