Membrane
Author: Michele Corriel
Genre: YA Scifi
Release Date: October 10th, 2016
Leap Books
Book Description:
In the multi-verse people may look familiar, but no one is who they seem.
In a small town in Montana, Sophie lives with her quantum physicist mother, and her equally brilliant, but dangerously obsessed, step-father.
Her father disappeared years ago under mysterious circumstances, but Sophie is still haunted by memories of him that seem so real she swears she feels his presence one night as she drifts off to sleep.
Realizing that somehow her missing father is trying to send her a message, Sophie decides to take a big risk.
With her friend, Eli, Sophie must discover what strange experiment her father did and understand the startling impact it has on her world and another, just across the membrane dividing the multi-verse.
Author: Michele Corriel
Genre: YA Scifi
Release Date: October 10th, 2016
Leap Books
Book Description:
In the multi-verse people may look familiar, but no one is who they seem.
In a small town in Montana, Sophie lives with her quantum physicist mother, and her equally brilliant, but dangerously obsessed, step-father.
Her father disappeared years ago under mysterious circumstances, but Sophie is still haunted by memories of him that seem so real she swears she feels his presence one night as she drifts off to sleep.
Realizing that somehow her missing father is trying to send her a message, Sophie decides to take a big risk.
With her friend, Eli, Sophie must discover what strange experiment her father did and understand the startling impact it has on her world and another, just across the membrane dividing the multi-verse.
Buy Links:
MY REVIEW
Sophie Cummings lives with her mum and her stepdad, Ted, who suffers from psychological problems, seemingly talking to imaginary people. Sophie wishes she could run away from her crazy life, but she doesn't want to leave her mum alone with the unstable Ted. Sophie's convinced there's only one thing that can make her life better and that's finding her father, who disappeared a few years ago. Lately, Sophie's been hearing her Dad's voice, and while she thinks she may be losing her mind, given the nature of her father's work, she quickly starts to wonder if perhaps he is alive and trying to communicate with her from another world. With the help of her boyfriend, Eli, Sophie sets out to reunite with her father.
Michele Corriel throws in some interesting scientific theories that I found quite entertaining and exciting to read about. While the explanation to certain events were minimal or non-existing, I found the information presented was enough to paint a picture. Minus the missing words in a few places and the awkward sentence structure here and there, this was an enjoyable read. I was fully absorbed in Sophie's story, which began as a journey to find her father but spiralled into a daring quest to save her world from destruction.
While the story was entertaining for the most part, I have to admit, there were parts of it that I felt disengaged from and it's at these moments that I found myself tuning out. Moments where Sophie talks about her distrust for Ted was very repetitive to the point where it became a little frustrating. Personally, I didn't think Sophie had any concrete evidence to support her negative feelings towards Ted. Although Ted's unstable mind was addressed on numerous occassions, I didn't get the essense that her distrust was based on his insanity. Her mother did leave her alone with Ted while she flew off to another state so, clearly, they didn't deem him dangerous to be around. I understand the disappearance of Sophie's father left a huge hole in her life, but with the amount of focus there was on Ted and with no instances presented for why he was untrustworthy, I found the references to Sophie's distrust of Ted a little irrelevant and time consuming.
Now and again, the story would be progressing well, and then it would suddenly reach a point where the plot would stall. Instead of progressing, the story would go back on itself, reitering things that had already been addressed and needed no further unraveling, particularly when the result turned out to be something that had already been explored. It just felt as though it was going around in circles, almost as if the author was buying time. Instead of following the characters' lead, it felt as though the characters were waiting for the author to take them to their destination. There was a lingering sense of uncertainty or unwillingness throughout the story that affected the way it was executed. I thought this stilted feeling in the narrative would diminish when Sophie entered the multiverse, a world parallel to her own, but it was at this point where my interest started to waver slightly. Most of the scenes with Sophie and her new companions, notably Spinner, Eli's lookalike, felt as though they were fillers. It wasn't until Sophie met up with her father, who was being help captive by a man who looks identical to him, that the story took off again.
I thoroughly enjoyed the scene between Sophie and her father. It was the most honest interaction I'd seen throughout the whole story. The other characters lacked substance, which made it hard to connect with them. I was more interested in the plot that was trying to be explored through these characters rather than the characters themselves.
Overall, the story has a lot going for it. Sophie was a likeable character who became more intriguing towards the end of the book. And who doesn't like the idea of multiple realities? There is a plot hidden within that if unraveled would make for a killer story. On the surface, however, it's a decent story that I believe readers will enjoy.
VERDICT:
Award: Silver
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Source: Review copy via YA Bound Book Tours
Sophie Cummings lives with her mum and her stepdad, Ted, who suffers from psychological problems, seemingly talking to imaginary people. Sophie wishes she could run away from her crazy life, but she doesn't want to leave her mum alone with the unstable Ted. Sophie's convinced there's only one thing that can make her life better and that's finding her father, who disappeared a few years ago. Lately, Sophie's been hearing her Dad's voice, and while she thinks she may be losing her mind, given the nature of her father's work, she quickly starts to wonder if perhaps he is alive and trying to communicate with her from another world. With the help of her boyfriend, Eli, Sophie sets out to reunite with her father.
Michele Corriel throws in some interesting scientific theories that I found quite entertaining and exciting to read about. While the explanation to certain events were minimal or non-existing, I found the information presented was enough to paint a picture. Minus the missing words in a few places and the awkward sentence structure here and there, this was an enjoyable read. I was fully absorbed in Sophie's story, which began as a journey to find her father but spiralled into a daring quest to save her world from destruction.
While the story was entertaining for the most part, I have to admit, there were parts of it that I felt disengaged from and it's at these moments that I found myself tuning out. Moments where Sophie talks about her distrust for Ted was very repetitive to the point where it became a little frustrating. Personally, I didn't think Sophie had any concrete evidence to support her negative feelings towards Ted. Although Ted's unstable mind was addressed on numerous occassions, I didn't get the essense that her distrust was based on his insanity. Her mother did leave her alone with Ted while she flew off to another state so, clearly, they didn't deem him dangerous to be around. I understand the disappearance of Sophie's father left a huge hole in her life, but with the amount of focus there was on Ted and with no instances presented for why he was untrustworthy, I found the references to Sophie's distrust of Ted a little irrelevant and time consuming.
Now and again, the story would be progressing well, and then it would suddenly reach a point where the plot would stall. Instead of progressing, the story would go back on itself, reitering things that had already been addressed and needed no further unraveling, particularly when the result turned out to be something that had already been explored. It just felt as though it was going around in circles, almost as if the author was buying time. Instead of following the characters' lead, it felt as though the characters were waiting for the author to take them to their destination. There was a lingering sense of uncertainty or unwillingness throughout the story that affected the way it was executed. I thought this stilted feeling in the narrative would diminish when Sophie entered the multiverse, a world parallel to her own, but it was at this point where my interest started to waver slightly. Most of the scenes with Sophie and her new companions, notably Spinner, Eli's lookalike, felt as though they were fillers. It wasn't until Sophie met up with her father, who was being help captive by a man who looks identical to him, that the story took off again.
I thoroughly enjoyed the scene between Sophie and her father. It was the most honest interaction I'd seen throughout the whole story. The other characters lacked substance, which made it hard to connect with them. I was more interested in the plot that was trying to be explored through these characters rather than the characters themselves.
Overall, the story has a lot going for it. Sophie was a likeable character who became more intriguing towards the end of the book. And who doesn't like the idea of multiple realities? There is a plot hidden within that if unraveled would make for a killer story. On the surface, however, it's a decent story that I believe readers will enjoy.
VERDICT:
SILVER
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Source: Review copy via YA Bound Book Tours
About the AuthorMichele Corriel lives and works in Montana's scenic Gallatin Valley, surrounded by seven mountain ranges.
Her work is as varied as the life she's led, from the rock/art venues of New York City to the rural back roads of the Rockies. With her fourth book just out from Leap Books, she's also a prolific freelance magazine writer with articles regionally, nationally and internationally. Michele has received a number of awards for her non-fiction as well as her poetry. She also enjoys teaching, presenting writing workshops and speaking on panels across the country.
When she's not writing you may find her on the golf course, hiking or slogging her way through the snow on what some people like to refer to as "skis." You might also find her in the kitchen creating exciting new flavors or recreating classics.
The book description and review sound intriguing. Thanks for sharing. Love the cover too.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a unique and clever book, I'm looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteI really, really love the cover to this one. And you had a brilliant review there mentioning the characters and narrative which has convinced me all the more. I want to read it <3
ReplyDeleteThe book sounds great!
ReplyDelete