Series: The Hunted #2
Publication date: November 26th, 2013
Pages: 304
Synopsis:
Because of what you are, the Believers will hunt you down.
A storm is brewing on the streets of LA, one that has intensified since a tragic and deadly confrontation claimed an innocent life.
While Gabriel Stewart trains his army of teen psychics to stop Alexander Reese--the obsessed leader of the Believers--the fanatical church becomes more bent on the annihilation of all Indigo and Crystal children. They're silencing the voices of the telepathic hive, one soul at a time, with frightening experiments cruelly executed on vulnerable minds.
When the Believers torture a mysterious homeless boy, Oliver Blue, they brainwash him into betraying his own. The boy becomes a deadly pawn to take Gabriel down. As the fires of chaos burn around him, Gabe is running out of time. He'll need to confront his past--and the man made him--before the hope of peace for the future is silenced forever.
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Review:
I received an e-copy of this book from the blog tour host in exchange for participation in the tour and an honest review.
To be fair, I may have decided to read this book mainly on cover appeal. I saw the wispy fire-like cover and was intrigued to say the least. Then I learned it was the sequel to a book I had long been wanting to read. Despite the fact I would need to read two books to participate in the tour. I accepted the challenge happily. I dug into the first book in the series straight away and quickly hopped in the sequel eager to find out what happened next.
In the first book of the series, we are introduced to a motley crowd of children and teenagers alike who present with psychic abilities. They are believed to be the makings of evolution and seen as not quite human by the non-Indigo people known as the Believers. Rayne searches for her brother and comes face-to-face with a powerful psychic boy named Gabriel in the first book. They are seen preparing for war against the Believers and Ward 8 of a mental hospital in which experiments and torture is performed on these unusual children.
Gabriel has gone from loner to leader of the pack of Indigo children in the matter of a few short months. He knows that he is to do battle with an organization that has more advantages than he could ever imagine. He must prepare his Indigo family for a battle that will surely come at any moment. All the while, he starts sensing the presence of another strong psychic child who is in desperate need of his help.
Oliver Blue has only ever known how to run. When he is captured with a young girl who sought him out to find her long lost friend, he was subjected to sensory deprivation torture in hopes of weakening him enough to be manipulated by his captors. When the Believers ask him to find Gabriel he does so, but finds himself conflicted with turning the boy who he feels an unusual connection to in to the people who have been the source of his living hell.
Soon enough the battle is on and Gabriel must decide whether he is to trust the mysterious Oliver or leave him to the people who will surely be his undoing.
I was kind of on the fence about the first book. I think it was because the other book was all about discovering what Indigo children are and how to avoid being captured and this one is about those same scared children standing up for themselves and waging war on the adults that want to end their existences. I like strong characters and them running around petrified and cowering from the Believers irked me a bit. This was definitely better.
I like the introduction of Oliver and Caila (awesome spelling of the name). It was nice to see a few new faces. I absolutely loved Oliver's wit. Especially when he started saying he was not going to die in pastel hospital pajamas that make him look like the Easter Bunny. I wouldn't want to die in pastels either. Well put, Oliver. Caila started out as a strong main character and then somewhere along the way she dropped off and became insignificant. I don't know if the author got tired of her or just didn't want to keep her in the series. I was a bit disappointed in that. I liked Oliver and Caila's interactions.
All in all, a fun read. Better than the first and hopefully not as good as the next (if there is a next).
Crystal Fire is a riveting sequel that will show the devastation of discrimination in a world where all the Indigo children want is to live in peace.
Avon/HarperCollins launched Jordan Dane's debut suspense novels in a back to back publishing event in Spring 2009 after buying the 3-book series in auction. Pursuing publication since 2003, Jordan had received awards in 33 national writing competitions and was an energy sales manager in the oil and gas industry prior to selling. Now she is following her passion and writes full time.
Ripped from the headlines, Jordan's gritty plots weave a tapestry of vivid settings, intrigue, and dark humor. She loves challenging a reader's moral barometer with the borderline ethics of her characters and their flawed personalities--dark, angst-ridden antiheroes pitted against unforgettable villains. Publishers Weekly compared her intense pacing to Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, and Tami Hoag--"romantic suspense that crosses over into plain thriller country with tight plotting and exceptional male characters, both bad guys and good."
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