Title: The Rules
Author: Stacey Kade
Synopsis: 1. Never trust anyone.
2. Remember they are always searching.
3. Don’t get involved.
4. Keep your head down.
5. Don’t fall in love.
Five simple rules. Ariane Tucker has followed them since the night she escaped from the genetics lab where she was created, the result of combining human and extraterrestrial DNA. Ariane’s survival—and that of her adoptive father—depends on her ability to blend in among the full-blooded humans in a small Wisconsin town, to hide in plain sight at her high school from those who seek to recover their lost (and expensive) “project.”
But when a cruel prank at school goes awry, it puts her in the path of Zane Bradshaw, the police chief’s son and someone who sees too much. Someone who really sees her. After years of trying to be invisible, Ariane finds the attention frightening—and utterly intoxicating. Suddenly, nothing is simple anymore, especially not the rules…
Review:
"Pretending to feel something you don't can often lead you to the real thing, in some form."
The Rules was surprisingly awesome. It went beyond my expectation and was really enjoyable. Most sci-fi stories happened in the future or are post-apocalyptic but this one is different. It happened at present time, where aliens are still considered freaks and mean girls in high school is still a trend.
The first time you read it, you might say that this is just another high school story--unpopular girl with a very loud and insecure best friend, a mean girl who is the granddaughter of the biggest employer and a guy who's part of the mean girl's inner circle who eventually realises that he had enough of all the things this mean girl has done. Yes, it's quite cliche but here's the catch: that unpopular girl is an alien/human hybrid with awesomesauce powers that could be a weapon.
What made me feel on edge is the looming threat in every move Ariane makes. I'm freakin scared for her! But I also want her to forget the Rules and have fun. Every page made me guess what will happen next. It kept the suspense till the end. And the freakin revelation was some holy-shit moment for me. I seriously didn't see that one coming!
The characters were amazing. They had made a good impression especially Rachel. Her character wasn't made to just fill a spot to make the high school plot believable. (yes, because there's a mean girl in every high school) She was very relevant till the end. I even think she'll become a turncoat in the future.
I also loved how it ended as if really meant that the first part is done, like the next book would mean that their adventures will be another chapter in their lives. It wasn't a cliffy but it still made me want to read the next book ASAP. A really amazing start to a series. A very cool and unique sci-fi story.
--
This copy was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my review in any way.
