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jenabrownwrites's review
2.0
I really did not enjoy this book. Two stars was being generous. I am a huge dystopian fan, and thought the description sounded amazing! Altering genetics, cyborgs, class warfare....... alas, I was bitterly disappointed. The book is really a romance, and should be classified as such. And I don't have a problem with romance, I just don't enjoy reading it. Two teenagers, in love against it all, on the run from the most powerful man in the country, along with discussions of the ethics of robots, artificial intelligence, the progression of science should have had me enthralled, dying to find out more. But those things were a tiny portion of the books. It was focused on do I love her, does he love me, oh I feel so responsible but I can't leave her melo-drama nonsense I honestly didn't even care if these two made it by the end. The last few chapters of the last book finally got into the war and had a plotline other than the main characters trying to figure out if they really love each other. But too little too late. For those looking for a romance, go for it. However, if the science fiction end of the world piece appeals to you, skip yourself the aggravation of this book.
ruthsic's review
4.0
Seventeen year old Zoe Vanderveen is a GAP—a genetically altered person. She lives in the security of a walled city on prime water-front property along-side other equally beautiful people with extended life spans.
Her brother Liam is missing.
Noah Brody is a natural who lives on the outside. He leads protests against the GAPs and detests the widening chasm they’ve created between those who have and those who don’t. He doesn’t like girls like Zoe and he has good reason not to like her specifically.
Zoe’s carefree life takes a traumatic turn. She’s in trouble and it turns out that Noah, the last guy on earth she should trust, is the only one who can help her.
Perception is a good book when it comes to science fiction. A futuristic world where people are divided into naturals and genetically engineered ones - is a concept derived from designer babies, I guess. It is quite a debate in the scientific community whether it would be ethical in the long run to perform gene therapy on humans beyond the normal (like for genetic or congenital diseases). Though that is the basis of the novel, it is basically still a rich girl loves poor boy kind of story, in which a mixing of their worlds is forbidden. The first half was about Zoe trying to find why her brother went missing and you know there is a conspiracy coming. The plot really picks up in the second half with her finding out the truth but losing Noah. It was all going fine right until the last chapter, which felt kind of rushed to me. Otherwise, the storytelling was sort of okay, though at times felt a bit lost in the details. Telling about all the futuristic gadgets and all seems exciting, but after some time just gets too repetitive and the narration falls at some points. So, 3.5 stars from me.
Her brother Liam is missing.
Noah Brody is a natural who lives on the outside. He leads protests against the GAPs and detests the widening chasm they’ve created between those who have and those who don’t. He doesn’t like girls like Zoe and he has good reason not to like her specifically.
Zoe’s carefree life takes a traumatic turn. She’s in trouble and it turns out that Noah, the last guy on earth she should trust, is the only one who can help her.
Perception is a good book when it comes to science fiction. A futuristic world where people are divided into naturals and genetically engineered ones - is a concept derived from designer babies, I guess. It is quite a debate in the scientific community whether it would be ethical in the long run to perform gene therapy on humans beyond the normal (like for genetic or congenital diseases). Though that is the basis of the novel, it is basically still a rich girl loves poor boy kind of story, in which a mixing of their worlds is forbidden. The first half was about Zoe trying to find why her brother went missing and you know there is a conspiracy coming. The plot really picks up in the second half with her finding out the truth but losing Noah. It was all going fine right until the last chapter, which felt kind of rushed to me. Otherwise, the storytelling was sort of okay, though at times felt a bit lost in the details. Telling about all the futuristic gadgets and all seems exciting, but after some time just gets too repetitive and the narration falls at some points. So, 3.5 stars from me.
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