"Luminosity" by Stephanie Thomas

NOTE: I received this book from Netgalley & Entangled Publishing.

The story was the typical dystopian - something happened to our world and now only a small population of people survive in a bunch of cities around the world. Here, only two cities are mentioned - the city of the Seers(the City) and the city of the Dream-catchers(Aura). Naturally, the Seers and Dream-catchers are enemies. Or so we're told. The ones protect the ordinary people, while the others kill them to survive.

The City is controlled and protected by the Seers who live in the Institution, train in combat and See visions of the future. They're governed by this Keeper woman, who totally creeped me out. I mean, she always stuck her nose in people's business... She was mean and though she was supposed to 'keep' the Seer's visions and sanity, I was left with the impression that there was a subtle ulterior motive to all that. And there was, as it turned out.

Anyway, there's a silly love triangle development, which I don't necessarily agree with. There's the long known friend (Gabe), and the newly acquired acquaintance (Echo), between whom our female protagonist (Bea) has to choose. I guess the choosing will be done in the following installments however, since by the end of Luminosity Bea was quite undecided.

Personally, I'd go team Gabe. The guy was funny, supportive, loving and selfless(mostly). He even tried his best to understand without asking questions. If that's even possible, but he sort of managed it. He wasn't pushy or demanding. I liked him.

Echo... I guess I can see how he could intrigue Bea. I mean, he was the unknown, mysterious factor. He was running hot and cold. He was the bad guy (though was he really?).

Hmm, what to say about Bea. Well, she appeared to be trusting. I mean, she trusted people she didn't know (the Widow, Echo, the Dreamcatchers), but didn't trust her own friends. I know this was explained, but still. Is it really so much easier to trust strangers than your own trusted friends? Perhaps it is, I mean we do it all the time on facebook and IM.
Anyway, I liked how Bea rebelled against the obvious threat in the end. She turned out to be a hard nut to crack, even with all the secrets that suddenly fell on her shoulders.

The author amazed me with her ability to write fiction. The way she didn't hesitate to sacrifice loveable characters was definitely intriguing. I will definitely be waiting for the next installment of this series, since I'm curious to know how things turn out. Especially if Bea decides that Gabe is the one she wants. I'm rooting for him no matter what.

My rating is