Thursday, March 18, 2010

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Harlequin
Release Date: April 1, 2010
Language: English
Source: Around The World Tours

Synopsis: Keep Your Head Down. Don't Get Noticed. Or Else. I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

Living as a scrub within the lower levels of Inside means having a very restricted lifestyle.  Jobs are chosen for you, regardless of whether you like it or not, and schedules are set for everyone to comply with; freedom is a distant memory for most scrubs. Chosen to clean the pipes and shafts of the lower levels because of her small size, Trella is used her monotonous life and chooses to spend most of her time alone, away from everyone else. Her anti-social behavior give her fellow scrubs the idea of dubbing her the Queen of the Pipes---a nickname that undoubtedly suits her... and gets her into trouble when a "prophet" from the upper levels challenges her to find Gateway, a supposed way out of Inside. This unwanted invitation to seek out the truth leads Trella to uncovering a secret plot that could change everything she's ever known....

When I first received Inside Out, I admit I was a little worried that I wasn't going to like this book; I've only ever read one other novel by Snyder and it was Poison Study, the first in the Study series. I was blown away by it, to say the least. So I was a bit apprehensive when I opened the book and began reading the first page. Would this book impress me just as much as Poison Study did? Or would it completely disappoint me?  After reading a mere five pages, my doubts vanished and I let myself get sucked into Trella's world. The pace was slow but that's only because of the incredible detail that Snyder gives us so the reader can imagine the complex and frightening world of Inside. Trella herself is a complex character--she's not the friendliest scrub you'll encounter; she's headstrong, unafraid of taking risks but as the chapters progress, her tough demeanor is slowly chipped at (the pace speeds up a notch) and you get a glimpse of her vulnerability once she comes across the many obstacles that await her throughout the story. And there were many, many obstacles. You don't know what's going to happen next and this kept me completely hooked to the story. There were so many twists and turns that the journey to the ending was absolutely exhilirating and left me wanting more. Snyder definetely knows how to write an action-packed adventure! She also did a wonderful job of inserting a light-hearted, subtle romance within this story; I really enjoyed Trella's interactions with her adorable love interest. Their budding relationship was a pinpoint of light intermixed with the foreboding darkness of the rebellion and whenever they weren't worried about being tracked down by their enemies, they were just the cutest thing ever!

Snyder's Inside Out was an excellent story filled with clever characters, insane plot twists and an ending that leaves the reader satisfied but hints just enough that there may be a sequel in the future. If there is a sequel, you can bet that I'll be eagerly awaiting for the next installment in this series. I can't wait!

Rating: 5.0

20 comments:

  1. Great review! can't wait to see this one hit the shelfs! :D

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  2. Ooooooh, I absolutely can't wait for this! I've yet to read a book by Maria V. Snyder (POISON STUDY!! AH!)...so yeah, I'll be reading this. Hopefully soon. Ah, it sounds so intriguing! :D

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  3. I'm glad to hear you liked this! I have a book by her, but I haven't got to it yet. Great review!

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  4. Totally agree with you about Inside Out. The plot pace is slow initially but when the action begins it's of explosive proportion ..Can't wait to read Outside In ..

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  5. Hi Sandy, just wanted to let you know you have an award waiting for you here, I love your blog, the cute openguins always make me smile :-) How did you come up with this title/theme?

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  6. WOW this book sounds crazy good! Awesome review, I cant wait to get my hands on it! :)

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  7. I haven't read anything by Snyder before but I have Magic Study on my wishlist :) This one sounds really good as well. Thank you so much for this great review!

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  8. I'm incredibly excited to read this book! Magic Study completely blew me away as well, and I've been feeling a bit of trepidation over reading any of her other books. I'm soo glad it lived up to your expectations.

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  9. Oooh, excellent review. This is one I have been looking forward to with interest. I'm glad it lived up to Poison Study (that is my favorite of hers).

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  10. Ooh, good review. Ever since I read a short story by Maria Snyder in 'Eternal Kiss', I've been wanting to check out her novels. This sounds like an interesting read. :D

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  11. You can't imagine how much I want to read this book now! And there's romance... can it get any better? :D

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  12. I keep hearing the greatest things about this author. I better get on the ball and try some of her work, huh? :)

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  13. I so love the sound of this book. Early this week I read a review for this book and my mind was made up to read it. I cant wait to read it for myself. Great review.

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  14. In case nobody has told you yet, the sequel is called Outside In.

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  15. Oooh, this one looks SO GOOD!!!!!! I read Poison Study a long time ago and loved it- glad to see Snyder didn't lose her magic! Awesome review :D

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  16. I'm so glad you enjoyed Inside Out! I also cannot wait to read Outside In, like Shweta. :-)

    Great review, I agree with you on everything, and omg fricken loved Riley and sheepy :-P

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  17. I wants! *makes pawing gestures at picture of book* I'm so very glad you liked this book as I'm very excited about it. Thanks for posting this great review chica! :D

    ~Briana

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  18. I just finished reading this today. I loved it! Do you mind if i link to your review when I post mine?

    There is going to be a sequel: Outside In. It's coming out in 2011

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  19. Fantastic review! This book looks amazing!

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  20. Gotta say that I've been hearing some mixed reviews about this one, but after reading yours I was utterly impressed. Not only do I now not doubt Snyder's ability (which I never actually did after reading the entire Study series) but I will definitely be reading more of your reviews!

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