Book Review: Revealing Eden (Save the Pearls Part One)

Title: Revealing Eden (Save the Pearls Part One)

Author: Victoria Foyt

Genre: Fantasy, Magic, Teens, Science Fiction

Publisher: Bookmasters published January 12, 2012

Format: I received a review copy from Netgalley

ISBN: 9780983650324

 Synopsis (courtesy of Netgalley)

In a post-apocalyptic world where resistance to an overheated environment defines class and beauty, Eden Newman’s white skin brands her as a member of the lowest social class, the weak and ugly Pearls. Doomed unless she mates soon, Eden hopes a Coal from the dark-skinned ruling class will save her. But when she unwittingly compromises her father’s secret biological experiment, perhaps mankind’s only hope, Eden is cast out-into the last patch of rainforest and into the arms of a powerful beast-man she believes is her enemy, despite her overwhelming attraction to him. To survive, Eden must change-but only if she can redefine her ideas of beauty-and of love. Along the way, she receives some beautiful insight from her virtually adopted aunt Emily Dickinson.

My thoughts:

I will be upfront and tell you that I didn’t read the synopsis very carefully when I requested this book for review. I saw the cover and zeroed in on those animalistic eyes and the word ‘beast-man’ literally jumped out at me when I looked at the synopsis. I saw that Eden was going to be challenged to redefine her ideas of beauty and love and I thought “Ooh ooh! Beauty and the Beast”, lol.

So you can imagine that when I started reading I was transported into a time and place that was most definitely nothing like beauty and the beast. But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. I will also disclaim that I normally so not read science fiction. It just isn’t something that I get into very easily.

Ms. Foyt has a well developed writing style that is easy to follow, easy to read and it allows the reader to immerse themselves fully into the world she created. It is a world I never imagined, a world that I can’t say I would want to live in. But that didn’t make it any less interesting to read about. 😉

The setting of this book is post apocalyptic and the whites (known as the Pearls) are inferior to the dark skinned people (known as the Coals). I am a little embarrassed to admit I didn’t realize that this would be a driving force behind the book. I will be honest and say I don’t really like to read racially driven plots. It sometimes makes me uncomfortable because in my eyes everyone should be the same. But please, allow me to clarify that this book is not just about race and the color of one’s skin. It is in no way derogatory, in fact it is a refreshing twist on people learning to see themselves and each other through new eyes.

In the beginning of the book the world that Eden lives in is very regimented, very rule driven and seemily very lonely. Her greatest friend/comfort is her dog, who I absolutely loved because he is always there ready and able to love her. He really warmed my heart.

The setting in the beginning is very clinical and scientific, which is absolutely necessary and really helps to set the tone for the kind of world they all live in. But I have to say the setting that they travel too – the rainforest – is the setting that I picture when I think of this book. It’s pure and clean, almost untouched by humans, full of nature’s bounty and beauty. It’s also raw and real and breathtakingly beautiful. I think the setting is probably my favorite thing about the entire book.

My favorite character is Bramford. He is the beast-man that we read about in the synopsis. I won’t give away what exactly he is or how he came to be that way…but I found him fascinating. I enjoyed the descriptions of his body, the way it moved and the way he was truly part animal at all times. It was really not what I was expecting but I like the concept of him. It was unique. He was very arrogant, stubborn and sometimes mean but I thought he was real and I was still able to see the warmer part of him underneath the rough exterior.

Eden, the main character was someone that I struggled to identify with. I didn’t really understand why she acted the way she did sometimes. It seemed like one minute she was thinking something but then she would do something completely opposite… (example, she would say that she didn’t like Bramford and she was frightened by him but then seconds later she would be in his arms and say she felt safe and enjoyed the closeness. Then the cycle would repeat.) I just thought that if she was that afraid of him she might not so easily allow herself to be in his arms. I also thought that she didn’t stand up enough for herself.

This book was definitely a read that was out of my comfort zone and I admire the writer for doing something different. Unfortunately, I can’t say that I truly enjoyed the book, but I think that it is because of my own reading preferences and nothing really to do with the book itself.

I thank the author and the publisher for allowing me the chance to read and review this work.

So there you have it. My opinion.