Rising Tides

Absolutely stunning. Rising Tides peaked my interest with its premise, but totally blew me away with the execution. Katy Haye has some serious writing chops! Dystopia was getting to be a bogged down genre for me. Too much of the same thing being done over and over, plus a lot of characters that I just couldn't get behind. Haye managed to smash right through that preconception, and I couldn't be happier.

What struck me right away about Rising Tides was how human Liberty was, as a character. She was loving towards her father, skeptical of new people, slightly selfish at times, and yet completely understanding of that fact that she could come off as cold. Liberty was a real person. Someone flawed, who could accept that, and try to make the best decisions for herself at the time. I can't deny that initially her privileged attitude bothered me. That was soon replaced by acceptance and awe though, the further into this journey that she traveled. It's nice to see a character who actually grows and, better yet, uses that knowledge to do something right.

Then there was Cosimo. The reamer boy, the shunned, the initial bane of Liberty's existence. I loved how Haye pushed these two together, but no in an uncomfortable way. There was no insta-love here. No crazy flight into a random relationship. Instead, these two had to learn to get along. They had to understand one another, and make compromises. I loved watching their little relationship grow. Plus, well, Cosimo is pretty dreamy. Reamer boy or not. These two stole my heart with little to no effort.

Oh, and the plot! I could gush for days about the way that the idea of political subterfuge was handled here. People blindly following a leader, simply because he promises to keep them safe. Never questioning whether he has their best interests at heart. Things were so perfectly paced here. Just enough action, interspersed with real human interactions. This book flew by, and I was honestly sad when I'd finished.

Is there more? I hope there's more. I would love to see if Cosimo and Liberty get a happy ever after. They would definitely deserve it.