[Book Review] Freak of Nature

Freak of Nature
Author: Julia Crane
Date Published: February 2, 2013
Publisher: Valknut Press
Genre: New Adult, Sci-Fi, Contemporary Romance

Links:

Goodreads // Amazon // Barnes & Noble

Book Info:

Donate Body to Science. Check. 

When seventeen-year-old Kaitlyn checked the box, she never suspected she’d have her life–and her body–stolen from her. She awakens one day in a secret laboratory to discover that her body is now half-robot and is forced to hide her own secret: that she still has human emotions and a human mind. If the scientists who made her find out, they’ll erase what remains of who she was. 

Kaitlyn finds an unlikely ally in Lucas, a handsome, brilliant scientist who can’t get over the guilt he feels knowing she was once a vibrant, beautiful young woman. He never expected a science project to affect him the way she does. As he tries to help her rediscover her past, he finds himself falling for the brave girl struggling to find her place and acceptance between the human and computer worlds.

Rating:

★★★★★

Review:
Science fiction and romance -- a surreal combination!

Just to clarify, this isn't the first book I've ever read about a part-machine, part-human character falling in love with an ordinary human, which is to say that the plot and concept isn't exactly new. I would have given the book I higher rating if it weren't a little mediocre. It didn't stand out that much to me and there was really very little conflict involved.

First of all, I think that Kaitlyn simply breezed through everything. I mean, I don't know, she was too perfect in my opinion. Sure, I get that she's part machine and that her artificial parts made her the perfect weapon in terms of intelligence, agility and strength, but I was looking for more depth in her character as a person. I was hoping that there would be a strong inner conflict within Kaitlyn when she got her memories back, especially with the guy she fell in love with in her past life.

Also, I was still hoping that the human part of her would still want to be with her old family. The author made it appear that Kaitlyn considered the logical implications if she decided to come back to her old life, but she didn't really count the emotional undertones. I mean, it's one thing to know that your reappearance would really hit the people you love, but it's also one thing to want to return and re-connect with them, which is more of an emotional thing rather than a logical thing. I was hoping that Kaitlyn would at least show a little conflict between her logical reasoning and her emotional want to reconnect with her family because this is one aspect of being humane, but Kaitlyn simply brushed it off.

As for the conflicts, they were mostly minor. I would have wanted something stronger because we have such a strong heroine. I didn't like how they dealt with the man who funded Kaitlyn's project. I was hoping he'd be a little pain and not at all easy to deal with because he spent millions on her. It would've been fun if Kaitlyn was able to use her advanced parts to evade her maker while at the same time, kick the butts of bad-guys. What's the use of being stronger, faster and smarter if you can't use it to save the world? I mean that would totally be my thing since it's going to be all action and suspense.

Lastly, the romance aspect just didn't work for me. It felt forced and bland. It would have felt a little more natural if Lucas treated Kaitlyn like a normal human and spent abnormally long periods of time with her. Still though, this book was a great way to kill some time.