Susannah Noel

I wanted to love this book. The summary sounded like it was just my kind of read. I must say that I was rather disappointed. First the good, the setting. Many centuries into the future after some great cataclysm, the written word has fallen out of favor & censorship rules. The main character, Riana is a Reader for The Union. A small group of people who can still read & who are set to work to look for messages & anomalies from The Front (the rogue group seeking to topple the government regime). She has a past that includes parents & a grandfather killed by The Union so everything is set up to be exciting. There's also a supernatural element going on with the Soul-Breathers. These are people who are able to glean pieces of a soul by touch & thus are very valuable at obtaining information. Sounds great right? I thought so also.

The problem for me was that Riana was too flat a character for me to connect to for the great majority of the book or empathize with her deeply. She was bland in almost every way one could be. She didn't have friends, she took care of her invalid sister, she kept her head down at work and basically led a life of blending in. Okay, given her circumstances, it was understandable, in the beginning. Enter Mikel, the Soul-Breather sent to get info from her & provide the romantic element of the story. Here's the thing though, Mikel was more interesting than Riana. He had deceit & subterfuge working in his favor & had to struggle between what he was hired to do & his own personal feelings. We also get Connor who knew Riana before he went all underground with The Front as The Librarian. He was more interesting than Riana. And there may or may not have been some mutual attraction between the two but nothing ever came of it. This is sort of made a big deal of but nothing really comes of it in this book, so unless there's some reckoning further along in the series, I can kind of ignore this. It's like faux-love-triangle right now. Anyway, Riana has two men working to help her find her sister, the Zealots are out for blood & there's romance in the air... and she was still flat. Literally, it was a chore sometimes to read page after page because she was so dull. I rarely experience this with main characters so it's a little difficult for me to let it go. I almost didn't want all these people putting themselves on the line to help her because I didn't feel she deserved it. She didn't do a thing to earn such loyalty & devotion.

I quite enjoyed Jenson, Tava & Donn. They were well drawn characters & mostly, more interesting than Riana. The world building was pretty good but as a dystopian/sci-fi lover, I wanted more explanation of what happened to get the world to this place. I am looking forward to seeing what more there is to learn in subsequent books.

I will say that I loved the last three chapters. They basically saved the story for me. Riana finally finding her purpose & something to drive for made me very happy.The big reveal in the last chapter pulled me in & made me want to read the next in the series.
… (mais)

This was an intriguing read, this is one of those books you will just devour!! I couldn't put it down.. the flow of the book was perfect. There were several swoonworthy moments. The overall premise and setting was interesting as well. Sweet yet sexy, definitely a 5 star in my opinion and a must read.

Post Apocalypse.. reading is nearly extinct. Those who can read work for the Office of Readers, trying to find codes in written text. Riana tried to maintain a low profile, but is suddenly thrust into an underground rebel movement. Her sister gets kidnapped, she gets shot at, and an incredibly sexy Soul-Breather named Mikel is interested in her. She soon learns that his interest was initially to betray her. Riana also reunites with Conner, a long lost friend, that is willing to help her find her sister and answers to her problems. The the two men swallow their pride and work together to solve Riana's problems.

One of my many favourite quotes:

"Have you ever met someone's eyes-maybe just accidentally across a room-and you made a connection with them? For just that instant you know what they're feeling. You feel what they're feeling. You've connected."


… (mais)

This was originally reviewed on The Book Hookup

**I received a copy of this book from the author but that did not influence the review**

♥ The story
Very corrupt dystopian society that has rebuilt itself up. A small group of people (the Union) holds all the power, the wealth, and information from the masses. Of course another group (the Front) wants to rebel, so this is where it gets interesting. And then, there is at least one more group that has a third mission in mind. As the struggle for power builds up, Rianna Cole just goes about her life, her boring job and taking care of her wheelchair bound sister. She resigned herself to an uneventful life…that is until she gets pulled in and can’t resist fighting for what’s right.

♥ Rianna
She is a dowdy thing at first glance, but underneath the bland exterior she has a passion for life and love. She is actually beautiful, which she isn’t aware of so that made me like her even more. As I read though, I expected to make a connection with her, but it never truly happened.

♥ The Men
Mikel: well, I don’t like him. I think I’m supposed to but I don’t.
Connor: I like him, he is described as a little clumsy, but since he is the force behind the Front then I knew he was powerful and I liked it. Nothing like a man in charge to catch my interest.

♥ The Romance/Chemistry
wahhh, nothing! I felt nothing, and it was totally wrong for me. However *rubs hands* maybe the next book it will turn around for me.

♥ Twists and Turns
Oh, holy double crossing everywhere. I’m not sure if there were any actual twists and turns, but there are a lot of double agents. I’m not sure who, but clearly almost no one can be trusted. I only trusted Rianna, Jannie and Connor. No one else. There are moles everywhere!

♥ Reading and Breathing (the magical element of the story)
I adore any dystopian society that throws some magic in there. It’s like the story is taken up a notch. I love the Soul Breathers. It truly made anything possible as I turned the pages. I also think there is more magic to be discovered in the next book.

♥ Gripes:
People not reading yet having all this technology? I mean, 5 year old children learn how to read so it doesn’t make sense that adults wouldn’t learn in a very short time. It just didn’t match up for me. However, I made peace with this inconsistency and enjoyed the story.

♥ The Ending
Probably what I expected, but I guess what everyone is battling over isn’t clear. I wish we’d known a little more.

♥ Rec it?
Yes, it was a fun and quick read. The setting has been set, we now know where everyone stands (at least on the surface) so the next round of battling can begin! A very solid 3 stars.… (mais)

I received a copy of this book from the author for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review, and all conclusions are my own responsibility. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, books and reading have become passé, if not frowned upon. A governmental agency, tasked with reading and recording the “approved” history is where we encounter Riana, a ‘reader’ with the agency. While few people read, the opposition has taken to encoding messages in the written word: readers are tasked with ferreting out these messages.

In a world where books are antiquities and not valued, and the written word is thought to be obscure and unnecessary there was great potential for me (as a reader) to find this story hellish. In fact, the author has created a lovely story that celebrates the triumph of love that is based in a commonality of purpose and belief when measured against the often fleeting feelings of instant attraction and desire. And develop characters that, while they undergo their own small changes and growth, their presence also enables Riana to develop and find her own desires.

Full of action, this book was a true page-turner holding onto the dramatic tension through the last page. Like Riana, I felt torn between the two men vying for her heart; and wondered just what she would do when the choice became inevitable. A really good read that left me wanting more, for there is certainly more to be shown with these characters.
… (mais)