Violet Eyes [Mass Market Paperback]

Nicole Luiken (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2, 2001

"I'm the Idea Girl, the one who can always think of something to do."

Angel Eastland knows she's different. It's not just her violet eyes that set her apart. She's smarter than her classmates and more athletically gifted. Her only real competition is Michael Vallant, who also has violet eyes -- eyes that tell her they're connected, in a way she can't figure out.

Michael understands Angel. He knows her dreams, her nightmares, and her most secret fears. Together they begin to realize that nothing around them is what it seems. Someone is watching them, night and day. They have just one desperate chance to escape, one chance to find their true destiny, but their enemies are powerful -- and will do anything to stop them.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Despite Luiken's intriguing premise, she leaves too many unanswered questions to completely pull off this science fiction story. Angel Eastland, a feisty 17-year-old, knows something is going on in the town of Chinchaga. After she meets Mike, who shares her violet eyes and quick brain, she eventually realizes that they are somehow linked, and teams up with him to discover the truth about her town. Though the mystery is slow to unfold, Luiken drops well-placed hints ("Did you know him Before?... Or should I say After? Get it?" Angel's friend asks her after they meet Mike). Actually, the year is 2098, and Angel and Mike are among a few surviving genetically improved children born under the secret government project, Renaissance. (Another clever touch: the names of the Renaissance babies connect [Mike + Angel = Michelangelo].) Chinchaga is an elaborate Historical Immersion class made to resemble life in 1987, and Angel and Mike seem to be the only two who have never seen life outside. They decide to escape, but the project leader, Dr. Frank, is just as determined to stop them. Unfortunately, Luiken uses clunky psychoanalysis to clarify some mysteries, such as the reason behind Dr. Frank's cruelty (he was jealous of his handsome younger brother), and never fully explains others. The Historical Immersion class seems too complicated to be believed, and, despite many suspenseful moments along the way, Luiken's novel does not quite succeed in transporting readers back to the future. Ages 12-up. (Jan).

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-12. Angel Eastman is a mediocre student living in Canada in 1987--at least that's what it seems. But in this futuristic novel, nothing is quite what it appears to be. When Angel meets Michael Vallant, a boy she hates without knowing why, the mystery slowly starts to unravel: it's not really 1987, it's 2089; and Michael and Angel are part of the Renaissance Project, an experiment with genetic engineering. They've been kept as test subjects in a museum that replicates late-twentieth-century life. The superhuman teens band together to try and discover what's going on, including who would rather kill them than let them know the truth. At times the plot seems unnecessarily convoluted, and characters and subplots are dropped in and out of the story at random. In general, though, this provides a light, entertaining read that may help interest students in the timely topic. Marta Segal
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 13 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Simon Pulse; First Thus edition (January 2, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743400771
• ISBN-13: 978-0743400770
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #363,463 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What color are your eyes?, January 28, 2001

By 

Clarissa (Harvey, LA Harvey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Violet Eyes (Mass Market Paperback)

Angel Eastland is different. She always has been. And not just because of her violet eyes, either. She lives in Canada, in the year 1987, at least that's what she's been led to believe. Angel hated Michael Vallant for nine years before she met him. She always had to move every couple of years, but no matter where she went Michael Vallant was there before. So when Angel moved to a town where no one had heard of him, she was thrilled. Until he moved there while she was still there. Angel and Mike immediately start a war with each other, until their common goal brings them together. Escape, ever since they were little Angel and Mike have both wanted out. So when they finally start working together they finally figure out what's been going on. It turns out that the year is actually 2098, and that they are a subspecies of humans. And when a doctor who wants to sell Angel and Mike to the highest bidder decides they aren't worth the trouble, they have to play his games in order to save another of their kind from death. I really liked this book and can't wait for the sequel, Silver Eyes. We really should have known more about Angel sooner since it was from her POV, but not knowing made the book more interesting. The author has a website at http://www.geocities.com/nmluiken/ if you're interested.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A pretty good science fiction thriller for teens., January 19, 2001

By 

Rebecca Herman (USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Violet Eyes (Mass Market Paperback)

Angel Eastland is a sixteen-year-old girl growing up in Canada in what she believes in the year 1987. She has never lived in one town for more than a few years, and although her parents are loving, she has always suspected that something strange is going on. And she has always been jealous of Michael Vallant, the boy she never met but who always had been in every town she moved to, but had moved away a year before she arrived. But finally, Angel and Michael's paths collide - and cause a shocking discovery. It's really the late 21st century, and Angel and Michael are among the few survivors of a group of genetically engineered children that the public hated enough to attempt to destroy them completely. And now the twisted scientist who created the children 17 years ago is determined to capture Angel and Michael to use as pawns in his evil scheme. I might have given this book five stars except for the fact that at times it was confusing, and some things in the book seemed to contradict others. For example, Angel is the narrator, and we know her thoughts from early on. No thought of her special abilities are mentioned until halfway through the novel, when she suddenly is revealed to have always known she was different. The novel is still enjoyable, however - it just could have used a little bit more effort to make things mesh together.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Incredible Novel, June 3, 2004

By 

Mary (Longmont, Co USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Violet Eyes (Mass Market Paperback)

This novel takes you on the incredible journey of Angel Eastland and Micheal Vallant as they discover more and more about the world they live in and the truths that have been held from them for so long. As the novel twists and turns Angel finds out more and more and you begin to understand things at the same pace, or even a little bit behind Angel. This style of writing is what makes the novel so intriguing. As you come to find that Angel and Micheal aren't where they think they are and that they aren't who they think they are you get twisted into their world. The plot continues to grow in complexity as the story continues and by the end everything fits, even tiny details that are scattered throughout the book, things you wouldn't even look twice at. This is one of those books that is even better the second time you read it because you catch more and more of the details and you can add missing pieces to the seemingly finished puzzle. I promise you, this is a page turner and a true masterpiece with it's mix of romance, action, mystery, and drama.