Author: Naomi Hughes
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Release Date: November 5th 2019
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Rating: 4/5 Stars!
*Thank you The Fantastic Flying Book Club and Page Street Kids Publishing for an e-arc copy to review and the opportunity to be on this tour!*
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Synopsis
After an attack on earth, all reflective surfaces become weapons to release monsters,causing a planet-wide ban on mirrors. Despite the danger, the demand rises, and 17-year-old Marty Callahan becomes a distributor in an illegal mirror trade―until he’s caught by the mayor’s son, whose slate is far from clean. Both of them are exiled for their crimes to one of the many abandoned cities overrun by fog. But they soon realize their thoughts influence their surroundings and their deepest fears begin to manifest.
With fast pacing and riveting characters, this is a book that you’ll finish in one sitting.
Review
Refraction was an unexpected good read for me, and by unexpected I mean it wasn’t something I normally gravitate to. Thank goodness, I did because it was pretty good.
You are on an island, shrouded by fog and you are unsafe in every point you turn. Crazy, right? We follow the story through the main protagonist’s eyes who has OCD. We see how an apocalyptic setting can affect someone from medicine withdrawals to the uncertainty of finding the person they are looking for to the overall feeling of feeling unsafe. What I enjoyed most about this book was the mental health rep. Although I cannot relate to the main character in that respect, I did respect the author portraying the character in a relatable way, but someone still capable to take on obstacles. Marty had such growth throughout the story and became a character arc I wanted front and center.
Marty is a mirror dealer who is trying to gain money to find his brother. His brother happens to be on the other side of the world. What brought this science fiction aspect to the story was the monster/aliens that would spawn from the mirrors. This horror came after the Fog settled onto the Earth. I was turning each page trying to understand the fog and monsters and how humans were now surviving this. Now back to Marty – since we know the monsters spawn form the mirrors, Marty as a mirror dealer, is seen as the bad guy by the mayor, Elliot. To avoid all spoilers, the customers of the mirrors being sold use them in a way that is pretty sickening. If you read the book, you will want to read it over and over again because you wouldn’t believe humanity can be that bad. This causes a ban of mirrors, hence Marty being seen as the bad guy in that scope. We follow the journey between the two who eventually have to team up together after being exiled form the island they saw as safe. Each dealing with their own issues, learn to work together to survive the fog and return to the island they have been exiled from. It becomes such a journey, where both characters learn more about each other and learn about surviving a world of creatures who have now called their home , home and want to erases the species.
I loved the action packed page turning feeling this Sci-Fi novel gave me. It was creepy, eery, suspenseful and something I haven’t read in a long time. If you want a good Sci-Fi set in an apocalyptic world where human survival relies on a world wide ban of an object and distance form an extraordinary, mysterious fog, this is the book for you!
About the Author
Hey! I’m Naomi Hughes, writer of quirky young adult fiction (usually involving physics and/or unicorns). I live in the Midwest US, a region I love even though it tries to murder me with tornadoes every spring. When not writing, my hobbies include reading (of course), traveling, and geeking out over Marvel superheroes and certain time traveling Doctors. My debut YA sci-fi standalone novel, Afterimage, is available now from Page Street Publishing. My next novel, Refraction (also a standalone YA sci-fi), comes out in Nov 2019. I also offer freelance critique services at naomiedits.com.
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Blog Tour & Bookstagram Schedules
Giveaway
Win (1) copy of REFRACTION by Naomi Hughes (US Only)
STARTS: November 5th, 2019
ENDS: November 19th, 2019
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