The Kingdom by Jess Rothenberg

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

As a former Disney employee, I am all about theme parks! So when I saw that The Kingdom by Jess Rothenberg was a read all about a high-fantasy, high-tech theme park, I knew I was going to need to read it! This story follows Ana, one of The Kingdom's "Fantasists," or human/cyborg hybrid princesses genetically engineered to make dreams come true. 

Ana's thoughts and feelings are supposed to be steady, restricted, controlled. So when she meets Owen, a park employee, and starts feeling emotions she shouldn't have and having thoughts and ideas that should never cross her mind, Ana starts to wonder if she is broken.

Chaos ensues as her "sisters," other Fantasists, start to have breakdowns of their own, ultimately resulting in being shut off for good. And when Owen is murdered and Ana looks incredibly guilty, what will become of Ana, the Fantasists, and The Kingdom as a whole?

I absolutely flew through this story and really enjoyed it! Of course I loved all of the theme park elements, and saw so much of Walt Disney World and other theme parks in this book. Theme parks are constantly competing with one another for the newest technology, the most personal experience, and the highest attendance, so it's not at all outside the realm of possibility that something like these Fantasists could be a reality one day. I loved the alternating chapters of Ana's point of view, emails, and interview material, and thought the story was pretty unique overall.

Fans of theme parks, fairy tales, and technology would absolutely love this read!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

This Cruel Design by Emily Suvada

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

Last week, I reviewed the fantastic YA sci-fi, This Mortal Coil. This Cruel Design by Emily Suvada is its sequel. Like my other sequel reviews, this may contain a few spoilers for the first book in the series so consider yourself warned.

In This Cruel Design, the Hydra virus has mutated, no longer responding to the vaccine that Cat fought so hard to figure out. And worse, the virus has now infected someone close to her. It's spreading more quickly and differently than before, leaving the clock ticking on finding a patch for the vaccine. On top of all this, Cat is still trying to defeat her evil genius father. This leads the gang to Entropia-a city of genehackers that deals completely in code-in order to solicit help. Will they find the assistance they are looking for and stop the Hydra virus? And what other things might Cat uncover in the process?

There were a few twists in this book that completely blew me away! Also I loved the tie in of the birds from the first book. They were mentioned so much in This Mortal Coil and now you get to see why! The new characters introduced in this installment were great additions to the cast, and I really enjoyed getting to see some plot set in the city of Entropia.

There were a few times this book got to be a little confusing. There was definitely a lot to absorb and you must pay very close attention or you could miss an important detail that may come into play later. But it's this elaborate world building and complex plot that really gives this book that extra something.

There will be another book in this series, and I can't wait to see what Suvada has in store for us!

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

A big thanks to Simon Pulse for sending over a finished copy of both This Cruel Design and the first book, This Mortal Coil! Both books are out now!

This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

I have just been itching for a good sci-fi and This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada sure did deliver! In this dystopian society, a fast-spreading new virus called Hydra has split the world in two: those hiding out in bunkers and those trying to still survive out in the world. Catarina Agatta is one of the latter. 

Having been abandoned when her father, a famous geneticist, was captured by the shady organization Cartaxus, Cat has been doing everything she has to in order to survive, including trying to hack Cartaxus systems and eating human flesh to remain immune to the Hydra virus. But when a Cartaxus agent shows up saying that Cat's father is dead, and he has left a message requesting her help with a Hydra vaccine, Cat has to go against all that she has believed about the evil Cartaxus to try to save the human race.

This world was just incredible. The gene manipulation, the apocalyptic plague that literally makes people explode, and just the technology in general were all amazing. There were some crazy plot twists that I absolutely loved, and in no place did this book get slow or drag whatsoever. The characters were very likable and it was so easy to visualize everything taking place. 

If you liked The Hunger Games, Zombieland, or any book about having to survive in a dystopian world or dealing with a terrifying virus epidemic, this read is definitely for you!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

A big thanks to Simon Pulse for sending over a finished copy of both This Mortal Coil and its sequel, This Cruel Design! Both books are out now!