ARC Review: Undertow by Michael Buckley

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Book summary:

Sixteen-year-old Lyric Walker’s life is forever changed when she witnesses the arrival of 30,000 Alpha, a five-nation race of ocean-dwelling warriors, on her beach in Coney Island. The world’s initial wonder and awe over the Alpha quickly turns ugly and paranoid and violent, and Lyric’s small town transforms into a military zone with humans on one side and Alpha on the other. When Lyric is recruited to help the crown prince, a boy named Fathom, assimilate, she begins to fall for him. But their love is a dangerous one, and there are forces on both sides working to keep them apart. Only, what if the Alpha are not actually the enemy? What if they are in fact humanity’s only hope of survival? Because the real enemy is coming. And it’s more terrifying than anything the world has ever seen.
Action, suspense, and romance whirlpool dangerously in this cinematic saga, a blend of District 9 and The Outsiders.

        Usually people have a weak spot for the request button when it comes to ARCs, but for me it's read now button. That little green think will be the end of me trust me. I just cannot resist it. It usually turns out to be a complete waste of my time, but it's rare books like Undertow that give me hope.

        As I haven't read the blurb for this, I honestly expected it to be about circus. It's just the cover looks like circus and I somehow though it must be it. But, don't be fooled as this has nothing to do with circus. Trust me on that. This is actually a book about a world being attacked by a new species. This time the threat is coming from the place the scariest to me - the sea. You can speak whatever you want, but I strongly believe there are different kind of creatures down there that we never wish to meet. Here we get to meet them, and it's not really something you want to come true. Well not all of it.

       Even though this book is full of new things, as in new creatures and world building. It's also full of suspense and will keep you on edge. But at the same time it surely has a good deal of predictable elements. Lyrics our main character is what you can call your average YA heroin. She has sort of a normal life, but one full of secrets she has to deal with. Then there is Fanthom, a boy from another sort she must not fall for. But she does and it turns into much more than love story. But still each step of their romance was nicely built that I couldn't but fall for it. I cheered and prayed and I'll continue doing so in the sequel.

     When it comes to the sequel it has a great deal of tangles to fix and I cannot wait to see it happen.

Rating: 4 stars.

Until the next time,

*Note: Copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher, HMH Books. Thank you! All opinions are personal!