Rush by Eve Silver
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Author : Eve Silver
Genre : Sci-Fi
Published Date : June 11th 2013
Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books
Pages : 352
Source : Publisher, in exchange for a fair and honest review
Rating : ✿✿✿✿✿
From Goodreads :
So what’s the game now? This, or the life I used to know?
When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game—her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos.
In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out.
Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet.
She laughs. He doesn’t.
And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.
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Review
I've actually been eyeing this book for quite some time before giving it a try, first because it's uber-beautiful cover, and second because of its seemingly interesting concept. Honestly, I'm never a big fan of something alien-ish and sci-fi, but when Eve Silver applied it to a gaming concept? Now do count me in.
"Game on, Miki Jones."
—Jackson
But nothing ever comes without a price, and as Miki realized that her second live didn't come for free, she also saw that human might not the only things that lived on earth.
That the existences of mankind might not last for long. That the aliens with a poisonous eyes called Drau might conquer it in a matter of years.
But when the truth dawned on her, and she came into a realization that freedom might just be a pipe dream, what would Miki ultimately do?
One thing I especially love from this book was how Eve Silver was able to keep the readers interested on every page—adding the life-and-death situation so we would read on to find out if the characters survive, or adding new things that intrigued us so we would seek for explanation—and made us feel like we couldn't flipped the page fast enough.
The beginning was also really grabbing, not too full of tension that would make us lost and ask "What the hell is happening here?" but not too bland either.
One thing I especially love from this book was how Eve Silver was able to keep the readers interested on every page—adding the life-and-death situation so we would read on to find out if the characters survive, or adding new things that intrigued us so we would seek for explanation—and made us feel like we couldn't flipped the page fast enough.
The beginning was also really grabbing, not too full of tension that would make us lost and ask "What the hell is happening here?" but not too bland either.
However, I think there were way too many characters being named in the beginning. We didn't get to know each one of them deeper even until the last page, and they were basically serving the exact same purpose. Or no purpose, if you ask me. Cut them from the story and it wouldn't do any real damage.
And all them, I noticed, had this one annoying same trait : so totally not memorable.
The writing was unfortunately a bit choppy and didn't really flowed at first, but as the story goes, it became better. By the time I reached pages thirty or so, well, it became literally un-put down-able.
I also love how Eve Silver decided to explained things by bringing us into the real situation rather than just info-dumping.
We get to see what was happening by ourselves as well as understanding it bit by bit, and we also experienced the emotional ride by placing ourselves at Miki's head—who experienced it all for the first time.
And the world building was also pretty cool. Mixing the traits of our current world and adding a hint of futuristic element to it, the surrounding of Rush was totally easy to be imagined for me.
Then there was the ending. Honestly, Eve Silver, you're killing me with those cliffhanger. Just release the second book tomorrow maybe please? I'm already dying to read the continuation here.
The character, I found, was a little bit mixed. The main one, like Miki and Jackson, were pretty great and likable.
Miki Jones, as our main character, had an especially strong and distinct voice. Her narration was grabbing, and it's lovely to actually feel her personality on it, and not just a mere sentences.
The minor things I didn't like from her though, was her stupidity at the earlier part of the book. So Jackson told her not to stare the Drau on the eyes, and yes, she really had to stare at it even when she had been told not to. And on top of that, she really had to do it twice. Nice.
Jackson Tate, our other main character, was pretty well-developed too. His personality was deep and complex, and I love how his action from the beginning until the end of the book were connected with each other, and all of it has its own reason, not just "Oh, I want to do it so let's do it" kind of action. And his banter with Miki about his crypticness was very fun to read as well, presented in a healthy amount and not too many to make us bored.
But, while the two central characters were shining, that's not really the case with the side.Some of them, like Luka and Tyrone and Richelle, had a decent amount of life inside them, enough for me to portray them. But the other one? Like Miki's friends, whoever their names are, and many more? Pretty much impossible to imagine.
There's also some inconsistencies as well, especially on the character's trait. The best example would be Carly, Miki's best friend.
She was first described as the so-called-peacemaker, and so I would expect her to play nice and being the girl-next-door type, right? But her branding and her actual attitude didn't really matched with each other.
She played with her friend's interest, smoked even though she knew Miki's history, and so many more. Like, hello? If peacemaker behaved like that, I could totally be a peacemaker too.
And the friendship between her and Miki didn't feel real too. In the narration it was said that they're like this kind of sister-friend. But when I see their friendship, really, it felt like, nothing.
But, while the two central characters were shining, that's not really the case with the side.Some of them, like Luka and Tyrone and Richelle, had a decent amount of life inside them, enough for me to portray them. But the other one? Like Miki's friends, whoever their names are, and many more? Pretty much impossible to imagine.
There's also some inconsistencies as well, especially on the character's trait. The best example would be Carly, Miki's best friend.
She was first described as the so-called-peacemaker, and so I would expect her to play nice and being the girl-next-door type, right? But her branding and her actual attitude didn't really matched with each other.
She played with her friend's interest, smoked even though she knew Miki's history, and so many more. Like, hello? If peacemaker behaved like that, I could totally be a peacemaker too.
And the friendship between her and Miki didn't feel real too. In the narration it was said that they're like this kind of sister-friend. But when I see their friendship, really, it felt like, nothing.
Their so-called closeness was practically nonexistent, and when they fought (For something as trivial as hot guy. Duh. That's sister-friend for you.) I honestly couldn't bring myself to care, because it simply wasn't real enough.
But, while Miki's friendship sucks, that's not the case with her love life.
I especially love how the romance between Miki and Jackson was not just kiss-and-hug-and-I-suddenly-love you kind of love. And there was no annoying love triangle too. I had actually braced myself to read Jackson-Luka-Miki's love at the beginning, but really, glad it didn't happened.
While them getting together was sort of predictable the moment they met, the chemistry between Miki and Jackson felt so real and full of emotion, and I found it really easy for me to root for their relationship. Their shared moment was also cute and sweet, and while—thanks God—it's not a touchy-feely moment, it sure had me swooning all over.
There's some things from this book though, that I didn't like even though I really enjoyed reading it. One : The trait's inconsistencies I mention above, being most notable Carly's.
Two : I also noticed that Miki tended to mention unimportant things in a dire moment. When the timing was good, it could really added the detail, sure. But when they were off fighting for their live, the tension high, and then she noticed guy's abs or biceps? Ha, let's just forget the alien and we can all swoon together for the biceps.Good thing it happens only twice, though
Three : It's also quite irritating to read the fact that all of Miki's friend—which was basically all her school life was about— seemed to only have one purpose of living : talking about boy. Really. Oh my gawd, like one of her friend said. Was it so important to swoon over, like, every single boy out there? Please.
I especially love how the romance between Miki and Jackson was not just kiss-and-hug-and-I-suddenly-love you kind of love. And there was no annoying love triangle too. I had actually braced myself to read Jackson-Luka-Miki's love at the beginning, but really, glad it didn't happened.
While them getting together was sort of predictable the moment they met, the chemistry between Miki and Jackson felt so real and full of emotion, and I found it really easy for me to root for their relationship. Their shared moment was also cute and sweet, and while—thanks God—it's not a touchy-feely moment, it sure had me swooning all over.
There's some things from this book though, that I didn't like even though I really enjoyed reading it. One : The trait's inconsistencies I mention above, being most notable Carly's.
Two : I also noticed that Miki tended to mention unimportant things in a dire moment. When the timing was good, it could really added the detail, sure. But when they were off fighting for their live, the tension high, and then she noticed guy's abs or biceps? Ha, let's just forget the alien and we can all swoon together for the biceps.Good thing it happens only twice, though
Three : It's also quite irritating to read the fact that all of Miki's friend—which was basically all her school life was about— seemed to only have one purpose of living : talking about boy. Really. Oh my gawd, like one of her friend said. Was it so important to swoon over, like, every single boy out there? Please.
Overall, this book was quite an enjoyable read for me. Although there were some things that I found flawed, such as the unneeded characters and unneeded biceps-abs detail, they didn't make appearance that often, so it's actually quite tolerable.
The way this book centered around Miki and Jackson also helped a lot in making this book enjoyable, and if you're looking for a fresh sci-fi reads with a hint of dystopia, completed with a strong narration, interesting concept and execution, and the captivating main character, this one is a must-try.
The way this book centered around Miki and Jackson also helped a lot in making this book enjoyable, and if you're looking for a fresh sci-fi reads with a hint of dystopia, completed with a strong narration, interesting concept and execution, and the captivating main character, this one is a must-try.
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4 comments
I agree, I could stare at that cover for ages. One of my worst literary pet peeves is when too many things and characters are introduced at once. It's really frustrating and somewhat discouraging. But, it sounds like the positives outweigh the negatives so I will check this out! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteAlise @ Readers In Wonderland
Dear Neysa, I have to say that I really like your review-writing style. You marked your points (pretty in pink & bold~) so it's easier to skim the reviews when at first I just want to know what's the story about/what do you think about the book.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's so detailed, so it helps to pinpoint whether I really want to read that certain book or not =D
I have to agree that Rush's cover is uber-beautiful, by the way. I'm easily attracted to read a book with gorgeous cover and now I want to give Rush a try! ;)
Tirta @ I Prefer Reading
Gah, the reviews for this one are so varied...it pretty much just comes down to what the reader enjoys, I think. I'll give this one a try soon...hoping the strong narration and cool concept seal the deal for me. Great review!
ReplyDeleteSounds great. I've heard so many good and bad things about Rush, but I'll actually give it a try. Nice review by the way :-)
ReplyDeleteA comment from readers make us happy, really!
This is also an award-free zone, but thanks for your consideration!