A cousin cover to this appeared on SK a couple years ago with the directive, "Just read the book, not its reviews." The covers have some semblance for good reason -- in both books, ya get Jamesed; you know, when you're sucker-punched with surprise but that somehow satiates all your narrative cravings? In addition to appreciating the corresponding branding, I liked the en pointe sparse marketing for this title.
As well as being a slice of satisfying entertainment (and an easy, one-afternoon read), James elegantly tackles some big questions, making a significant contribution to the contemporary SF canon. Questions I'd considered some via Marissa Meyer and Bernard Beckett were framed in a subjective, integrated way that made me sit up and try to answer them. I respect that.
Another thing I feel James does incredibly well is share worthy morals without clobbering me with them. Her books don't read preachy but those I've read make me think, "I'd love for more YA to be reading this kind of YA."
If you liked The Loneliest Girl in the Universe, you should check this out. And if you like this one, you should check out Unnatural...because...the premise is essentially identical (but there's a lot of divergence thereafter). (So yes, when I saw promotional material appearing my heart sank a little. But hey, widespread infertility is a crisis I'm happy to see addressed again and again.)
Review copy received from Walker.
