Blog Tour Review with Giveaway: Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful by Arwen Elys Dayton

Book info:

Title:  Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful
Author:  Arwen Elys Dayton
Genre:  YA  Science Fiction
Release Date:  December 4th, 2018
Publisher:  Delacorte Press
Source:   ARC received from publisher for review
My rating:  4 stars

Synopsis:

For fans of television shows Black Mirror and Westworld, this compelling, mind-bending novel is a twisted look into the future, exploring how far we will go to remake ourselves into the perfect human specimen and what it means to be human at all.

Set in our world, spanning the near to distant futures, Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful is a novel made up of six interconnected stories that ask how far we will go to remake ourselves into the perfect human specimens, and how hard that will push the definition of "human."

This extraordinary work explores the amazing possibilities of genetic manipulation and life extension, as well as the ethical quandaries that will arise with these advances. The results range from the heavenly to the monstrous. Deeply thoughtful, poignant, horrifying, and action-packed, Arwen Elys Dayton's Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful is groundbreaking in both form and substance.

BOOK LINKS

•      Goodreads

•      Amazon

•      Barnes and Noble

•      Book Depository

•      Kobo

•      IndieBound

•      iBooks

My Review:
This was a really neat look at genetic modification and manipulation, things that are becoming closer and closer to being reality. Especially with the recent news of a scientist in China who supposedly modified the genes of twins before they were born so that they would be immune to AIDS.  All of the different stories had their definite importance to the overall story.  However a few I liked better than the others.  When I first started the book, I was reminded a bit of the Unwind series by Neal Shusterman.  As that is one of my favorite series, that is a good thing.  

The first story was a good one, kind of gave the beginnings of how this all could start, or has started, and it was twins, one ended up with parts of the other one in order to live.  The second story was one I really liked how it went.  It was a great story of how teens would deal with a situation like that.  The way it would feel to get revenge, and then the way the person you got revenge on, getting it.  I really liked that story and how it ended.  The third story was about the Reverend who was what you'd call the religious figure fighting the genetic manipulation.  But his story, wow, just what a big shocker.  And then to have him fit into all the stories afterwards perfectly.  However the fourth story, while interesting, and unique, still had a little too much that kept me from quite connecting with the main character.  The next story started out a little boring, but then when we got the Russian back story it clicked and got to where it fit and I enjoyed it more.  

The final story really wrapped the whole thing up in a perfect way.  It had parts that tied in to today's social issues.  As I read, the science teacher in me kept needing some reason for why the people with genetic modifications were having the issues.  And the way that the author fit that in, it was just, well, to use the same word I've already used, it was perfect!  I liked all the different ways the author took each little idea with genetic modifications and how she saw things could maybe go.  Some may have seemed a little out there, but who knows what could actually happen? That is what science fiction is for.  Not once did the story get preachy about genetic modification being bad, in fact all the stories really brought up the reasons for why  it can be a good thing, and I liked that a lot.

I've already put this on my list to buy for my school library, hoping that my students will really enjoy it as well, and that it will make them think, just like it did for me.


About the Author:

ARWEN ELYS DAYTON is the author of the Seeker series—Seeker, Traveler, and Disruptor and the e-novella The Young Dread—and the science-fiction thriller Resurrection. Arwen lives with her husband and their three children on the West Coast of the United States. You can visit her at arwendayton.com and follow @arwenelysdayton on Twitter and Instagram.

Giveaway:

•  1 finished copy of STRONGER, FASTER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL by Arwen Elys Dayton

•  US Only

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:
http://fantasticflyingbookclub.blogspot.com/2018/11/tour-schedule-stronger-faster-and-more.html 

PRAISE FOR STRONGER, FASTER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL

“Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful will send shivers down your spine.” —Teen Vogue

“Powerful, poignant, and action-packed, Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful is an exciting sci-fi adventure firmly rooted in the realities of our present day that fans of Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series will love.” —Bustle

★ “Part cautionary tale and part ode to the inventive human spirit, Dayton’s brilliant collection of stories is best described as a scientific Twilight Zone.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred

★ “Compelling and terrifying, this volume is science fiction at its finest.”

—School Library Journal, Starred

★ “This speculative, thought-provoking novel will take readers on a frightening, remarkable journey through humanity’s past, present, and possible future.” —Booklist, Starred

★ “Imaginative and incisive.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“An alternately charming and horrifying exploration of what it means to be human and how far we’ll go in pursuit of personal and societal ‘perfection.’ Dayton’s newest is imagination at its best and most terrifying. I devoured this book.” —Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken

“A work of unforgettable vision and imagination. This book is everything I love about science fiction.”

—Jay Kristoff, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Illuminae Files

“Haunting, challenging and provocative—this is an extraordinary book. I can’t stop thinking about it.”

—Amie Kaufman, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Illuminae Files

“A deep and suddenly necessary exploration of the beautiful and terrible futures we face.
Every story leaves you desperate for more.”
—Hank Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author of An Absolutely Remarkable Thing

“Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful is a remarkable book, visionary and very hard to put down.”

—Kevin J. Anderson, New York Times bestselling author of The Dark Between the Stars

“Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful—fast-paced, tightly plotted, and engaging from the first page—puts a human face on the prosperity or catastrophe that is waiting just around the corner.”

—David Friedberg, founder of Climate Corporation

“Arwen Elys Dayton explores the next era of humanity with astonishing heart.”

—Peter H. Diamandis, MD, founder of XPRIZE and Singularity University and author of the New York Times bestsellers Abundance and Bold

 
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Review: Feuds by Avery Hastings

Thanks to Edelweiss and St. Martin's Griffin for allowing me to read an e-galley of this title.  I am a huge fan of dystopian and this sounded right up my alley.  Overall I felt it was a good story, while I was left with something feeling missing, but not in a way that I won't read on as I'm sure it must continue!

The main character is Davis Morrow.  As you can probably tell from the cover, she is a ballerina.  And a perfect ballerina.  She is one of the Priors, people born perfect, the higher class you might say.  They are perfect in every way, and hers is dancing, which she is even getting ready to compete in the tryouts for the Olympics.  But there is a lot of unrest in this society.  The Imperfects, called Imps for short, are in unrest.  Davis's father is a politician who wants to help keep the two classes apart more efficiently.  The other character is Cole.  Cole is an Imp, but a very attractive one.  He also fights in what are called the FEUDS.  These are cage fights basically, to the death in some cases, and the Priors go and place bets on them.  Cole has been sponsored by the rival politician to Davis's dad so he can fight.  And then Cole is asked to go find Davis and get a picture of her kissing him.  Cole doesn't know about who her dad is, but he goes in order to keep his sponsor happy.  But at the party where they meet, he is able to pass as a Prior and Davis is definitely attracted.  But there is trouble.  There is a girl that Davis thinks is just really drunk, but she turns out to be sick.  Cole takes her back to where the Imps live and asks his brother's friend who is kind of a doctor to look at the girl.  It turns out she has a virus called Narxis, something that only the Priors are susceptible to because of their "perfect" genetic makeup.  The Priors don't like to deal with this though, and so they keep dumping the bodies down at the Imps' neighborhoods.  Davis starts feeling like she may be sick, and people she knows are also dropping out of sight.  Of course it will come to light that Cole is an Imp, and in the worst of ways, when Davis follows him to a fight.  But she will overcome this issue as she knows that he has an idea of what is going on, and her feelings for him are so strong.

Definitely a bit of a formulaic story, but not in a bad way.  It was still an enjoyable read.  There is even a bit of a shocker that we find out about Davis and her dead ballerina mother towards the end that makes me eager to read on and find out how it plays into the story.  If you're looking for a good dystopian society type of read, and you don't mind not a totally different idea then you will enjoy this.  Now it is definitely an insta-love story, but I've come to a conclusion about that which makes me able to enjoy it with no issues.  These are teenagers.  When you were a teen, or maybe you still are, don't you fall in love with people, and it seems like they are the one?  I know my first "love" was like that.  And even though now I look back and realize it wasn't really love, these are teens in tenuous situations that make ever having another love possibly impossible.

Unremembered by Jessica Brody

This was one of the books that I got in my Fierce Reads box.  One I was so excited to see because I'd wanted to read it.  And at some point, I will probably be doing a giveaway with the books in the box, so stay tuned!

This book begins with a plane crash, and only one person, a beautiful young girl is found alive.  The trouble is that she wasn't even listed as a passenger on the plane.  And she doesn't even have any memories of who she is, or why she might be there. At the hospital that they take her to, the doctors try to discover what might be wrong with her, as well as figure out why she can't remember anything. Nobody comes forward to claim her as their family or friend.  Except one young man who comes to the hospital and says he will take care of it all.  But some of the things he tells her she doesn't know if she should believe as they are kind of out there.  All she has left on her is a locket.  There aren't pictures in it, but it has an eternity knot symbol on the outside, and engraved on it is this:  S + Z = 1609.  The weird thing about that is the number is the year she thought it was when they asked her what year it was.  She has no idea what the letters mean.  Finally she is released to go home with a foster family. They seem really  nice, although her new foster brother doesn't seem to be a fan of her at first.  Although she does eventually win him over, or at least convince him to help her when she gets ideas of ways to maybe figure some things out.  Again the cute boy from the hospital shows up and tells her they are soulmates.  But she still isn't sure what to believe.  He also tells her that there are people after her who are dangerous.  She continues searching for clues, even learning to use the internet.  But it seems more and more strange things happen.  She starts seeing a man following her, and gets so scared that she busts out of her foster mom's car, and I do mean bust, the door flies off.  Finally she goes to meet this boy, who says his name is Zen.  He puts this little patch on her neck and then she begins remembering things.  Soon, they are caught, as she is finally remember things, and Zen is taken as she escapes.  Now she knows she must go back to save him.  But what will happen?  Will she be caught and forget everything as they continue to do whatever they were doing?  

The story is a mix of time travel, genetic engineering, and some futuristic technology as well.  It was an interesting new type of story, mostly different. Although the plane part did remind me of The Missing Series by Margaret Peterson Haddix.  And the loss of memory and some super-strong powers reminded me of Mila 2.0.  But this story did take the different parts and tie them all up in a different story.  One that I can't wait to see where it goes next.

UnWholly (Unwind #2) by Neal Shusterman

Wow, what a sequel.  The ending of the first book, Unwind, kind of left off at a hanging point, but at the time I believe it was still a stand alone book.  When I found out there was going to be a sequel I was very excited!  And not just a sequel, it is going to be a trilogy.  And this second book, UnWholly, definitely left off hanging.  I have to start with the fact that it didn't start off that great though.  It took a bit to really get back into the story.
We begin with a brand new character, Mason Starkey.  His parents have decided to have him unwound because of all the trouble he's gotten into.  And it's not like he's even their real child.  He was storked.  He is able to get away when they take  him, even killing the Juvey Officers.  And so begins his trip on his own.  Eventually he will get taken to the airplane graveyard where Connor and Risa from the last book are still taking care of the AWOLs.  And once there, he will decide that he is better than Conner, and begins scheming to take over.
The 2nd character we're introduced to is Miracolina.  She is a tithe, like Levi was in the first book, and like him, she is pretty devout in her belief that she is meant to be tithed and that it is horrible when she is "saved".  She is taken to live with other tithes that are being protected in an old mansion, where they are using Levi as their inspiration.  Levi is only there because his brother that he was living with is hurt, and while he doesn't want to live with parts from Unwound kids, Levi and his parents want him to.  So, when Levi's parents come to take over, Levi must leave now.  And he is taken in by this group.  Levi is trying hard to get through to Miracolina.  To where he even begins to wonder what in the world he is doing.
And the 3rd new character we meet is a new kind of person.  He is made up completely of unwound parts.  The people who made him chose all the good parts, the legs of a swimmer, brains and internal organs also of very healthy or intelligent people.  And even his face is made of lots of different skins, to show that he is a mixture, his hair as well.  At first he must figure out how to talk, because he knows like 5 different languages. And he's able to associate things with memories, but it takes a while to learn to speak again.  At first his introduction to society doesn't go well, so they come up with a new plan, to put him in ads and make him look really "cool" and then once everyone wants to be like him, bring him out again.  They also want to find him a mate, a companion.
In the end all of our characters end up somehow interacting with each other, or else affecting the others because of what choices they've made.  The ending was great, and left me wanting so much more!!  I see a Waiting on Wednesday post for book #3 coming up soon!

Eve and Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

I got this as an Advanced Reader's Edition through Shelf Awareness from an imprint of MacMillan, Feiwel and Friends.  And I'm ashamed to admit, that once again, I was behind on my reading, and just now got to it, almost 3 months after it came out.  It was a good story, and really a pretty quick read.  The story kept me interested the whole time.  However it was a bit different than I expected.  Not in a bad way, just not quite the way I'd expected.  And while I'd kind of assumed it would be a stand alone novel, it does end at a place that is a good stopping place, at the end of the book it showed a page that say the story will continue in Adam and Eve.
Eve is our main character.  Her actual name is Evening.  Her friends call her E.V.  She doesn't like being called Eve.  The story begins with her being hit by a car.  She is rushed to a hospital, where soon her mother, who is the head of Spiker Biopharmaceuticals shows up to take her back to their research facility.  Supposedly it is because she trusts the doctors there better.  But soon Eve learns it is because she has somehow healed much better.  Her leg had been basically severed from her body.  Her arm crushed.  A boy named Solo lives at the facility.  His parents had once worked there, but died in a car crash.  Which he and Eve soon realize that it was the same car crash that killed her father as well.  Solo was taken in by Eve's mother, and lived at the facility.  Since he's been there, he wants to seek revenge for his parents' death.  He sees Eve's mother as an evil woman, using science to create things that aren't natural, stealing his parents ideas.  Now, the research facility has come up with all kinds of cures for diseases, so it is doing good work.  But there is some genetic research going on.  And Solo plans to blow the place wide open.  Until he meets Eve, and becomes her friend.  At that point he's not sure if he wants to hurt her.  While Eve is staying there to "heal" her mother puts gives her a project to play with.  To create the perfect boy using some software that they want tested to see if a normal person could use.  This is a highly advanced system.  Actually using the genes on the chromosomes to develop a person.  So Eve works on this, calls him Adam, makes him perfect looking, intelligence, personality.  All while trying to help out her friend Aislin.  Aislin has her own issues, a boyfriend who is dealing drugs and keeps getting either taken to jail, or in trouble with the drug suppliers.  To the point that Aislin even gets beat up by these guys.  So Eve makes her come stay at the facility to be safe.  While Aislin is there, they basically finish Adam, not all the way, but mostly.  And, Eve and Solo soon learn it isn't safe for them there.  Well, not after Solo does some spying into one of the scientist's computers, and gets caught.  But the footage he finds, well, it is shocking and disturbing.  When he shares it with Eve, and they realize their danger, they must decide whether to leave and leak the information to the public, or what to do.
I won't say anymore.  You need to read it yourself.  I kind of hoped for more of the science stuff, and not as much of the type of danger stuff.  But all in all it was a good story.

Altered by Jennifer Rush

This was the only ARC I got from BEA that I hadn't read yet, that hadn't been published yet.  All the other ARCs I have left from BEA have already been published.  Too busy!!  Aack!  So I'm behind on those.  From now on, all my advanced reviews will be from Netgalley for awhile.  But anyway, let's talk about this one!
I wasn't quite sure if this was going to be an angel story or something, because of the cover.  I like the cover, hot guy, who wouldn't, but on my ARC, the title Altered is in black on a neon green background.  So you can see how it looks it different on this cover picture from Goodreads.  But, cover misleading or not, I did really like the book.  In fact, it was one I could barely put down to do anything else.  It really kept me turning pages!!
The main character is Anna.  Her father works for the Branch.  And so in her basement are 4 genetically altered boys.  Sam, the one Anna seems the most drawn to, Trev who is really smart and seems to really like and care about Anna, Cas who is very funny and lots of fun to talk to, and Nick who seems to hate Anna for some reason that she doesn't even know.  At a certain age Anna gets to go down and start helping her father with running the tests on the boys.  Her mother died when she was young, so it is just Anna and her father in the farmhouse.  She is home-schooled, because it wouldn't do for any word of these boys in the basement to get out.  The boys have been altered to be stronger, better fighters, as well as something that keeps them young.  But, they all have amnesia, have no idea who they were before.  One day the Branch comes to take them away, saying that all the research that can be done in the lab is done, and they need them.  But Anna doesn't believe they should go yet, and it turns out that Sam and the boys don't want to go either.  Turns out they've been planning to escape.  And when they kill the agents, Anna's father tells her to go with the boys to be safe.  As they go place to place following the clues they find, in letters, pictures, and even in Sam and the other boys' tattoos, Anna also learns more about her past, and that her whole life is not as she remembers, and she learns what the connection to Sam is.
Really, really good book. As a science person, I kind of wished for a bit more science details, but maybe that's too much for a YA novel, and would be more of an adult sci-fi novel.  I loved Cas, so much fun!  hated Nick, don't like the "reason" for him being such a meanie.  And Sam, well, Sam was a good love interest.  And then there was Trev, also a fun guy, loved his quotes, and then seemed to be such a good friend.  Good book. Glad that on Goodreads it is listed as a #1, because I want to know what happens AFTER the end!

Waiting on Wednesday - Unwholly (Unwind Trilogy #2) by Neal Shusterman

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where we spotlight upcoming releases that we're eagerly awaiting.

So, making sure to do this meme because the two books I got read this weekend I have to wait to post their reviews because of their publishing dates.  So, wanted to do SOME blogging this week and keep my followers here.
I'm eagerly awaiting a book that I really, really enjoyed.  The book Unwind by Neal Shusterman was a really interesting look at genetic engineering as well as the hot topic of abortion causing civil war in the United States. The resolution according to this dystopian world was that parents could decide at a certain point that they no longer wanted their children and have them "unwound" which basically meant killed and used for their body parts.  But of course our main characters did their revolting and fighting back, and we were left hanging in a way at the end of the first book.  Here is the blurb from Goodreads.com:

In a society where unwanted and troublesome teens are salvaged for their body parts, Connor, Risa and Lev continue to fight against the system that would 'unwind' them. Thanks to their high-profile revolt at the Happy Jack Harvest Camp, people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of so-called troublesome teens might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question and a new law passed. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests, not to mention the illegal 'Parts Pirates', that want to see it not only continue, but expand.
Connor, Risa and Lev each struggle to rescue as many AWOL teens as possible and offer them sanctuary. But life at the Graveyard is hard, rivalries bubble under the surface and the cracks are beginning to show.
And then there is Cam, a teen who does not exist. Made entirely out of parts from one hundred other 'unwinds', Cam is a 21st century Frankenstein, a rewound, struggling to find a true identity and meaning, and a place in society. But when a sadistic bounty hunter who takes "trophies" from all the 'unwinds' he captures starts to pursue Connor, Lev and Risa, Cam finds his own fate inextricably bound with theirs…


Sounded like a really good book.  Unfortunately there is no picture for a cover yet.  The first book is one I've been hand selling at the bookstore where I work constantly.  It's such a good story.  When I heard there would be a sequel, I was very excited.  And now to have a possible publishing date, this coming August, I couldn't be more excited!
So, what books are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Revealing Eden by Victoria Foyt

Revealing Eden by Victoria Foyt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is another time when I wish Goodreads would let us give half stars. This was good. Not quite a 4 for me, but really not as low as a 3 either. I did enjoy this book. When I had to put it down, I was eager to pick it back up, and that is a good sign for me. I have really been into dystopian stories, and this was a good one. I could tell that there was something more to the relationship between the main character Eden and her boss Bramford from the first time they had an interaction in the book. The relationship between them was so much like the few real romance novels I've read. Even though we never really got the story from his viewpoint, it was always from Eden's, I could tell by the things he said, and the things Eden saw him do, that he had feelings for her. And I'm okay with that. She felt attracted to him, and so even though she fought her feelings for him, she really wanted him too. Which, kind of textbook romance novel. But again, the rest of the story was okay enough for that to work.
In this future world, it seems as if something like global warming has occurred, because anyone with light skin, or most people with light skin, died because of the heat and the sun's rays. Those who were left, even the darker skinned people, had to move below ground. Now the white people, or "Pearls" are the minority, and treated that way. The darker skinned people are called "Coals" and are considered the superior race. It is so bad that the Pearls even color their skin to look like Coals. People are given mating ratings, based on their skin color, skills, etc. Pearl is pretty low. Now the reason this is so bad, is that if by the time you reach a certain age you aren't married, you are no longer allowed to live in society and use their rations and supplies. They take you to the surface and leave you to fend for yourself. Which usually means death. Eden's father is a scientist that works for Bramford, where he also got Eden a job. Eden knows only one Coal who treats her fairly and makes her feel attractive, his name is Jamal. She finds out that Bramford is having her father work on a genetic cure for the light colored skin. A way to make it darker. But when they are attacked by a very prejudiced group, her father's work is compromised, Bramford agrees to be the test subject, and they must leave and run into a rainforest to hide. Bramford begins to change, because part of the cure contains the genes of a jaguar to start with, and he changes physically into almost a beast. But he is still human enough to use his resources to get them free, into a village. Pearl finds out Bramford once was mated, and this leads to some interesting discoveries of what kind of a man he really is.
This is going to be a series I guess, which is good, because while this ends on a pretty good note, we're also kind of left wondering what will happen next, with Bramford, and how will Eden be able to be with him, now that he is not really a man anymore.
I'd like to say thanks to Netgalley and Bookmaster for letting me read the egalley of this book.  I will count this as the "E" for Eden on my A-Z Reading Challenge.

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