Different (Tainted Elements Book 1)

I received a free copy of this novel from Librarything in exchange for an honest review. Like most YA books I was pretty sure I knew what was going to happen from the first few chapters, this one did have different things that I didn't see coming but still I expected a lot of it. While this book had it's moments it ultimately wasn't for me.

Different is based in a world where everyone has an element, one element, like fire or water, but there are weaker sub-elements like mist or whirlwind. Not everyone has great control over their element but Moria does, she has great control over her element air. Yet she longs for a second element which everyone tells her is not possible. But then blue fire starts coming out of her. Could this be a second element or is she developing magic disease like her father. A disease that makes it so you can't use your element and you want to steal everyone else's element. So for her protection they take her to an island where a lot of dangerous people with magic disease live. There she meet's someone that could have the answers to her escalating questions.

So the only character that I liked in this story was Jaiden, he was the only one I really connected with but the rest of them I don't really care about. The main character Moria started annoying me really badly in the beginning and it got to the point where everything she did eventually annoyed me. Even if it was the right thing, like she wanted to save her parents, good really good. But she wasn't wiling to wait until a decent plan was made, they had time to come up with one too. So she decided to go in against an unknown enemy with a really bad plan, because brainstorming for a little while longer is a terrible thing. There are other examples too.

There were elements to this story that I liked and they made it different them most YA stories out there, Moria did not just fall in love with the first guy who smiled at her. She actually focused on what she wanted and decided to go with that, even though most of the guys around her are really good looking.

From what I can tell there is a different series before this that I should have probably read before hand to get a better grip on the story but if I hadn't known about it I would've never suspected it. So this can be read without the first series but it's not absolutely necessary.

Different, written by Alycia Linwood, is the first in a planned series, about a young adult girl who lives in a world where everyone has magical powers or elements, well actually, just one element. Those who have more than one element are deemed “tainted” and must be stripped of their elements to avoid becoming uncontrollably violent. Moira, the main character, discovers she has two elements. She falls in with a group who claim they are like her, with more than one element and can teach her. But she is never certain who is telling her the truth: her new found friends, her mother, or the agency her mother works for. Moira’s world begins a descent into dystopia with its threads of governmental conspiracy, genetic tinkering, and evil-doers as Moira tries to escape the grasp of those who would do her harm.

Ms. Linwood tells a solid story with an interesting and intriguing plot, but her story seems to be filled with stock characters who are moved about from plot point to plot point. The narration, as told from the point of view of Moira, is filled with a young teen’s angst of insecurity, love, and betrayal. Tween readers should enjoy this action packed, fast read if they don’t mind the “to be continued” ending.

Alycia has once again built a storyline that promises to be every bit as awesome as The Elemental Preservers Series was. I loved the characters she has introduced us to, & the building of their personalities, & their interactions w/each other. I am usually pretty good at reading the characteristics of each individual in a storyline, & predicting how the story is going to end, but not this time. Alycia really threw a curve ball at us w/the way the book ended. I am actually still in a bit of shock. Definitely a must read. If you haven't read any of the books in The Elementa Preservers Series, I highly recommend reading them first. It's not necessary, but it will give you a clearer sense of some of the characters you will meet, & some of the events that happen in Different. Besides, ALL of the books in The Elemental Preservers Series are REALLY GREAT reads!!!!

'Different' almost reminded me of 'The Last Airbender'. I really liked it. Alycia Linwood knows how to weave a story together and I ended up finishing this within a few days. Moira is eighteen and looking forward to furthering her education. She's got some good friends and has a pretty good handle on her elemental gift/abilities. And then blue fire begins to randomly engulf her arm. The ability is thought to be some sort of genetic mutation, and Moira can't control it. Right away, I felt for Moira, because the new, unchecked ability throws her into a state of chaos and pretty much tears her family apart.
New bonds will be forged, lies will be exposed, and new paths walked as Moira learns that the world can sometimes get a bit complicated. I agree with some of the other reviewers that Jaiden, at times, acted like a real jerk, and the ending is a cliffhanger. Excited to see what happens next.

'Different' by Alycia Linwood for me was different as I'm not fond of fantasy but mystery. There was plenty of mystery, including how the elementals came into being and when they first noticed their abilities. There's a small moment of romance but most of the time the main protagonist, Moira, is trying to get answers. There's plenty of drama as Moira's group fight off an invasion involving her parents, and when they go into the city looking for a brother. Again, Moira is at the centre of Elemontera finding them. I quite enjoyed the story and look forward to the sequel.

Different is the story of Moira, a young elemental raised in a world where healthy Elementals are born with an affinity to one pure Element such as Earth, Air, Fire or Water or a sub element such as mist etc. Only people known as carriers, elementals like Moira’s father who suffer from a magic disease or Preservers can have more than one element. And in the case of the carriers that is because they need to devour other elementals elements. Moira has just discovered she has not one but two elements - and her life will never be the same.

First off let me say that I was absolutely captivated by this book. Alycia Linwood has created a world that is mesmerizing. You just find yourself reading like crazy to find out what will happen next to the point where I often had to tell myself to slow down so that I could savor the events a little more. Moira is such an intriguing character and you want to know more about her and what will become of her. While I absolutely loved the first half of this book I was a little perplexed by the second half. I think that the first half does a wonderful job of introducing us to Moira and her family, giving us some background of this world that we are inhabiting. While the second half definitely builds on that giving us a lot more answers, it also raises way more questions than it answers. So much action is taking place which is thrilling but it feels at times that we are being lead more to the next book than to the end of this one. This is not a bad thing it just leaves you a little off kilter, especially since we go from one major event to the next (often with no real build up or information given after). That said I cannot wait to read the next book in this series and to go back to read the precursor novels. Again I love Moira and I cannot wait to see what will happen to her (not to give anything away but the cliffhanger at the end of this is a big one!). At the same time I cannot wait to see more from her family and her new friends. They are all such intriguing characters and I want to know more about them!!

This is an interesting story of elementals and so far it's not bad. This story of a girl who wasn't told the truth of her father and finding out seems to be scary. As she is hunted by the anti element people life gets complicated

Moira is an elemental, along with many other people in this world. There are people with pure elements, which are considered strong, and sub-elements, which are considered weak. Moira is starting to develop a second pure element: fire. It’s kind of freaking her out because that’s supposed to be unheard of. After traveling to an island where her mom might be able to help find answers, help finds Moira instead. Noah appears out of thin air to tell her there are others like her and that he can help. And so starts the adventure.

With so much to understand about this world, it was tough to figure it out when I had to keep rereading confusing sentences, such as:

“…I could feel myself reaching for it, but I couldn’t feel fire, which obviously didn’t mean I didn’t have it.”

There are many of these sentences with negative contractions throughout the sentence. It just makes it more difficult to read, because I have to keep going back to see that I’m thinking what it means to tell me. It’s just unnecessary when a simpler sentence would do. Also, everyone seems to be licking their lips before they say anything. Is the air dry there? On an island? I don’t think so. I don’t want to keep reading about every single person licking their lips before they need to speak.

Timing was off whenever cooking was involved with dialogue. In one scene, someone starts making pancakes (or french toast in another scene), and dialogue goes back and forth twice and all of a sudden the pancakes (or french toast) is done. What? Not even 30 seconds have gone by! That’s a bit too much liberty with the time there.

So the above issues coupled with the grammar and editing issues left much to be desired. I didn’t even care about the cliffhanger because I just didn’t really care about anyone. I do have to say that I loved the loyalty and trust Moira had towards her parents; that was really commendable and it made her a stronger heroine. But the start of what was looking like a weird love triangle despite the lack of romance amidst the mind control and elementals hunting other elementals, just isn’t really interesting me.

However, because of how much rereading I had to do to make sure I understood this world, it’s tempting to continue on with the series in the hopes it gets stronger. I invested myself enough to understand the world, I might as well give it one more book to see if I’ll really stick around.