Tag Archives: suffocate

Review: Suffocate by S.R. Johannes (@srjohannes)

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I won a digital copy of Suffocate, Book 1 in The Breathless Novelette series by S.R. Johannes, in a giveaway (fancy that, me winning a giveaway)! I read it one lazy Sunday afternoon when I wanted something quick and exciting to occupy my brain. I hadn’t ventured much into the world of novelettes prior to this, but this one sounded like a lot of fun.

Since I’m bad at writing summaries that are short, and since this is a review of a novelette and I don’t want my review to be longer than the book itself, I’m copying the blurb from Goodreads:

The Plot

“For centuries, the world outside the Biome has been unlivable. Today, marks the first time anyone will attempt to leave the suffocating ecosphere. Eria is not worried because her scientist father has successfully tested the new Bio-Suit many times. It’s a celebratory day until something goes horribly wrong. In the midst of tragedy, Eria uncovers a deep conspiracy in her perfect bubble. If those responsible find out what she knows, they won’t stop hunting her until she takes her last breath.”

My Thoughts

If novels are like a television series or mini-series, a novelette is like a single episode. Suffocate didn’t waste any time in getting to the heart of the story: a terrible accident, and Eria’s frantic search to discover what went wrong, accompanied by her father’s intern, Ash. As they search through the mysterious innards of the Biome for the truth, they are pursued by mysterious baddies, and lots of crazy sci-fi discoveries are made amidst nonstop action. There’s even a brief moment of romance squeezed in. And then it winds up with a great twist ending that I kind of suspected (but not really).

This book was fun, fast and furious. I liked reading about the world of the Biome, and even though the book is short, the world-building was decent and the pacing was good. I never felt like I was being rushed or that the story was being crammed into a too-small space; this is just one of those stories that didn’t need 100,000 words to tell it properly.

If you’re looking for a quick, exciting sci-fi read to fill a couple hours by the pool or on a rainy day, I’d recommend picking this one up!

Content Guide: Contains violence, death

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? (May 28)

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey to help us keep tabs on our reading goals for the week, and to also help us discover new books.

Also, Happy Memorial Day! My heartfelt thanks goes out to all the men and women who have fought or are currently fighting for my family’s freedom and safety. Additional thanks if you have or have had friends or family in the armed services.

So this is week 2 of my Dystopiaganza! I actually mostly finished my books from last week – only exception is I still need to finish The Knife of Never Letting Go (which I’m now thinking is not actually a dystopian…but I started it, and it’s interesting, so now I need to finish it). So that will happen this week.

In addition, this week I’m planning to tackle:

The Selection by Kiera Cass. After finishing The Maze Runner, which was like 400 pages of pure adrenaline, a pretty and romantic dystopian sounds very refreshing.

And, if I can get them in my possession, I would also like to read:

Starters by Lissa Price. I’ve got to be honest – this cover is not doing a thing for me. But I’ve heard the book is great, in spite of the bad cover.

Partials by Dan Wells. I’ve had this book described to me as Hunger Games meets Battlestar Galactica, and since those are two of my favorite things, I’ve been anxious to read this one for a while.

Only problem is, I don’t actually have either of those last two books in my possession…yet. I am hoping to acquire them both this week, but that is dependent on money and stuff, since my library has pretty much nothing in the New Releases category.

I’ll also be squeezing in:

Suffocate by S.R. Johannes. This is just a novelette, so it should go pretty fast, and it sounds like a really fun little read.

Happy Monday everyone! What are you reading this week?