REVIEW: Stunned by Sarah Noffke

Bookish Details:
Series: The Lucidites #2
Pages: 312
Publisher: One-Twenty-Six Press
Release Date: 21st November 2014
Buy it From: Amazon - Amazon UK

Synopsis:

Roya desperately wishes she was above ground, on a sunny patio, watching the lake lap up on the shore. Instead, she finds herself trapped with the Lucidites. Her brother is mysteriously wasting away, and at every turn she finds a new betrayal. Just when she thinks she’s finally escaping the Institute, a new danger unveils itself. A secret society of Dream Travelers has declared war on the Lucidites by abducting a head official. It’s up to Roya to figure out who’s behind it and how to save everyone she cares about most. More action packed than its predecessor, Stunned is captivating and will leave audiences squirming from the tension and also begging for more.

My Review:

Stunned picks up after the events of Awoken. Zhuang has been defeated, and the Lucidites are attempting to get things back to how they were. Roya’s friends and her brother, Joseph, have all been given assignments to work on over summer and are settling in at the institute. Roya, however, doesn’t quite know what to do. She has nothing to work on, and left feeling like a spare part

Her feelings for Aiden are complicated and she finds it difficult to accept that anything between the two of them must be kept secret to protect Aiden’s career. Her strained relationship with George isn’t making her situation any easier. This leads to her deciding that she wants to leave and move in with her faux parents, Bob and Steve. 

The plot, just like in the first book, was exciting from start to finish. Just when you think you have things figured out, another new twist is thrown into the mix to keep the characters constantly on their toes.

As always, the characters were fantastic. I loved Roya’s strength and her natural wit. I was pleased to see some more interaction between her, Bob, and Steve. It’s great that she has their constant reassurance and support. They are like the calm amongst the raging storm.

I felt sorry for poor Joseph. He gets messed up in something he shouldn’t, and takes it out on the people around him. But seeing Roya’s determination to help him overcome whatever he’s working on is touching and shows the development between the two of them.

I was happy to get to know George a little better this time. In the first book, his relationship with Roya wasn’t appealing to me, but now I understand the connection between the two of them a little better. I’d like to learn more about him away from his relationship with Roya.

With that being said, I still prefer Roya with Aiden. I adore Aiden. He’s geeky, and cute, and can sometimes be a little foolish. And that’s what makes him a great character. I wanted to give him a good talking to myself at certain points in the story because of the poor way he was handling certain situations. But he learns from his mistakes and grows from them. Again, he is a character whose backstory I would love to learn more about. 

The secondary characters in this story are just as fantastic. Trent shared a wonderful little moment with Roya towards the end that I really enjoyed, and it left me curious to see how his story unfolds in the last instalment. I also love Ren. I seem to have a particular interest in angry, snarky, pessimistic characters, and he definitely fits that bill. 

The Grotte was a creepy addition to this series, and one I highly enjoyed getting to read about. The new characters we meet through the Grotte are disturbing and a dangerous threat. I’m so curious to see what the overall plan is.

I need to mention the end of this book because holy mother of plot twists. I did not see the twist coming, so when it happened, it was glorious. I had one of those ‘oh, snap’ moments, and then wanted to go back through the books to see if I’d missed the clues. It was a fantastic ending that definitely left me desperate to read the fallout.

This series is always full of action and excitement. I’m eager to see what wild adventures the characters will be sent on in the final book, and how they’ll face whatever situations are thrown at them next.  

Royal Rating: