Seeker
Author: Arwen Elys Dayton
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Series: Seeker #1
Pages: Hardcover, 448 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Release Date: February 10th 2015
Summary:
Quin Kincaid has been put through years of brutal training for what she thinks is the noble purpose of becoming a revered ‘Seeker’.
Only when it’s too late does she discover she will be using her new-found knowledge and training to become an assassin. Quin's new role will take her around the globe, from a remote estate in Scotland to a bustling, futuristic Hong Kong where the past she thought she had escaped will finally catch up with her.
Review:
DNF 30%
First I would actually like to comment on the way this is being promoted. Game of Thrones and Hunger Games are thrown in... And quite frankly I am a bit tired of having each and every book that has a tinge of fantasy to it compared to either of those two books. I mean, I don't wanna read another wanna-be Hunger Game ever again. So it is actually a deterrent. On top of that this has very little in common with either book. Why throw in their names? In my opinion it's a terrible marketing strategy.
I've took quite a few days to just get to 20%. The main reason for this was the writing style. It's ..just not... for me.
I didn't like the way this is written. Which is always a huge issue for me. Writing style is the most important part of a story to me. But this is not terrible or anything. It had little details I found annoying, like the author giving me the pronunciation of things.. which made me wonder two things: does Dayton think I am a buffoon? Or am I expected to read it out aloud? Mostly though I thought: Who gives a toot?
I am not a fan of the multiple storylines told by a narrator to start with, it makes it kinda hard to connect to the POV of the main characters. And this is exactly the style Dayton chose to tell the story. Another reason why I didn't enjoy this.
The world building was... interesting? To be honest, I still have no clue when this is set. I am kinda guessing it's dystopian? But seriously I am not sure. There are some cool idea's here. I like the disruptors and all that. I like the adding of different mythology. But even a third in I have no clue. I don't know what a seeker is. This is set in Scotland at first. With a kinda Medieval feel, yet with steampunk elements. And then there are some Japanese mythology like bits added... I've got hints and a load of holes this far. But while it wasn't bad, it was also not captivating or overly unique. Well. I am kinda confused about it all., actually.
The character building is probably my least favorite part of this. If this would have been a good character driven novel- I probably would have overlooked my writing style issues - definitely would have totally ignored the world building ones- but the format in which this was written was the huge obstacle made connecting with the characters rather difficult. But to be honest I didn't like any of them to top it. I found Quinn beyond naive. And frankly most of the other characters, just simply, to predictable- even when Dayton was trying to be all smokes and mirrors about it - and way to cliche. At 30% I couldn't care less about any of them.
The plot is predictable. Simple. There is a love triangle- and I knew it was coming on page 2 or 3? And as the story unfolds- very very slowly- it becomes also more predictable. Which is funny on one level, cause I have no clue what a seeker is. I would not be able to explain the world to you at all. But the story line.. kinda .. same old same old.
Which is how I felt at 30% - and at first I was going to just wait - try again later- but let's face it; Seeker and I - we are never going to gel. Hence, I decided to just call it a day.
Rating:
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