A Thousand Pieces of You

A THOUSAND PIECES OF YOU (Firebird #1)

Written by Claudia Gray

Published by Harper Teen, November 4, 2014

My star rating: 5 stars

THE SYNOPSIS:

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their groundbreaking achievements. Their most astonishing invention, called the Firebird, allows users to jump into multiple universes—and promises to revolutionize science forever. But then Marguerite’s father is murdered, and the killer—her parent’s handsome, enigmatic assistant Paul— escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite refuses to let the man who destroyed her family go free. So she races after Paul through different universes, always leaping into another version of herself. But she also meets alternate versions of the people she knows—including Paul, whose life entangles with hers in increasingly familiar ways. Before long she begins to question Paul’s guilt—as well as her own heart. And soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is far more sinister than she expected. Find it on Goodreads

MY REVIEW:

WOW! Have you ever had one of those books that sat on your shelf for years because you thought it would just be “MEH”? You knew you would like it but you didn’t think you would love it. But, when you finally read it, you kick yourself for being a giant idiot. That’s the story of my life right now lol.

As soon as I read the first chapter I was hooked. This is one of these books that starts off with a bang and keeps the momentum going. The pace in this book was fantastic. The action and mystery came in waves and never seemed to stop. There was never a time where I was bored or wondering what was going to happen next. In fact, it was the opposite! I would wish to stay in a dimension for a little longer! I would fall in love with the world and the characters and want to stay with them, but I was trust into a new dimension to follow along on the adventure.

Our main character Marguerite is the daughter of two scientists that created the Firebird. This device is used to travel to other dimensions. Some are close to the same while others are so vastly different. Technology in different dimensions progressed at different speeds. Some are far more advanced than our own time, while others progressed at a much slower rate. The thing is, you can’t travel to a dimension where you don’t exist. Meaning if you’re gone or not even born in a world, you can’t travel there. The fact that we were brought to so many other dimensions speaks to the authors ability to world build. We saw a high tech London, an ancient Russia, a world torn apart with characters living in the ocean…. all of them were so different from each other! The world building was so descriptive! We knew exactly what they wore, how they lived, what the society was like….. everything! But here’s where her writing abilities really shine – each world just “felt” different. The more modern worlds had a busy high society feel, Russia had an old world, relaxed, and royal feel. What I’m trying to say is that each dimension that the characters visited had it’s own tone so it was easy to take your mind out of the last place and adjust to the new along with the character. This was brilliant!!!

As I learned about the dimensions I was actually worried for what this would mean for the character development. When a person travels, they take the body of themselves in that dimension. So they never really know what the version of them will be like. They still remain the same person/soul in a way, but there are differences that, if they’re not careful, can create problems, get themselves caught, or mess up the lives of the version of themselves in that world. Luckily, the character development was wonderful! It was really fun to read about the differences between each person and dimension. It was also interesting to see the similarities and what engrained in their souls as a person. Each new dimension helped them see and grow, changing their perspectives in the long run.

So, basically what I’m saying, is that this was a brilliantly written book that I enjoyed immensely! There were so many unique elements brought to the table and they were written expertly. If this had been written any differently it could have fallen flat or been confusing. But it ended up being a wild ride that had me at the edge of my seat the entire time! I CAN NOT WAIT to start book 2!!!

Until next time, happy reading!