What's Left of Me (The Hybrid Chronicles #1)

Okay, so, I know choosing a book by its cover isn't usually a great idea, but I saw this in the library and knew I wanted to read it. The cover is so futuristic and weird (in a good way), and the plot was really different from anything I've read before. I was so excited when I found out that it was a trilogy, and I recommend this book whenever anyone asks for good books to read.

What's Left of Me was basically about a society where every body starts out with two souls, and in most bodies, one soul dies off sometime in their early life. However, some bodies remain with two souls, like the main characters, Eva and Addie (who share a body). This is confusing to explain, but it seems really simple in the book. There is a lot of character development from basically all of the characters, too.

What's Left of Me is one of my favorite books, and I really hope Kat Zhang writes more books besides this trilogy.

What's Left of Me surprised me, it was just brilliant, amazing, awesome and chilling. It has to be one of my favourite books, and I can prove this if you look further up the page to see that I have clicked the "Add to Favourites" button. What's Left of Me has me wanting to see what happens in the next books, not like some other books that have me only mildly interested.

I thought that this book was in our future, but as you progress into the book, it becomes clear that it is around the same time as now, but in a parallel universe. A universe where everyone is born with two souls inside the one body, and by the age of ten, one soul is meant disappear while the other dominates. Well that's what supposed to happen.

Eva is the main character book, but what makes her different to all the other characters in every other book is that she has no control over her body, and is sharing her body with her other soul, Addie. Eva watches through their eyes, and sees Addie live their life, without her. Except in their head, where they communicate. This book makes me think really hard, it seems awful not being able to live, but the way Addie and Eva work together shows that you'll always have someone.

I thought that it was brilliant to have the book told in Eva's point of view. The soul that was shunned and has no control over anything that happens to their body. I thought that she was so strong to keep fighting even when her parents, her friends and even Addie told her to give up, so much stronger than a lot of other protagonists. Eva proves that even if you have nothing, not giving up means losing yourself.

It's really hard to describe what happens in this book, as you can see in my review, that probably makes you more confused than less. I just want to say that this book is beautiful, in every aspect, and shows you that there is always hope, no matter what.

What’s Left of Me is awesome, awesome, awesome. It’s officially one of my favorite books of 2012 and one of the series’ I’ll be impatiently awaiting to hear more from in the future.

For some reason I was kind of thinking of What’s Left of Me as a dystopian before I started, but it’s more scifi dealing with an alternate universe where having two souls just happens to be normal. Well, normal until you’re about 10 years-old, at least. It’s one thing to think of this world in an abstract way, but Zhang writes it in such a way that it feels so real I was occasionally feeling like my head was a little too empty. Kat Zhang has created a fantastically beautiful and complicated world in What’s Left of Me.

This book made me think and made me feel. What would it be like to have someone ALWAYS there sharing your mind? My reflex is to say it’d be terrible, but Addie and Eva make me stop and rethink. It’s hard sometimes, of course, but in the end they love each other and are always conscious of one another’s feelings.

I loved viewing the story from Eva’s point of view. The reader gets to feel the pain and loneliness of being pushed aside and forgotten. Of never being spoken of or spoken to. Of having no one and nothing in the world but your other half. Of you’re very existence being against everything you’ve been told your whole life.
But the reader also gets to feel the joy of a journey towards being remembered,.

The Nutshell: I could never hope to express the awesome beauty that is What’s Left of Me in one small review, but hopefully I’ve at least gotten you interested. If you’re looking for something with emotion, beauty, secrets, and an original story then go read this book NOW.

Direct Hit

I loved the concept of what's left of me and Zhang pulled it off wonderfully.
I enjoyed getting to know Eva and Addie, their similarities and differences. They were more different than I would have expected since I was picturing identical twins in the same body.
It was neat though how they communicated and how they had distinct personalities as well as approaches to the challenges they were faced with.
There was lots of character development along with a plot that kept me turning the pages and anxious to know what would happen next and how they would possibly get themselves our out the next pickle.
The secondary characters were also well done. I loved the suspense of Lissa and Devon and what their motivations were and watching their relationship with Addie and Eva grow.
There was always something going on, with surprising twists and characters that I didn't expect what they did as well as help from unexpected places. I was always looking for a few extra minutes to read and always wanting just a few more pages.
I will definitely continue this series and recommend it for fans of dystopia and science fiction.
Bottom line: Great plot, characters that I felt for and amazing premise.