Jim Maher

This is a great book. I fucking loved it. Maybe it's because I played the violin as a child, or maybe it's because it's a complete rip-off of [b:In the After|12157407|In the After (In the After, #1)|Demitria Lunetta|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351415769s/12157407.jpg|17128269], but I don't care. It's still fucking awesome.

It's the story of a young girl who hates her fucking violin. I can relate, because I hated mine too. I couldn't play for shit. I couldn't even read music. But one time, I was glad I had it with me. A few bullies cornered me as I was walking to school. But they soon left me alone as I raised my violin case and said "Bring it, bitches!"

Young Lyric was practicing her violin one day, when all the sudden, the end of the world came. She could see people running and screaming in the streets below her building, as monsters took over the city. Her sister and mother were taken, shrouded in a cocoon, and dragged to the bowels of the city.

Lyric wakes up 50 years later, still clutching her violin and bow. She uses her violin to bust out of the cocoon, and finds herself in complete darkness. Soon, she is chased by hideous monsters. She flees, finds some stairs, and is saved by a kind stranger.

She awakes to a whole new world. The world of The Heights, where it's safe from the monsters. Because, apparently the monsters are like vampires or something. They burn in sunlight, so they stay in the bowels of the city.

Lyric is introduced to The Council, where they discuss her future. She's told that she is an 'Unknown', which to me was quite a mysterious thing. What does it mean? Does she have like super-powers, or something? No, it just means that she doesn't have a job. Seriously? That's so fucking retarded. I expected so much more from the 'Unknown' idea, but I guess the author didn't have time to come up with something cool. Damn.

She's put through a test, where they try to find out what she's good for. What can she do? Can she be a Healer? Fuck no. A map-maker? No fucking way. She's fucking useless. She fails all the tests, and is doomed to exile, unless she can make herself useful.

So, out of boredom, she busts out her violin, and plays some music. And somehow, everyone is amazed. They've never heard music before. Seriously? Okay, it's 50 years in the future. So, it's what, 2065? How the fuck none of these people have heard music before, I don't understand. I mean, nobody sings in the shower? Come on...

It's explained, sort of. The creator of this world had a flaw in his design. Music fucks everything up. So, he bans it. That still doesn't explain why someone wouldn't sing in the shower. It doesn't explain the complete lack of knowledge that music ever existed. I mean, murder is against the law, but it happens every day anyway. There's just no way you can completely remove music from a society.

Parts of this book needed more detail. The so-called testing, for instance. It's like she entered the testing area, talked to some testing bitch, and it's over. Next chapter. What the bloody fuck? How about some actual tests, goddamnit? I wanna know how she fails so miserably at everything.

But I guess that's what makes this book so good. Because I kept wanting more.… (meer)