I'm sorry, but your world just got a lot bigger, weirder, and a whole heck of a lot more terrifying.
Induction
by S. E. Sharp
Genre: YA Fantasy
About: A car accident rips apart Mika's world. Not only for the devastation it brings her family, but because that night Mika sees something. A glimpse into a world she was never meant to know existed. And now that she's seen what's out there, she's determined not to close her eyes again. Mika Finley will fight.
The Good
This is a really fun novel. It starts off strong with an emotionally charged incident that left me so attached to Mika. It's a devastating situation and the writing is excellent in drawing that emotion out. The chapters are short and fast paced and the overall tone is one that I think works well for a younger YA readership. There's depth to these characters and plenty of dangerous moments, but the author keeps things light with character banter and a female lead that lives an equal parts normal and bizarre life.
The Bad
Being the first in a series, this novel suffers from the need to introduce all the characters and get us familiar with the world. The author does a very good job at the character introductions as I never found myself confused with who was who, but the world-building was sprinkled in a little heavy at times. We're told a lot more things than we're shown and, although Mika herself makes fun of the acronyms, they don't help with the information overload.
Introducing us to the world through the story (rather than from characters or a school setting) would have been far more effective. I did feel a lack of focus in the plot at times. At the halfway mark, we're reminded about missing girls and this, I think, should have been the main focus of the story.
The Somewhat Iffy
Ninjas and boy bands. The story idea is pure fanfiction and really requires readers to suspend their disbelief. I also struggled to take the school seriously whenever the world 'ninja' was used. I know this is a bit unfair as there are plenty of stories with somewhat similar schooling (The Poppy War, Legendborn etc.) but I think the combination of ninjas and boy bands is what makes this concept harder to swallow. But that combination could be the reason other readers love it.
Overall
If you enjoy fanfiction but want something with a bit more teeth, this is a fun, exciting beginning to a series. The characters have great chemistry and the writing really drew me in.
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