Refreshing and a quick read overall. I'm not sure I would go to great lengths to call it a must read but I definitely enjoyed this dystopian world and the fresh perspective Swain infused into the genre. Of course it wasn't completely trope free, but that makes books convoluted and boring if they try too hard to be 100% fresh. Overall a great read.

This was okay but it felt like it took forever for things to get interesting!

In the future, talent is bought, not naturally born. The scions of the wealthy elite under go ASA, a procedure that develops their genius-like talent. Orpheus, whose father developed the surgery, is being pressured to undergo the procedure, but is reluctant after it ruined his sister’s mind.

Orpheus runs off, seeking refuge with assembly line packing workers, and coming into the life of Zimri, a girl who has natural talent and performs guerrilla music shows much like her outlaw mother. As the two teens connect, they both find they have much in common, the goal to produce art that is real and not manufactured.

Pub date June 14 2016