Thursday, December 27, 2012

Review: Stitch by Samantha Durante

Stitch
by Samantha Durante
Series: Stitch Trilogy #1
Publication date: August 1, 2012
Genre: YA Paranormal Dystopian Romance
Purchase*: Amazon


Her heart races, her muscles coil, and every impulse in Alessa's body screams at her to run... but yet she's powerless to move. Still struggling to find her footing after the sudden death of her parents, the last thing college freshman Alessa has the strength to deal with is the inexplicable visceral pull drawing her to a handsome ghostly presence. In between grappling with exams and sorority soirees - and disturbing recurring dreams of being captive in a futuristic prison hell - Alessa is determined to unravel the mystery of the apparition who leaves her breathless. But the terrifying secret she uncovers will find her groping desperately through her nightmares for answers. Because what Alessa hasn't figured out yet is that she's not really a student, the object of her obsession is no ghost, and her sneaking suspicions that something sinister is lurking behind the walls of her university's idyllic campus are only just scratching the surface...The opening installment in a twist-laden trilogy, Stitch spans the genres of paranormal romance and dystopian sci-fi to explore the challenges of a society in transition, where morality, vision, and pragmatism collide leaving the average citizen to suffer the results.
I love a good dystopian and when you mix in a little science fiction and paranormal woo-woo you have the ingredients for a spectacular new trilogy. Stitch delivered a fast paced, original tale with characters I immediately identified with. What started out as an intriguing ghost story quickly morphed into a gripping dystopian and I cannot wait for the next installment.

We meet Alessa a serious student in her freshman year of college. She is not at her dream college or even her second choice school. Her life altered courses when her parents died in an auto accident days before her eighteenth birthday leaving her to face her senior year of college alone. Lately, she has been losing sleep due to disturbing dreams and the specter of a handsome young man who seems to be haunting her sorority house. Determined to learn more about him she begins researching the home’s history. The tale that unfolds is fast paced; full of twists I never saw coming and the start of a fantastic new trilogy.

The characters in Stitch were complex and mysterious. I immediately became caught up in Alessa’s world. I loved watching her character change as she discovered things. She handled things so well and I think she is going to be a kick-ass heroine. We learn so much and so little about the ghost named, Isaac. I enjoyed interactions with him and his thoughts. He is twenty-seven, very much a man and quite smexy. There is a relationship in this novel and all I can say is I want to know more! It is definitely a side dish in this action packed tale, but also an important one. We get to know Jamie and Joe and other characters that added to the tale.

The driving factor above all things with Stitch was the world-building.  I have read a lot of dystopians and found Durante’s vision to be brilliant. Told from multiple POV’s traveling back and forth between timelines, we slowly begin to understand Alessa and Isaac. I just want to spill my guts and share everything, but alas I shall not spoil it for you. The plot was fast paced, with clever twists and surprises that literally glued me to the book. I just kept thinking, OMG, how cool is this. While I did not always like the transition and change of POV; not because they were not good, but they did not always transfer smoothly and had me going. “Whoa wait a minute where are we?” I cannot stress enough that this was not a big enough deterrent to warn you off. It did not effect the plot and I actually enjoyed the different perspectives and felt they added to the tale and aided in the world-building. Many questions were answered regarding the world and I have a strong sense of the how and why. It did not end on a cliffhanger, but certainly has me excited for the next book. 

If you are a fan of paranormal, dystopians and sci-fi then Stitch will have something for you. I still cannot get over how refreshingly original this storyline was and cannot wait for Shudder book two in this trilogy. Samantha Durante is an author to watch and I looking forward to going along for the ride.

I spotted this book on a few blog tours and expressed my excitement for it. The author reached out to me and provided this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review. Thank you.

Four double chocolate coffee cups out of five
Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer Kimba The Caffeinated Book Reviewer Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

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36 Comments:

At July 17, 2013 at 9:47 PM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Awesome...enjoy Trish!

 
At July 17, 2013 at 9:54 PM , Anonymous Trish Hannon said...

Great review, am downloading now :-) Sounds so promising.

 
At July 17, 2013 at 10:06 PM , Anonymous Barbara Walker said...

I've seen this one all over Goodreads in the last few days and I was wondering what was up with it! What a wild blend of genres, I like that it didn't go the expected route and end up YA (which is what I assumed it was) too. I've become a fan of multiple perspectives lately so that doesn't turn me off at all, even if it's a little choppy - I have to agree with Christy and Kristin - is there a reason you're torturing us???! Read something horrible! :D

 
At July 17, 2013 at 10:34 PM , Anonymous Jenea Whittington said...

I have not seen this one. I really love the sounds of it too. I will definitely have to keep an eye out for it. Wonderful review. Thanks for putting it on my radar.

Jenea @ Books Live Forever

 
At July 17, 2013 at 11:01 PM , Anonymous Toni @ My Book Addiction said...

I have a copy of this, and still need to read it. Glad to hear you liked it!

 
At July 17, 2013 at 11:01 PM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

I did, and will be reviewing Shudder in June

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:49 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

this was good and I so hope you try it!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:49 AM , Anonymous Sharon - Obsession with Books said...

Wow, how had I not heard of this one! The premise sounds so unique and intriguing, you have me so curious - this one is going on my (never ending) TBR pile.

Thanks for sharing your wonderful review :)

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

I feel your pain, do you think we will ever read all of the books in our tbr piles??

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous Blodeuedd said...

If we do not buy any more books, borrow any books or review any books, then yes..but it will take time

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous Nick said...

A dystopian with sci-fi elements sounds very tempting! I've never heard of this series before, but looking at that cover I never would have though it was a dystopian.
The characters in this book seem very well-developed. Also, I'm glad to hear that the world-building is well done in Stitch. That's the most important aspect of a dystopian for me!
Great review, Kim. I might have to add this to my to-read list!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

It is light on the sci-fi, but it blends elements of that genre into the dystopian which makes it feel real.

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous Blodeuedd said...

Too many books, too little time :/

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

It was really clever and I enjoyed it!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Ooo would love to hear your thoughts on it.

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Denise Z said...

I recently got this and definitely have to move it up the TBR :) Thank you for sharing.

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Ha...i know all about that TBR pile..LOL

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Candace's Book Blog said...

This does sound good! I definitely love some good worldbuilding! I'm not adding anymore dystopians to the TBR until I get more read that I own, but this sounds like one I will definitely have to remember for the future!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

ooh I look forward to your thoughts!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Nick...i think you would dig this one!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Nick said...

Awesome! Added it to my to-read list! :)

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Christa said...

This sounds like an incredibly fun book! And I love sci-fi and dystopian. Especially when they're mixed together

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

me too :)

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Turning the Pages said...

Now this one sounds like a book I can get into. I'm going to have to read it great review!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

thanks Kimberly, i really enjoyed this one.

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kindlemom1 said...

This one sounds awesome!! I have to say, I am really loving the dystopian genre, way more than I ever thought I would when I discovered it earlier this year.
Great review!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Oh I love dystopian :)

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Christy (Love of Books) said...

Well hell, this sounds great! You just had to go a make me add another book, didn't you?

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

yes, yes I did!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous Kristin Clifton said...

I'm with Christy - I've never heard of this one before!!! You're killing me!! You really need to read slower or something... or stop reading interesting books. Great review!!!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

hahaha..I cannot tell a lie and I've been reading super slow this week with family here!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

hehehe...this was good though..i cannot help it..psst don't look tomorrow it's another amazing book!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:58 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

I so hate when that happens!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:59 AM , Anonymous Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf said...

I am really excited about this one...it sounds like such an awesome blend of elements and I love books with a bit of mystery. I was hooked from the blurb and your review only confirmed that this is one to add to my wishlist!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:59 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Ooo i cannot wait to see what you think of it!

 
At July 18, 2013 at 12:59 AM , Anonymous kimbacaffeinate said...

Yay!

 

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