Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Indie Read of the Week: Gossamer by SL Naeole

I want to start by saying I loved the Grace series by SL Naeole. It is reason that I originally picked this book up. Its a good find for 2.99 on kindle. Here's the description from Amazon:

Sophia Blithe’s seemingly perfect life masks the scars of a past that’s left her cold and immune to emotion. She hides it well, and is content to live behind that mask for the rest of her life. A zoning change a few weeks before the start of her senior year changes all that when Sophia is forced to attend Gossamer High. It’s there she meets Dex Sterling, the boy whose eyes haunt her dreams. He’s carefree, handsome, cryptic, infuriating, and he knows more about her than he should. He makes Sophia question the feelings she has whenever she’s around him and worse, whenever she’s not. Then one fateful night, Sophia makes a decision that changes everything and, in the darkness that hides nothing, learns the dangerous truth about Gossamer, about Dex, and how he knows so much about her. Now she’s left to figure out what it is she wants and whatever her decision, it could end up costing her life.


To be completely honest I put reading this book off for a while because it didn't fully interest me in the synopsis. However, I know I love the author's writing style so I picked it up this weekend. I was glad that I did in the end. The plot and story is a bit unique. At first I wondered if there was a paranormal reason that Sophia didn't feel emotion. I had a hard time understanding that emotional wounds could cause the complete shut down that they did in her. However, as the synopsis describes it was the trauma she suffered. Not having been through anything like her it took a while for me to connect with that level of hurt and her lack of emotions. 


While I loved the story there were several times I wanted to kick or smack the main character. If you are easily annoyed with characters making continuous poor choices this is not the book for you. I came close to putting down the book at one point because of a sensitive issue that it tackled and Sophia's reaction. Thus, at times it was a hard read for me because I was so interested in the storyline but at time revolted by the behavior of Sophia. 


Dex is a great leading male. He definitely falls in the Edward category with the protective instincts, however, it is refreshing that he somewhat tamps down on his instincts and allows Sophia to make her own choices and gives her space. He is also "beautiful" and perfect in Sophia's eyes which also elevates him to the reader. 


The author has definitely set this up as a series and is currently working on the sequel. I must say that I enjoyed the storyline and premise of this book and will pick up the second one. However, I really hope that the lead character gets her act fully together because I don't know if I will pick up the third if she continues to be stubborn about poor choices. Overall I give this story a 3.5/5. 


**Parents be warned that I really don't think some of the issues in this book should be read by a younger YA audience. Additionally, I think dialogue with even older high school students on these issues is a good idea. It can serve as a great gateway to talk about issues that girls face**



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