Grace by Elizabeth Scott

Published: Sept 2010

Publisher: Dutton

Pages: 208

Copy Provided by: Library

Summary: Goodreads



Summary:

Grace was raised to be an Angel, a herald of death by suicide bomb. But she refuses to die for the cause, and now Grace is on the run, daring to dream of freedom. In search of a border she may never reach, she travels among malevolent soldiers on a decrepit train crawling through the desert. Accompanied by the mysterious Kerr, Grace struggles to be invisible, but the fear of discovery looms large as she recalls the history and events that delivered her uncertain fate.

Told in spare, powerful prose by acclaimed author Elizabeth Scott, this tale of a dystopian near future will haunt readers long after they've reached the final page.

Review
I loved Living Dead Girl and was so excited about Grace coming out.  Elizabeth Scott has a wonderful way with words and whether she writes simply or uses a more descriptive tone, her books always seem to pack a powerful punch and drive home a gripping message.

I really hate doing this but I read the first 50 pages and just couldn't get into the story.  From the summary, I think I was expecting one thing and it delivered something else.  I'm still wondering if I was even understanding the story.  From my understanding of the first 50 pages (and I could be totally off base here), I was picturing a suicide bomber that was trained to die and die for the greater good.  She was raised to believe that this was her duty and is looking at her life choices.  Themes coming to mind were freedom, choices and consequences.  I was having flashbacks to 9-11 and it was making me feel uncomfortable and very emotional.  I've been reading other reviews of Grace and it seems that everyone has different interpretations.  Granted, I didn't finish reading the entire novel but it definitely got my my mind going. 

I really do think you should give Grace a go.  With Scott's writing style her words seem to flow from the page and I feel that she is very gifted at creating a mood....I just wasn't sure if I was interpreting it in the way it was meant to be.  As always, I would love to hear what others thought of this book.  Maybe I'm just not in the right headspace?  Hate to say it but here goes - Grace, I'm sorry but I'm just not into you.  I came across the best picture for our 'did not finish' titles.  It's the book graveyard.  I may come to pay my respects to you at a later date....

Here Lies Grace

(photo was found from a post done by Booklist Online)