Reviews of Fadeout

Disclaimer: I was given this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Synopsis: Silas is a 13 year old Carillian held in a Cartiam waiting for his emotions to be harvested to provide energy for the planet. As part of a rigid caste society, Carillians are non-entities deemed worthless except for the energy harvested from their minds. Silas wants to escape to protect his sister, who is also held at the Cartiam. Together, they plot their escape.
Jamar is a member of the Tirean caste, the upper crust of society and son of the owner of the Cartiam that holds Silas and his sister Malina. Jamar picks Silas to be his plaything and companion to stave off the boredom of staying at the Cartiam with his father. The relationship between Jamar and Silas becomes a central theme to the book. No spoilers, though!

What I liked: This was an interesting plot concept. Harvesting the emotions of a lower caste to support the rest of society was a chilling and disturbing idea, but the author handled it quite well. I liked the Jamar character, and his journey through the relationship with Silas was very well done. Real life things like bullies, emotional manipulation, and dreams of all types of people were hallmarks of the book.

What I didn’t like: There could have been a little more explanation of how the caste system came into being. There were references to it, but it was never quite explained enough for me. Malina’s character seemed a little flat. The story flowed a little unevenly and there were a few grammatical errors (very few). Lastly, the ending seemed geared more toward a sequel than the conclusion of this story.

Overall impression: Despite the things I listed above, I liked this book a lot. Silas’ story was one of heartbreak and triumph and I look forward to the next installment!

A copy of Fadeout was kindly sent by Christina Adams in exchange for an honest review.

At 13, Silas has spent the last five years of his life in the Cartiam, an enclosed compound, waiting to be sent to a breeding farm, or to be harvested. Despised for their emotional instability, Carillians are the lowest class of people, useful only for the energy that can be sucked from their minds by the Machine that looms over the Cartiam. Unlike the other Carillian children though, Silas shows no outward emotional responses. Except towards his elder sister Malina. And as other, younger, girls are sent to the farm, Malina could be taken to the Machine any time.

Bored on his visit to the Cartiam, Jamar, a high class Tirean, convinces his father, the compound’s owner, to allow him to pick a Carillian to boss around and play with. In Silas he finds both a friend and an enemy, and what he least expects, someone to respect.

Fadeout is a compelling book on a disturbing premise: the use of fear and despair as a source of energy. Silas’ intelligence and Jamar’s emotions drive most of the story in alternating chapters, exposing the division of classes for what it is.

Personally I found the end geared too much towards a sequel, which is somewhat unsatisfying, and some characters and ideas a bit sketchy, but overall it’s a good read.

*I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

So, I just finished Fadeout and it was really good. First, I must say I liked the poem/song at the beginning of the book. It gives it a mysterious and ancient feel, even though the setting is several hundred years in the future. After reading the book, I went back and reread the poem and realized it was talking about the different classes of humans /sub-humans and their roles in society. The Tireans are the ruling class. The Faans are the "enforcers". The Ajaks are like servant class. Last and certainly considered least, are the Carillians. The Carillians are treated more like "stock" then humans. They even have their memories harvested as a form of power! But get this: the "humans" feel they are doing the Carillians a favor by having them locked away and using "the Machine" to basically wipe their minds because they are “inferior” and “defective” (because of something that happened to them during the “Radiation Age”). They are said to have strong uncontrollable emotions, unlike the "humans", and the Machine "frees" them of those emotional memories.

Silas and his older sister Malina are Carillians at a Cartiam (like a slaughterhouse) living their lives as normal as possible, which is in no way normal. They have tracking implants at the back of their necks, live in tiny cells and everyday are forced to go out to the Yard to "play" with the other minors (ages 8 to 18). The latter is a nightmare in its self because they are always being watched to see if anyone shows emotion. If they do show any emotion, that ups their chances of being picked to be taken to the Machine. The more emotional a person is, the more the Owner of the Cartiam can make off of their e-mems (emotional memories). Silas and Melina get to the point where they can't stand being locked up anymore and hatch a plan to escape.

The Owner is of course a Tirean (a cold, calculating, manipulative man), who happens to have a 13 (almost 14) year old son named Jamar. Jamar accompanies his father on his various business trips to the Farms, Cartiams and other places. All though Jamar is a Tirean, other Tirean look down on him for being the son of a "Farmer" (even though his father is owner of an “essential” multi-million dollar company). So, when Jamar and his father arrive at Silas' Cartiam, he convinces his father to let him have Silas as a companion. Jamar is thrilled to have someone around his age that has to respect him. Jamar believes what he has been taught since birth, that all Carillian are like "sheep", until he starts spending time with Silas. Silas has a mind of his own, is in control of his emotions and is even courageous.

The point of view alternates between Silas and Jamar. I believe this allows you to get both sides of the story, which gives you to better understanding of this world Adams' has created. This book really showed the thinking process behind having a whole group of people discounted, considered less than human. The background and history that were given made the story solid. The lies that were fed to the masses about the Carillians and what Jamar saw, at one point made myself question "Maybe something is wrong with the Carillians?" But to project the behavior of a few as the behavior of a whole group is called stereotyping. To treat them according to these stereotypes is prejudice. Plus, if you treated me like cattle and had me locked up, I’m sure I’d break down at some point as well. I say all of this to say: even though it was a sci-fi story, it didn’t have that “Just Because It Can/Is” feel. Which I feel is great because I am always asking “Why?”! Any questions that I still had at the end of Book 1, I am sure will be answered as the series progresses.

Even though Jamar is a spoiled brat, I must say that I felt sorry for him. I feel that Jamar was the more well rounded character but only because Silas had to always had to keep his emotions under wraps (so it works). With this being said, it really was touching how much Silas cared about his sister. And I love the ending! The scene where Silas finally realizes his true purpose and Jamar picks which side he will support. It is definitely a cliffhanger. Adams’ has written a well-thought out story that is nowhere near being over. Can't wait to read Book 2!

From the moment you start reading you are sucked in to the world of Silas, a 13 year old boy struggling to live in a world where his people the Carillians (cars) are the lowest of the low. From birth they are told they aren't even people, their only value in life is how much money can be made from their memories when they are literally sucked from their brains leaving them empty walking shells. They live at the Cartiam, the human farm, in fear of one rule: stay in line or go to the machine.

Jamar, the spoilt only child of the Cartiam owner is sick of being pushed around by other children his age and ignored by his father. As a Tirean he knows he is above all the other races and longs for the respect his breeding deserves and the love his father never shows him. When he arrives at the Cartiam with his father Jamar hand picks Silas to be his personal entertainment, someone he can boss around who has no choice but to do everything he says, someone he thinks is too stupid to ever be anything but a plaything. But as he spends more time with Silas, Jamar comes to realise that there is more to the Carillian than he was made to believe and this makes him question not only himself but everything about his way of life.

Where do I begin, I can honestly say I loved almost everything about this book. I thought the storyline was unique and really well thought out. It was nothing I've ever seen before and from the very beginning I found myself turning page after page wanting to know more about the world, what was happening and where everyone fit in. This was one of those books where once you start reading you can't put it down until it is finished.

I thought that both Silas and Jamar were written really well but Jamar would have to be my favorite character from this book. I love the way he begins as the typical spoilt child thinking he deserves the world. At first you find yourself feeling sorry for him because he's been brought up to believe the lies his people have taught him and the most important thing in his mind is people respecting him. Then as the book progresses you see him struggling between wanting his fathers love and doing what he is coming to believe is right. From start to finish Jamar has you sucked in and hoping he'll end up being the good guy.

The only negative I have for this book is that I would have loved some of the story and back stories to have gone into more detail. I would have loved to see more of Silas and Malina's history together, how exactly she protected him as the synopsis mentions. Similarly I would have loved to have learned more about Jamar and his family. Why wasn't he with his mother instead of traveling with his father or why his mother thought everyone was beneath her. I also would have liked to hear more about the world like how e-mems are actually used for energy or what the process was for the upper classes to receive their medallions and what the point of them was besides just as a badge of honor for those who did well.

*SPOILER ALERT*

I thought the ending was a little rushed but it was fantastic. Malina on the machine literally had me gasping and hoping Jamar would step up and intervene. When Jamar finally realises his mistake and breaks Silas and Malina out I love the way that he and Silas go from tentative friends to enemies because Jamar is so desperate for someone to want him that he mistakes Silas' self loathing for rejection and it pushes him over the edge. I would have liked to have seen more of an argument escalate between them though before he went from helpful to I'm going to kill you, but that is just me being picky.

All in all I think Fadeout was a really enthralling read. It had me riveted from start to finish and left me wanting more when it was over. Book two will definitely be on my "to read" list.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review:

I have to say, was a little nervous when I opened up the book and saw it was a little over 100 pages. But I have to say it was one of those books that had me wanting to keep going and keep reading from page one all the way to the end. It was 126 pages of awesome story and I never felt like the book dragged on just to fill up pages.

You begin with a bunch of children in a room being forced to watch another teen being strapped to a table while screaming and having something removed from his mind with small glass balls, and one child who is forced to watch doesnt show much reaction at all....then you jump ahead a few years and you meet Silas as a 12 year old boy, who is locked up in a facility where all Cars go. They are either send to farms to breed and have their children taken away at age 8 or are sent to the machine when they are ready, which extracts all their memories or e-mems and sold for resources. It is not like anything I have ever read. You meet the owner and his son, Jamar, he comes across as the spoiled kid who truly believes he is better than everyone as he is at the top of his social class, he is a Tirean, and Cars are the lowest there is. Basically not even seen as human. Jamar is bored and tired of always being taken advantage of and he wants a playmate to boss around and show how great he is and he hand picks Silas, who has been busy trying to plan an escape with his sister. Silas and Jamar develop a strange friendship, one that should not be forged because of social classes and Jamar butts heads with his father.

I only gave the book 4 out of the 5 stars, as I REALLY wanted to give it 5, but I felt there was some info missing or stories just dropped along the way. I was really quite curious as to how the e-mems were actually used, there is a scene where Jamar puts a file that is Silas's cell mate in line for the machine in order to try and help Silas. I seemed like a significant thing to happen and then it was never visited again. I would love to know what happened to Marcus, however I guess with the way things ended maybe we will hear about him in the next book. Jamar also grabbed some missing journal pages and began to read them and then was interrupted at some pivotal information and he took the pages to read later, however it wasnt brought up again in the book. I would love to know what was on those missing pages. There were quite a few typos in this book, and a couple of places where there were incorrect words used, however it wasnt horrible or in any way bothered me enough to want to put this book down.

I have to say, I was sad when the book was finished, I was surprised with the ending, and I am really looking forward to this summer when the next installment of this book comes out. Thank you Ms. Adams for the opportunty to read this book for review. I really enjoyed this book immensely and have already recommended to several friends.