The Rainbow Maker's Tale by Melanie Cusick-Jones (The Ambrosia Sequence #2)

Genres: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Dystopian, Romance
Publication Date: November 2nd 2013
POV: Male - First-person, Past tense
My Rating: 4 out of 5

_______________

“I wasted no time looking around the bland plastic space I had lived in all my life. There were no real memories here for me, no cherished moments or things to reminisce over: all that had stopped when I was eight years old and learned that life on the SS Hope was built on lies.”

Outwardly, Balik is an obedient member of society on the Space Station Hope: he follows The Council's systems, excels at school and seems happy to follow in his parents footsteps...

Balik's real life is filled with secrets he can share with no one. As he follows his suspicions about the space station into ever more dangerous territory it seems like his whole world will unravel around him. But, he doesn't understand everything: things are wrong, he is sure of that, he just doesn't know why.

When Cassie unexpectedly comes into his life, Balik struggles to find his balance. For years he's investigated the oddities of the world he lives in, but Cassie makes him question things in a different way... Can he believe in this girl who seems so much a part of the system he distrusts? Would she put a stop to his plans to break out if she knew what he was really up to? Balik can't be sure of anything - except the fact that he can't leave her alone.

_______________

I dont know if this book wasnt as good as book 1, or if I have just changed a lot since it was released. I suspect the latter. It has been 1.5 years and 245 books since I read Hope's Daughter. I have changed a lot as a reader. But regardless, I really enjoyed this book. There were just a few things that I didn't notice in book 1.

There seemed to be a lot of internal monologue. I love internal monologues, it really reveals a character's inner workings, but Balik was constantly thinking. There would be one or two lines of dialogue per page

while the rest was Balik analyzing everything Cassie said, every slight expression of her face, every shift of her eyes. It didn't necessarily bother me. I didn't even notice it by the end. But there were times that I became somewhat impatient to get on with things and find out what would happen next.

Also, this book cant really be read as the beginning of the series, even though books 1 and 2 happen simultaneously. Not that I can think of any reason why a person would want to do that, but if someone wanted to read The Rainbow Maker's Tale and then move right on to Outlanders without reading Hope's Daughter, there would be some gaps in the story that would probably cause confusion. Some of the things that Balik and Cassie discovered about her powers were referred to without being explained, assuming we already knew from book 1. Also, in the end, the reason for the red marks and why "the beings" wanted them all to fall in love was never explained. I don't know if that is because at this point Balik himself does not even know, or because it is assumed that we know from Hope's Daughter. I think it would have been better if the book could stand more independently from Hope's Daughter.

And lastly, Cassie seemed different in this book. Without insight into her mind, she seemed a bit irritable. I know from reading Hope's Daughter that she loves Balik, but it was hard to tell from her behaviour in this one. They never actually told each other that they loved each other, but I know they did because of their marks. And of course because of what they went through for each other. But the way Cassie acted around Balik most of the time seemed a bit off. She seemed shifty, I guess, without the insight into her motives.

But none of that is a problem if you read this series in order, and I still really enjoyed this book. I love all the

same things about it that I did in Hope's Daughter. I love the mystery and the danger of what Balik and Cassie were doing. And although I knew the ending this time around, I still enjoyed the tension of finding out Hope's secrets. And of course I love Balik. I love him even more this time around. He isn't as strong and sure of himself as I had thought, but he is still strong for Cassie. I love how much he needed her. I always love a hero who cannot live without his heroine, like Vincent from Die for Me, Chase from Tomorrow Land, or Sam from Masquerade. They are in awe of their woman and its just the sweetest thing ever.

I still cant wait for Outlanders. I have no idea what will happened next. I have no idea what sort of state Earth is in or where Balik and Cassie will be taken next.

"Without having to say anything more, I just knew now--maybe I always had--Cassie was the answer."

Hope's Daughter by Melanie Cusick-Jones (The Ambrosia Sequence #1)

Genres: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Dystopian, Romance
Publication Date: December 8th 2011
POV: Female - First-person, Past tense
My Rating: 5 out of 5

_______________

Life should be simple for Cassie.

For the small population of Earth survivors who live on the Space Station Hope everything they do is planned and scheduled, down to the cyclical food menus, their roles in the station, even how many children they have.

Despite rigid controls directing her life, Cassie feels more out of sync than ever and worries she won’t find a place for herself within the station community. Perhaps that’s because she’s hearing things inside her head that can’t possibly be real. Or maybe it’s the regular elopements of her peers, heading off to a romantic future in the Married Quarter of the space station, whilst she’s never even been attracted to a boy – no matter how hard her best friend Ami pushes them at her. Then there are the odd questions her work placement partner Balik keeps raising. His questions are just as troubling for her as his distracting smiles and eyes that seem to see inside her.

As Cassie draws closer to Balik she finds that everything else in her life begins to shift. He tells her things that call into question the system they live within. She can't believe he is right, but at the same time she finds it hard to deny the sincerity of his ideas. Could there be a connection between Cassie’s problems and Balik’s questions? The truth will drag them both to a terrifying and deadly conclusion beyond anything they could have imagined.

_______________

This book was an extremely pleasant surprise. It was wonderful! It started out calm and sweet, with beautiful prose and a pleasure tone. In that respect it reminded me of Matched (which I loved, by the way). But it didn't take me long, by the time I started the second chapter, to realize that this was not Matched. This was its own unique story. I started to notice small things that didn't seem right. Like Cassie's strangely distant but extremely interested parents who questioned her every action. The tone quickly changed to something creepy and uneasy. There was something seriously wrong with Cassie's world.

Hope's Daughter is set in the distant future, after Earth was destroyed by global warming, and the few surviving humans live on a space station named Hope. The population is separated for living quarters according to family situation. Family Quarter for families with children, Married Quarter for those without children, and Retired Quarter for those whose children are married. As Cassie approaches the age where marriage is a possibility, she realizes others around her are beginning to disappear. They have "eloped" to the Married Quarter without a word or a good-bye. She knows this is the way it has always been, but now that it is happening to her friends she realizes how wrong it is. Then she meets Balik. After the barcode on her and Balik's wrists turn from black to red, they have no idea what caused it, but they know what it means. They're next.

For a good three quarters of this book my mind was racing, trying to make sense of the strange series of events. A constant mystery and sense of impending danger. I could not put it down! And Balik was great. At first I just saw that he was withdrawn and quiet, but thoughtful and sweet. A nice combo, but its been done before. But I eventually realized that I had misjudged him. I was really impressed with him as he opened up to Cassie, and I realized that the version of him I saw at first, was just the version he showed the public to hide the fact that he was dissatisfied with his world. Balik was willing to ask Cassie challenging questions, forcing her to look at the world differently. He is strong and confident, and physically capable, when no one else in their world is. These qualities are even more impressive when you consider their upbringing on the station. Balik was pretty much a godsend, just what Cassie needed to get her through the hard times ahead, to make her the person she needed to be, and just what I needed too.

And the ending did not disappoint. I knew it would be a make or break ending, after all the questions that were raised. But thankfully all was explained in an interesting, if not entirely shocking, way. The immediate threat was removed and I was pleased with the ending, but it left just enough hanging to make me want to come back for more. I am very much looking forward to The Rainbow Maker's Tale (the events of Hope's Daughter from Balik's POV) and the sequel, Outlanders.

“I will not let anything hurt you,” Balik promised. 

“I will not let anything come between us,” I replied with my own whispered oath. 

“You and me,” Balik smiled a little. 

“Always,” I agreed as I reached up to draw his face to mine and pressed my lips onto his.”