Simone Wellborn is a Transhuman with an attitude. She's been genetically engineered from birth to be super smart. The problem? All that tinkering her parents paid top dollar for provided a few unexpected results, like an annoying ability to blast telekinetic energy at the worst possible times. She also has another tricky issue: strange entities possess her and, worse, transform her into something dangerous.
Simone's mother sends her to the Sterling School for reject Transhumans. While there, she meets a few other students with similar problems and dirty secrets. Heart throb Hutto Toth is a charming gladiator and a werebear. He annoys Simone from day one, and Simone can't stand how much she likes him. There's two-foot tall Wally Dorsey, who's determined to pilot a personalized mech. His best friend, Beasley Gardner, is a mountain of a young girl with the power and strength of a giant, and a rage disorder. Finally, Simone meets Kimberlee Newkirk, a sultry and dangerous Succubus who fears she'll kill the next boy she kisses.
These defective transhumans find themselves at the center of a deadly conflict when computer-geek student Joss Beckwith is attacked by a Rogue Artificial Intelligence.
The Transhuman Warrior Series tells the story of Simone and her friends as they're transformed into highly specialized human weapons. They must challenge the increasing power of the Rogues as these enemies push into Realspace with one goal in mind: total domination.
Ok, all. First I need to disclose that I was unable to finish this novel.
That's right. This is a DNF - Did Not Finish. Yes I rated it. I rated what I read. Don't base the rating on the full novel, but on the 50% that I did stick it out for, before giving up on it and admitting defeat.
I was also offered a copy of this book by the author for an honest review.
I loved the book blurb. Sounds so interesting. And it started out really cool and fun.
Reminded me a little of this:
Except, the robot suit I imagined was bigger, and there was a little rug rat in it, controlling its every move. There was a coach who was a really interesting guy. It was a really cool concept and I was intrigued.
Unfortunately this part didn't last long, and an array of more characters were introduced quite abruptly and en mass.
All of a sudden I am reading about
A kid who turns into a werebear - I forget his name. A really really angry chick - Forget her name A Telekinetic Girl - Don't F with her! - Forget her name.. I think it's Simone A SUCCUBUS! - Kept confusing her with Telekinetic girl
.. and many more.
In case you didn't catch the theme... I couldn't keep any of these characters straight. And more and more characters kept getting introduced! I just couldn't keep up.
I read 6 other novels while I struggled through 50% of this book. The 50% took me month to get through. I am a quick reader... Reading only 50% of a novel in a month is unheard of for me.. unless I am really stubborn about continuing a novel that I am really not invested in.
But I did try!
The reason why I didn't drop it sooner is because every time I was ready to drop it, something would happen that caught my attention and kept me reading. Hence the 2 stars. But I can not deny my absolute frustration with always not being able to keep characters straight. There wasn't enough character development to make them each memorable.
There were individual story lines happening, but they didn't seem to connect very well with each other. I couldn't quite grasp what the gist of this novel was going to be; what path it was taking.
Eventually, I admitted defeat. I loved the idea of it. I enjoyed bits and pieces of what I did read. But that alone couldn't keep me going through the last half of this book.
Harry Potter pointed a wand and things happened because... well, because its magic. No explanation needed.
Hox doesn't avoid such simple bypasses. There's a reason why these teenagers can do extraordinary things in a school for special students -- dangerous and/or unstable students -- with ordinary, teenage problems. This is Hogwarts for science fiction. The characters exhibit shapeshifting or fighting abilities or technological wizardry that reveal the evolution of the human race, pushing the limits of our identity and the expansion of consciousness, where the human race has realizes a body is not needed for existence, it's only a vehicle. The tremendous advancements in human potential also bring tremendous enemies: artificial intelligence that wants to existence in realspace outside the limits of computers.
Hox, as usual, challenges our ideas about human capacity and questions the limits of reality. This time, he does it in the context of everyday teenage issues... while saving the human race.
This is definitely a very different book. Different in a fun way.It was difficult to understand sometimes. Or rather trying to wrap your head around some of the concepts the author was writing about.
I felt the author combined humans, computers, and beings (or aliens) all into one. You have realspace -earth, and a world of electonics. Well it goes way beyond the normal electronics. You have nanotechnology and people who can transform. You have people who have special abilities and you have ghosts.
I like how there were protocols and everything was a game.It made enemies much more civilized. Enemies gave each other challenges to win, and who every would win would get status and more power.
The characters were well liked and enjoyed. This book had no love interest but it did have normal school crushes. Crushes that weren't silly or over the top mind you. The main character had a major attitude and carried herself with pride on who she was. She tried to help those who were like her.
Overall I really liked the story, the characters and the concepts. However I found it difficult to understand what everyone was. I found it took some time getting into the book. By the end though I think I had it figured out.
I was intrigued by the blurb, and when I started reading I was fascinated by the world that Curtis Hox had created. About a quarter of the way through I began to struggle with some of the terminology used and found myself becoming very confused as to what was what. The language in places was very technical and detracted from the story as a whole. I struggled to get through the rest of the book. I gave it three stars because, despite my issues with the terminology, the book was very well written, had a good plot and interesting characters. As this is the first in a series, I think the author will give us more character development in the later books.
I really enjoyed this book offered by Tt and Read it and Reap. The sci fi aspect is a little different than what I have been reading but is fun. The story line and future created by Hox is interesting and I quickly fell in like with the teenage characters and their elders. It was difficult to follow the technical background especially about 2/3 of the way into the book and hard to really understand who the bad guys are. The writing is very good and I actually thought the editing was pretty good compared to some other self-published I have read lately, few mistakes here and there and the story flowed pretty well. Thank you so much for this book!
The first chapters of the book contain many scenes totally unnecessary, while more attention would be needed to introduce the reader to the setting. This lack causes the initial part of the story not totaly appreciable and the same is the final part. More space would also need to characterize the protagonists, which in many cases seems to me useless.
Even so, the story seems to have some potential and the subsequent installments of the series may be better and satisfactorily complete the saga.
This book has a great story line. Despite the slow beginning and the confusing language at times it did maintain my attention. There is definitely potential here with the world that the author is building as well as the characters. The three star rating comes from the beginning, which was very slow. Once I got through that and combined with the constructed storyline is what did it for me. The rest should come together as the series continues to develop and grow.
Possibly the most interesting shifter/paranormal fantasy books I’ve read. Rupture creates a world where people are made to order. Yep, you heard right, made to order. Pick the characteristics you want: ramp up the strength, make a brainiac, create someone who has two heart and extra lung capacity and can run or fight for hours without tiring, extra mental acuity to meld your mind with machines, or whatever characteristics you want. Then wham you have a person with all these skills, cool right? Except when there are ‘glitches’ or rejects, then they get sent to a special school to learn to handle their “issues.” That’s where we find the kids in the book. All of them are at Sterling because of some problem: from two foot tall, potato shaped Wally who can control machines with his mind to the heroine who ‘channels’ entities and can shift. Then there are the fighters, the ‘Barbie’ girls, the AI interface, and the succubus, among others. This book is a fascinating blend of fantasy and paranormal, but also has tinges of Orwinian philosophy and a “big brother” who may or may not have your best interests in mind. It is a great take on the ethical dilemma of what would happen if we could mess with genes. Curtis Hox creates a fascinating culture that is an engrossing read. I give this story 4.5 out of 5 clouds. This product or book may have been distributed for review; this in no way affects my opinions or reviews.
From the very first page of the book, the author grabs your attention and interest and doesn't let go until the end. The idea of Transhumans and their special abilities is a fresh topic in the YA genre. The characters are funny and realistic, which makes them instantly click with the reader. The storyline is fast paced and flows well, which makes this a fun and fast read. There's the typical teenage problems and angst, but all this seems to take a backseat to Simone's background and situations. I really enjoyed the idea of genetically engineered teens and the problems they faced when dealing with the Rogues - and being turned into human weapons.
Overall, this is a great dystopian/fantasy YA read and I highly recommend it. I'm definitely looking forward to the rest of the series!
Disclosure: I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
As a genetic engineer by education, the blurb sounded awesome. I did enjoy the universe dreamed up in Rupture; however, the book needs both a pro-edit and a copy edit. The dialogue fit the setting fine, but the omniscient POV was off-putting and confusing. I didn't really bond with the characters. It is unfortunate as I think the general concept is a winner and has the potential to be a nice, fun little serial. I wish the author would've worked with a bunch of professionals to get the story in shape: if he did, he needs new ones.
This is the second book I've read by Curtis Hox (Versim), and I've been hugely disappointed by both. The best thing I can say about them is that both were free through the Amazon Lending Library. Both had really intriguing premises, but just fell apart. Muddled story lines and gratuitous typos and grammar issues that led to having to reread parts to understand the meaning.