Strangelets

This was a page turner with some SciFi meat to it, and I was glad I picked it up. I wan't too fond of Gagnon's first book, and the story in this one is better written (if even less plausible). It was a nice change from zombies and vampires. I will recommend this one to readers who like fast-paced thrillers who are not looking for a whole bunch of character development (everyone is a GIANT stereotype). It would be perfect for the beach. I especially enjoyed the title. Nice “Doctor Who” reference from the Irish character. I docked it a star for a too-neat ending, and felt it was a shame because the story could have continued in future books on new worlds. Oh, well.

Strangelets Strangelets starts off with a bang. Six teenage strangers wake up to find themselves locked in a mysterious location. Is it a lab? A hospital? No one really knows. The only thing that is certain is that all of them now have a common goal: survive. I have to admit that I was extremely curious as to what type of adventure Michelle Gagnon would be taking the teens and I on.
 
I had no problem settling into the world that was built for me. The characters, despite being complete strangers to one another, meshed really well together. I loved how each one had their own background story, and how they all culminated into something much bigger than what I was expecting. I won't deny that I felt a little rushed at times though. Gagnon does her best to fit a lot into the 288 pages that Strangelets contains, and sometimes my questions went unanswered.
 
Which brings me to the thing about Strangelets that really makes it a harder book to review. The first three-quarters of the book is pretty much non-stop action. I had so many questions as I watched these strangers band together to try and survive. Kudos to the author for the way she built the tension, and kept me guessing. However as I neared the end, all the action kind of culminated in a big pause. There was a huge explanation of what was really going on, with a lot of terms I struggled to understand, and then the ending. It felt a bit anticlimactic, especially since I felt so invested in their struggle.
 
To me, Strangelets is one of those books that I enjoyed reading but probably wouldn't read again. I liked the story line for the most part, felt for the characters, but was left a little unsatisfied at the end. Still, I know that if there were further adventures for these characters I'd be there to read them. As I said, very confusing to review. Suffice it to say that if you like stories that mix thrillers and science fiction, this is probably the perfect read for you.