Innovative, YA science fiction about 2 sisters
Thank you to the publisher and Bookish First for this book in exchange for an honest review!
The Ones We're Meant to Find by Joan He is an innovative, YA science fiction about two sisters' journeys to find each other. First off, I'm so excited to support an #ownvoices author of Asian descent. As a Chinese-American reader, I 100% support this Chinese-American author, and as far as I can tell, the protagonists in this book are of Japanese descent. (Please correct me if I'm wrong.) YA fantasy and science fiction need more Asian-American authors and protagonists, so I love this book for that reason alone. Next, another reason I love this book is because of how original it is. Kay is a teenage scientist/genius missing her sister. Meanwhile, far away, Cee wakes up alone on an island with no idea how she got there.
Here's an excerpt from Chapter 1 from Cee's point of view:
"I save the last goodbye for myself, the only soul on this
Joules-forsaken place. Trust me, I’ve searched. Everywhere.
Whittled my situation down to the disheartening facts:
#1 I’m on an abandoned island.
#2 I have no idea how or why, because (see #3)
#3 I quite possibly have a case of amnesia that worsens by
the day.
Not-so-disheartening fact #4?
I’m out of here."
What follows is an epic quest as the sisters try to find each other. I loved the mysterious atmosphere of the beginning of the book. We're reading about a futuristic world with advanced technology and even there, there is an unknown, uninhabited island where Cee wakes up. I couldn't wait to keep reading and find out what happens next. This book is definitely a page-turner. I ended up finishing it in a day. I did take off one star because I didn't like the ending, and most of the plot after the beginning is pretty forgettable.
Overall, The Ones We're Meant to Find is a stunningly original book by an #ownvoices author. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA science fiction, I highly recommend that you check out this book. It comes out today in bookstores all over the country!
The Ones We're Meant to Find by Joan He is an innovative, YA science fiction about two sisters' journeys to find each other. First off, I'm so excited to support an #ownvoices author of Asian descent. As a Chinese-American reader, I 100% support this Chinese-American author, and as far as I can tell, the protagonists in this book are of Japanese descent. (Please correct me if I'm wrong.) YA fantasy and science fiction need more Asian-American authors and protagonists, so I love this book for that reason alone. Next, another reason I love this book is because of how original it is. Kay is a teenage scientist/genius missing her sister. Meanwhile, far away, Cee wakes up alone on an island with no idea how she got there.
Here's an excerpt from Chapter 1 from Cee's point of view:
"I save the last goodbye for myself, the only soul on this
Joules-forsaken place. Trust me, I’ve searched. Everywhere.
Whittled my situation down to the disheartening facts:
#1 I’m on an abandoned island.
#2 I have no idea how or why, because (see #3)
#3 I quite possibly have a case of amnesia that worsens by
the day.
Not-so-disheartening fact #4?
I’m out of here."
What follows is an epic quest as the sisters try to find each other. I loved the mysterious atmosphere of the beginning of the book. We're reading about a futuristic world with advanced technology and even there, there is an unknown, uninhabited island where Cee wakes up. I couldn't wait to keep reading and find out what happens next. This book is definitely a page-turner. I ended up finishing it in a day. I did take off one star because I didn't like the ending, and most of the plot after the beginning is pretty forgettable.
Overall, The Ones We're Meant to Find is a stunningly original book by an #ownvoices author. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA science fiction, I highly recommend that you check out this book. It comes out today in bookstores all over the country!