Gena Showalter introduces us to the realms of Troika and
Myriad, showing us the choices every citizen has to make
for their next life. Citizens who die unsigned by either
realm are sent to the dreaded Many Ends. Unfortunately,
the battle between the two realms often leaves children
with little choice from their parents as to what realm to
sign with- or they'll face consequences. Tenley "Ten"
Lockwood is trapped in Prynne Asylum because her parents
are
determined she will sign with Myriad, even if it requires
Ten to remain imprisoned and tortured until she does so.
Myriad isn't the only realm that wants to sign Ten,
however, and Ten soon finds herself stuck between the
demands of both Troika and Myriad. Who can Ten trust when
everyone seems to have a hidden agenda?
FIRSTLIFE is the first book in Gena Showalter's
Everlife series, and wow, what an intriguing start
to the series! I love the complexity of the world
building as Gena Showalter gradually introduces us to the
three realms without any info-dumping. The chat at the
end with the author indicates Gena Showalter used the
scriptural references to kingdoms for her inspiration for
FIRSTLIFE and the spiritual battles between good and evil
are evident in FIRSTLIFE. I'm a softie for stories that
feature good versus evil, and FIRSTLIFE is an instant
winner for me just based on the concept and the world
building alone!
Gena Showalter also creates some very strong willed and
loyal characters in FIRSTLIFE. Oddly enough, I'm not as
much of a fan of Ten as I am of the two young men she
meets in Prynne Asylum. I absolutely love Archer and
Killian! Gena Showalter shows both Archer and Killian
learning to look beyond their fixed ideas to see Ten for
who she is and allow her to make the choices best for
her. Ten, on the other hand, frustrated me a bit with her
indecision as I never could really grasp why the decision
was so difficult for her.
FIRSTLIFE ends with one heck of a cliffhanger, as Gena
Showalter definitely has my interest piqued for the next
installment in the Everlife series. I've got just
as many questions as I do answers since FIRSTLIFE took
quite
a few unexpected twists and turns. If you love action-
packed but thoughtful stories with phenomenal world
building, then look no further than FIRSTLIFE. I'm
definitely hooked and am eagerly awaiting the next book
in the Everlife series!
Tenley "Ten" Lockwood is an average seventeen-year-old
girl…who has spent the past thirteen months locked inside
the Prynne Asylum. The reason? Not her obsession with
numbers, but her refusal to let her parents choose where
she'll live—after she dies.
There is an eternal truth most of the world has come to
accept: Firstlife is merely a dress rehearsal, and real
life
begins after death.
In the Everlife, two realms are in power: Troika and
Myriad,
longtime enemies and deadly rivals. Both will do anything
to
recruit Ten, including sending their top Laborers to lure
her to their side. Soon, Ten finds herself on the run,
caught in a wild tug-of-war between the two realms who will
do anything to win the right to her soul.
Who can she trust? And what if the realm she's drawn to
isn't where the boy she's falling for lives? She just has
to
stay alive long enough to make a decision…
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