Wen knows what love looks like. Since her mom died over a year ago, she’s seen it every day on her orphaned younger brother’s face. Wen’s made good on her promise to her mom that she’d take care of Ezra, even quitting her carefree party-girl ways to become a hard-working college student so she can provide for him.
Wen knows what love feels like, too. Because when she touches people, she feels what they do. "Uniquely perceptive" is what her mom called it, and Wen’s not going to argue; she doesn’t know any different.
But an energy therapy study changes not only what Wen knows about her unusual gift; it also changes her. Now, instead of feeling emotions, her touch brings death to others. No one is safe around her, especially Ezra.
Wen turns to energy healers for help. And that’s where she meets him: Mr. Tenacious and Audacious, Gabe Dumas. He knows about love, too; he speaks it in ways Wen has never experienced. And he’s never even touched her.
With her heart unravelling, Wen discovers a world only she can see. It may offer hope for her condition… or it may be better left hidden. *Intended for 16 and up
Overall rating: 4.5 stars
Colorworld is an inventive and imaginative debut novel, with a lot of insight into the characters emotionally, which is to be expected when your main character/narrator is able to sense the emotions of others. And after an energy therapy session, Wendy finds that she doesn't need to touch somebody to get a read on their emotions, thus the regular reference to her emodar (emotional radar). Clever, right?
I found Wendy to be a good protagonist. She wasn't whiny and any indecisiveness on her part was rational instead of annoying. In many ways she seemed older than her nineteen years, probably on account of taking care of her younger brother Ezra since their mother's death a year earlier.
I actually loved Gabriel. Maybe it was the old-fashioned way he spoke or how intelligent he was, but I was drawn to him. It was also nice that he was completely honest about pursuing Wendy's affections, but that when she needed it he gave her the space she needed to figure things out. He worked to help her and ended up inspiring her, instead of trying to control her. By the end I can honestly believe that their relationship is built on honesty, trust, and respect.
Because of Wendy's emodar and her other heightened senses, there is a lot of description for the characters, settings, and emotions of everyone around her. It is an interesting way to develop the world and those who inhabit it, and was done in a way that wasn't too much of an infodump. I could honestly believe that it was just how Wendy observed and processed her surroundings.
From the beginning you get the feeling that something dastardly is going on with Pneumatikon, the company Wendy visits for the energy therapy session. Going to the compound/camp and meeting others who have developed special skills allows us to meet a number of characters who mostly have very little to do with the story. In fact there are several people who are only mentioned a couple times. The important ones are Gabe, Kaylen, and Louise, really. There's a couple other halfway important secondary characters, but they aren't super necessary.
And like Wendy, I wondered about her long-lost Uncle Robert's motives when he sends her a letter out of nowhere in the beginning practically demanding a meeting with her and her brother. It turns out there is a reason for it, though you don't learn the details until pretty much the end of the book.
Colorworld has a decent pace, even if it doesn't have a lot of action. Most of the book is spent on character development. What I take from that is that now that we know the world and the characters, the second book can ramp up on the action, the intrigue, and learning more about the mysteries of the colorworld and Wendy's talents with it. I'm looking forward to reading more.
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