Review: Ruined by Amy Tintera

Ruined by Amy Tintera

Ruined #1

Emelina Flores has nothing. Her home in Ruina has been ravaged by war. She lacks the powers of her fellow Ruined. Worst of all, she witnessed her parents’ brutal murders and watched helplessly as her sister, Olivia, was kidnapped.

But because Em has nothing, she has nothing to lose. Driven by a blind desire for revenge, Em sets off on a dangerous journey to the enemy kingdom of Lera. Somewhere within Lera’s borders, Em hopes to find Olivia. But in order to find her, Em must infiltrate the royal family.

In a brilliant, elaborate plan of deception and murder, Em marries Prince Casimir, next in line to take Lera’s throne. If anyone in Lera discovers Em is not Casimir’s true betrothed, Em will be executed on the spot. But it’s the only way to salvage Em’s kingdom and what is left of her family.

Em is determined to succeed, but the closer she gets to the prince, the more she questions her mission. Em’s rage-filled heart begins to soften. But with her life—and her family—on the line, love could be Em’s deadliest mistake.

There are a few things this book does well, and a few not so well. Let's start with the good, the world building and intense plotline. I absolutely love the world behind RUINED. The fantasy elements with the Ruined and all their many different abilities hooked me in. When you combine that with the various lands, and the court politics/dynamics and I was completely sold. Throw in the fact that the Ruined are being hunted to extinction due to fear/predjudice and the revenge plotline, you have one heck of an intense read. It was incredibly fast paced, and I was simply amazed at how much was packed into the book. I realize the main plotline is nothing new, where the heroine infiltrates an enemy kingdom to achieve xyz revenge/goal, in fact I could probably name several books with very similar plots. But somehow it still felt fresh and exciting the entire read. And that in itself is mighty impressive, to take a been there, done that plot and make it fresh and new.

Now onto the not so great, the characters/relationship development, first up the heroine. Ooooo boy is Em a blood-thirsty little hellion! I have to admit, she and this book got off to a bit of a rocky start for me. We're thrust right into things with Em killing the princess Lera in order to take her place. It was an insanely vicious place to start, and made me take a step back to push the back button on my kindle several times as I thought I had accidentally started a few chapters in rather than at the beginning. But alas, the book starts in the middle of Em committing murder. Oh it's for a good "cause" of course, if revenge/protection of your own people really constitutes a good cause. Even so, Em just generally is an overall blood-thirsty character. There were several times in the book where she'd go off on random mental tangents that where calling them violent and vicious would be an understatement. She sure holds a lot of resentment, and perhaps it's somewhat understandable, but I have to admit being in her head was a jarring at times. It's a bit hard to stay sympathetic to a character's plight when you're also thinking that she might be more than a little psychopathic.

The other not so great would be the hero/romance. Frankly I just didn't get this one at all. Cas seemed, well weak. I had a hard time getting behind him as he seemed about as strong as a limp noodle. Where Em overcompensates with violent thoughts and behaviors, he's one heck of a pushover. Talk about polar opposites, to the point where I just wasn't feeling the connection one bit. It's like the words were there, but not the feelings. I think a little balance in both their personalities would have gone a long way. And in the book's defense, by the end of RUINED, I did feel like that balance was starting to come into play as Em learned to care about more than her violent revenge, and Cas started to stand up for things he believed in. So there is hope for the next book in the romance department eventually.

As I said, there were some good things and not so great things about RUINED, but since I was completely engrossed almost from the very start, I'll call this one a win overall. I'd recommend this one to anyone who enjoys a fast paced fantasy YA, with an incredibly strong (and blood-thirsty!) heroine, and interesting world behind it all.

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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Early Review: Rebel by Amy Tintera

Rebel by Amy Tintera

Reboot #2

The sequel to the action-packed Reboot is a can't-miss thrill ride, perfect for fans of James Patterson, Veronica Roth, and Marie Lu.

After coming back from death as Reboots and being trained by HARC as soldiers, Wren and Callum have finally escaped north, where they hope to find a life of freedom. But when they arrive at the Reboot Reservation, it isn't what they expected. Under the rule of a bloodthirsty leader, Micah, the Reboots are about to wage an all-out war on the humans. Although Wren's instincts are telling her to set off into the wilderness on their own and leave the battle far behind, Callum is unwilling to let his human family be murdered. When Micah commits the ultimate betrayal, the choice is made for them. But Micah has also made a fatal mistake . . . he's underestimated Wren and Callum.

The explosive finale to the Reboot duology is full of riveting action and steamy love scenes as Wren and Callum become rebels against their own kind.

I'd like to start off with a bit of a warning that this is only a duology as it completely caught me off guard, and wanted to make sure the same didn't happen to other readers. Somehow I overlooked that previously and I have to say I'm kind of disappointed now. Don't get me wrong REBEL was fantastic and I loved everything about it, so much so that I want more. Funny how that seems to work where trilogies that could have easily been finished with two are stretched out, and this time around where I want more, there isn't. But c'est la vie, and now onto the good stuff.

I absolutely loved the dynamic between Wren and Callum in Reboot, and I enjoyed them even more in REBEL. The juxtaposition between them just really works as they balance one another out. In the previous book things were still new, and you saw Callum's influence on Wren more as he softened her greatly. However, this time around I saw less of the softening, and more of them finding a balance together. Wren's definitely more emotional, but only to a point. She's always going to be very analytical and frankly emotional considerations come second, but sometimes that's not a bad thing. She doesn't have a hard time doing what needs to be done, but she's also not cold nor malicious, which makes all the difference. Callum on the other hand is the complete opposite in that he's emotion first and logic second to the point where he refuses to get his hands dirty at all. Things were very black and white for him as far as right and wrong, which made me question at times why he loved Wren so much. But again those tides started to change as he grew and learned that things aren't always so cut and dry. I really love getting to see character development done really well like this, and REBEL knocks it out of the park.

There wasn't a single dull moment in REBEL. Between the incredible character development and the non stop plot I was completely hooked from start to end. That's not to say that it was all action packed, because it wasn't as there was more than plenty of down time too, but the intensity regardless was fully ratcheted up the entire time, making for one heck of a read. Trust me, if you enjoyed Reboot, then REBEL will hit it out of the park for you.

(Received a copy from the publisher via Edelweiss)

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Early Review: Reboot by Amy Tintera

Reboot by Amy Tintera

Reboot #1

Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation).

Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line—or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum.

The perfect soldier is done taking orders.

When Wren Connolly was shot three times as a child she died, but then she came back 178 minutes later as a Reboot. Reboots are the result of a deadly virus that allows some to come back stronger than they were before. All Reboots are hard to kill, but their strength and emotional state depends on how long they were dead before they rose again. No one else's Reboot number even comes close to Wren, and she is considered the most inhuman of them all. She follows order without question, and no one matches her for strength. But when the new crew of Reboots show up with a 22 among them, Wren can't help being intrigued by his very human emotions. Even though she knows it's hopeless, she agrees to take him on as her trainee. Problem is that his human emotions do not make him a very good soldier. He doesn't follow directions nor orders, and Wren knows that if she can't get him in line, he'll be eliminated and she'll be the one to have to carry out that order. Never before has she thought to disobey an order, but Callum 22 may just be her downfall.

I absolutely loved Wren's character. She starts off so closed off from everyone else, in fact they all see her as completely inhumane, without emotion. Almost an empty shell as it were. But the reader gets to see that while she is rather a rather calculating person, there's a whole lot more to her than just her cold exterior. Even so, in the early parts of the book, I couldn't exactly call her an emotional person. But of course that all changed once Callum came along and intrigued her. He was just so human, something she had previously thought she despised, but there was just something about Callum that drew her to him. In fact, his arrival opened her eyes to the closeness she already had with her roommate Ever. The two of them were like two very different sisters, but the bonds were as strong just the same. In a sense, Callum helped her to find her humanity again, and I love him (and her) all the more for it. That being said, I do think she will always have an advantage over others, as while she may have been softening some, there will always be that practical calculating part of her, which serves her well in both her and Callum's survival.

I absolutely loved the world behind REBOOT. Amy Tintera does a fantastic job with her world building. From the reboots themselves, to state of the human world surrounding them, and even the control and oppression HARC held over the Reboots felt so real, that I had no problem slipping right into the world. Of course that latter had to be real, because if the Reboots had not of been cowed by their handlers, it would have only taken a few banded together to bring down the guards in just one shot. They are really that much stronger, faster, and less vulnerable than humans. As far as the human world goes, the result of disease and poverty were staggering. I mean something as simple as having meat for dinner is something most of us take for granted. Yet, Callum who came from a rich neighborhood didn't even know what it was. And that doesn't even touch what the slums were like. I literally shuddered at the descriptions of the conditions the people were in, that's just how real it all felt.

Fear, oppression, power, strength, weakness, emotion, romance, loyalty, hatred, all very powerful words, ones that you wouldn't expect to find together. And yet all of these emotions and elements play such an important role in REBOOT. I am incredibly impressed at Amy Tintera's skill in crafting such an impressive story with so many different elements. The world building is stellar, the characterization is incredible, and the pacing is excellent, making REBOOT a must read for any sci-fi/dystopian YA fans. I know I'll be anxiously awaiting the next installment to see what happens next!

(Recieved a copy from the publisher via Edelweiss)

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