Monday Meanderings - May 4, 2015

First Meandering ...

Today is reveal day for the trailer of a book I loved.

Here's my review of the audiobook:

WHAT IT'S ABOUT
Nine is the ninth female born in her batch of ten females and ten males. By design, her life in Freedom Province is without complications or consequences. However, such freedom comes with a price. The Prime Maker is determined to keep that price a secret from the new batches of citizens that are born, nurtured, and raised androgynously.

But Nine isn't like every other batcher. She harbors indecision and worries about her upcoming Remake Day -- her seventeenth birthday, the age when batchers fly to the Remake facility and have the freedom to choose who and what they'll be.

When Nine discovers the truth about life outside of Freedom Province, including the secret plan of the Prime Maker, she is pulled between two worlds and two lives. Her decisions will test her courage, her heart, and her beliefs. Who can she trust? Who does she love? And most importantly, who will she decide to be?

MY TAKE
I've been wanting to read this book since it first came out earlier this year, but it wasn't until I was able to get my hands on a copy of the audiobook that I was able to. The narrator did a fabulous job and really added to the experience.

As for the story, it resonated with me on a number of different levels. My heart was totally engaged in the characters--the friendship Nine has with Theron (I hope I spelled it right since I only had the audiobook and not the paper one), the family who takes her in after she's shipwrecked, and Kai. 

I loved these people.

Todd totally pulled me into the little island society. I've lived in the tropics, and I have a daughter who lives in Hawaii. Todd's writing made me feel so much like I was there with Nine; I could taste and feel it all so vividly.

***Spoiler Alert*** (you'll need to highlight the text to read it)

I may not be giving much away, and I will be careful not to say too much, but I did want to give the warning.

The thing that struck me the most was one of the themes of this story. Yes, it's another dystopian society that's just gotta be brought down (I'm so glad this is the first of a trilogy). There was a feel for me of Logan's Run and even one of Anne McCaffrey's Killashandra books. But most of all, I loved it because it made me think. There's one point where Kai is talking about the problems of the society in Freedom, that the people are offered a "false freedom".

It struck me that too often anymore people are offered "freedoms" that lack authenticity. They are shallow substitutes for more substantial things. One of those is the other theme: family. And the power of a loving one. I loved this about Remake. 

And I loved the satisfying ending. While it was obvious there's more to come in the story, I wasn't left hanging. I'll be in a hurry to pick up the next book.

And I have some hopes for a certain best friend of Nine's and a sister of Kai's ...

To celebrate the release of the trailer, the author is having a giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Second Meandering ...

I've been so busy with other things that I've forgotten or been unable to talk about the books I'm reading. I'd been trying to keep track of them by month. Yeah. That didn't work. Here's what I'm currently reading:

What do I think?

Daughter is YA fantasy about the daughter of a king who was forced to abdicate so he could marry her mother (a mage). The daughter is placed in a similar position (choosing position/love or the magic inside her). I love Mansfield's books.

Match is a prequel novella to Miss Match which comes out later this month. Armstrong is fabulous with voice, and her characters are so real.

Dragon is one I'm reading to hubby. Alex has grown so much as a writer; this is his best yet. The story is a wonderful mix of character growth and action. We're loving it.

Shadows is a collection of short stories from the Mercy Thompson world. I'm listening to the audiobook. This first story is how Samuel Cornick (a very old werewolf) and Ariana (a fae) fell in love a very long time ago. They meet again in Brigg's Silverborne, so I know this does not end well. Briggs said she only wrote because her fans asked for it so much.

For the Goodreads 2015 Reading Challenge, I've read 29 of my 75 books. Here's what I've read so far this year:

What have you been reading?

Anyone see the new Avenger's movie this weekend? We're hoping to go in the next week or two, when the crowds thin out a bit.