Dragged a little; not as good as the first; more place-setting for the last one. ( )

Era già qualche anno che mi ripromettevo di leggere il seguito di Hybrid, e finalmente l'ho fatto, anche se in inglese, perché non l'hanno ancora tradotto in italiano. Ad ogni modo rispetto al primo volume i personaggi subiscono una notevole evoluzione dal punto di vista psicologico e ci sono i primi veri e propri litigi tra Addie ed Eva, che scoprono anche come fare addormentare temporaneamente una delle due anime. Si percepisce continuamente un'atmosfera carica di tensione e paura: paura di essere scoperti dalla polizia, ma che paura che vengano svelate le numerose bugie dette. Compaiono nuovi personaggi che ho amato e odiato a momenti alterni a causa del loro comportamenti, prima di tutto Jackson. Anche questa volta il libro é ricco d'azion,e sebbene le carte in tavola siano cambiate e questa volta sono gli ibridi a contrattaccare. La parte conclusiva mi ha soddisfatta, sebbene ci sia stata un una parte piuttosto triste, e sono curiosissimo di sapere come andrà a finire, visto tutti i colpi di scena di cui é capace l'autrice! ( )

Once We Were picks up just after What’s Left of Me, where our main characters have settled into hiding. They’ve escaped the institution that wanted to destroy their recessive souls and have set their sights on trying to combat the oppressive government. I was not as fond of this book as I was the first book. I found the tension to be lacking and the pace to be particularly slow for the first 2/3 of the book. While What’s Left Of Me focused more on Addie and Eva and was a very character-driven story, there was a definite shift in tone for Once We Were. This book still focused on Addie and Eva, the relationship between them and the other hybrids, but began branching out and started to almost seep into dystopian territory. It was a natural progression to the story, and though it fits, I found myself a little disappointed that the story seemed to be going in that direction, as I felt the first book was so much more successful in endearing the characters to the reader and creating strong stakes.

For the majority of the book, Addie and Eva are living in an apartment building being hidden away with some of the other hybrids that broke out of the institution. She begins sneaking away to join meetings with some of the other hybrids who are plotting ways they can stop the upcoming “cure” for hybridity. The stakes are really low for a majority of the book, and though a threat of capture or exposure is high, it doesn’t feel like a pressing concern. Throughout the book, we get to see the progression of Eva and Ryan’s romance and see some tension creeping in between Addie and Eva. IMO, the relationship between Addie and Eva is the best part of the book, and in Once We Were we begin to see some shifting between them. Suddenly they’re keeping secrets, are able to go into a coma-like sleep to give each other privacy, and Eva is hyper-focused on making her own decisions and trying to live for the first time in however many years that she begins to take Addie for granted. All this makes for a great conflict between them.

I didn’t get excited about the book until later in, when stakes are actually put in place. Once it is revealed that the empty institution the hybrids plan on blowing up won’t be so empty, the book really kicks off and it’s a quick paced ride to the end. Despite the low stakes, Kat Zhang has really beautiful prose and a way of balancing between character and plot to create a really full, well-developed story. Her characters are fully fleshed out, though there wasn’t anyone, besides Addie and Eva, who I really overly loved.

Overall, the lack of tension did disappoint me, but every time I picked it up I found myself fully engaged in the story and characters. I’m interested to see how the third book will play out, and I hope Kat Zhang can continue to keep the balance between character and plot, as to not fall too deep into the dystopian atmosphere.
( )

Once We Were by Kat Zhang is the second book in the Hybrid Chronicles trilogy. I read the first book a couple of years ago with the gap resulting from US and Australian release dates not being aligned and generalised confusion/lack of release date tracking on my part.

Eva was never supposed to have survived this long. As the recessive soul, she should have faded away years ago. Instead, she lingers in the body she shares with her sister soul, Addie. When the government discovered the truth, they tried to “cure” the girls, but Eva and Addie escaped before the doctors could strip Eva’s soul away.

Now fugitives, Eva and Addie find shelter with a group of hybrids who run an underground resistance. Surrounded by others like them, the girls learn how to temporarily disappear to give each soul some much-needed privacy. Eva is thrilled at the chance to be alone with Ryan, the boy she’s falling for, but troubled by the growing chasm between her and Addie. Despite clashes over their shared body, both girls are eager to join the rebellion.

Yet as they are drawn deeper into the escalating violence, they start to wonder: How far are they willing to go to fight for hybrid freedom? Faced with uncertainty and incredible danger, their answers may tear them apart forever.

After the long gap (in number of books read, even if you're not willing to agree that two years is that long in actual time) since book one, I mainly remembered the worldbuilding — still my favourite aspect of this series — and the ending of the first book. Luckily, there was enough recapping near the start to bring me up to speed quickly. I found it useful, but I suppose someone picking up Once We Were with What's Left of Me fresh in their minds might find it a little tedious. But it only lasted about one short chapter, promise!

As I said, the worldbuilding remains my favourite aspect of this series. The story continues to support the exploration of the two people in one body aspect, even as the plot deals with more immediate external concerns. The dystopian pan-American society wants to eradicate all hybrids — people who don't "settle" into just one soul per body — which puts the main characters in permanent danger. But while dealing with that they're also grappling with the issue of how to have a boyfriend when your body is not solely your own. Really, it continues to be an interesting exploration of such issues.

The main action of the plot is less creative but still written interestingly enough. At the end of the first book I was a bit uncertain about where the series was going; or more accurately, I was disappointed that it seemed to be following the dystopian formula. It does seem to be continuing in that vein with this instalment focussing on acts of rebellion. However, the framing of the worldbuilding is sufficiently interesting that I'm invested in the story and definitely want to know how it ends. (I'm also kicking myself that I didn't buy book 3 at the same time as book 2, sigh and curses at pricier hard covers.) I should also add that this is a dystopian series that remembers the Rest of the World exists and, in this volume, even touches on why they aren't doing anything about the Americas. There are also some nice titbits about world history and how it both differs from and parallels our world (to clarify, two people being born in one body was something that always happened, not a new development or anything).

Once We Were was an engaging read that I pretty much read in a day. I have enjoyed this series a lot and I am looking forward to reading the last book. It explores a science fictional concept in an interesting way, albeit in a YA dystopian framework. I highly recommend this series to YA fans and also to SF fans who find the central "What If" interesting.

4.5 / 5 stars

Read more reviews on my blog. ( )

It seemed harder for the author to duplicate the emotional punch that the first book in the trilogy had but I did enjoy it. Can't wait for book 3! ( )