Incarceron

**spoiler alert**











I loved it! So very fascinating and oh so very mysterious. Incarceron is a prison that is alive with hopes and dreams of it's own. Claudia is trapped in a world where technology is illegal and she is in an arranged marriage with, Caspar, a boy who she absolutely despises. When Claudia meets Finn a boy who lives in Incarceron she is convinced that he is Giles, the Prince, who she was told had died. Finn doesn't believe much of what Claudia says, but in order to escape their own separate nightmares they join forces to help Finn and his friends escape.

I loved how Claudia had to save Finn instead of the other way around. Girl power! Yaahh! I also really enjoyed the contrast of the two character's lives. Claudia wants freedom so she doesn't have too marry Caspar, while Finn fights for freedom so he can both see the Outside and in the process save himself from what would ultimately end his life.

Some things I didn't like were:

-The Sapients who some of whom at least seemed to think they were the most important people you could find. I disliked how they were portrayed in that way when others showed more knowledge and comprehension than the all knowing Sapients did. The Sapients bothered me because it seemed knowledge, their supposed strongest feature didn't shine as brightly as some of their other traits.

-The end because the problem wasn't even close to resolved (in my opinion).

A refreshingly original piece. I'd initially been recommended it as a prime example of the budding Steampunk sub-genre, though I'd hazard to call it more of a lean toward Cyberpunk. I particularly liked the author's take on it--the idea of using a particular era as 'protocol' method of keeping the world's populace under tight control in the distant future.

The concept of a sentient prison that is living and willful (not to mention likely insane) was even more intriguing. I felt the author executed its characterization with a deft skill. She didn't skimp on portraying the depths to which humanity can sink, but she didn't wallow in it needlessly. The two paralleling story lines eventually intertwined in a seamless show of skill. It took me a while to make up my mind, but by the end I sympathized with both of the main characters and wanted what they wanted.

The writing is clean and enthralling, and the pacing is snappy. For handling and connecting two different worlds and world-views in one book, I thought it was very well done. I was left eager to dig into its sequel.

Reader reviewed by Ruthie

Reader reviewed by Daisy

 Incarceron, a prison that has no mercy, watches it's prisoners kill each other for goods, and never sees the sun. A boy, Finn, lives in this dark, cold world, but believes he has come from the Outside, where the stars shine brightly. But he has no memory before the day he woke up in an Incarceron cell. Then he finds, or more steals, a blue key that connects to the Outside, where he talks to a girl named Claudia. He wants to get out and she believes he has something she wants.