Aversion by Kenechi Udogu

For Gemma Green’s first time, things should have been straightforward. Find your subject, hold their gaze and push a thought into their head to save them from future disaster – Aversion complete. A pretty simple process given that the subject was to have no recollection of the experience. But Russ Tanner doesn’t seem to want to forget. In fact the more she tries to avoid him, the more he pushes to get to know her. Gemma knows she has a problem but is she facing the side effects of a failed Aversion or has the school’s tennis champ really fallen for her?

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My Review

 out of 5

There are some things I really liked about this story.  The premise is unique, and I could tell there was some strong worldbuilding going on behind the scenes.  I liked the main character Gemma, and I was rooting for her.  The fact that the plot gets rolling through her actions (keeping things vague to avoid spoilers,) is also something I haven't seen in much of the fantasy I've read.  Something else usually kicks off the plot, and the protag gets sucked in one way or another.  Points for all of that.

There were problems, however.  Some of the prose and dialogue felt unnatural and stilted, which didn't seem to come from Gemma's isolated upbringing.  The novel needed better editing to remove unnecessary words and clunky phrasing.  It made it difficult at times to immerse myself into the story, because I would stumble on a word or phrase and have to start reading again.

The content editing was weak as well.  Plot points would be dropped in with no transition or connection.  Plot events happened rather fast at certain points, especially the end, which left me unsatisfied.  It all happened so fast, and rather conveniently.  How the main character does what she does and why it's possible are not well set up or explained.  And the final twist at the end, with Gemma and her father, felt forced.   

All in all, this was a light, romantic read, with an interesting premise and a likable main character.  The writing and plotting needed work, but I think the author has potential.  I plan to check out the sequel, Sentient, to see where Gemma's story goes.