There was a special plodding that came from my reading of this book. I wanted to read it, I applied my winning points towards getting it, and then I took my sweet time reading through it. Generally, it takes me a few days to read through a book. This one took me a week and a half. It isn't a particularly long book but, nonetheless, it took me some time to read through it. Now, I think I took my time reading because I wanted to extend my time with it--even unknowingly.
The progression of getting to know the characters in play as well as their significance is done wonderfully. The transitions between the chapters and perspectives of characters is not something that I usually appreciate but Scholte made it seamless and important for the information I wanted to acquire (I was solving the mystery too!).
Keralie, our main character, has pushed herself away from her family in an attempt at retribution for the pain that she believed she caused them. She hurt her father because she wanted something different for her life. She almost killed him. She was leaving him to die still. Without the miracle cure, HIDRA, that is given out to one person once a year her will not make it.
The Queens don't give that cure out easily--and she could never earn it. She's a picker and though she loves her job she could never make amends.
Mackiel, her childhood friend and boss, is the only one who understands her and allows her to live the life she wants to. We begin when he sends her on seemingly unremarkable mission--to retrieve a comm case from a messenger. She does, because you "get in quick, get out quicker". Only, this messenger pops back up later and she realizes that the comm case might not have been all that unremarkable as she thought originally. In fact, Mackiel holds it in such a place that their friendship feathers when the case is at risk.
Once Keralie discovers what significance the case truly holds her focus shifts. Of course, this is done along side the messenger we come to know as Varin. His Eonist ways might be rubbing off on her or she really has been kind and honest the whole time.
Regardless, we travel with Keralie and Varin as they try to figure out how to save the queens and their homes.
What was in that case? How does it affect the queens? What can two kids do to save the queens before their deaths? Those are all very good questions but... you'll have to read this book to find out.
The progression of getting to know the characters in play as well as their significance is done wonderfully. The transitions between the chapters and perspectives of characters is not something that I usually appreciate but Scholte made it seamless and important for the information I wanted to acquire (I was solving the mystery too!).
Keralie, our main character, has pushed herself away from her family in an attempt at retribution for the pain that she believed she caused them. She hurt her father because she wanted something different for her life. She almost killed him. She was leaving him to die still. Without the miracle cure, HIDRA, that is given out to one person once a year her will not make it.
The Queens don't give that cure out easily--and she could never earn it. She's a picker and though she loves her job she could never make amends.
Mackiel, her childhood friend and boss, is the only one who understands her and allows her to live the life she wants to. We begin when he sends her on seemingly unremarkable mission--to retrieve a comm case from a messenger. She does, because you "get in quick, get out quicker". Only, this messenger pops back up later and she realizes that the comm case might not have been all that unremarkable as she thought originally. In fact, Mackiel holds it in such a place that their friendship feathers when the case is at risk.
Once Keralie discovers what significance the case truly holds her focus shifts. Of course, this is done along side the messenger we come to know as Varin. His Eonist ways might be rubbing off on her or she really has been kind and honest the whole time.
Regardless, we travel with Keralie and Varin as they try to figure out how to save the queens and their homes.
What was in that case? How does it affect the queens? What can two kids do to save the queens before their deaths? Those are all very good questions but... you'll have to read this book to find out.