Mini Reviews: Novellas by Beth Revis, Debra Driza and J.Meyers

I've finally tackled some free novellas that were sitting on my ereader. It's interesting how different all of them were in regard to when they were published in relation to the original novels and for whom they're intended...but lets review the novellas first, and discuss that at the end.

As They Slip Away by Beth Revis

Goodreads | download from Scribd

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm a huge fan of the Across the Universe series by Beth Revis and I was psyched to see that Shades of Earth won't be the last I'll read from this series. This story was so much more than I expected. It's obviously intended for readers who have read at least the first two books in the series because  not only is it about characters who have smaller roles, but there are also hints at large revelations that take place in Across the Universe and A Million Suns, and if you haven't read these, some things in the novella won't make sense to you.

This story is about the "loons"-Selene, Luthor, Barty, Victria, Kayleigh and Harley, all of which I loved. With the exception of Luthor, of course-but in As They Slip Away I gained more insight into his personality and almost felt sympathy for him too.

It's a sad story, if you remember who Selene was, how she ended and what Luthor is infamous for. The "perfect" order on Godspeed rears its ugly head again....

Fans of Beth Revis' trilogy will devour this novella. If you're like me and can't get enough of Godspeed, As they Slip Away will feel like returning home.

Intuition by J. Meyers

Goodreads | get it from Amazon

My rating: 3.5 stars

I've read Intangible first for a review and my favorite part of the novel was the interaction between Luke and Sera. As twins, they have a unique bond, enhanced by the fact that they both have special abilities that the world cannot know about. This short story is about a hiking trip they go to together, before the events in Intangible.  J. Meyers weaves into it all the relevant elements from Intangible: their bond, Sera's healing, Luke's visions, and the fear that someone would find out. This particular vision is different, and if you've read Intangible (or this novella) you know why this one is the scariest vision Luke's ever had. That vision is further explained in Intangible, and I loved seeing the moment when it first appeared.

Intuition is a great introduction if you're thinking about reading Intangible (as you should!)

Origins: The Fire by Debra Driza

Goodreads | Amazon

My rating: 2.5 stars

Well, to be completely honest, I didn't get much from this novella. I've had my eye on Mila 2.0 for a while now anyway, but if the purpose of this novella was to get us excited about the book, I'm not sure it succeeded. Not with the writing, nor the story...
Mila 2.0 is published in March first, and (unless you were lucky to read an ARC) there's no way we know anything about the events or characters...basically, I didn't know why I should care.

The actual novella is only fifteen pages long, the rest is a few sample chapters from Mila 2.0. I like these much better. Instead of this novella, better read a sample from Amazon or such.

Not bad, but rather pointless if the sample chapters do a much better job at enticing you to buy the book.

So, you see now. There was a hit-Beth Revis pulling her fans back into a world they love, a miss-Mila that doesn't do anything and an inbetween -Intuition that serves its purpose and stages an introduction for you to decide whether Intangible is something you'd like to read or not.

What do you think about accompanying novellas and short stories? Do you prefer to read them before or after the "real thing"?