debbiereadsbook

Independent reviewer for Divine Magazine, I was gifted my copy of this book. Jameson is sent to Oberon to see why the supply of pith has all but dried up. Xander is his guide into the Split, the *quite literally* underbelly of Oberon following a catastrophic event nearly a millennia ago. It was supposed to be routine, in and out, job done. But Jameson's arrival on Oberon is all but routine, and a chain of events is set off that will either destroy all life on Oberon, or reunite it with it's other half, Titania. Sci-fi is, for me at least, very hit and miss. Sometimes the technology goes way over my head, and sometimes the words used means I don't fully understand what I'm reading about and I'm not ashamed to say that! But here?? None of that! I loved this book! The story flows like a river, from its source, getting faster and faster, deeper and wider until.... well, until it reaches the sea! There is no massive info dump that you sometimes get in this sort of story, it comes in drips, so you can process each drip before you get the next one. Or in my case, many times through this book, you can pull a face at the kindle and " say what now???" when you get a particularly fat drip! The relationship between Jameson and Xander grows at a steady and even pace, even with the assistance of Quince and the pith. I was ...surprised by the route these guys took. Our introduction to Xander led me to think this book might be more explicit, which, you know me, I'd be happy with that but Jameson and Xander shut you down just as they get to the good stuff!! Very much fades to black but I LOVED that, I really did. I love books that make me think, make me plan ahead as to where I think the story is gonna go, and how it's gonna get there, watching it either pan out the way I thought, or unravel before my eyes in a totally different way. And this book made me question every little fat drip and drop and I loved it!! But what made this book were two things, for me, anyway. One: there is a bit at the front of the book, telling the story of this story, as it where. How long its been sitting, waiting to be fully told. I don't usually read the bits at the front, but I'm glad I did. And the other bit was the epilogue. Because up to that point, the story was told, finished, done and dusted all wrapped up in a big fat bow, sporting 4 stars. THEN, Coatsworth throws it all for a loop with that epilogue! And I WANT book two! Because I'm told there will be a book two. I wonder how THAT character is gonna affect Jameson and Xander's bond, and how Quince will react to the other character. Basically, I'm left hanging. And sometimes that's good, sometimes not but here its bloody brilliant and I LOVED this book. *did I say that yet, don't think I did, did I??* A stunning 5 star read **same worded review will appear elsewhere**