2.5 Stars ( )

Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was digging the X-Men vibe of this book until I wasn't. I think I would have liked it more without the conspiracy is it good is it evil stuff. I think the bring down the man aspect of young adult novels is a bit old and I may be tired of it. This book is good, I just think that my enjoyment was impacted by the other books I have read. ( )

See this sentence from the book description up there?--"She could be a hero, but all she wants to do is fall in love ..."--Ignore it. Absolutely ignore it. It makes you think that's all the book is about and that isn't true. Sure, Tessa is scared. She's going into the field on her first mission before she's even finished her training. She's going to use her Variant power to impersonate a dead girl, someone who was horribly murdered by a suspected serial killer. She's got to blend in, investigate, and stay alive. Sure, she's in love with Alec, a fellow Variant and agent at the government agency for which she works, but that isn't the focus of the story.

Winnacker is very good at dealing with Chekhov's gun. She laid some very important things throughout the book and all were used by the end.

She's also very good at making the character of Tessa realistic. Tessa is a teenaged girl, and one who never had a stable family. It's no surprise she'd enjoy her time spent pretending to be Madison. What was a surprise to me was how she realized that none of it was truly real because she wasn't Madison. Tessa struck me as mature in that way, and in the way she dealt with Alec and her feelings.

I didn't figure out who the killer was, so I was right there with Tessa when she found out. I was duped, as I was supposed to be, so that made for a very satisfying ending for me.

I'm looking forward to reading more in this series.

(Provided by publisher) ( )

I just finished this book and am looking forward to reading the next one.

I thought this was a crazy good book!
The story keeps on twisting and turning, and you think you know who the killer is, but then you change your mind, and then again. It's very well written, and I got so involved in the story I found myself gasping out loud, or yelling at my kindle.

It kept my heart pounding throughout reading. ( )

I just finished this book and am looking forward to reading the next one.

I thought this was a crazy good book!
The story keeps on twisting and turning, and you think you know who the killer is, but then you change your mind, and then again. It's very well written, and I got so involved in the story I found myself gasping out loud, or yelling at my kindle.

It kept my heart pounding throughout reading. ( )