The Touched (The Descendants #1)
by Jennifer Weiser
Publisher: Limitless Publishing
Release Date: September 29th, 2015
Rate: Enjoyed it (3,5 stars)
Synopsis:
The first sixteen years of Arabella Penthallow’s life have been a lie…
In a world where deception is the key to survival, Ara has kept up the charade of being a perfect Legion Leader’s daughter. But a darkness stirs, and she discovers she is Touched, a mortal gifted by the Gods. The Touched are as rare as they are feared, and Ara is forced to leave Union City for neighboring Midnight City to protect herself and those she loves, leaving Tove Thorn, the boy who has always known her heart, behind.
Carter Decker has vowed to burn Union City to the ground…
Midnight City’s cocky, infamous bad boy always gets what he wants, and he wants Union City to pay for burning his mother alive because she was Touched. When Carter meets Ara, she is everything he’s been taught to hate. Then he learns she is Touched—just like him—he isn’t sure who he hates more…the Touched girl whose father killed his mother, or himself for being tempted by someone he’s sworn to kill.
They are told they’re fated to be soul mates…and they each wish the other never existed.
When Midnight City is attacked by Union City, Carter and Arabella will do the unthinkable…even if it means falling for the enemy. The truth lies in Arabella’s home nation, and Tove is waiting. Soul mates or not, he has an advantage Carter doesn’t, fated souls be damned.
War is coming…and Ara is the prize.
The Touched was a story that truly interested me. It has a great synopsis and when Jennifer contacted us to work with us in the FFBC Tours, she made my day. I was captivated by the soul mates and the war between cities that the synopsis promised. And I was not disappointed.
Jennifer's world is torn between two societies: The Touched, people who have magical abilities, and the normal people. In Carter's city, The Touched are accepted and educated, while in Arabella's city are hunted and executed. Carter hates everyone in Union City for burning her mother alive for saving someone in the street while visiting the city and Arabella is running from the city and the people she grew with because of what she is.
I have to confess that at first was a bit lost in what world I landed in, but as soon as the story progresses and we get to meet the characters and their surrounding everything becomes clearer. The story is narrated from different points of view, more than two, and while this gives an extra insight into the story, I sometimes get overwhelmed by this. Although I have to say that most of the story is told from three POVs, so this made this read bearable.
The characters were well-built and every single one of them had its own voice. I liked that Arabella is a strong female, but also has her weaknesses and needs the people she loves. She's the powerful one in the story and struggles with it. Meanwhile, Carter starts as the cocky and irritable guy described in the synopsis but we get to see more of him. He ends up being a caring guy with a big mouth who ends up falling in love with Arabella and that brings out the best version of him.
All this made the story a good one, but one that needs to evolve a bit. A clear example is Arabella's love life. She has so many guys falling for her that for my reading heart was difficult to just choose a team (although it was pretty easy for me. Team Carter all the way down. Just no funny things with anyone else in future books, please. Thank you).
In my opinion The Descendants series have a lot of potential and I think that the author did a fantastic job with her debut novel. But I just think that the story needs more focusing and since the ending was more directed towards one goal the second book will be mind-blowing. Therefore, I highly recommend this story to all YA readers in love with magic, romances and impossible relationships. I had a great time reading the first novel in the series and I just can't wait to read more. Oh my that ending!
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Jennifer Weiser is a young adult author who has always been a book nerd and a bit chocolate obsessed. Writing has always been a favorite escape, but quickly became a passion not long after the birth of her daughter. When she isn't combing the shelves of her local book stores or blogging about newest book obsessions, you can find her nestled in her nook creating worlds she hopes that one day will inspire her daughter, who not only has given her the courage to follow her dreams--but offers the inspirations that help color their worlds together.
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THE TOUCHED has a really great cover. I am excited at the thought of reading it. I haven't read any books by this author yet but would love to.
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