Title: The Rift Uprising
Series: The Rift Trilogy, Book 1
Author: Amy S. Foster
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: October 4, 2016
Genre: Young Adult Fiction - Dystopia/Sci-Fi
Normal seventeen-year-old girls go to high school, binge watch TV shows all weekend, and flirt with everyone on the face of the Earth. But Ryn Whitaker is trying to save it.
Ryn is a Citadel. A soldier. A liar. Ryn and her fellow Citadels were specially chosen and trained to guard a Rift—one of fourteen unpredictable tears in the fabric of the universe that serve as doorways to alternate Earths. Unbeknownst to her family, Ryn leaves for school each day and then reports for duty as an elite, cybernetically-altered soldier who can run faster, jump farther, and fight better than a Navy SEAL—which comes in handy when she’s not sure if axe-wielding Vikings or any number of other terrified and often dangerous beings come through the Rift. A fine-tuned weapon, Ryn is a picture-perfect Citadel. But that’s all about to change.
When a young man named Ezra is pulled through the Rift, Ryn finds herself immediately drawn to him, despite her training. What starts as a physical attraction quickly grows deeper, and Ezra’s curiosity throws Ryn off balance when he starts questioning the Rifts, the mysterious organization that oversees them, and the Citadels themselves—questions that lead Ryn to wonder if the lies she’s been telling her family are just the surface of a much bigger lie told to her. As Ryn and Ezra desperately try to get to that truth, they discover that each revelation blurs the line between the villains and the heroes even more.
Sci-fi fans, The Rift Uprising is for you. The world-building premise itself is interesting enough with the whole space-time continuum thingy going on here. Though I don't think it fully developed enough to give true sci-fi fans the satisfaction as the classics, yet, it does wet the appetite and perhaps create a following for this semi-young adult, semi-adult mix genre. I did enjoy what the author have built when it came to the world of the Citadels and The Rift. The plot itself moved along steadily with increase in momentum until the end, which was anti-climatic to me. I guess, as the first book of a trilogy, I expected a turning point, or something to grasp your attention and desire to move onto the next. Yes, the premise have me already wanting to go to book 2, but is it a full-on anticipation that leads me to stalk the author's social media for the next release date? No.
There's a lot to learn here for Ryn and for others, and what happens to her does entice me to go further. I'm just unsure about the romance part. It's somewhat unbelievable, but I guess that's what sci-fi is. It's unbelievable, but totally works. In all, if you go in understanding that this is a mix-genre novel with lots of potential to be great as a trilogy and not just simply book 1 of said trilogy, I think the intrigue will ramp itself up to a manic love.
For my clean readers, there are definitely sexual innuendos in this novel.
For my review policy, please see my Disclosure page.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and have not been compensated for this. This is my honest opinion.
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Amy S. Foster is a celebrated songwriter, best known as Michael Bublé’s writing partner. You might recognize her work in his four hit singles, including "Home" and "Haven't Met You Yet.” She has also collaborated with Destiny’s Child, Diana Krall, Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban and a host of other artists. She is also the author of the novel When Autumn Leaves. When she's not in a studio in Nashville, Amy lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family. Amy is the daughter of singer B.J. Cook and the legendary music producer, David Foster. Fun fact about Amy: Her extended family tree includes Bella and Gigi Hadid, Sara and Erin Foster and Brody and Brandon Jenner, and Clay Aiken! The Rift Uprising, her YA debut, will be released on October 4, 2016.
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Thanks for the great review today. I'm very excited for this book and now realize it's a series! I can't wait to read how this author built this world.
ReplyDelete"The Rift" sounds like an intriguing read. Looking forward to reading.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a great review. Sounds like a book (and trilogy) I would LOVE. Thanks so much for this giveaway :)
ReplyDeleteI've been seeing this on the blogs lately, and I'm so interested in it! I love the character names, too.
ReplyDeleteDianna