And Finally...A Book Review

I've been reading, but not as much as I'd like to. I've had a few review books for another publication to get to and then I decided I'd pick up one for review for Amazon Vine. Despite my intention to quit requesting so many review books, I'm still too tempted when I see those lists of shiny new books not to pick something. As it turns out, this one's a gem I can highly recommend. Here's my review for Amazon:

When you're a Scrub like Trella, you do your job for ten hours, are off for ten hours, and then do your job for ten hours...for life. That's it, that's all there is to look forward to as you manuever through overcrowded sleeping quarters, overcrowded halls, overcrowded cafeterias and dodge the Pop Cops, those people from the Uppers who are assigned to control the Scrubs. For Trella it's easier to be a loner among the many; that is, until the day a "prophet" named Broken Man arrives on the lower levels of Inside and her friend Cogon becomes convinced that he's the key to finding Gateway...the door to Outside and a means to freedom for all. Though Trella's convinced no such thing exists, her expertise in traveling through the vents and pipes of Inside make her a prime candidate to find the disks Broken Man says contain the information that would bring a new life for the Scrubs.

Inside Out is not a standard young adult novel; set in an unfamiliar world where everyone knows his/her place in life and all are encapsulated inside a large building of four levels, Inside Out is action filled as Trella navigates through vents and Gaps, unwittingly becoming a symbol for a Scrub rebellion that's been brewing for a long time. There is indeed a touch of romance as she meets Riley, a member of the Uppers who is willing to help her when Cogon is arrested. But there's so much more going on: Trella's discovery that she herself was born an Upper but was sent as a baby to the Care Facility for Scrubs, a menacing LC Karla, who is determined to implicate Trella in Broken Man's disappearance, and the sense of community that develops when the Scrubs begin to realize that they do indeed have a voice.

Snyder does an excellent job creating the world in which Trella lives, and her descriptions of the areas Trella climbs are both creepy yet compelling. There is a sense of desperation and becoming who you are meant to be throughout the novel, but there is also a good deal of "techno" (or Tech No) stuff going on. I will say that the pacing is kinda off at times; sometimes it seems forever for a scene to play out and then other scenes wrap up much too quickly (particularly the final five pages or so). I liked the twists, and I loved how Trella's being forced to take a lead role made her take a deeper look at her own life. I'm eager for the next installment in the series because there are a couple of big cliffhangers that have me impatient. I would actually give this novel a solid 4.5 stars and can recommend it for those who like young adult, sci-fi, and just plain good ole tales.

~taminator40