One Too Review Tour

Blurb:

Telepathy creates as many problems as it solves, as most of the members of the secret organization x0 would admit. When new member Lola discovers another group of telepaths with a completely different approach, those problems multiply at the speed of thought.

Soon, Lola’s family and friends are in danger. Lucky for her, she’s not your average budding psychic. Each person with whom she is close has a special gift of their own. That’s good, because it’s going to take every power they possess to keep this other group from succeeding with their plan to eradicate x0.

Excerpt:

“The way your mom describes how you see the future, it is so cool. Please. Touch me first. I want to know what’s going to happen to me.” Xuha made one of his exaggerated comic faces, this time a look of amplified eagerness.

Ariel directed a fierce look of annoyance at her mother.

“We are in the middle of a crisis here,” her mom responded. “So we’ve now got a ‘no secrets’ policy in this house. I’ve told everyone everything I know because we have to work together.”

“That will not be possible,” the blind Irish man said from the place where he had settled in on the couch.

Lola looked at this man named Cillian more closely. He was a tall, unusually attractive man in his mid-forties, with a rich brogue and the demeanor of someone of wealth and importance. He spoke like he was accustomed to being listened to.

“I beg your pardon?” Lola said as politely as she could.

“Ariel will need to be selective about what she tells you. It’s a pity that you chose to share her feyness with this entire group, but she and I will find ways to manage that damage. She needs to check with me before she says anything.”

Lola reminded herself that she was tired. Hungry. Under a lot of stress. And not used to strangers in her own house telling her what to do. She tried to soften her voice before she spoke, but she didn’t do a very good job of it.

“Ariel is my daughter and she will do no such thing. Her entire family is in danger and needs her help. What she does or doesn’t do is not your concern. I’m not even sure why you are here, but you may stay if and only if you don’t think it is your prerogative to tell us what to do.”

The rest of the room went silent.

My Review:

3.5 stars

Let me start by saying that this is not a traditional standalone because you do need to understand aspects of the other books to fully appreciate the story. This is standalone in that the author provides the bare bones of the plots and important elements from the first five books through appendices and exposition in the story, so you don’t have to read them to read One Too. Nevertheless, I would recommend reading the entire series in order, as this book is the accumulation of the previous 5. I feel like I would have appreciated this book more if I’d read the others, as this is an intricate storyline and world.

Speaking of the plot and world, while it was intricate, it was also a bit trippy and complicated at times. Thermodynamics play a role here, and there is a lot of scientific discussion and theory thrown around. I could tell the author had a scientific background as the science behind the characters’ abilities, multiverses, thermodynamics, etc. was explored and brought into the story, making it a thought-provoking, intriguing read. At times this was a bit of a disadvantage though, as it slowed down the plot, and I had a hard time following some it. It reminded me of the film Inception in that you have to be fully cognizant and quick on your toes to really understand the book and the plot, and if you miss any of it, it won’t make as much sense. This is one of the big reasons why I recommend reading this series in order.

The biggest issue I had with the book was the pacing. As I said, there was a lot of slow parts due to dumps of information you wouldn’t know if you hadn’t read the other books, sciency stuff, and different tangents (especially when we started talking timelines).

Because of this, there were many details that were told rather than shown,  like an “on the last episode” recap. Because they were info dumps they didn’t fit in well, which kept jarring me out of the story. I understand that the author did this to make the book standalone, but this hurt the pacing and the story. I think if the book had been trimmed down 50 or so pages and took off from where the others ended, the story would have felt more natural and organized.

All in all, this was a good read. However, I wish I had read the other 5 books first, as even though you could technically read this series as a standalone, I wouldn’t recommend it. You can technically read the Harry Potter series as standalones and still get the gist of the series, but you miss out on the beauty and intricacies of the books if you do so. After reading One Too, I feel like this series is the same.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

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Author Bio and Links:

Sherrie grew up in Western Kansas thinking that there was no place in the universe more fascinating than outer space. After her mother vetoed astronaut as a career ambition, she went on to study journalism and physics in hopes of becoming a science writer.

She published her first science fiction short story long ago, and then waited a lot of tables while she looked for inspiration for the next story. When it finally came,  it declared to her that it had to be whole book, nothing less. One night, while digesting this disturbing piece of news, she drank way too many shots of ouzo with her boyfriend. She woke up thirty-one years later demanding to know what was going on.

The boyfriend, who she had apparently long since married, asked her to calm down and  explained that in a fit of practicality she had gone back to school and gotten a degree in geophysics and had spent the last 28 years interpreting seismic data in the oil industry. The good news, according to Mr. Cronin, was that she had found it at least mildly entertaining and ridiculously well-paying.  The bad news was that the two of them had still managed to spend almost all of the money.

Apparently she was now Mrs. Cronin, and the further good news was that they had produced three wonderful children whom they loved dearly, even though to be honest that is where a lot of the money had gone. Even better news was that Mr. Cronin turned out to be a warm-hearted, encouraging sort who was happy to see her awake and ready to write. "It's about time," were his exact words.

Sherrie Cronin discovered that over the ensuing decades Sally Ride had already managed to become the first woman in space and apparently had done a fine job of it. No one, however, had written the book that had been in Sherrie's head for decades. The only problem was, the book informed her sternly that it had now grown into a six book collection. Sherrie decided that she better start writing it before it got any longer. She's been wide awake ever since, and writing away.

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