Jennifer Leary

Smashwords book reviews by Jennifer Leary

  • The White Lilac on Jan. 23, 2013

    3.5 stars The White Lilac takes place in the future on Beta Earth. When colonists settled on this planet hundreds of years ago, they discovered that a fish, called a jigger, released a toxic dust in the air. A cure was discovered by scientists who created the Compound. The Compound produces genetically altered humans that are able to collect the cure. These candidates are born and raised at the Compound, training their entire life, so that they are ready to collect the cure if needed. The bad part is that the cure is found within an anemone and once stung, the selected candidate (or White Lilac) dies. Keep in mind that these candidates are young teens, and the main character, Caryn, is 15 years old. Caryn has been raised her entire life in the Compound, never leaving, and knows that her life is short and her main purpose is to collect this cure in order to save others. In a surprise twist, Caryn is given the opportunity to leave the Compound and visit Highton City for 3 days, before being called back to complete her obligation of collecting the cure. This is her chance to experience "outside", eating new foods, visiting museums and meeting new and different people. The other main character in the book is Kai. Kai is an orphan, a couple of years older than Caryn, and is assigned as her guardian. Kai's initial reason in guarding Caryn is to find out who his mother is. He was abandoned at 4 years old and has always wondered whether she really loved him. A local gang leader in the city has this information but will only provide it if Kai delivers a ruby to him. In exchange for guarding Caryn for the 3 days, he will be paid with the Ruby. In any case, there are many plot points to the story, but you will have to read it to find out more ;) Does Kai find out who his parents are, does Caryn collect the cure, does she survive, is the Compound what it's really meant to be, who can and cannot be trusted? This is a great book for young adults. The author provides good detail in describing events and the book is well edited. The only thing that keeps me from giving it another 1/2 star is that I wish the relationship between Caryn and Kai was more detailed. They spent a lot of time together but I really didn't get to know them as we'll as I'd like to. The author does have great potential though and I definitely look forward to reading more from her. This book was kindly provided by the Author for a fair and honest review.