The Rise of Jonathan Flite by Matthew J Beier

The Rise of Jonathan Flite is the third in the series and starts off directly where book two ends, so will be confusing if you have not read at least the one before this. It continues with the theme of life being not quite as we know it.

 

Jonathan’s memories of the Idle County seven are still hot news, and after the suicide bombings at his mother’s press conference the previous year, the extremists against his suggestions of alternate lives and realities are out in full force. Through Jonathan, we learn how two of the “seven”, Elijah and Molly, became friends, and discoveries that are made regarding family and a missing body. We also share Lyndsey’s out-of-body experience, and clues from the previous book begin to make more sense. These memories of life paths only add fuel to the fire of those who refuse to accept the possibilities of the type of reincarnation Jonathan is proposing.

 

Add to this that Jonathan’s story is being made into a documentary and it seems someone doesn’t want this to happen. Then, of course, there is Victor Zobel, who they now believe orchestrated the Geneva attack, who seems to have links to the seven. And why is it that people have strange experiences when approaching his estate? Don’t forget Rebecca Sparks, the mind-reading physicist whose ideas about life, religion, reincarnation, and Jonathan’s memories is still in the mix and changing up opinions.

 

This book is just as convoluted and moves between past and present and between different characters’ viewpoints. Once you get into the rhythm though, the action is fierce and so much information is actually imparted that a lot of the “side” stories (which could probably have books of their own) seem to be superfluous – until they are not! There are so many questions still left unanswered and I have a feeling that in the last four books, many more will be offered too. This is a thrilling series and well worth reading.

 

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review the book.

 

Vampire Diaries: The Awakening and The Struggle Book 1 and 2 by LJ Smith

 So even though my TBR list is taller than the house, I decided to go back and read some of my old stuff again and see how close it still is to how I remember feeling about it. I think I started buying the books while watching the series, but the moment you read about Elena being blonde and she’s a brunette in the series, I wondered how different it was going to be. I’m actually glad the books and the series veered off in different directions because the books got really weird.

 

In the first two books we meet Elena (spoilt, snobby, mean girl of the school who is all about herself and writes tragic diary entries), Bonnie (her very immature and constantly prone to weeping friend who is discovering she has witchy powers) and Meredith (loyal, steadfast, logical, and the one who keeps them all together). Elena was going out with Matt (read high school football) but when she claps eyes on Stefan (broody stranger who joins their school, wears leather and sunglasses all the time, and doesn’t want to interact with anyone) she decides she HAS to have him. Poor Matt. On the sidelines are Caroline (a sort of friend who wants Stefan for herself and now can’t stand Elena’s constant need to be #1) and Tyler (dodgy, let’s get drunk and take advantage of girls). We find out a big secret later about Tyler – but with the mention of the big, bright teeth and the moon rising over his family’s grave, you can kinda figure it out already.

 

So, long story short – Stefan is a vampire (surprise) and into the picture comes his brother, Damon (also a vampire). Turns out Damon hates Stefan for something that happened a long time ago with a girl called Katherine who was in their lives. So now, in the town of Fell’s Church (apparently close to ley lines so strange things happen) there are about to be attacks on people and a murder or two. You’d think those would be the important things. But apparently not, because Elena’s diary has been stolen and she is freaking out about secrets being made public at her coming out ball.  

 

During all this, Elena manages to seduce Stefan and they go from fighting and avoiding each other, to being in love and cannot be without each other (within the space of probably three seconds), to getting engaged (she is seventeen). Add in some action sequences where Stefan and Damon are beating the @$#% out of each other, and a twist at the end where “old power” affects one of the characters in a bad way, and you have a teenage angsty recipe that could go either way. The story could get better, or Elena’s whining and the eyebrow-raising plot could spiral into a pit of despair.

 

Definitely one to read with your brain turned off.

 

 

The Release of Jonathan Flite by Matthew J Beier

 The Release of Jonathan Flite is a novel that’s hard to place as it falls into the realm of time travel, psychic abilities, action, and “fitting in.” This is the second in the series and I wish I had read the first as it was difficult to pick up what was going on seeing as there were so many characters.

 

Jonathan has the memories of seven children who all disappeared in Idle County ten years before he was born. Everyone thinks he is crazy, and now, on the cusp of his 18^th birthday, he is being released from the centre where he was kept for the murder he committed. The memories come and go, and it’s as if he was right there at the time when things happened to the seven. With parallels being drawn between the memories and a nuclear terrorist attack the previous year, things are beginning to be taken more seriously than before.

 

Jonathan will be faced with a divided public when he gets out – some will believe him, and others will fear him due to the religious and scientific implications of the actual memories. Memories that could have consequences for the company that seems to be behind so many things that are “good for the world” yet…  

 

On my second readthrough, I appreciated the book more. Initially, I had found it fascinating to start, then it hit a patch that made me slow my reading and I got confused, and then it speeded up again. There are so many character dynamics in the story and to be reminded of the angst felt when younger about fitting in to the world, it brought memories back to me too (just not the memories of the IC7 though).

 

I found the book dealt with a lot of different issues in a very open way, and covered things like bullying, homosexuality, blended families, feeling alone, where you fit in in your family, and different takes on religion. The characters came across on the page as so “real” that you could feel the emotions as they felt them. As the story progressed, you were fed bits of info that felt like they didn’t connect, and then all of a sudden, you’d realise where they fitted and it would be an aha moment. I liked that the book concentrated on certain characters and I think the same thing will happen in subsequent ones so that each main character has their own story.

 

The writing was very fluid, and the chapters being divided up between timelines didn’t interfere with the comfortable flow of reading. The chapters labelled with the infinity sign helped to join it all up.

I look forward to seeing how the characters progress in the next instalment (yes, I have it!) and where this journey is taking us.

 

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to review the book.