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Sekret #1
Sekret
An empty mind is a safe mind.
Yulia knows she must hide her thoughts and control her emotions to survive in Communist Russia. But if she sometimes manipulates the black market traders by reading their thoughts when she touches their skin, so what? Anything to help her survive.
Russia's powerful spy agency, the KGB, is recruiting young people with mind-reading capabilities for their psychic espionage program. Their mission: protect the Soviet space program from American CIA spies. Why shouldn't the KGB use any means necessary to make the young psychic cooperate? Anything to beat the American capitalist scum to the moon.
Yulia is a survivor. She won't be controlled by the KGB, who want to harness her abilities for the State with no regard for her own hopes and dreams. She won't let handsome Sergei plan her life as a member of elite Soviet society, or allow brooding Valentin to consume her with his dangerous mind and even more dangerous ideas. And she certainly won't become the next victim of the powerful American spy who can scrub a brain raw—and seems to be targeting Yulia.
Yulia knows she must hide her thoughts and control her emotions to survive in Communist Russia. But if she sometimes manipulates the black market traders by reading their thoughts when she touches their skin, so what? Anything to help her survive.
Russia's powerful spy agency, the KGB, is recruiting young people with mind-reading capabilities for their psychic espionage program. Their mission: protect the Soviet space program from American CIA spies. Why shouldn't the KGB use any means necessary to make the young psychic cooperate? Anything to beat the American capitalist scum to the moon.
Yulia is a survivor. She won't be controlled by the KGB, who want to harness her abilities for the State with no regard for her own hopes and dreams. She won't let handsome Sergei plan her life as a member of elite Soviet society, or allow brooding Valentin to consume her with his dangerous mind and even more dangerous ideas. And she certainly won't become the next victim of the powerful American spy who can scrub a brain raw—and seems to be targeting Yulia.
341 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2014
69 people are currently reading
6,134 people want to read
About the author
Lindsay Smith
40books443followersLindsay is the author of multiple novels for young adults, including Sekret and A Darkly Beating Heart, as well as the comic series Black Swan. She is the showrunner and lead writer for Serial Box's The Witch Who Came In From the Cold, a Publisher's Weekly Best Book of 2017. Her short stories and comics have appeared in the anthologies A Tyranny of Petticoats, Strange Romance Vol. 3, and Toil & Trouble and on Tor.com. She lives in Washington, DC with her husband and dog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 439 reviews
January 21, 2014
This is the story about a Yulia, a girl with psychic powers whose family is kidnapped and held hostage by the KGB in exchange for her participation in their a secret (Sekret?) program involving young psychic agents in the communist USSR (Russia, 1963). I really cannot tell you any more about the plot other than that, not because I do not want to spoil it, but because I can't remember anything about the book that is relevant regarding the missions. There's something about a spaceship launch, something about capturing fellow psychics, but I can't remember anything else that is worthy of being summarized because this book was so dry, so long, and so forgettable.
As a testament of how much the main character interests me, halfway through the book, I realized that I had forgotten Yulia's name.
There are a lot of inconsistencies within this book, one of which is a timeline inconsistency involving music. The book is set in 1963, Russia. There's a reference to a Beatles song that doesn't get released until 1964. There is a reference to "California Dreamin'," which doesn't get released until 1965. There is a reference to "California Girls," which doesn't get released until 1965. There is a reference to "House of the Rising Sun" by the Animals, which doesn't get released until 1964. I know these songs because I love all of them and I listen to all of them. If you are going to make references to them in the book, get the fucking date right. I know I'm anal about details, but if you are going to write historical fiction, the timeline should be completely accurate.
Yes, the book is is filled to the brim with action, but it does not hold my interest. It is fast-paced at the expense of a relevant, compelling central plot. It is not over the top in romance, but the romance felt unnecessary and undeveloped, complete with a love triangle with a trope-filled brooding bad boy who should not be trusted.
The Fucking Psychic Morons: Listen, if I had psychic powers like the people do in the book, I'd put them to a lot better use than these fucking idiots. They are seriously so unbelievably stupid.
Example: Yulia's family is kidnapped, she wants them back, she is constantly planning to escape. Ok, fine, but um, have we forgotten that THERE ARE MIND READERS IN THE HOUSE? Why are they not constantly reading her thoughts about escaping? Yulia learns a way to disguise her thoughts, but she is a new learner at this. Yulia cannot hide her thoughts 24/7, and rest assured, she thinks of nothing else but escape. So why are the mind-readers not doing anything about this?
Better yet, just fucking erase her memories! There is a type of psychic called a "scrubber." The scrubbers are skilled at "changing the very stream of someone’s thoughts� altering their memories, or creating a new reality around them.� WELL ALRIGHTY THEN. WHY DON'T YOU JUST FUCKING LOBOTOMIZE YULIA?! That would have been absolutely perfect. You erase her memories of her parents, you erase her personality, you create a mindless robotic soldier completely obedient to your will instead of allowing her to remain a stubborn, uncooperative, rebellious, sullen little twit of a teenaged girl.
Honestly, I just don't understand the absolute under-usage of the psychic powers within this book. Their powers are fucking wasted because there's an absolute lack of a brain to be shared within the group. And speaking of powers...
The Inconsistency in Psychic Powers: The premise started off well, there are various types of psychic powers. For example, some people are "scrubbers," as in they can erase memories, they can fix memories. Others can visualize things across distances. Fine, that works...except then it falls to pieces because the powers are so inconsistently used and sometimes, used not at all when they should be.
It felt that after the introductions of the characters and their powers, the usage of their powers were just largely lumped together into one general psychic category and everything else was made up haphazardly as the book progresses. I had so many questions, and I felt a lot of frustration towards this fact. For example, Yulia's power is to feel things through touch, she can detect memories, fragments of things that have touched that article.
Furthermore, the extent of her powers are conflicting and contrary. She feels things through touch, yet Yulia can somehow sense memories through AIR?
The premise of psychic powers is an interesting one, but in this book, it was badly and inconsistently executed.
The Training: Usually there is a lot of intense training involved when a group of teenaged soldiers, psychic or not, are utilized to be awesome secret soldiers by the state. There is. We just see almost nothing of it in the book. Yulia gets kidnapped. She goes into a few training exercises. BAM! It's a month later, and she goes on a mission. That's it?!
Yulia's Personality: To sum it up, Yulia is a typical teenaged girl, with psychic power. She is sullen. She is morose. She mopes. Yulia has to constantly be told to just snap the fuck out of it. There are some people who make the best out of a bad situation...they see the silver lining in the cloud, they make lemonade out of lemons. Yulia is not one of them. Her life in hiding before she was kidnapped was not good. There was not enough to eat. There was a lot of illness. There was a lot of black-market trades just so her family could get enough to barely survive. Yulia may have been kidnapped, but she's got it good. She has enough food, she knows that her family is safe, because the KGB will keep her family safe as long as she participates with them. It is a really, really nice life, with people who understand her. Yulia even recognizes this fact, but she goes against all sense of rationality to rebel against what, I don't even know.
She is also TSTL. She not only thinks about running away, she does run away, only to almost get herself killed. There is a way of running away successfully, it involves a lot of planning, a lot of backup strategies. Yulia's plans consist of 1. running away. That's it. Idiot.
The Setting: I read this book wanting to know more about the daily life, the daily struggles of living under the USSR in the 1960s. I didn't get much of that. There is mention of starvation, of rationing, but that's pretty much it. There is a LOT of name-dropping, like Nikita Khrushchev, Yuri Gagarin, constant references to Lenin, and an overemphasis on Communist murals, but the entire book is set in a closed boarding school type setting that felt rather constrictive and not at all illustrative of life under a harsh Communist regime.
A terribly disappointing book. If you want action and are willing to overlook inconsistencies, then go ahead. It wasn't for me.
Quotes were taken from an uncorrected galley proof subject to change in the final edition.
As a testament of how much the main character interests me, halfway through the book, I realized that I had forgotten Yulia's name.
There are a lot of inconsistencies within this book, one of which is a timeline inconsistency involving music. The book is set in 1963, Russia. There's a reference to a Beatles song that doesn't get released until 1964. There is a reference to "California Dreamin'," which doesn't get released until 1965. There is a reference to "California Girls," which doesn't get released until 1965. There is a reference to "House of the Rising Sun" by the Animals, which doesn't get released until 1964. I know these songs because I love all of them and I listen to all of them. If you are going to make references to them in the book, get the fucking date right. I know I'm anal about details, but if you are going to write historical fiction, the timeline should be completely accurate.
Yes, the book is is filled to the brim with action, but it does not hold my interest. It is fast-paced at the expense of a relevant, compelling central plot. It is not over the top in romance, but the romance felt unnecessary and undeveloped, complete with a love triangle with a trope-filled brooding bad boy who should not be trusted.
“Listen.� He jerks his head over his shoulder, checking that we are more or less alone. “I know he’s got this moody, broody artist act down, and some girls go for that. Oh, look at the sad puppy. But it gets to be a drag, you know?�Here is where the book did not work for me:
“Not really,� I say stiffly.
The Fucking Psychic Morons: Listen, if I had psychic powers like the people do in the book, I'd put them to a lot better use than these fucking idiots. They are seriously so unbelievably stupid.
Example: Yulia's family is kidnapped, she wants them back, she is constantly planning to escape. Ok, fine, but um, have we forgotten that THERE ARE MIND READERS IN THE HOUSE? Why are they not constantly reading her thoughts about escaping? Yulia learns a way to disguise her thoughts, but she is a new learner at this. Yulia cannot hide her thoughts 24/7, and rest assured, she thinks of nothing else but escape. So why are the mind-readers not doing anything about this?
Better yet, just fucking erase her memories! There is a type of psychic called a "scrubber." The scrubbers are skilled at "changing the very stream of someone’s thoughts� altering their memories, or creating a new reality around them.� WELL ALRIGHTY THEN. WHY DON'T YOU JUST FUCKING LOBOTOMIZE YULIA?! That would have been absolutely perfect. You erase her memories of her parents, you erase her personality, you create a mindless robotic soldier completely obedient to your will instead of allowing her to remain a stubborn, uncooperative, rebellious, sullen little twit of a teenaged girl.
Honestly, I just don't understand the absolute under-usage of the psychic powers within this book. Their powers are fucking wasted because there's an absolute lack of a brain to be shared within the group. And speaking of powers...
The Inconsistency in Psychic Powers: The premise started off well, there are various types of psychic powers. For example, some people are "scrubbers," as in they can erase memories, they can fix memories. Others can visualize things across distances. Fine, that works...except then it falls to pieces because the powers are so inconsistently used and sometimes, used not at all when they should be.
It felt that after the introductions of the characters and their powers, the usage of their powers were just largely lumped together into one general psychic category and everything else was made up haphazardly as the book progresses. I had so many questions, and I felt a lot of frustration towards this fact. For example, Yulia's power is to feel things through touch, she can detect memories, fragments of things that have touched that article.
Me, I’ve found how to focus thoughts and memories through touch, like steadying a radio antenna with your fingertips, the static sloughing off until a clear melody remains.Except it doesn't always work that way. For some freaking reason, she is also able to communicate telepathically to one other select member of her group, as well, something which has never been mentioned as part of her power within the book.
Furthermore, the extent of her powers are conflicting and contrary. She feels things through touch, yet Yulia can somehow sense memories through AIR?
Brilliant pinks, blues, reds spin across the dance floor before us, and thoughts and smells spiral away in the dancers� wake: sweat, eagerness, acrid perfume, regret. One thought is faint, but unmistakable to me� the hum of a brain that’s encountered a scrubber.And yet again:
I catch a flash of lightning in the crowd� feel it more than see it, ripping through my mind.Yulia's powers are also inconsistent in that it is selective, sometimes it feels like she is unable to resist feeling things through her touch, other times it feels like she can choose to turn it off, which doesn't make any sense. Sometimes Yulia moans about her inability to escape feeling things through her psychic powers, because whenever she touches something, she senses memories and emotions from them, but then again, she doesn't mention anything about feeling anything through the multitude of people and things that she must touch every single day.
The premise of psychic powers is an interesting one, but in this book, it was badly and inconsistently executed.
The Training: Usually there is a lot of intense training involved when a group of teenaged soldiers, psychic or not, are utilized to be awesome secret soldiers by the state. There is. We just see almost nothing of it in the book. Yulia gets kidnapped. She goes into a few training exercises. BAM! It's a month later, and she goes on a mission. That's it?!
Yulia's Personality: To sum it up, Yulia is a typical teenaged girl, with psychic power. She is sullen. She is morose. She mopes. Yulia has to constantly be told to just snap the fuck out of it. There are some people who make the best out of a bad situation...they see the silver lining in the cloud, they make lemonade out of lemons. Yulia is not one of them. Her life in hiding before she was kidnapped was not good. There was not enough to eat. There was a lot of illness. There was a lot of black-market trades just so her family could get enough to barely survive. Yulia may have been kidnapped, but she's got it good. She has enough food, she knows that her family is safe, because the KGB will keep her family safe as long as she participates with them. It is a really, really nice life, with people who understand her. Yulia even recognizes this fact, but she goes against all sense of rationality to rebel against what, I don't even know.
“You were an idiot to try to give this up,� Misha says, and Masha nods. “Look around you� isn’t this a better life?Let's see. Yulia has a chance to go to Moscow University and study what she has dreamt of her whole life. She has the ability to help her country (never mind that it is the USSR, it is still her country). And she...mopes. No, thank you.
She is also TSTL. She not only thinks about running away, she does run away, only to almost get herself killed. There is a way of running away successfully, it involves a lot of planning, a lot of backup strategies. Yulia's plans consist of 1. running away. That's it. Idiot.
The Setting: I read this book wanting to know more about the daily life, the daily struggles of living under the USSR in the 1960s. I didn't get much of that. There is mention of starvation, of rationing, but that's pretty much it. There is a LOT of name-dropping, like Nikita Khrushchev, Yuri Gagarin, constant references to Lenin, and an overemphasis on Communist murals, but the entire book is set in a closed boarding school type setting that felt rather constrictive and not at all illustrative of life under a harsh Communist regime.
A terribly disappointing book. If you want action and are willing to overlook inconsistencies, then go ahead. It wasn't for me.
Quotes were taken from an uncorrected galley proof subject to change in the final edition.
February 10, 2015
I really liked the first third of this book, but strangely enough, after Yulia actually began going on missions (which is when things would typically start getting exciting), I somehow wasn't quite as engaged by what was going on.
I think this book would have been stronger with action sequences or espionage assignments that were choreographed in more detail, as well as if the characters were more complex. I also didn't really care one way or the next about the romance(s). Yes, (s.) I was pretty indifferent towards both boys, and it doesn't help that the eventual loser was telegraphed so early on.
I did enjoy the two discoveries Yulia makes towards the end of the book, however, and I liked how all the teenagers had different abilities and the discussions of how they complemented each other. Using music to block out psychic probes isn't new, but the ways and methods described are convincing here. There's also clearly been a ton of research into Russian history, and the setting does feel authentic and natural. I just wish my interest in what was going on had been sustained with a little more plot and character development.
Oh, well. I'd try another book by this author down the road, though.
***This was meant to be a brief placeholder review, but hey, words came pouring out. I may come back and add to this later when I formalize this somewhat for the blog.
I think this book would have been stronger with action sequences or espionage assignments that were choreographed in more detail, as well as if the characters were more complex. I also didn't really care one way or the next about the romance(s). Yes, (s.) I was pretty indifferent towards both boys, and it doesn't help that the eventual loser was telegraphed so early on.
I did enjoy the two discoveries Yulia makes towards the end of the book, however, and I liked how all the teenagers had different abilities and the discussions of how they complemented each other. Using music to block out psychic probes isn't new, but the ways and methods described are convincing here. There's also clearly been a ton of research into Russian history, and the setting does feel authentic and natural. I just wish my interest in what was going on had been sustained with a little more plot and character development.
Oh, well. I'd try another book by this author down the road, though.
***This was meant to be a brief placeholder review, but hey, words came pouring out. I may come back and add to this later when I formalize this somewhat for the blog.
March 9, 2014
4.5 stars
Yulia has spent the past few years in hiding with her mom and brother. Formerly influential scientists for the Soviet Union, Yulia's parents were able to escape the party's control, though not without fracturing. Her father has been missing since they ran. Now Yulia and her remaining family members live a life of fugitives, always on the look out for the KGB or anyone willing (or desperate enough) to turn them in. So far Yulia's family has been successful at staying hidden, partially with the help of her secret ability. Yulia can read thoughts and memories when she touches other people and objects. She doesn't know where this talent came from, and it scares her a little, but she's thankful for it too.
Although Yulia has not told anyone about what she can do, she discovers one day that her family and her talents aren't as hidden as she'd thought. Arriving home from a visit to the black market, Yulia discovers her mother and brother missing and KGB operatives waiting for her. Holding the threat of ever seeing her family again against her, the government forces Yulia into a psychic spy program where she meets other teens and adults with a variety of psychic abilities, some of which are far more frightening than her own.
Sekret hooked me in with its gritty, early 60s Cold War Soviet Russian setting, and also the hint of fantasy that made this world and the realities of these characters lives even more intense and dangerous. I think historical novels with some paranormal elements thrown in is my new favorite genre. Especially when they are well researched and set in a background of true world events, both of which Sekret does well.
While reading Sekret I had the constant feeling of being caught it a web. Although this doesn't sound pleasant, it definitely made for a deliciously intense reading experience, and is one of the reasons I enjoyed this story so much. Yulia doesn't know who she can trust. Her plans get thwarted, and it's hard to escape or keep your thoughts secret when all the people around you can read your mind and anticipate your moves. Even though I figured out some elements in advance, I was still on the edge of my seat as the story played out.
Despite the harshness of Yulia's world, two underlying plot elements enchanted me throughout this story. The first is music. The way these characters use music to protect themselves, the way music teaches Yulia about the world outside of Russia and gives her hope, and the way music connects Yulia to her brother and other characters, all are beautifully written into this book.
The second element is the romance. Although two boys are interested in Yulia I would not call this a love triangle, as Yulia's affections only build in one direction. The tension in the book is also obvious and strong from the beginning between her and her love interest. I like when it is obvious which way a love story goes, so this was a plus for me. The romance is not the focus of the story, but it is a great addition. Also, there is a scene in this book that combines kissing, music and hope that is aching and absolutely breathtaking.
The ending of Sekret is positive, but it's also clear that more story and danger is to come. I'm excited to find out where this story goes.
Love Triangle Factor: None
Cliffhanger Scale: Low - definitely more story to come. But no immediate danger.
Find this and other reviews on my blog .
Yulia has spent the past few years in hiding with her mom and brother. Formerly influential scientists for the Soviet Union, Yulia's parents were able to escape the party's control, though not without fracturing. Her father has been missing since they ran. Now Yulia and her remaining family members live a life of fugitives, always on the look out for the KGB or anyone willing (or desperate enough) to turn them in. So far Yulia's family has been successful at staying hidden, partially with the help of her secret ability. Yulia can read thoughts and memories when she touches other people and objects. She doesn't know where this talent came from, and it scares her a little, but she's thankful for it too.
Although Yulia has not told anyone about what she can do, she discovers one day that her family and her talents aren't as hidden as she'd thought. Arriving home from a visit to the black market, Yulia discovers her mother and brother missing and KGB operatives waiting for her. Holding the threat of ever seeing her family again against her, the government forces Yulia into a psychic spy program where she meets other teens and adults with a variety of psychic abilities, some of which are far more frightening than her own.
Sekret hooked me in with its gritty, early 60s Cold War Soviet Russian setting, and also the hint of fantasy that made this world and the realities of these characters lives even more intense and dangerous. I think historical novels with some paranormal elements thrown in is my new favorite genre. Especially when they are well researched and set in a background of true world events, both of which Sekret does well.
While reading Sekret I had the constant feeling of being caught it a web. Although this doesn't sound pleasant, it definitely made for a deliciously intense reading experience, and is one of the reasons I enjoyed this story so much. Yulia doesn't know who she can trust. Her plans get thwarted, and it's hard to escape or keep your thoughts secret when all the people around you can read your mind and anticipate your moves. Even though I figured out some elements in advance, I was still on the edge of my seat as the story played out.
Despite the harshness of Yulia's world, two underlying plot elements enchanted me throughout this story. The first is music. The way these characters use music to protect themselves, the way music teaches Yulia about the world outside of Russia and gives her hope, and the way music connects Yulia to her brother and other characters, all are beautifully written into this book.
The second element is the romance. Although two boys are interested in Yulia I would not call this a love triangle, as Yulia's affections only build in one direction. The tension in the book is also obvious and strong from the beginning between her and her love interest. I like when it is obvious which way a love story goes, so this was a plus for me. The romance is not the focus of the story, but it is a great addition. Also, there is a scene in this book that combines kissing, music and hope that is aching and absolutely breathtaking.
The ending of Sekret is positive, but it's also clear that more story and danger is to come. I'm excited to find out where this story goes.
Love Triangle Factor: None
Cliffhanger Scale: Low - definitely more story to come. But no immediate danger.
Find this and other reviews on my blog .
October 21, 2013
"We are an experiment... The second wave of what started under Stalin; young, untrained psychics... summoned forth to defeat the Nazi threat. But there is a component in the experiment that is eluding me...."
Yulia is forcably recruited into a youth psychic training facility for the KGB in the early 1960s, to aid in the efforts to beat the Americans in the Space Race. But it might also be for other reasons, and the most dangerous people are the other people with psychic powers surrounding her.
Great YA combination of spies and psychic powers.
Yulia is forcably recruited into a youth psychic training facility for the KGB in the early 1960s, to aid in the efforts to beat the Americans in the Space Race. But it might also be for other reasons, and the most dangerous people are the other people with psychic powers surrounding her.
Great YA combination of spies and psychic powers.
Read
July 2, 2013Now with actual cover art!
Coming 04/15/2014!
Coming 04/15/2014!
March 8, 2017
”What do little children know of spy games, of the real power of the mind? They are too undisciplined. They are too free. Obedient minds, not rebellious teens, are needed to run the program, the Soviet Union.�
This book shows us not only why teenagers should never take part in government conspiracies, but quite possibly the real reason why the USSR crumbled to pieces (and that may not be an alternative fact).
Yulia Chernina is just your typical teenager living in Mother Russia. She lives with her parents and her brother in a tiny little house, and despite how little they have they’re happy. That is, until the Secret Police jail them all for no apparent reason to Yulia. Oh, and there’s the little matter of her hearing and seeing things that others don’t.
You could file this book under what probably might have happened if Russia has actually implemented another stupid plan (don’t get me started on the time Stalin wanted to create an army of ape-human hybrids. Yes, it actually almost happened.). So we know that this isn’t the first time good ole Mother Russia didn’t quite think through ther clever programs. And this has to be the stupidest one yet.
‘Hey, I know what we could do! We could take six bratty teenagers, entrust them with our most dangerous government secrets, and have them work for us. WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG??!!
Everything. Because when you put six teenagers with an attitude and in hormonal overdrive in the same room to try and read other’s minds, you certainly aren’t going to end up with Russian versions of the Mighty Morphin� Power Rangers.
They had to pick possibly six of the most arrogant, dumbest teenagers Russian’s had to offer. I found them extremely aggravating and bratty, not to mention the least bit unlikable. And having to hear Yulia go on and on and on about both Sergei and Valentin was headache inducing.
If you’re looking for the ultimate teen Russian spy novel, or wanting to satisfy your thirst for all things Russian, this isn’t the book for you. What this book does show you is that no matter where you go in the world, or what government regime you’re under, bratty teenagers exist everywhere.
Now let’s get to the part you all really want to hear
That Time The Russians Almost Tried To Create An Ape-Human Hybrid Species
If you thought recruiting teenagers to crack government secrets was a bad idea fictionally, wait until you hear of the program the Russians actually tried to implement (and almost succeeded).
Why hello there! I’m about to take you down a really sick, twisted road down historical memory lane, in an incident Russia would probably much rather forget (and if I suddenly drop off the face of the Earth, the KGB read this review and got ahold of me. I hope I’m not kidding.)
And yes, this is a true story indeed. I had to write a paper on cross-breeding and stumbled onto this during my research.
Anyhoo, let’s get started.
In 1910, a Russian scientist by the name of Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov (apparently he couldn’t have enough Ivan’s in his name), gave a presentation in Graz, Austria about the possibility of cross-breeding apes and humans. Needless to say, the scientists at the presentation clutched their invisible pearls and had to pick their jaws off the floor. A breeding between an ape and a human? HALE NO!!! They knew it was probably a disaster waiting to happen, but the dude was super stubborn. He actually believed he could do it, so he proposed it to the Russian government.
Well, the government ran into a tiny problem. Secretly they thought the plan was brilliant, but since society probably was going to turn their nose down on the idea, they had to give him the funding secretly. So they did, and the plan went into action. In the 1920s, the experimentations really started to amp up under the secret direction of Joseph Stalin (sneaky little bastard). First, Ilya tried to fertilize an orangutan egg with human sperm, to no avail. All the pregnancy’s failed to take.
There are various reasons for this, but perhaps the biggest reason was the simple little fact that he used the wrong ape species. Ilya used an orangutan, but the problem lies in the fact that orangutans don’t share enough chromosomes with humans for us to be identical. The closest genetic relative we have is the chimpanzee, whom we share 99% of our DNA with. He might have been more successful if he had gone that route, though in hindsight it’s an absolutely wonderful thing that he didn’t think of that, cause we’d be having humanzees running around all over the place killing us all. The idea of the humanzee was to create a creature with the intelligence of a human and the brute force of an ape (and create enough of them to make a human/ape army). Unfortunately, what they would’ve probably gotten was a literal monster. Forget Bigfoot or the Abonimable Snowman, if I ever ran into one of those humanzee suckers I’d shit myself silly and jump off the nearest cliff, because getting ripped limb to limb by one is not how I envision kicking the bucket.
Anyhow, by 1929 there were still no viable pregnancies by the orangutan. Stalin was getting a bit pissed and impatient because he was promised results, and they weren’t being delivered. Normally this wouldn’t be an issue, but this is motherfucking communist Russia we’re talking about. If you don’t give them what they want, you’re in deep shit. The best? You’d be exiled to Siberia. The worst? They’d just straight up kill you in probably the worst possible way, or whatever they felt like that day.. So Ilya was starting to get extremely nervous.
Using the scientific hypothesis, it was obvious that an ape egg wasn’t compatible with human sperm. So naturally, he concluded that he might have better success if the roles were flip-flopped.
That’s right folks. He wanted a human woman’s egg to be fertilized with orangutan sperm.
YOU ARE READING THAT RIGHT. THIS IS NOT A DRILL, FOLKS.
Now you’re probably thinking two things;
1)Holy shit, how crazy can this get?
And
2)It could be worse, surely no woman in her right mind never would have agreed to something like this. Right?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Because it turned out some poor woman did. While not much information has been recovered on her, we know her name is Anya and that in 1929 she wrote a letter to Ilya practically begging him to let her volunteer as tribute to his grand experiment. This is the one Hunger Games that I’m pretty sure even Katniss Everdeen wouldn’t agree to participate in. There was probably a monetary gain to this, even though it wasn’t mentioned (but let’s be real, there probably was, because no woman in her goddamn mind would ever agree to something like that.)
So he had a new plan. He had the sperm. He had a potential egg donor. He even had a surrogate willing and able to go along with this deranged plan.
‘So what happened next???,� you’re all probably wondering.
Well... the orangutan died. And it just so happened to be Ilya’s last orangutan given to him for this research.
Needless to say, Ilya was toast at this point. Blessedly, he was given what is by Russian standards a gentle punishment (aka exile to Siberia), where he lived out the rest of his days before he died in 1932. And as I’m sure you’ve figured out, the experiment didn’t work. Not that some sucker won’t try it again, but this is one experiment that I hope never ever succeeds.
So there you have it folks!! That’s the story of how Russia almost (but not quite) gave birth to the humanzee and tried to create an army!!
And if anyone out there is reading this and gets a seed planted inside their head to try this in the near future, GET SOME DAMN WEEDKILLER AND KILL THAT SEED!!!
This book shows us not only why teenagers should never take part in government conspiracies, but quite possibly the real reason why the USSR crumbled to pieces (and that may not be an alternative fact).
Yulia Chernina is just your typical teenager living in Mother Russia. She lives with her parents and her brother in a tiny little house, and despite how little they have they’re happy. That is, until the Secret Police jail them all for no apparent reason to Yulia. Oh, and there’s the little matter of her hearing and seeing things that others don’t.
”Who am I? I am Yulia Andreevna Chernina, seventeen years old, daughter of former high-ranking Communist Party members. I am a fugitive in my own country. And sometimes I see things that can’t be seen.�These powers don’t go unnoticed, as the KGB gets a wiff of Yulia’s powers. And they want her for their own special usage. They’re recruiting some of the best and brightest of young people with powers such as Yulia’s to help gather other countries secrets (get it? SECRETS??!!) so they can effectively nuke out the world. But f her mind is hers alone, can Yulia protect it, even from the likes of the KGB?
You could file this book under what probably might have happened if Russia has actually implemented another stupid plan (don’t get me started on the time Stalin wanted to create an army of ape-human hybrids. Yes, it actually almost happened.). So we know that this isn’t the first time good ole Mother Russia didn’t quite think through ther clever programs. And this has to be the stupidest one yet.
‘Hey, I know what we could do! We could take six bratty teenagers, entrust them with our most dangerous government secrets, and have them work for us. WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG??!!
Everything. Because when you put six teenagers with an attitude and in hormonal overdrive in the same room to try and read other’s minds, you certainly aren’t going to end up with Russian versions of the Mighty Morphin� Power Rangers.
They had to pick possibly six of the most arrogant, dumbest teenagers Russian’s had to offer. I found them extremely aggravating and bratty, not to mention the least bit unlikable. And having to hear Yulia go on and on and on about both Sergei and Valentin was headache inducing.
”Valentin smiles at me- it might be the first genuine smile of his I’ve seem. My mouth hangs open as I gawk at this gorgeous, confident creature. Those gorgeous, confident lips. He brushes a clump of snow from my shoulder. A need too desperate for words makes me want to snatch his hand and kiss it hungrily.�Furthermore, the whole explanation of their powers and how they can read minds and know secrets and stuff was very poorly explained and very uneven throughout. The end goal that they were trying to reach was never explained thoroughly either, and the characters seemed like very poorly drawn out CW characters.
If you’re looking for the ultimate teen Russian spy novel, or wanting to satisfy your thirst for all things Russian, this isn’t the book for you. What this book does show you is that no matter where you go in the world, or what government regime you’re under, bratty teenagers exist everywhere.
Now let’s get to the part you all really want to hear
That Time The Russians Almost Tried To Create An Ape-Human Hybrid Species
If you thought recruiting teenagers to crack government secrets was a bad idea fictionally, wait until you hear of the program the Russians actually tried to implement (and almost succeeded).
Why hello there! I’m about to take you down a really sick, twisted road down historical memory lane, in an incident Russia would probably much rather forget (and if I suddenly drop off the face of the Earth, the KGB read this review and got ahold of me. I hope I’m not kidding.)
And yes, this is a true story indeed. I had to write a paper on cross-breeding and stumbled onto this during my research.
Anyhoo, let’s get started.
In 1910, a Russian scientist by the name of Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov (apparently he couldn’t have enough Ivan’s in his name), gave a presentation in Graz, Austria about the possibility of cross-breeding apes and humans. Needless to say, the scientists at the presentation clutched their invisible pearls and had to pick their jaws off the floor. A breeding between an ape and a human? HALE NO!!! They knew it was probably a disaster waiting to happen, but the dude was super stubborn. He actually believed he could do it, so he proposed it to the Russian government.
Well, the government ran into a tiny problem. Secretly they thought the plan was brilliant, but since society probably was going to turn their nose down on the idea, they had to give him the funding secretly. So they did, and the plan went into action. In the 1920s, the experimentations really started to amp up under the secret direction of Joseph Stalin (sneaky little bastard). First, Ilya tried to fertilize an orangutan egg with human sperm, to no avail. All the pregnancy’s failed to take.
There are various reasons for this, but perhaps the biggest reason was the simple little fact that he used the wrong ape species. Ilya used an orangutan, but the problem lies in the fact that orangutans don’t share enough chromosomes with humans for us to be identical. The closest genetic relative we have is the chimpanzee, whom we share 99% of our DNA with. He might have been more successful if he had gone that route, though in hindsight it’s an absolutely wonderful thing that he didn’t think of that, cause we’d be having humanzees running around all over the place killing us all. The idea of the humanzee was to create a creature with the intelligence of a human and the brute force of an ape (and create enough of them to make a human/ape army). Unfortunately, what they would’ve probably gotten was a literal monster. Forget Bigfoot or the Abonimable Snowman, if I ever ran into one of those humanzee suckers I’d shit myself silly and jump off the nearest cliff, because getting ripped limb to limb by one is not how I envision kicking the bucket.
Anyhow, by 1929 there were still no viable pregnancies by the orangutan. Stalin was getting a bit pissed and impatient because he was promised results, and they weren’t being delivered. Normally this wouldn’t be an issue, but this is motherfucking communist Russia we’re talking about. If you don’t give them what they want, you’re in deep shit. The best? You’d be exiled to Siberia. The worst? They’d just straight up kill you in probably the worst possible way, or whatever they felt like that day.. So Ilya was starting to get extremely nervous.
Using the scientific hypothesis, it was obvious that an ape egg wasn’t compatible with human sperm. So naturally, he concluded that he might have better success if the roles were flip-flopped.
That’s right folks. He wanted a human woman’s egg to be fertilized with orangutan sperm.
YOU ARE READING THAT RIGHT. THIS IS NOT A DRILL, FOLKS.
Now you’re probably thinking two things;
1)Holy shit, how crazy can this get?
And
2)It could be worse, surely no woman in her right mind never would have agreed to something like this. Right?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Because it turned out some poor woman did. While not much information has been recovered on her, we know her name is Anya and that in 1929 she wrote a letter to Ilya practically begging him to let her volunteer as tribute to his grand experiment. This is the one Hunger Games that I’m pretty sure even Katniss Everdeen wouldn’t agree to participate in. There was probably a monetary gain to this, even though it wasn’t mentioned (but let’s be real, there probably was, because no woman in her goddamn mind would ever agree to something like that.)
So he had a new plan. He had the sperm. He had a potential egg donor. He even had a surrogate willing and able to go along with this deranged plan.
‘So what happened next???,� you’re all probably wondering.
Well... the orangutan died. And it just so happened to be Ilya’s last orangutan given to him for this research.
Needless to say, Ilya was toast at this point. Blessedly, he was given what is by Russian standards a gentle punishment (aka exile to Siberia), where he lived out the rest of his days before he died in 1932. And as I’m sure you’ve figured out, the experiment didn’t work. Not that some sucker won’t try it again, but this is one experiment that I hope never ever succeeds.
So there you have it folks!! That’s the story of how Russia almost (but not quite) gave birth to the humanzee and tried to create an army!!
And if anyone out there is reading this and gets a seed planted inside their head to try this in the near future, GET SOME DAMN WEEDKILLER AND KILL THAT SEED!!!
May 7, 2014
*I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
I absolutely loved this book- the intrigue, the twists, the characters, the plot, EVERYTHING.
The main character, Yulia, a girl with the ability to see other people's memories, is everything a strong female protagonist should be. She's strong on the outside, and will do anything to protect her family. However, her family seems to be hiding a secret from her too... When she's captured and taken to a boarding school for other teens, or psychics like her, she is unwilling to cooperate at first. She dreams of escape, but feels oppressed with so many mind-readers around her; there's no place for thoughts of escaping. Now obviously, there's a bit of a love triangle, but nothing too bad. Yulia meets two very different boys: the warm and funny hockey player Sergei, and the mysterious piano player Valentin, AKA Valya. (I hate to admit this, but I had trouble discerning the gender of the characters through their names in the beginning- I'm obviously no Russian fanatic). However, as time passes, Yulia begins to trust one of them; but in a place surrounded by lies, she can't trust anyone. Betrayals come at her from all times throughout the book, but she stays strong. Although both Sergei and Valentin sometimes treat her like a helpless lamb, Yulia makes it clear that she doesn't need to be coddled. I personally loved this characteristic of Yulia- she will accept help, but she's strong enough to survive alone. The secondary characters were amazing too. Everyone had their own story- how they got there, their own backstory. I personally loved reading about Larissa and Ivan, they're such a cute couple!
The plot simply amazed me. At first, I was a bit skeptical of the overused "teens with special powers" theme, but Smith pulled it off really well. Yulia is constantly surrounded by deceit, and it keeps the readers guessing- Who can she trust? Who's the real enemy? The twist about the scrubber surprised me- it was completely unexpected. Of course, the antagonists are perfectly evil and despicable, and just seeing their names mentioned on the page made me want to shoot them right then and there. Personally, I loved the Russian setting; and Smith's writing really pulled me into the time of Khrushchev- the suspicion and fear that constantly enveloped the people's daily lives.
A little tidbit about the romance- THE FEELS! I loved Yulia and her love interest's (no spoilers!) little moments, they were all wonderful. I'm looking forward to seeing more developments on their relationship in the sequel, the first book had a lot going on so they didn't get too many scenes with each other. But every moment counted!
Only one thing bothered me- I felt that there should have been a bit more about the setting; how life was outside in the streets, ect. There was just so much going on that I felt that Smith didn't have enough room to fit in the smaller details.
Overall, I absolutely loved this book, and I will definitely go out and buy it when it's released. April 1, you are on the top of my "must go visit local bookstore" list.
I absolutely loved this book- the intrigue, the twists, the characters, the plot, EVERYTHING.
The main character, Yulia, a girl with the ability to see other people's memories, is everything a strong female protagonist should be. She's strong on the outside, and will do anything to protect her family. However, her family seems to be hiding a secret from her too... When she's captured and taken to a boarding school for other teens, or psychics like her, she is unwilling to cooperate at first. She dreams of escape, but feels oppressed with so many mind-readers around her; there's no place for thoughts of escaping. Now obviously, there's a bit of a love triangle, but nothing too bad. Yulia meets two very different boys: the warm and funny hockey player Sergei, and the mysterious piano player Valentin, AKA Valya. (I hate to admit this, but I had trouble discerning the gender of the characters through their names in the beginning- I'm obviously no Russian fanatic). However, as time passes, Yulia begins to trust one of them; but in a place surrounded by lies, she can't trust anyone. Betrayals come at her from all times throughout the book, but she stays strong. Although both Sergei and Valentin sometimes treat her like a helpless lamb, Yulia makes it clear that she doesn't need to be coddled. I personally loved this characteristic of Yulia- she will accept help, but she's strong enough to survive alone. The secondary characters were amazing too. Everyone had their own story- how they got there, their own backstory. I personally loved reading about Larissa and Ivan, they're such a cute couple!
The plot simply amazed me. At first, I was a bit skeptical of the overused "teens with special powers" theme, but Smith pulled it off really well. Yulia is constantly surrounded by deceit, and it keeps the readers guessing- Who can she trust? Who's the real enemy? The twist about the scrubber surprised me- it was completely unexpected. Of course, the antagonists are perfectly evil and despicable, and just seeing their names mentioned on the page made me want to shoot them right then and there. Personally, I loved the Russian setting; and Smith's writing really pulled me into the time of Khrushchev- the suspicion and fear that constantly enveloped the people's daily lives.
A little tidbit about the romance- THE FEELS! I loved Yulia and her love interest's (no spoilers!) little moments, they were all wonderful. I'm looking forward to seeing more developments on their relationship in the sequel, the first book had a lot going on so they didn't get too many scenes with each other. But every moment counted!
Only one thing bothered me- I felt that there should have been a bit more about the setting; how life was outside in the streets, ect. There was just so much going on that I felt that Smith didn't have enough room to fit in the smaller details.
Overall, I absolutely loved this book, and I will definitely go out and buy it when it's released. April 1, you are on the top of my "must go visit local bookstore" list.
November 14, 2013
This book is damn near perfect. In the Cold War, the second generation of a secret sect of the KGB who have been bred to have psychic powers are in training to be the next wave of spies. Enter Yulia, the daughter of geneticists, who is being held against her will in this school of the New World Order.
Here's what really, really works: Smith sets the scene so well that this world comes to life in vibrant color. The fact that there are some people with psychic abilities doing spy work in this world is as commonplace as bread lines. She mixes real historical events with this new storyline, calling in guest stars like Khrushchev and Gagarin and letting them walk around with her characters. The enemy here is, of course, the Americans and Smith really has us convinced that they might just be worse than the regime that is currently in charge of the Soviet Union. Brilliant.
I don't want to give anything away, but Yulia is one of THE strongest female characters I have read in a long time. Not once does a man jump in and save her. Her dedication is to her family (her mother and brother) FIRST, then to her own security. Her survival skills are high, and she is smart. Not just book smart, but smart.
What dragged for me: the love triangle. I get it. I really do, but it wore on me a little. Such a little thing, really, but I'm starting to think publishers will not publish a YA manuscript unless the author jams one in somewhere, and really with everything Yulia had going on- she really needed to deal with that too?
Back to the good: Smith realizes her readers are smart too. She doesn't spend a lot of time reexplaining things, or beating us over the head with messages. She drops hints (where DID Yulia's missing sweater go?), and allows us to pull it together on our own. I think anyone who picks up a book about the Cold War and psychic spies is unlikely to be the type to have a need for simplistic explanations or long descriptions of what everyone is wearing to the ball anyway, but it was to feel the respect come through the storytelling.
Here's what really, really works: Smith sets the scene so well that this world comes to life in vibrant color. The fact that there are some people with psychic abilities doing spy work in this world is as commonplace as bread lines. She mixes real historical events with this new storyline, calling in guest stars like Khrushchev and Gagarin and letting them walk around with her characters. The enemy here is, of course, the Americans and Smith really has us convinced that they might just be worse than the regime that is currently in charge of the Soviet Union. Brilliant.
I don't want to give anything away, but Yulia is one of THE strongest female characters I have read in a long time. Not once does a man jump in and save her. Her dedication is to her family (her mother and brother) FIRST, then to her own security. Her survival skills are high, and she is smart. Not just book smart, but smart.
What dragged for me: the love triangle. I get it. I really do, but it wore on me a little. Such a little thing, really, but I'm starting to think publishers will not publish a YA manuscript unless the author jams one in somewhere, and really with everything Yulia had going on- she really needed to deal with that too?
Back to the good: Smith realizes her readers are smart too. She doesn't spend a lot of time reexplaining things, or beating us over the head with messages. She drops hints (where DID Yulia's missing sweater go?), and allows us to pull it together on our own. I think anyone who picks up a book about the Cold War and psychic spies is unlikely to be the type to have a need for simplistic explanations or long descriptions of what everyone is wearing to the ball anyway, but it was to feel the respect come through the storytelling.
February 11, 2014
For as much as I enjoyed various aspects of this novel, the whole thing simply…failed to come together for me. Which is a shame, because when broken down to its basic elements, I loved so much about this book. The premise is excellent; I love the idea of psychic KGB spies. I loved the idea of a Cold War USSR setting. I really loved the writing in this book; lyrical and smooth. I loved (most of) the characters and a lot of the details around their powers. But the plot that was supposed to tie all of these things together…didn’t.
It almost felt like there was too much going on and not enough going on at the same time. There didn’t seem to be any unifying goal going on. We jumped around a lot from one subplot to the next, and while I didn’t have much trouble keeping them all straight, I also didn’t really care. “This is happening. Oh, and now this. I guess. Okay. What? Time for this other thing? Uh, sure, why not.� I didn’t have time to get invested in anything that was going on, and at times it felt like the characters had the same lackadaisical “whatever� approach to all the jumping around. “Going to look for spies at a party? I have no opinion or feelings on this matter at all. Off we go.� One of the subplots even spiraled off into the land of no-conclusion with none of the characters so much as blinking at it.
And while I did enjoy the setting, I feel like it was underutilized. The group was so self-contained that we didn’t get to see much of the society, or the teens interacting with it. Plus, one of the major themes of the book was Yulia wanting to be “free� and…without seeing how stifling their society is, that rings rather empty and meaningless. I spent a good portion of the book wondering what Yulia even considers “free.� She pities Sergie because…he wants to play hockey and if he works hard and does a good job they’ll let him play hockey. But that’s not “free.� Dafuq does she think freedom is if not wanting something, working towards that something, and then obtaining that something? Her driving goal at the start of the book is to see her brother cared for and go to university, and the “bad guys� of the novel offer her just that, but no, she wants to be “free.� Girl, what are you talking about?
And that’s an honest question. There was so much room in this book to explore that, because of course people were oppressed and repressed and there were all sorts of horrors in communist USSR and such, but we didn’t get to see them, all we got to see was this one group of kids getting their every desire handed to them while Yulia cried about not being free. The setting was tailor-made for someone wanting freedom, the book just sort of hit right next to that mark instead.
I also wasn’t pleased at the book’s treatment of Masha, a female character who is repeatedly demonized for being a “lapdog� and “trying too hard� to do well at this whole spy thing. She’s basically a female version of Sergie, but Sergie is pitied and “deserves freedom,� while Masha is all but called a bitch and Yulia cheers when she gets injured at the end. Classy.
But I did really like the writing. That was a big part of making this book mostly-enjoyable for me, but there’s not anything else I can say except “the writing was really pretty.� I also enjoyed every scene where Sergie and Valentin played off each other. The love triangle there was completely unnecessary, but besides that, it was handled well.
It almost felt like there was too much going on and not enough going on at the same time. There didn’t seem to be any unifying goal going on. We jumped around a lot from one subplot to the next, and while I didn’t have much trouble keeping them all straight, I also didn’t really care. “This is happening. Oh, and now this. I guess. Okay. What? Time for this other thing? Uh, sure, why not.� I didn’t have time to get invested in anything that was going on, and at times it felt like the characters had the same lackadaisical “whatever� approach to all the jumping around. “Going to look for spies at a party? I have no opinion or feelings on this matter at all. Off we go.� One of the subplots even spiraled off into the land of no-conclusion with none of the characters so much as blinking at it.
And while I did enjoy the setting, I feel like it was underutilized. The group was so self-contained that we didn’t get to see much of the society, or the teens interacting with it. Plus, one of the major themes of the book was Yulia wanting to be “free� and…without seeing how stifling their society is, that rings rather empty and meaningless. I spent a good portion of the book wondering what Yulia even considers “free.� She pities Sergie because…he wants to play hockey and if he works hard and does a good job they’ll let him play hockey. But that’s not “free.� Dafuq does she think freedom is if not wanting something, working towards that something, and then obtaining that something? Her driving goal at the start of the book is to see her brother cared for and go to university, and the “bad guys� of the novel offer her just that, but no, she wants to be “free.� Girl, what are you talking about?
And that’s an honest question. There was so much room in this book to explore that, because of course people were oppressed and repressed and there were all sorts of horrors in communist USSR and such, but we didn’t get to see them, all we got to see was this one group of kids getting their every desire handed to them while Yulia cried about not being free. The setting was tailor-made for someone wanting freedom, the book just sort of hit right next to that mark instead.
I also wasn’t pleased at the book’s treatment of Masha, a female character who is repeatedly demonized for being a “lapdog� and “trying too hard� to do well at this whole spy thing. She’s basically a female version of Sergie, but Sergie is pitied and “deserves freedom,� while Masha is all but called a bitch and Yulia cheers when she gets injured at the end. Classy.
But I did really like the writing. That was a big part of making this book mostly-enjoyable for me, but there’s not anything else I can say except “the writing was really pretty.� I also enjoyed every scene where Sergie and Valentin played off each other. The love triangle there was completely unnecessary, but besides that, it was handled well.
April 20, 2017
I'm sure this book is fantastic whether or not you're interested in Russian culture in history, but given that I am, and studied the language for three years, this was seriously EVERYTHING I could've asked for - crazy amounts of intrigue, suspense, history, beautiful setting descriptions, wonderful romance... I have to confess that I am not typically a fan of historical YA, but the second I finished SEKRET I literally yelled "More!" to my empty living room.
And now that I've exposed my insanity to the greater world of ŷ, all I can say is seriously, buy this book come April. You will not be sorry.
And now that I've exposed my insanity to the greater world of ŷ, all I can say is seriously, buy this book come April. You will not be sorry.
June 28, 2022
Did not finish; read 68 pages.Whenever I pick up a historical fiction novel, it's usually about World War II or the Holocaust. But when I first heard of Lindsay Smith's Sekret - a novel about Cold War - era Russia with a paranormal twist - I was intrigued, and I couldn't help but give it a try. Unfortunately, though, which could have been a pheonominal story was run down by poor world-building and a non-progressive plot.
It's 1960s Russia, and suddenly 17-year-old Yulia and her family are caught by the Russian secret police. The police then offer Yulia a choice: lend them her mind-reading powers and join other teenagers with similar gifts as they try to undermine the American space program, or sentence herself and her whole family to death.
I found the paranormal aspects to be inconsistent. We meet characters who - like Yulia - have these mind-reading powers. Some can see into the future, while others can manipulate your memories or simply make new ones. We even meet characters who can think about a certain location or spot and see what is happening there at that very moment. This would have been wonderful, if they were all actually explained and stayed consistent.
I found it odd that those who can see into the future, for instance, were able to read minds as well. Why were they given both powers? Wasn't it just one or the other? Did all people with these physic powers have the ability to read minds in addition to having their specific gift?
I think my biggest problem, however, was the pacing. I felt that nothing really happened for the little bit that I read. There was no action, nothing intriguing happening, no character development.
All in all, though, Sekret simply wasn't my cup of tea. Maybe I was too blunt in selecting something so far out of my comfort zone in the first place, but this definitely wasn't up to what I had hoped it would be, and with such a predictable plot I felt no need to read on.
December 3, 2017
Sekret is full of intrigue, supernatural mind-reading, and even a little romance.
⇝Ratings Breakdown�
Plot: 4.5/5
Main Characters: 3.5/5
Secondary Characters: 3.5/5
The Feels: 3.8/5
Pacing: 3.8/5
Addictiveness: 3.5/5
Theme or Tone: 4.2/5
Flow (Writing Style): 3/5
Backdrop (World Building): 4/5
Originality:5/5
Book Cover: 5/5
Ending: 4/5 Cliffhanger: Yes.
Steam Factor 0-5: 1
Setting: Russia
Source: Kindle eBook (Library)
Total: 3.8/5 STARS - GRADE=B
⇝My Thoughts�
A completely different kind of read for me. One that starts off at a slower pace but cleverly creeps up on you. Sekret is a story that's shaped by actual historical events, some you will immediately recognize, like the assassination of JFK.
The Good: The intriguing premise makes this a notable and interesting read. Along with the supernatural abilities, that are explained in a way that makes them seem completely natural.
The Bad: I really would have liked the characters to be more relatable, although, towards the end, I did find myself liking them. Also, the reading flow was compromised due to the many names she called the characters by. Apparently, Russians have several different names they go by where they add certain endings depending on whether they are male or female, or something like that. The Author explains all this in the beginning of the book with "A Note on Russian Names". Even with that, though, I still struggled to keep the characters straight. I wish she would have just called each character by one name, even if it made it less credible.
�Will I continue this series?� I will have to be in the mood for something like this, but yeah, I believe I will, eventually.
⇝Ratings Breakdown�
Plot: 4.5/5
Main Characters: 3.5/5
Secondary Characters: 3.5/5
The Feels: 3.8/5
Pacing: 3.8/5
Addictiveness: 3.5/5
Theme or Tone: 4.2/5
Flow (Writing Style): 3/5
Backdrop (World Building): 4/5
Originality:5/5
Book Cover: 5/5
Ending: 4/5 Cliffhanger: Yes.
Steam Factor 0-5: 1
Setting: Russia
Source: Kindle eBook (Library)
Total: 3.8/5 STARS - GRADE=B
⇝My Thoughts�
A completely different kind of read for me. One that starts off at a slower pace but cleverly creeps up on you. Sekret is a story that's shaped by actual historical events, some you will immediately recognize, like the assassination of JFK.
The Good: The intriguing premise makes this a notable and interesting read. Along with the supernatural abilities, that are explained in a way that makes them seem completely natural.
The Bad: I really would have liked the characters to be more relatable, although, towards the end, I did find myself liking them. Also, the reading flow was compromised due to the many names she called the characters by. Apparently, Russians have several different names they go by where they add certain endings depending on whether they are male or female, or something like that. The Author explains all this in the beginning of the book with "A Note on Russian Names". Even with that, though, I still struggled to keep the characters straight. I wish she would have just called each character by one name, even if it made it less credible.
�Will I continue this series?� I will have to be in the mood for something like this, but yeah, I believe I will, eventually.
August 27, 2016
This book is a really fantastic young-adult novel.
The plot in this book is absolutely fantastic. The action starts right at the beginning of the book and doesn't stop until the very end. There's one strong plot in this book, that of Yulia trying to survive, but there are also smaller sub-plots that deal with the Russian government and the race amongst countries to be the first into space.
There are some fantasy elements present in this book. When the mind-reading element was first introduced into the story (right at the beginning) I didn't quite know what to make of it, but it was presented in such a realistic and believable way that I found myself able to go along with it. Things got a little harder for me to go along with once the other characters with abilities were introduced, but they were presented in such a believable manner that I was able to keep reading and truly enjoy what the mind-reading aspects brought to the story (they're basically the basis of the entire story).
I truly enjoyed the history that was present in this book. While the fantastical elements of this story are really the focus of this story, there is still a lot of information in this book that deals with history. A lot of emphasis is placed on the hardships faced in communist Russia, like having to wait 8 years to visit the doctor. Having never previously learned much about life in communist Russia, other than things were tough and communism doesn't really work, this book did a wonderful job of exposing me to the facts of what life was like during that time period.
I also really enjoyed all the characters in this book, especially the main character, Yulia. The characters are all very realistic and display real and relatable emotions towards situations and each other. The relationships that the characters all had with each other were also very realistic. While there was some romance between the characters, the relationships seemed very realistic and were not like your typical young-adult story romances.
The writing in this book was really pleasant. The author does a fantastic job of bringing the world and the characters to life. She also does a fantastic job of describing things without over-describing anything and dulling the story. While there wasn't anything about her writing that was truly exceptional, it was still very easy and enjoyable to read.
Overall, I would have to say that I truly enjoyed reading this book. I will definitely be on the lookout for this authors name in the future, so I can enjoy any other books that she writes.
I received this book for review purposes via NetGalley.
December 28, 2013
4.5
I am a huge fan of books that take place in Russia or use Russian history as a backdrop. I also love spy and espionage story, so Sekret won me over with its premise alone. Turns out, there was also an excellent novel hidden in this book!
Although this is Smith's debut, this is one of those books where you can't tell it's in fact, a debut. The writing is tight, tension filled, and memorizing. I found I had a hard time putting Sekret down every time I started it, because I had to know what was happening to these characters and this world. The writing makes everything feel so vivid and terrifying, I literally jumped a few times just because Smith took turns I wasn't necessarily expecting.
Seriously, the plot twist alone int his book makes it worth the read. I didn't see it coming, and it's definitely something that will make your jaw-drop. Also Sergei needed like, all the hugs in this book. All of them. I just loved all the characters, and I thought Yulia was a fabulous protagonist to follow. She has great convictions, strength and determination, and it's no wonder why people fear her gifts in a lot of ways. With the way the novel ended, I'm struggling to wait for book two. I really am.
Sekret is slow, but thoughtful. Engaging, but creepy. There's so much to love in the writing, characters and world building that I feel like Smith wrote an almost grand-slam. I do think the pacing will bother some readers, but when slow burns are done the right way, they often can be the most interesting reads of all.
I am a huge fan of books that take place in Russia or use Russian history as a backdrop. I also love spy and espionage story, so Sekret won me over with its premise alone. Turns out, there was also an excellent novel hidden in this book!
Although this is Smith's debut, this is one of those books where you can't tell it's in fact, a debut. The writing is tight, tension filled, and memorizing. I found I had a hard time putting Sekret down every time I started it, because I had to know what was happening to these characters and this world. The writing makes everything feel so vivid and terrifying, I literally jumped a few times just because Smith took turns I wasn't necessarily expecting.
Seriously, the plot twist alone int his book makes it worth the read. I didn't see it coming, and it's definitely something that will make your jaw-drop. Also Sergei needed like, all the hugs in this book. All of them. I just loved all the characters, and I thought Yulia was a fabulous protagonist to follow. She has great convictions, strength and determination, and it's no wonder why people fear her gifts in a lot of ways. With the way the novel ended, I'm struggling to wait for book two. I really am.
Sekret is slow, but thoughtful. Engaging, but creepy. There's so much to love in the writing, characters and world building that I feel like Smith wrote an almost grand-slam. I do think the pacing will bother some readers, but when slow burns are done the right way, they often can be the most interesting reads of all.
February 19, 2014
Oh my y'all. You know those books where you start reading them and you just know you are going to love what is inside? Sekret was one of those books. I started reading and I fell absolutely in love with the magic of Lindsay Smith's prose and the intensity of the story.
The stakes are high in Sekret from the get go. I mean, the first line of the book is, " My rules for the black market are simple." From that moment on, things just escalate to an ultimate high.
I loved the setting! Loved. It offered such a unique look, and paired with the psychic abilities that Yulia has, it was brilliant. I loved the perfect balance of historical fiction and paranormal.
I couldn't put this one down at all. Every time I did I was anxious to get back to it and keep reading. Yulia is a fabulous main character, and there was so much tension when it came to her and the others; it was always a question of who to trust.
I am beyond excited for the sequel that will be coming next year. This is one of the best debuts of the year, and already I am antsy for whatever is next for Lindsay Smith.
The stakes are high in Sekret from the get go. I mean, the first line of the book is, " My rules for the black market are simple." From that moment on, things just escalate to an ultimate high.
I loved the setting! Loved. It offered such a unique look, and paired with the psychic abilities that Yulia has, it was brilliant. I loved the perfect balance of historical fiction and paranormal.
I couldn't put this one down at all. Every time I did I was anxious to get back to it and keep reading. Yulia is a fabulous main character, and there was so much tension when it came to her and the others; it was always a question of who to trust.
I am beyond excited for the sequel that will be coming next year. This is one of the best debuts of the year, and already I am antsy for whatever is next for Lindsay Smith.
November 1, 2013
Let me fan girl for a moment because I really love this novel! It has so many factors that I adore in a story and I just can't believe how flawlessly it comes together. I love the paranormal aspect and the historical aspect that I adore. It brings to life two of my favorite genres into one story. It's amazing.
The story of Sekret is one of complex interweaving of many different concepts that somehow flow together in a very beautiful way. Yulia, the main character, is the type of main character that the reader will either want to hold as her world crumbles or shake as she makes decisions that you don't like. Her world has been one of secrets and lies, which quickly becomes very evident as the KGB kidnap her and force her to become something that she never wanted to be - a spy. A soldier simply because she has powers beyond what a normal person has. She can touch an object - a person - and pull memories and emotions from it, creating an idea of what occurred in the past and that makes it easier to guess what is going to happen in the future. The other people she is working with all have their own secrets and their own motives. So she must ask herself the question, who can she trust - if she can trust anyone? Lindsay's novel is written so beautiful that I was immediately pulled in to the world of Yulia and I never wanted to leave. It fit all of my desires for an awesome young adult novel, which is why I am fangirling so much about this!
Yulia actually surprised me. I wasn't sure I would like her when I first began to read the novel because she came off a little different than the average novel heroine. As she continued to grow throughout the first chapter, I found myself attached to this rough around the edges girl who has a great amount of loyalty to her family. She would literally do anything for her family and I admire her greatly for that. She became such an amazing young woman that it honestly held my attention for such a long time afterwards. I now find her as a strong, confident, a ration rat that had everything taken for her and yet she managed to prove she was more than just a girl that defined herself by her situation. No, she defined herself by her family. She may keep to herself and perhaps she doesn't trust easily but she is so much more beneath her facade and after the midway point through the book, she truly becomes a character to admire. I love her. By far one of my favorite main characters I have read.
Her family is certainly a complex unit of people that have more secrets than perhaps any government in existence. But you know what, they can have these secrets because they know about the special powers that apparently have appeared in Russia during the Cold War. They worked on this intense project in regards to that and quickly became disenchanted with the government they were working for, I believe. All of secrets I am sure will eventually cause some form of chaos and eventually it will explode in the worse sort of way. Yet they are loyal to each other despite each person's ulterior motives. Her brother is amazing and he has a disability that makes him more different than anyone else. His world is different than what everyone else sees. He hears music, he finds comfort in repetition, and he sees in brilliant colors. I loved him almost as much as I loved Yulia.
There, I suppose, are two love interest for my lovely Yulia. First is Sergei who is the typical manly boy that loves hockey and is very outgoing. He is comfortable with the idea of being a spy because he knows that they are being taken care of by the government and that eventually if he obeys, he can live the life he wants and occasionally compromise what he should believe is right or wrong. However, from the moment he meets Yulia, you can see that he likes her and that he will do anything to protect her. So that is love interest number one. Love interest number to is my personal favorite, Valentin. He is the brooding musician type that prefers to stick to his thoughts and to himself. The way he carries himself shows that he feels a great deal of guilt, sadness, and self hatred but escape is impossible when it comes to the KGB program. They will find him if he attempts to escape and most of the occupants in the program learn that first hand. He slowly warms up to Yulia and the whole time I was just dying for him to make a move or prove that he was romantically interested in her. Trust me when I say I wasn't disappointed in the romantic aspect for this novel. But I won't tell you who wins the girl or... kisses the girl. You'll have to read and see!
Larissa is perhaps the one female character outside of Yulia that I actually grew to like and perhaps adore. Little by little she moved from the girl that appeared on random pages to the girl that I knew would be the type of friend the main character needed. Even though she had her secrets and her motives for her actions, there was a certain purity about her that I found admirable. That even though she was trapped in this situation she somehow manages to leave some parts of her untouched. Her power is amazing, which I won't reveal, and if I had it, I would totally use it to my advantage but she maintains the stance that she will not or perhaps cannot change the inevitable outcome of what her power provides her.
I love, love, love this novel and I feel horrible posting this review so early before the release but I felt you needed to know how awesome this book truly is.
** This book was received from the publisher via NetGalley. None of the review was influenced by the author or the publisher. This is a completely original review. The thoughts and feelings of the reviewer are entirely her own and have no ties to the publisher.**
The story of Sekret is one of complex interweaving of many different concepts that somehow flow together in a very beautiful way. Yulia, the main character, is the type of main character that the reader will either want to hold as her world crumbles or shake as she makes decisions that you don't like. Her world has been one of secrets and lies, which quickly becomes very evident as the KGB kidnap her and force her to become something that she never wanted to be - a spy. A soldier simply because she has powers beyond what a normal person has. She can touch an object - a person - and pull memories and emotions from it, creating an idea of what occurred in the past and that makes it easier to guess what is going to happen in the future. The other people she is working with all have their own secrets and their own motives. So she must ask herself the question, who can she trust - if she can trust anyone? Lindsay's novel is written so beautiful that I was immediately pulled in to the world of Yulia and I never wanted to leave. It fit all of my desires for an awesome young adult novel, which is why I am fangirling so much about this!
Yulia actually surprised me. I wasn't sure I would like her when I first began to read the novel because she came off a little different than the average novel heroine. As she continued to grow throughout the first chapter, I found myself attached to this rough around the edges girl who has a great amount of loyalty to her family. She would literally do anything for her family and I admire her greatly for that. She became such an amazing young woman that it honestly held my attention for such a long time afterwards. I now find her as a strong, confident, a ration rat that had everything taken for her and yet she managed to prove she was more than just a girl that defined herself by her situation. No, she defined herself by her family. She may keep to herself and perhaps she doesn't trust easily but she is so much more beneath her facade and after the midway point through the book, she truly becomes a character to admire. I love her. By far one of my favorite main characters I have read.
Her family is certainly a complex unit of people that have more secrets than perhaps any government in existence. But you know what, they can have these secrets because they know about the special powers that apparently have appeared in Russia during the Cold War. They worked on this intense project in regards to that and quickly became disenchanted with the government they were working for, I believe. All of secrets I am sure will eventually cause some form of chaos and eventually it will explode in the worse sort of way. Yet they are loyal to each other despite each person's ulterior motives. Her brother is amazing and he has a disability that makes him more different than anyone else. His world is different than what everyone else sees. He hears music, he finds comfort in repetition, and he sees in brilliant colors. I loved him almost as much as I loved Yulia.
There, I suppose, are two love interest for my lovely Yulia. First is Sergei who is the typical manly boy that loves hockey and is very outgoing. He is comfortable with the idea of being a spy because he knows that they are being taken care of by the government and that eventually if he obeys, he can live the life he wants and occasionally compromise what he should believe is right or wrong. However, from the moment he meets Yulia, you can see that he likes her and that he will do anything to protect her. So that is love interest number one. Love interest number to is my personal favorite, Valentin. He is the brooding musician type that prefers to stick to his thoughts and to himself. The way he carries himself shows that he feels a great deal of guilt, sadness, and self hatred but escape is impossible when it comes to the KGB program. They will find him if he attempts to escape and most of the occupants in the program learn that first hand. He slowly warms up to Yulia and the whole time I was just dying for him to make a move or prove that he was romantically interested in her. Trust me when I say I wasn't disappointed in the romantic aspect for this novel. But I won't tell you who wins the girl or... kisses the girl. You'll have to read and see!
Larissa is perhaps the one female character outside of Yulia that I actually grew to like and perhaps adore. Little by little she moved from the girl that appeared on random pages to the girl that I knew would be the type of friend the main character needed. Even though she had her secrets and her motives for her actions, there was a certain purity about her that I found admirable. That even though she was trapped in this situation she somehow manages to leave some parts of her untouched. Her power is amazing, which I won't reveal, and if I had it, I would totally use it to my advantage but she maintains the stance that she will not or perhaps cannot change the inevitable outcome of what her power provides her.
I love, love, love this novel and I feel horrible posting this review so early before the release but I felt you needed to know how awesome this book truly is.
** This book was received from the publisher via NetGalley. None of the review was influenced by the author or the publisher. This is a completely original review. The thoughts and feelings of the reviewer are entirely her own and have no ties to the publisher.**
May 28, 2019
I'm trying to clean up my TBR and Netgalley and get reviews posted ;)
So, I read this a while back and from what I remember I enjoyed it. Loved the premise of KGB Russia, action abounded, and the physic aspect was really cool.
So, I read this a while back and from what I remember I enjoyed it. Loved the premise of KGB Russia, action abounded, and the physic aspect was really cool.
November 28, 2017
I was initially excited to start this one. I had read it last summer but remembered just about nothing of the story line, save the main spoiler. I did not mean to dislike it so much. However, it was more of a boilerplate dystopian than a historical fiction with supernatural elements
Trope Check
*Mary-Sue learns she is special
*mind-reading powers
*brooding bad boy
*supposedly strong heroine who is about as badass as a banana
Full Rant
I really did like the concept, especially Valentin. It was interesting how he has more the quiet, almost geeky personality generally reserved for "good boy" love triangle characters while "good boy " Sergei is hot and athletic and all the things I hate in guys.
HOWEVER
I guess it's partially my fault for expecting this book to be so good but it definitely could have been written better. It was a great idea with an initially likable MC but there is honestly nothing that makes this book terribly special.
Why are you different, Yulia Andreevna?
Mainly, what ruins this book for me is its attempt to be a typical dystopian romance, in other words, Same trailer different park. At first, I planned to give this 4 stars, but a bit of confusion and the -esque music-playing scene brought it down to three. A few reasons eventually, albeit reluctanlty, brought my rating down to two. I really wanted to love this book but...
I expected a cross between and . Khanh (The Grinch) rated it 2 stars, but I just assumed she was being nit-picky. It turns out she was right.
Yulia is supposed to be a Katniss-like "survivor" with a love and loyalty for her family, but not a tough military chick with no friends in a plotless book with a body count of 100.
That's the recipe for an awesome character.
But no!
She has to be the stereotypical sick-puppy romantic and spout pick-up lines.
(R U kidding me?)
Meanwhile, Valentin is supposed to be a secretive rebel who plays piano and tries not to draw attention, right?
But No!
Instead he becomes a "molten god of confidence" and a "sexy psychopath" because all rebellious love interests have to be "sexy" and jump of bridges and stuff.
(R U kidding me?)
And the villains. Stereotyped, archetyped, etc. I get that Soviet Russia was in ways a dystopia and, in fact, the model for the "we-choose-where-you-live-and-who-you-love" kinds of evil governments. Unfortunately, that element seems overplayed.
Property? (thinking about again)
And then the ending.
Yeah. America is a land of magical Unicorns where all your dreams come true.
In short, this is just another dystopian romance masquerading as Historical fiction. If you want a book set in Soviet Russia, I highly recommend and the latter is a memoir that reads a lot like a novel.
Trope Check
*Mary-Sue learns she is special
*mind-reading powers
*brooding bad boy
*supposedly strong heroine who is about as badass as a banana
Full Rant
I really did like the concept, especially Valentin. It was interesting how he has more the quiet, almost geeky personality generally reserved for "good boy" love triangle characters while "good boy " Sergei is hot and athletic and all the things I hate in guys.
HOWEVER
I guess it's partially my fault for expecting this book to be so good but it definitely could have been written better. It was a great idea with an initially likable MC but there is honestly nothing that makes this book terribly special.
Why are you different, Yulia Andreevna?
Mainly, what ruins this book for me is its attempt to be a typical dystopian romance, in other words, Same trailer different park. At first, I planned to give this 4 stars, but a bit of confusion and the -esque music-playing scene brought it down to three. A few reasons eventually, albeit reluctanlty, brought my rating down to two. I really wanted to love this book but...
I expected a cross between and . Khanh (The Grinch) rated it 2 stars, but I just assumed she was being nit-picky. It turns out she was right.
Yulia is supposed to be a Katniss-like "survivor" with a love and loyalty for her family, but not a tough military chick with no friends in a plotless book with a body count of 100.
That's the recipe for an awesome character.
But no!
She has to be the stereotypical sick-puppy romantic and spout pick-up lines.
"I'm willing," I say. My heart beats with the Beatles. I wanna hold your hand, I wanna hold your hand.
"You came back for me," I say. The words sound stupid hanging in the air, but they mean so much.
"I always will."
(R U kidding me?)
Meanwhile, Valentin is supposed to be a secretive rebel who plays piano and tries not to draw attention, right?
But No!
Instead he becomes a "molten god of confidence" and a "sexy psychopath" because all rebellious love interests have to be "sexy" and jump of bridges and stuff.
(R U kidding me?)
And the villains. Stereotyped, archetyped, etc. I get that Soviet Russia was in ways a dystopia and, in fact, the model for the "we-choose-where-you-live-and-who-you-love" kinds of evil governments. Unfortunately, that element seems overplayed.
You are property of the Soviet Union, and when I tell you these things, when I permit you to see your family, it is a privilege, not a right
Property? (thinking about again)
And then the ending.
"My brave Yulia".... "Your powers and your life are yours now. You can use them however you like."
Yeah. America is a land of magical Unicorns where all your dreams come true.
In short, this is just another dystopian romance masquerading as Historical fiction. If you want a book set in Soviet Russia, I highly recommend and the latter is a memoir that reads a lot like a novel.
November 18, 2013
Imagine living in a country where you had to watch your every move, making sure you kept your thoughts hidden and your actions as inconspicuous as possible. Now add psychic abilities where certain people can read your every thought, see your every memory and exactly where you are at any time, see your future and the decisions you'll make, completely erase your mind by taking all of your memories, and make you do whatever they want. Sounds frightening doesn't it?
This is Yulia's reality. She has been captured by the KGB to live with these psychic people and train her own ability to use it against the U.S. The worst part of the whole situation is that they also have her mother and brother and the only way to keep them safe is to comply with the KGBs orders. Only she can't get the images of running away and freedom out of her head, and her captors as well as the other psychics in training know it. They can read her mind like an open book. Even so, this doesn't stop her from trying.
I cannot even begin to describe how much I enjoyed this book. I could not stop reading it. In fact, I almost burnt my pizza because I was so absorbed in the story. There's mystery, espionage, murder, betrayals... it's a complete thrill ride and I loved every minute of it. It was a little chaotic because you had no idea who among them was actually trustworthy, if any of them. She is continuously putting her faith in people only to be let down but something they've done whether past or present. I really have to commend Lindsay Smith for her vast knowledge of this time period in Russia and the paranoia that ran rampant throughout the country. I was genius to add another layer to that paranoia by adding psychological abilities as another threat.
I really liked Yulia, our main character. She fought the system even when it was pretty much impossible. She refused to give up hope that freedom could be obtained and she certainly couldn't be happy living a life following the rules of the KGB, even if that meant getting everything she could want. It was a false freedom and that wasn't what Yulia wanted. Her ability allowed her to read the minds of other people by a simple touch, delving into their memories and learning anything she could possibly want to know. This also worked with objects. She could touch any object in the world and learn anything she could possibly want to know surrounding that object: who had touched it, how they were feeling, what was happening at that time.. the list goes on and on.
As far as the plot goes, it went at a steady pace, often taking you on a wild goose chase making you feel a little chaotic. It was difficult to see just what the KGB was going to ask Yulia to do next. Even though I figured out the direction the book was heading from the very beginning it wasn't easy to know what was going to happen leading up to it. I also had a pretty good guess about another major plot point but I wasn't entirely certain and I'm glad that I turned out to be correct in my assumption. I'm also thrilled with some of the characters and their actions but that's all I'll say about that. I don't want to delve too much into the events that transpire.
If you're a lover of historical fiction and you also enjoy a good paranormal I urge you to pick up Sekret. You've got history, suspense, paranormal abilities, even a little romance. So many amazing elements all in one book. I can't wait to read the next installment and this one hasn't even been released yet!
This is Yulia's reality. She has been captured by the KGB to live with these psychic people and train her own ability to use it against the U.S. The worst part of the whole situation is that they also have her mother and brother and the only way to keep them safe is to comply with the KGBs orders. Only she can't get the images of running away and freedom out of her head, and her captors as well as the other psychics in training know it. They can read her mind like an open book. Even so, this doesn't stop her from trying.
I cannot even begin to describe how much I enjoyed this book. I could not stop reading it. In fact, I almost burnt my pizza because I was so absorbed in the story. There's mystery, espionage, murder, betrayals... it's a complete thrill ride and I loved every minute of it. It was a little chaotic because you had no idea who among them was actually trustworthy, if any of them. She is continuously putting her faith in people only to be let down but something they've done whether past or present. I really have to commend Lindsay Smith for her vast knowledge of this time period in Russia and the paranoia that ran rampant throughout the country. I was genius to add another layer to that paranoia by adding psychological abilities as another threat.
I really liked Yulia, our main character. She fought the system even when it was pretty much impossible. She refused to give up hope that freedom could be obtained and she certainly couldn't be happy living a life following the rules of the KGB, even if that meant getting everything she could want. It was a false freedom and that wasn't what Yulia wanted. Her ability allowed her to read the minds of other people by a simple touch, delving into their memories and learning anything she could possibly want to know. This also worked with objects. She could touch any object in the world and learn anything she could possibly want to know surrounding that object: who had touched it, how they were feeling, what was happening at that time.. the list goes on and on.
As far as the plot goes, it went at a steady pace, often taking you on a wild goose chase making you feel a little chaotic. It was difficult to see just what the KGB was going to ask Yulia to do next. Even though I figured out the direction the book was heading from the very beginning it wasn't easy to know what was going to happen leading up to it. I also had a pretty good guess about another major plot point but I wasn't entirely certain and I'm glad that I turned out to be correct in my assumption. I'm also thrilled with some of the characters and their actions but that's all I'll say about that. I don't want to delve too much into the events that transpire.
If you're a lover of historical fiction and you also enjoy a good paranormal I urge you to pick up Sekret. You've got history, suspense, paranormal abilities, even a little romance. So many amazing elements all in one book. I can't wait to read the next installment and this one hasn't even been released yet!
December 11, 2013
It doesn't happen very often when I fall madly in love with a story, its characters, and absolutely everything about it. This is the case for Lindsay Smith's Sekret. How could you not love a story with KGB spies, political conspiracies, and powers beyond your imagination?
March 3, 2014
Russia, espionage and psychics? I'm in! Needless to say, I had high hopes going into this book and thankfully, it lived up to them!
Yulia is a tough girl. She has to be! Her family has fallen out of favour with the Party and now barely scrape by, living hand-to-mouth off of the black market. But Yulia has a trick that's helping her family survive: she's psychic. Unfortunately, this gift becomes her curse once she is forcibly recruited to a special KGB centre for young psychics. It's kind of like X-men. If all the X-men were various psychics in Cold War USSR and Professor X was a danger psychopath who could rip out your memories.
I had a lot of respect for Yulia. She's tough as nails and devoted to doing what she can to keep her mother and brother (who I'm pretty certain falls until the Autism spectrum) safe. Unfortunately, life in Communist Moscow doesn't make this easy for her. Yulia is not the kind of person who is content being controlled. She fights back as much as possible.
A lot of the story goes on inside Yulia's head, so we only get to view the secondary characters as they relate to her. That didn't stop me from wanting to slap some (Masha), cower in fear from some (Rostov) and give suspicious glares to others (pretty much everyone else).
I completely fell in love with the setting of this one. It's crazy how a historical location could feel so much like a dystopian read. I've always enjoyed learning about history (even though it was my worst class in school) and I love reading stories set in different places. I would love to visit Russia one day!
The only thing I didn't totally love on this one was the romance. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I just think I would have enjoyed the story a little bit more without it. But I'm not a romance person, so I'm sure this is entirely personal preference. I just know that I kind of rushed through the romance-y bits because I was desperate to get back to the spying bits! However, the romance was very limited, so there wasn't much rushing necessary.
I'd definitely recommend this one to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, Russia, espionage or cool psychic phenomena. Definitely worth a read!
Yulia is a tough girl. She has to be! Her family has fallen out of favour with the Party and now barely scrape by, living hand-to-mouth off of the black market. But Yulia has a trick that's helping her family survive: she's psychic. Unfortunately, this gift becomes her curse once she is forcibly recruited to a special KGB centre for young psychics. It's kind of like X-men. If all the X-men were various psychics in Cold War USSR and Professor X was a danger psychopath who could rip out your memories.
I had a lot of respect for Yulia. She's tough as nails and devoted to doing what she can to keep her mother and brother (who I'm pretty certain falls until the Autism spectrum) safe. Unfortunately, life in Communist Moscow doesn't make this easy for her. Yulia is not the kind of person who is content being controlled. She fights back as much as possible.
A lot of the story goes on inside Yulia's head, so we only get to view the secondary characters as they relate to her. That didn't stop me from wanting to slap some (Masha), cower in fear from some (Rostov) and give suspicious glares to others (pretty much everyone else).
I completely fell in love with the setting of this one. It's crazy how a historical location could feel so much like a dystopian read. I've always enjoyed learning about history (even though it was my worst class in school) and I love reading stories set in different places. I would love to visit Russia one day!
The only thing I didn't totally love on this one was the romance. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I just think I would have enjoyed the story a little bit more without it. But I'm not a romance person, so I'm sure this is entirely personal preference. I just know that I kind of rushed through the romance-y bits because I was desperate to get back to the spying bits! However, the romance was very limited, so there wasn't much rushing necessary.
I'd definitely recommend this one to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, Russia, espionage or cool psychic phenomena. Definitely worth a read!
October 19, 2013
Sekret, by Lindsay Smith, is a terrifying and thrilling mind trip. Smith brings the Soviet Union in the early 1960s to chilling life with KGB thugs, ration rats and black market bartering. Amidst the Cold War and space race between the U.S. and Russia, our protagonist Yulia becomes a pawn in a deadly intelligence game between the CIA and KGB. Against her will, she participates in covert missions with other young psychics, like herself. Yulia’s struggle for freedom and to discover the truth about her own powers will seize your imagination, keep you enthralled to the last page and have you yearning for more. There is romance, non-stop action and startling revelations at every turn. And as with any great spy novel, no one can be trusted! I hope to see this book adapted into a movie, not only for the vivid plot and characters, but for the amazing soundtrack it would feature. Smith must be a musician or music aficionado, as she immerses the characters in everything from Tchaikovsky to the Beatles and the Animals. This book will assault all of your senses and have you believing that an empty mind truly is the only safe mind. Thank you, Roaring Brook Press and NetGalley, for this egalley!
March 8, 2014
THIS BOOK.
The main character is recruited/abducted by the KGB as part of the psychic mission they have going on to try to beat the USA during the Cold War. It is set in 1963-ish in Soviet Russia. The fact that it is fiction set in an era that actually happened is fascinating.
This story is always making you think, and has mystery elements on every page. There is a wide range of character from sweet to downright scary. The affects of the psychic powers the characters possess can be a little hard to completely understand throughout the book, though in the end lots of things are cleared up.
The author did an amazing job at making the world and culture believable. The terminology is hard to grasp as well as the names of the characters, because they are just so different from american names.
It was an excellent novel of trust and questioning if the character actually thought something or if it was planted in their heads.
AN EMPTY MIND IS A SAFE MIND. This is true to this book, and an excellent tag line.
If you feel you should stop reading during a point in this book, don't. Shocking revelations occur all throughout the book, but near the end we get lots of explanations. This is definitely worth the read.
The main character is recruited/abducted by the KGB as part of the psychic mission they have going on to try to beat the USA during the Cold War. It is set in 1963-ish in Soviet Russia. The fact that it is fiction set in an era that actually happened is fascinating.
This story is always making you think, and has mystery elements on every page. There is a wide range of character from sweet to downright scary. The affects of the psychic powers the characters possess can be a little hard to completely understand throughout the book, though in the end lots of things are cleared up.
The author did an amazing job at making the world and culture believable. The terminology is hard to grasp as well as the names of the characters, because they are just so different from american names.
It was an excellent novel of trust and questioning if the character actually thought something or if it was planted in their heads.
AN EMPTY MIND IS A SAFE MIND. This is true to this book, and an excellent tag line.
If you feel you should stop reading during a point in this book, don't. Shocking revelations occur all throughout the book, but near the end we get lots of explanations. This is definitely worth the read.
November 3, 2013
Yulia doesn't know how she came by her gift, she only knows she can use it to her advantage when selling goods on the black market in the USSR. She's a fantastic protagonist, telling us of her troubles and how she tries to fix them.
This is a colorful cast of characters, ranging from a wanna-be dictator with rage issues, to the hot Russian boy with the ability to see places remotely and a dream to play professional hockey, to the girl who can see all the possible futures and help or hinder everyone, to the man who has a power so strong he could control the entire world seemingly without effort.
Sekret poses an interesting idea based in historical fact- if the psychics consulted, recruited, and used as spies during the Cold War really had the abilities to read minds, remote locations, and tell the future. Not to mention what side they would choose when the time came. It also gives the reader an opportunity to see that in times of duress, there might not be anyone you can truly trust- even yourself.
Sekret is captivating from beginning to end, leaving this reader wanting to know more.
This is a colorful cast of characters, ranging from a wanna-be dictator with rage issues, to the hot Russian boy with the ability to see places remotely and a dream to play professional hockey, to the girl who can see all the possible futures and help or hinder everyone, to the man who has a power so strong he could control the entire world seemingly without effort.
Sekret poses an interesting idea based in historical fact- if the psychics consulted, recruited, and used as spies during the Cold War really had the abilities to read minds, remote locations, and tell the future. Not to mention what side they would choose when the time came. It also gives the reader an opportunity to see that in times of duress, there might not be anyone you can truly trust- even yourself.
Sekret is captivating from beginning to end, leaving this reader wanting to know more.
Shelved as 'inventory'
October 13, 2015Want to win an ARC of Sekret? Head on over to for a chance to win!
December 28, 2022
2017: WOW! What a great book! Can't believe all the plot twists at the end. LOVED THE CHARACTERS!!! hope they make a movie out of this book or a sequel of it.
February 12, 2014
Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Quick & Dirty: A slow start, but overall a very unique read full of suspense, romance and a wonderful setting.
Opening Sentence: My rules for the black market are simple.
The Review:
It is the year 1963 in the communist country of Russia. Yulia has been in hiding for the last three years with her mother and handicap brother. Her parents were once very prominent members of the government, but now they are considered traitors. They have been successful in staying under the radar for all these years, but their luck is about the change. Yulia has always had a weird psychic ability, where if she touches someone or something she can see their past memories. It has been very useful while on the run, but it ends up attracting unwanted attention. The KGB end up capturing her and it turns out they have a unit full of psychics. In order to keep her family safe she agrees to become a spy to help bring down the U.S. space program. Thrown into a world full of lies, Yulia doesn’t know who she can trust.
With determination to escape and get her family back, Yulia has to learn how to fully use her powers, but the only way to do that is to learn from her captors. Keeping secrets from someone that can read your mind proves to be difficult and Yulia realizes that she is going to need allies. Sergei is attractive and very friendly, but he is very loyal to the KGB. Then there is Valentin, a boy that plays beautiful music and encourages Yulia to rebel. Yulia soon realizes that the advice her father gave her as a child is more valuable than she ever thought possible…“An empty mind is a safe mind!�
Yulia was a very unique character and I really liked her. Even though her very comfortable life was taken away, and now she is basically a prisoner, she never complains, which I really liked. She always stays strong and positive, which was refreshing. She is also very smart and resourceful, which made it so she could take care of herself. I always love when a girl is bright and spirited, yet still has vulnerable girly traits as well. She was an easy character to connect with and she had a great voice throughout the whole book.
There was a whole cast of secondary characters that I’m not going to go into big detail about because there are too many, but every single one of them played a very important role in the story coming together. Each one of them had an interesting story and I loved getting to know all of them. There are two boys that show interest in Yulia, but the romance is very subtle, so there’s no need to worry about the love triangle. I hope that we will get to see more of all the characters in the next book.
I wanted to start off by saying that this was very different from what I thought it was going to be. I had heard about some stellar reviews before I started this, so I was really excited for it and it was a little disappointing at first. I was expecting a fast paced book that I would fly through and for me the start was really slow. I kept having to force myself to read it for about half the book, but after I adjusted to the pacing, I actually really enjoyed it. I feel like I might have judged it a little harshly at first because it was so different from what I was anticipating, and that made me enjoy it less than I should have. With that all being said, this ended up being a wonderful story full of intrigue, suspense, and romance. Smith’s idea was very unique and the setting was fascinating with all the historical references. The characters were interesting and plot had some great twists that kept me guessing. Even though it started out slow, I ended up really enjoying this book and would highly recommend everyone give it a try.
Notable Scene:
Sergei’s hand touches my shoulder. It burns with conflicting emotions: sadness? Anger? “Yulia, you have to stop thinking about escape. It’s too dangerous.�
“What do you care?� A barge sounds its horn; I peer over the balcony ledge. If it were straight down, I could survive it, but the embankment slopes just enough�
“Maybe I don’t. You wouldn’t be the first to try.� He shrugs. “But believe me, if there’s one thing I’ve learned here � There are worse things than a bullet in the back, a broken neck. What they can do to your brain, or your family’s…�
Sergei flinches; his gaze roves anxiously, unsettled. I step from him, not liking the sudden darkness I sense on his skin.
“Death would be mercy,� he says. “For you and your family both.�
FTC Advisory: Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan Children’s provided me with a copy of Sekret. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,� or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Quick & Dirty: A slow start, but overall a very unique read full of suspense, romance and a wonderful setting.
Opening Sentence: My rules for the black market are simple.
The Review:
It is the year 1963 in the communist country of Russia. Yulia has been in hiding for the last three years with her mother and handicap brother. Her parents were once very prominent members of the government, but now they are considered traitors. They have been successful in staying under the radar for all these years, but their luck is about the change. Yulia has always had a weird psychic ability, where if she touches someone or something she can see their past memories. It has been very useful while on the run, but it ends up attracting unwanted attention. The KGB end up capturing her and it turns out they have a unit full of psychics. In order to keep her family safe she agrees to become a spy to help bring down the U.S. space program. Thrown into a world full of lies, Yulia doesn’t know who she can trust.
With determination to escape and get her family back, Yulia has to learn how to fully use her powers, but the only way to do that is to learn from her captors. Keeping secrets from someone that can read your mind proves to be difficult and Yulia realizes that she is going to need allies. Sergei is attractive and very friendly, but he is very loyal to the KGB. Then there is Valentin, a boy that plays beautiful music and encourages Yulia to rebel. Yulia soon realizes that the advice her father gave her as a child is more valuable than she ever thought possible…“An empty mind is a safe mind!�
Yulia was a very unique character and I really liked her. Even though her very comfortable life was taken away, and now she is basically a prisoner, she never complains, which I really liked. She always stays strong and positive, which was refreshing. She is also very smart and resourceful, which made it so she could take care of herself. I always love when a girl is bright and spirited, yet still has vulnerable girly traits as well. She was an easy character to connect with and she had a great voice throughout the whole book.
There was a whole cast of secondary characters that I’m not going to go into big detail about because there are too many, but every single one of them played a very important role in the story coming together. Each one of them had an interesting story and I loved getting to know all of them. There are two boys that show interest in Yulia, but the romance is very subtle, so there’s no need to worry about the love triangle. I hope that we will get to see more of all the characters in the next book.
I wanted to start off by saying that this was very different from what I thought it was going to be. I had heard about some stellar reviews before I started this, so I was really excited for it and it was a little disappointing at first. I was expecting a fast paced book that I would fly through and for me the start was really slow. I kept having to force myself to read it for about half the book, but after I adjusted to the pacing, I actually really enjoyed it. I feel like I might have judged it a little harshly at first because it was so different from what I was anticipating, and that made me enjoy it less than I should have. With that all being said, this ended up being a wonderful story full of intrigue, suspense, and romance. Smith’s idea was very unique and the setting was fascinating with all the historical references. The characters were interesting and plot had some great twists that kept me guessing. Even though it started out slow, I ended up really enjoying this book and would highly recommend everyone give it a try.
Notable Scene:
Sergei’s hand touches my shoulder. It burns with conflicting emotions: sadness? Anger? “Yulia, you have to stop thinking about escape. It’s too dangerous.�
“What do you care?� A barge sounds its horn; I peer over the balcony ledge. If it were straight down, I could survive it, but the embankment slopes just enough�
“Maybe I don’t. You wouldn’t be the first to try.� He shrugs. “But believe me, if there’s one thing I’ve learned here � There are worse things than a bullet in the back, a broken neck. What they can do to your brain, or your family’s…�
Sergei flinches; his gaze roves anxiously, unsettled. I step from him, not liking the sudden darkness I sense on his skin.
“Death would be mercy,� he says. “For you and your family both.�
FTC Advisory: Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan Children’s provided me with a copy of Sekret. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,� or bribes were exchanged for my review.
October 11, 2015
"You'll be here longer than you like, you know. But not so long that you'll lose yourself. I'm confident you'll find your way."
4.75 stars!
A psychic espionage novel set in Cold War era Russia? Consider me intrigued. Sekret perfectly blends history with paranormal elements to create a fictitious story that feels as if it could have actually happened in the Soviet Union in 1963.
It has been a while since the first book in a debut series has gotten me this excited. I am enamored by Lindsey Smith's storytelling and the extent of research that was invested into making this book such a vivid representation of Communist Russia. The descriptions in this book allow for a perfect mental picture of the events as they play out. Sekret is a fresh breath of air in the Young Adult genre... it blends several YA tropes with innovative new ideas in order to create a book that is crisp and unique.
Yulia is recruited by the KGB when it is discovered that she can read the minds of the people she touches. The KGB is using teenage spies, second generation psychics, to protect the Soviet space program from American spies. Yulia, the daughter of a geneticist and biologist, is a smart, determined protagonist who uses her abilities and common sense to reason and solve problems. Yulia's first priority is to protect her family, which is a concept that plays a vital role in this novel, but then spends the rest of the novel attempting to escape the KGB. Naturally, action and deception ensue.
Sekret is crafted like a puzzle; all the pieces are given to you, jumbled up in the beginning, but by the end of the book the picture is perfectly clear. Because of this, the first 100 pages or so can be confusing because of the massive amount of information given and characters introduced in a small time frame. Don't let this turn you away: everything starts to make sense as the novel progresses. Characters become unique and differentiable, questions are answered, and the plot becomes clear. I appreciate that this book is written with an intelligent audience in mind. Smith assumes her readers have a common knowledge about Communist Russia, and that if they don't know something, they will look it up (what a concept). Smith also does not feel the need to reiterate plot points and is able to drop subtle foreshadowing hints without giving the twists away, which is something that many YA authors have failed to master. I guessed one of the plot twists (yay!) but it was because I actually used my brain to figure it out, not because it was spelled out in the text.
Disclaimer: There is a love triangle, but it is not overbearing. It almost doesn't even feel like a love triangle because it is obvious who Yulia wants to be with and there is evident chemistry between her and that specific character. The romance is really sweet and extremely interesting with the psychic dynamic, but definitely takes second stage to the plot. I really like Yulia's love interest and the complexity of his character. In fact, all the characters are wonderful and complex and add to the story in some way, even if it doesn't seem like they will from the beginning.
Overall, Sekret is a fantastically written novel that is engrossing, thrilling, and deceptive. This book will require you to think, but if you are willing to put in the effort, I believe you will find it extremely enjoyable! I highly recommend Sekret and am looking forward to reading Skandal as soon as I can get my hands on a copy!
4.75 stars!
A psychic espionage novel set in Cold War era Russia? Consider me intrigued. Sekret perfectly blends history with paranormal elements to create a fictitious story that feels as if it could have actually happened in the Soviet Union in 1963.
It has been a while since the first book in a debut series has gotten me this excited. I am enamored by Lindsey Smith's storytelling and the extent of research that was invested into making this book such a vivid representation of Communist Russia. The descriptions in this book allow for a perfect mental picture of the events as they play out. Sekret is a fresh breath of air in the Young Adult genre... it blends several YA tropes with innovative new ideas in order to create a book that is crisp and unique.
Yulia is recruited by the KGB when it is discovered that she can read the minds of the people she touches. The KGB is using teenage spies, second generation psychics, to protect the Soviet space program from American spies. Yulia, the daughter of a geneticist and biologist, is a smart, determined protagonist who uses her abilities and common sense to reason and solve problems. Yulia's first priority is to protect her family, which is a concept that plays a vital role in this novel, but then spends the rest of the novel attempting to escape the KGB. Naturally, action and deception ensue.
Sekret is crafted like a puzzle; all the pieces are given to you, jumbled up in the beginning, but by the end of the book the picture is perfectly clear. Because of this, the first 100 pages or so can be confusing because of the massive amount of information given and characters introduced in a small time frame. Don't let this turn you away: everything starts to make sense as the novel progresses. Characters become unique and differentiable, questions are answered, and the plot becomes clear. I appreciate that this book is written with an intelligent audience in mind. Smith assumes her readers have a common knowledge about Communist Russia, and that if they don't know something, they will look it up (what a concept). Smith also does not feel the need to reiterate plot points and is able to drop subtle foreshadowing hints without giving the twists away, which is something that many YA authors have failed to master. I guessed one of the plot twists (yay!) but it was because I actually used my brain to figure it out, not because it was spelled out in the text.
Disclaimer: There is a love triangle, but it is not overbearing. It almost doesn't even feel like a love triangle because it is obvious who Yulia wants to be with and there is evident chemistry between her and that specific character. The romance is really sweet and extremely interesting with the psychic dynamic, but definitely takes second stage to the plot. I really like Yulia's love interest and the complexity of his character. In fact, all the characters are wonderful and complex and add to the story in some way, even if it doesn't seem like they will from the beginning.
Overall, Sekret is a fantastically written novel that is engrossing, thrilling, and deceptive. This book will require you to think, but if you are willing to put in the effort, I believe you will find it extremely enjoyable! I highly recommend Sekret and am looking forward to reading Skandal as soon as I can get my hands on a copy!
October 13, 2013
Note: I received an ARC from Net Galley in exchange for a fair review.
Teens with abilities in boarding school. It's a fairly popular sub-genre for Young Adult lit (Harry Potter, Hex Hall, Vampire Academy, etc.) and it makes sense: it's automatically exotic because most of us never go to a true boarding school. And by setting them in a boarding school, you can set the story outside the world that we all know. And because it's outside the world we know, it's an easy way to get in your witches, your fae, your vampires and so forth. And ultimately, that makes them fun.
Sekret is unique because although there are powers (the children her are all psychic), this book is firmly set in reality: the biggest threat is the threat of within: the KGB. They are the ones that have taken in our heroine and are training her to use her powers and teach her the art of spycraft and they are the ones that will be the first to hurt her if she doesn't do as they say.
She is more or less alone in this school. There is Sergei; a boy who has more or less decided that he likes the gilded cage that being an obedient Party member creates for him. Larissa is much like Yulina - she has family to look out for, while twins Maria and Mikhail buy the party line hook line and sinker and are absolutely loyal to the state. Every time she tries to let her guard down, something happens to make it throw it back up. Lindsay does a fantastic job of building up a sense of paranoia and dread.
You also get a great sense for what it might be like to live in early 1960s Russia. The punishment if you fail the party, but also how that buys the loyalty of the people: a television set for spying on a classmate; help studying for the entrance exam to the top university in the USSR; a place on a hockey team. It's just something we can't comprehend and I always like books that can immerse me in this manner.
If you're looking for something unique, give the one a shot. I think you'll be glad you did.
Verdict: Buy It.
Teens with abilities in boarding school. It's a fairly popular sub-genre for Young Adult lit (Harry Potter, Hex Hall, Vampire Academy, etc.) and it makes sense: it's automatically exotic because most of us never go to a true boarding school. And by setting them in a boarding school, you can set the story outside the world that we all know. And because it's outside the world we know, it's an easy way to get in your witches, your fae, your vampires and so forth. And ultimately, that makes them fun.
Sekret is unique because although there are powers (the children her are all psychic), this book is firmly set in reality: the biggest threat is the threat of within: the KGB. They are the ones that have taken in our heroine and are training her to use her powers and teach her the art of spycraft and they are the ones that will be the first to hurt her if she doesn't do as they say.
She is more or less alone in this school. There is Sergei; a boy who has more or less decided that he likes the gilded cage that being an obedient Party member creates for him. Larissa is much like Yulina - she has family to look out for, while twins Maria and Mikhail buy the party line hook line and sinker and are absolutely loyal to the state. Every time she tries to let her guard down, something happens to make it throw it back up. Lindsay does a fantastic job of building up a sense of paranoia and dread.
You also get a great sense for what it might be like to live in early 1960s Russia. The punishment if you fail the party, but also how that buys the loyalty of the people: a television set for spying on a classmate; help studying for the entrance exam to the top university in the USSR; a place on a hockey team. It's just something we can't comprehend and I always like books that can immerse me in this manner.
If you're looking for something unique, give the one a shot. I think you'll be glad you did.
Verdict: Buy It.
November 1, 2013
"An empty mind is a safe mind."
Yulia and her family are on the run! Hiding from the KGB forces in Russia, and treating poor injured people with smuggled drugs. Its not long before Yulia and her family are captured. Their father is on the run, her mother is brainwashed and forced to work, and her brother is put in a mental home. Yulia is stuck in an old building running the Psychic Program. Yulia and the rest of the household poses the power to read others minds, whether by touch, seeing into the future, or completely wiping out someones memory. If Yulia doesn't co-operate, the KGB will do far worse things to her family that she could ever imagine. Will she attempt to flee, or will she become a spy for the KGB forces?
Such an interesting book, filled with history, power and love. This book started out a little slow, but it definitely picked up mid-point in the "romance" and "action" aspects of the story. There was tons of twists and turns that always kept you guessing. Who was good? Who was bad? Who can you trust?.. I am very pleased with the way this book ended. It had the perfect ending, no cliffhanger that makes you die waiting for the next book, but you could definitely tell that the sequel will be interesting. I loved the Russian words incorporated in the story line, I personally loved them because I could understand most of them, but for all of you who don't understand the basics of the language, I would highly recommend having google translator open up beside you when you read, there's not too much that you'd have to translate, just a few words here and there, but it would definitely make the story better. Same with the Russian history, I feel like people who don't know the history very well, would either have to read up on it, or they just wouldn't enjoy the book as much.
Either way, this was a great read, and I would definitely recommend it to the Russian lovers, and fantasy geeks like me!
Happy Reading !
Yulia and her family are on the run! Hiding from the KGB forces in Russia, and treating poor injured people with smuggled drugs. Its not long before Yulia and her family are captured. Their father is on the run, her mother is brainwashed and forced to work, and her brother is put in a mental home. Yulia is stuck in an old building running the Psychic Program. Yulia and the rest of the household poses the power to read others minds, whether by touch, seeing into the future, or completely wiping out someones memory. If Yulia doesn't co-operate, the KGB will do far worse things to her family that she could ever imagine. Will she attempt to flee, or will she become a spy for the KGB forces?
Such an interesting book, filled with history, power and love. This book started out a little slow, but it definitely picked up mid-point in the "romance" and "action" aspects of the story. There was tons of twists and turns that always kept you guessing. Who was good? Who was bad? Who can you trust?.. I am very pleased with the way this book ended. It had the perfect ending, no cliffhanger that makes you die waiting for the next book, but you could definitely tell that the sequel will be interesting. I loved the Russian words incorporated in the story line, I personally loved them because I could understand most of them, but for all of you who don't understand the basics of the language, I would highly recommend having google translator open up beside you when you read, there's not too much that you'd have to translate, just a few words here and there, but it would definitely make the story better. Same with the Russian history, I feel like people who don't know the history very well, would either have to read up on it, or they just wouldn't enjoy the book as much.
Either way, this was a great read, and I would definitely recommend it to the Russian lovers, and fantasy geeks like me!
Happy Reading !
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