Foreseen (Rothston Series #1)
Author: Terri-Lynne Smiles
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Synopsis: Kinzie Nicolosi believed
her birth-parents died when she was a toddler. But as a freshman in college,
she learns the truth: no one knows what happened to them. And they weren’t the
typical people she’d always assumed. Indeed, her father was an adept – people
with the ability to secretly change the decisions others make.
Now, Kinzie faces the question of how to use this ability. Through the Rothston Institute, a covert organization of others like her, Kinzie is determined guide the antagonistic world onto safer, better paths. Yet, not everyone has the same idea of what is best, and Kinzie finds herself in the midst a deadly struggle between them. Can Kinzie figure out who to believe before it’s too late to save herself … or the world?
Now, Kinzie faces the question of how to use this ability. Through the Rothston Institute, a covert organization of others like her, Kinzie is determined guide the antagonistic world onto safer, better paths. Yet, not everyone has the same idea of what is best, and Kinzie finds herself in the midst a deadly struggle between them. Can Kinzie figure out who to believe before it’s too late to save herself … or the world?
Note: Contains minor
spoilers.
Review: In receiving a copy from Foreseen, I hadn’t quite known what to
expect and after beginning, I was a bit worried I would not be able to even
read the first fifty pages let alone finish the novel. The novel started off
rather boring and remained so for the first forty pages or so then gradually
built up to an interesting enough plot that I decided to stick with the book,
curious as to where the author would take the story. Truth be told, I was
surprised by how much I came to actually
like a great deal of the book and characters.
Kinzie is shy,
quiet, very much a tomboy and doesn’t really have a lot of friends. She spends
more time with her head in a book and handling scientific projects than people.
I could relate to Kinzie since growing up (and even now) I was VERY shy and
just as much of a tomboy as Kinzie’s character. But she is also honest and
incredibly stubborn. I didn’t fully like Kinzie’s character though. She is too
gullible and is easily manipulated. She always talks about her distrust of
people but she instantly trusts the Seven, the leaders of the Rothston
Institute, without really questioning them until it’s too late and she has to
be rescued. She also made incredibly stupid decisions with her new found adept
gifts when she knew better!
Greg was my
favorite character out of the entire novel. I hadn’t expected to really like
him at all since he starts off as an ego-centric playboy who depends on his
naturally born good looks and family money to impress people. He matures and
grows throughout the book as he develops a friendship with Kinzie which
transforms into a romantic relationship. I liked how realistic his character
was portrayed and how much Greg is changed by his love for Kinzie. He learns to
respect women better and to focus on building a life outside of his family’s
money.
The Seven are
the leaders at Rothston and frankly, the only likeable one out of the bunch was
Melvina. She was kind and caring whereas the rest where just evil, egotistical,
power hungry maniacs. Rex was the main villain of the book and he was as
pompous as the Seven and equally annoying which I supposed worked for the role
he played.
There are a few
secondary characters both within Kinzie and Greg’s life. Sasha was Kinzine’s
roommate and only friend (until Greg). She was the most annoying character out
of the bunch. I had been hoping she wouldn’t survive to see the end of Foreseen so I wouldn’t have to deal with
in the second novel. Curtis was sweet and cute. Greg’s roommates, Boomer and
Pete, were hilarious and guy-guys.
The romance
between Greg and Kinzie developed pretty well. They started off as awkward
friends, learning to feel comfortable around each other as they worked on a
school project. They gradually grow into a friendship and learn to trust each
other. I liked when Greg realizes his feelings for Kinzie have grown since they
come as such a shock to him. I did get annoyed with how often Kinzie needed to
be cuddled by Greg to be made to feel better about herself. I also got
frustrated with how much the author intertwined scientific jargon for Kinzine
to describe how she felt for Greg. It didn’t mix well. It made Kinzie’s
thoughts come off too analytical.
After the first
40 pages or so, the pacing to the novel begins to grow and gets better. The
suspense is slow growing and not as strong considering Kinzie is rather dull
and gullible but works well when Greg is narrating. The action scenes are
pretty standard, nothing too surprising about them.
Foreseen was a pretty good debut novel and I do
look forward to checking out what will be done in the second installment, Choices. I definitely want to see how
Greg and Kinzie’s relationship develops and what will happen with the Seven at
the Rothston Institute after how the book ended.
Science fiction
fans will thoroughly enjoy this book!
About the Author: At various times in her life, author Terri-Lynne Smiles has played the piano, .tambourine, guitar, violin, soprano recorder, autoharp, ocarina, and banjo before taking a good, hard look at herself and realizing she had no musical talent. And so began a lifelong search.
She graduated from Denison University with a degree in Philosophy and Economics, married the love of her life and attended law school at the University of Michigan. While the law often fulfilled the analytical part of her brain, the creative side was dissatisfied. She turned to baking as an outlet, because it could be squeezed into her burgeoning schedule. Volcano cakes, three dimensional Death Stars, and cupcakes topped with handmade candy butterflies soon found their way into Terri’s kitchen. But instead of satisfying her, all it did was make her fat.
She looked back over her life and saw the passion for fiction writing had always been there. And thus began Terri’s career as a writer.
What I’m working on now: I am never good at working on one project at a time. Aside from appearing for book groups and interviews on my novel Foreseen, I just finished the final edit of the techno-thriller, The Silla Project, for author John C. Brewer. I am also world-building for a futuristic novel Sarandipity and, working out some changes to Choices – the second book in the Rothston series.
Where to Find the Author
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