10. Incarceron

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

Summary: Incarceron is a living prison composed of metal forest. It was designed to keep prisoners inside with no hope of escape. Finn is such a prisoner who cannot remember his past and dreams of the Outside world. On a raid mission he discovers a key that could unlock, not only his past, by possibly the prison. He discovers the legend of Sapphique, the only man to escape Incarceron, and realize his dreams could be reality. With the help from Claudia, a girl on the Outside, Finn embarks on the journey of his life.

Review: This book captured my attention for the first page to the last, but sometimes I felt like the story was getting nowhere. The different story lines kept jumping around and crisscrossing, which created mild confusion. The pages, at times, seemed to drag on like the book was writing as I was reading. However, Fisher managed to keep me engaged because of the captivating story.

Despite the fact I could predict the ending by the fourth chapter in, I kept reading. I enjoy the journey a book takes me on, even if I know the outcome. However, Fisher surprised me close to the end with a twist I did not see coming. This made me question my earlier theory, almost like Fisher lured me into a trap just so she could prove me wrong.

I enjoy the contrast of Victorian London to the modern technology age. The characters were bound by law to only exist in a certain century. However, devices such as dishwashers and the internet did exist. This aspect raised some interesting questions and created an entrancing world. It was the perfect balance between fantasy and science fiction.

The characters were unique to an extent. I felt like their base personalities were a mess of stereotypes with a little extra. This, combined with the predictable plot, makes the book unimpressive. However, I would read it again for the world and the descriptive language, which was outstanding.

In conclusion, Incarceron was an okay read, with an ending that frustrated me. I felt that Finn achieved nothing. His entire journey had been in vain. He became nowhere close to discovering who he was, in fact I would argue he is now more confusion about his past. He also managed to escape one prison, just to be bond my different laws in another prison. I guess freedom is not something everyone can achieve.

<3 Kitty