The Vestige

Caroline George is another young author I discovered, thanks to #bookstagram. This appeared to be her first novel, and since I'm always on the lookout for new authors to support, I decided to check it out. The synopsis seemed interesting, but it didn't tell the whole tale. There are so many twists and turns in this story, I do not know how to summarize without spoilers, but I'll give it a shot..What if the end of the world came, and you missed it? This is the story of Julie, a young lady in Charleston who discovers that the planet has been invaded by aliens decades ago, and nobody knew. She joins a group of rebels, called The Vestige, who try to get the truth out to the rest of humanity before the aliens are finished with their conquest..The first 20% of this book seemed to be a typical teenage romance, which is not my particular cup of tea. However, since I do not DNF books (with one exception), I continued reading, and am very happy with my decision. George has created a rather original dystopian/YA/apocalyptic world, in which you are dared to See The Unseen. The characters in this story are extremely well-developed, and after the first part, which I now know was an in-depth character development, the storyline was nicely crafted, with a healthy dash of action thrown in for good measure. Julie is a refreshing new heroine, a young adult who learns that your past does not define your future, or your present, for that matter. If this is Caroline George's first novel, I'm looking forward to seeing if her sophomore effort will be this well-done..My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Listen to other people's thoughts. Now watch their actions.

This one had me guessing till the end. Good characters and really good action. Loved the plot twists and the main characters

ExcellentHighly recommend this book and author

Julie is deep. Captivating. Full of emotion. I feel her pain, hear her sadness. I want to cry with her and make her feel better, stronger. Sheer vivid imagery captivated my attention from the very beginning. I'm pulled deeper and deeper into Julie's despair. I hope she comes out, or I might not either....This was my initial reaction to The Vestige after only a few chapters. It pulls you deep down into a grimy, depressing pit, mashes you around for a while and then eventually spits you back out as a profound new human being.Caroline George does an inspiring job at writing almost this entire story from Julie's perspective, much of which is spent within the confines of her own mind. Lucid and antagonizing thoughts seep through every page, allowing you to observe the scene taking place, but also what Julie is feeling deep down inside of her.For example:There lie the remains of America: skeletal ruins, necrotic residue. The surviving evidence of humankind is all that's left. And it's not enough.Vomit shoots into my mouth and burns my lips. I must be more afraid than I realized. The end of civilization doesn't confiscate more from me. I am still as homeless and futureless as I was before the drone launch. But I'm indescribably alone. Nobody is outside my snow globe looking in, waiting for the day when I'll be allowed to emerge. Stuck. Trapped.Chapter Ten - The VestigeEvery character within this story has their own background, minute details for some and vivid explanations for others. They all have a purpose within the story and not one of them is wasted space. Everyone places their role to perfection and is removed right when they need to be.The love story between Julie and Jack is romantic. They are constantly fighting for their last breaths and always seem to come out victorious. This was likely the only element that I considered as overused. I think they faced death-like circumstances around 8 times in total and they always survived. Sometimes, you can overdue this and I think George did that just a bit. Thankfully there are some pretty gory scenes where they survive and it almost makes it worth it.George, who was raised in a family who was always preparing for the coming apocalypse, does an impeccable job at creating a believable scenario where the world has ended and The Vestige must fight take back what is theirs.Highly recommend this book for Young Adult fans and Science Fiction fans alike. Keep the readers at 14+ due to some descriptive violent scenes and references.I want to thank Caroline George for contacting me directly and providing an eBook version of The Vestige to read and review. It has been an absolute pleasure and I look forward to her having a long and exciting career ahead of her.

It took a while for me to get into the story but once I did, I was hooked. Caroline's writing style is wonderful and the characters are very well developed. I would highly suggest this book, it was full of fun, unexpected twists that I loved made me want to keep reading.

If you're looking for something different to read pick this book up. It's nothing like any other book I've read or started to read.

"Mistrusting world. Untold destruction. When the action begins, there is no coming up for air."I had no idea what was in store when I picked up this ARC. George provides dark twists and curveballs, keeping readers at the edge of their seat and wanting to discover the next hidden truth – to unveil the layers and provide solutions for every unforeseen issue. From the first action sequence, I could not put down THE VESTIGE and found myself completely immersed in George's dystopian world.Highly recommend for anyone who enjoys THE 5TH WAVE or THE MAZE RUNNER series.