Review: Rippler by Cidney Swanson

Title: Rippler
Author: Cidney Swanson
Publication date: May 26th 2011
Age group: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Cover rating: 4/5
Content rating: 5/5
Buy: Amazon

Description:

Samantha Ruiz has a freak gene that turns her invisible. She can’t control it, and it’s getting worse. Afraid of becoming a lab-rat, Sam keeps her ability secret, until fellow runner Will Baker sees her vanish into thin air. Will promises secrecy and help, and Sam begins to fall in love.

Together, the two discover there are worse things than being a scientific curiosity. Someone’s been killing people who possess Sam's gene. A mysterious man from France sends letters that offer hope for safety, but also reveal a sinister connection with Nazi experiments.

The more time Sam spends with Will, the less she can imagine life without him. When Sam uncovers secrets from her past, she must choose between keeping Will in her life or keeping Will safe.

My thoughts:
Rippler has been sitting in my Kindle for months now, waiting patiently for me to get around to reading it. Well, I can say now that I am kicking myself for not reading it back in December. Honestly, what was I thinking? This book was amazing and my only regret is that I didn't read it sooner! Rippler easily earned a spot on my favourites lists; I was just so impressed with this one.

The ideas behind Rippler were fascinating and I loved everything about it. Samantha, AKA Sam, is able to turn invisible. One day, this happens in front of other people- and one of them actually knows what has happened. Sam has Rippler's Syndrome and Will's sister (Mackie) has been researching it for years. The whole area surrounding research for this disease is very dangerous; people keep going missing and dying.

There was so much tension in this book and my heart was racing at points. There are experiments written about in this book that creeped me out so much! I was actually grimacing just reading them. There is definitely a lot of dark stuff in this one but it's also so normal. Sam and Will's relationship develops at a nice pace instead of being instant and it's great watching them get to know and trust each other even with everything they're up against.

I would hate to say too much and ruin the book for others. But I just loved it from start to finish and these characters had me absolutely captivated. The pacing and character development are spot on and I could not put this book down until I was finished. The ending left me thirsty for more so I'm very glad that Chameleon is also waiting on my Kindle. Book two definitely won't have to wait long for me to get to it!