Retrato do autor

Vanessa Wester

Autor(a) de Hybrid

5 Works 44 Membros 5 Críticas

Séries

Obras por Vanessa Wester

Hybrid (2014) 37 exemplares
First Date (Love & Regrets) (2016) 2 exemplares

Etiquetado

Conhecimento Comum

Sexo
female

Membros

Críticas

3.5 stars, and that mostly because this is a YA/NA book (which isn't normally my target reading).

A group of kids are starting their first year at university, trying to fit in, adjusting to being away from home, reinventing themselves into who they will become. For some, it is easier than for others. Caitlin shares a hall with three other girls, one of which is horribly homesick and struggling to fit in. Lonely, homesick girls make the easiest targets, and before she has a chance to go home, she dies of an apparent suicide.

Steven is handsome and confident, and he and Caitlin share an instant bond. When Caitlin returns home to sort out her hall-mate's death, another woman targets Steven, leaving him confused and with an odd bruise on his neck.

Caitlin returns to university to pick up where she left off with Steven and the two rapidly become a couple, until one night when she is kidnapped to lure Steven out - and then he is kidnapped and all memory of him and his existence is expunged.

What is Steven? And what are all the people claiming to be a superior race who are secreted away inside a volcano deep in the Amazonian jungle?

The story was interesting. The author creates a hidden society, a modern-day Utopia, and yet humanity almost always chooses freedom over confined quarters, no matter how perfect the living conditions. I think the author has done an excellent job showing the differing personalities and societal cliques. She's done a nice job of ending the first book in the trilogy, teasing you into the next book without leaving you wanting for answers to the theme in the first book. Worth the read.

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Assinalado
Karla.Brandenburg | 1 outra crítica | Aug 1, 2023 |
In the second of the trilogy, Steven returns home to recover the life his new family has erased. The author's style can be a bit choppy, but the underlying story is interesting and the plot points are well drawn.
 
Assinalado
Karla.Brandenburg | Aug 1, 2023 |
In this final book of the trilogy, Caitlin has to adapt to her change, so Steven takes her back to the colony.

Overall, the trilogy is well thought out, well laid out. Ms. Wester does a good job with the "don't call me a vampire" theme and the struggles with the colony to overcome homicidal tendencies, giving them a viable option to murder. I liked the concept, the premise, and overall, the characterizations. I particularly liked the sense of setting, the colony in the Amazon was smartly described. With that being said, I don't want to harp on this author's writing style, which was difficult for me in a lot of places, but it is worth noting.

I found the conflict between Caitlin and Steven to be understandable and believable. As impatient as I got with her at times, the foundation for the changes that come with being made superhuman validated some of her mood swings. As a reader, I think the triplet plot line didn't add anything, except as a way to keep Steven and Caitlin apart, and without it, I would have been happy to see a HEA ending rather than the promise of one.

Well plotted, well researched. A fresh take on vampires.
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Assinalado
Karla.Brandenburg | Aug 1, 2023 |
Hybrid by Vanessa Wester

Steven Thorn has just started at Southampton University. He is confident, honest, hard-working and intelligent. When he bumps into Caitlin Chance, he notices an instant connection. Something he has never experienced before. Steven has spent pretty much most of his life keeping himself to himself.

Yet, a few months into his first year and unbeknown to Steven, his entire life is about to change. His family have a past, that even he wasn't aware of. Until now. Will Steven cope with the change in his life, or will his entire world come crashing down?

Hybrid is book one in The Evolution Trilogy written by Vanessa. Complications and Return are the following two books, with a prequel Emily available to also download (see bottom of page for download links).


The story is told from the viewpoint of Steven Thorn, in third person narrative. I felt like I am on the outside of his life, watching it. I could see and feel what he was going through, whilst being safely out of the way.
Vanessa has used two main settings for the story, Southampton UK and the Amazon Rainforest. The way that story transitions between the two countries is really well written. The journey, for the reader, was smooth. Vanessa took us on a journey across the world in order to travel between the two places.
Hybrid definitely falls into the 'world of books' as a paranormal romance. Anyone that knows me, knows that I tend to avoid romance stories. This book works out perfectly for me - if you chuck a bit of supernatural (or paranormal, whichever you prefer) or a murder into it and I'm all in.

I'm trying something new with this review, in that I am going to try and evaluate the book in just three words. So, here goes... Hybrid is Interesting, Beautiful and Conserving. The story is extremely interesting, the take on a story that has been written over and over by many an author is completely different to any other that I have read (and I have read a lot of books in this genre). The way that Vanessa describes the surroundings and the settings, including the characters, makes me feel as though everyone and everything is beautiful to look at (even though they may not be). The final word I have chosen is Conserving. The reason for this word is that I feel that Vanessa has managed to keep a conserved approach throughout the whole story. I am hoping this will expand more in the following books. I love the fact that the information has been reserved, and we (as a reader) have only been fed the basic information that we need to know. Very much like the main character, Steven, to give something away to us would indeed give something away to him.

I recommend that you read this book if you get the chance, you will not be disappointed. The book is currently available for FREE on both AMAZON UK and AMAZON US as a kindle e-book. Don't worry if you don't have a kindle, you can read it through the app on your phone, or on your PC/Laptop.
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Assinalado
bollydophie2016 | 1 outra crítica | Mar 24, 2016 |

Estatísticas

Obras
5
Membros
44
Popularidade
#346,250
Avaliação
½ 3.5
Críticas
5
ISBN
5