♦publisher: Henry Holt & Company BYR
♦release date: June 25th, 2013
♦hardcover, 224 pages
♦intended audience: Young adult
♦series: Timedance, book 1
♦source: from publisher for honest review
London, 2218 A.D.
Seventeen-year-old Zee is an intern empath. She’s focused on her job,
poised for a great career—until one day an attractive patient undoes her
hard-earned calm. As an empath, she cannot afford such distractions,
but neither can she stay away from David, even when she discovers he’s
one of a mysterious alien race. As London comes under attack by
anarchist bombings, and as Zee struggles to get a handle on her
unusually strong psychic abilities, David starts pulling away. Although
Zee’s sure he’s attracted to her, David has secrets he cannot share. But
it’s too late for Zee. She’s losing her heart to the gray-eyed alien
boy, and she’s determined to follow him—no matter how far it may take
her.
Review: Every once in awhile, it is nice to depart from the 400-500 page epic tales and dive into something that’s a quick read. While shorter books are a nice break, there is always a danger that the story itself will end up feeling like it’s been shorted, and unfortunately that’s the feeling I got from Neptune’s Tears.
The story was enjoyable and entertaining. Zee is an empath with a promising career ahead of her. She meets David and instantly feels a dangerous attraction there---dangerous because love can derail an empath’s powers and because he is of the alien race that is visiting Earth. Despite her fears, their relationship blossoms. After they fall in love, the idea that her powers would be compromised seemed to go by the wayside; as a matter of fact, they seemed to become even more developed. The writing has a stark quality that sets an intense mood but sometimes feels ironically cold for a story about a girl who works with feelings and emotions.
I would have loved to get to know the supporting characters a bit more; Rani, Mia, Jasmine, Mrs. Hart---there are tons of interesting people who are part of Zee and David’s story but again, they pop in and out and we barely get to know them. Especially Zee’s best friend, Rani---she ends up being such a huge part of the ending, but I think fleshing out her character and their friendship a bit more would have given that a bit more impact. I really enjoyed each subplot: Zee’s relationship with the elegant and proud Mrs. Hart, her family that she’s grown apart from, the mystery behind what David and the aliens are really on Earth for, and a futuristic London that is constantly threatened by anarchist attacks. I just wish all of these elements had been expanded on---I felt like we really just skim the surface of the story’s potential in favor of centering it around a story of forbidden love.
With the big twist at the end, I am interested to see where this story goes next. I’ll likely pick up the second book and see if I can delve a little deeper into this mysterious futuristic world!
It's a shame the supporting characters weren't that developed but this sounds like quite an interesting read - and you're right about needing a break from 500 paged books! Thanks for the review :).
ReplyDeleteYes I'm definitely hoping for a little more from book two, but it's definitely an interesting story!
DeleteI'm sorry that the supporting characters could have used a little more development, The subplots sound so fascinating, even if you wanted some of the concepts to be expanded.
ReplyDeleteAhh the last plot twist also sounds really intriguing, fantastic review!
Yes, that last twist was quite a shocker! Sent the story off into a whole other direction! I think it's really what saved this one for me and made me curious enough to pick up book two.
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