I am so excited to participate in the TITANS tour, organized by Rockstar Book Tours. Thanks for checking out my review and entering the giveaway to win a copy of Titans (5 winners - US only). Don't forget to visit all the stops on the tour for excerpts and other information.
Titans, by Victoria Scott
Publish Date: February 23, 2016
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Format: ARC, provided by the author
Genre: young adult contemporary/fantasy/sci-fi
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks
Rating: 5 STARS
(Synopsis) Ever since the Titans first appeared in her Detroit neighborhood, Astrid Sullivan’s world has revolved around the mechanical horses. She and her best friend have spent countless hours watching them and their jockeys practice on the track. It’s not just the thrill of the race. It’s the engineering of the horses and the way they’re programmed to seem so lifelike. The Titans are everything that fascinates Astrid, and nothing she’ll ever touch.
She hates them a little, too. Her dad lost everything betting on the Titans. And the races are a reminder of the gap between the rich jockeys who can afford the expensive machines to ride, and the working class friends and neighbors of Astrid’s who wager on them.
But when Astrid’s offered a chance to enter an early model Titan in this year’s derby, well, she decides to risk it all. Because for a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, it’s more than a chance at fame or money. Betting on herself is the only way she can see to hang on to everyone in the world she cares about.
The wind tears through my hair the way I always imagined, whispering for me to close my eyes, but I won't. I don't want to miss a single second of this. I've never felt so free. So fast. So bold. So beautiful.
Titans isn't my usual fare - there's no kissing, no great romance, no relationship angst. But there IS love - the love a girl has for her family, her friends, and for her horse. Victoria Scott is absolutely at her best when she's writing about the very special bonds that humans have with their animals - if you've read her Fire & Flood series, then you know what I'm talking about. Titans recaptures that magic and lends its own unique fantasy and sci-fi aspect when you consider the fact that Astrid's horse isn't actually... alive.
Astrid is a character that all girls can rally behind. She might only be 17, but she's willing to make hard choices and make big decisions, all to help pull her family out of the crushing debt that is threatening them. Astrid defies her parents in order to ride a mechanical horse in a series of races - races that grown people have died in in the past. This girl is very nearly fearless.
I say "nearly" because Astrid is most definitely afraid of some things - losing and letting her family down, for one. Trusting her horse, which she names Padlock, is another. Astrid trusts precious few people in this world. She knows it's something that must be earned, and she's convinced that there's no way a hunk of metal can do that.
But, come on. This is VICTORIA FREAKING SCOTT. Which means, this horse is special with a capital 'S'. Padlock might be an old model, but he has something no other horse on that track has. He has a bond with Astrid that flies in the face of science. And THAT is truly the best part of this whole book.
"Padlock, I want to tell you something." My voice is barely a whisper, and already my throat is thick with lingering emotion. "I'd never be disappointed in you. No matter what happens this season, I'm proud to call you my Titan."
There are a host of colorful side characters - there's Astrid's artistic BFF Magnolia, her manager Rags and his work partner Barney, her sponsor Lottie, and her biggest competition Hart. I developed an affection for each of these characters as they help Astrid and Padlock in their own unique ways. And then there's the deliciously awful villain Arvin Gambini. I promise, you will burn with the desire to see him pay in the most humiliating way possible.
The world building in Titans was done beautifully. We're given the picture of this downtrodden Detroit neighborhood, beaten back by layoffs and a sluggish economy. There's a very definitive line drawn between the haves and the have-nots. Astrid is the poster child for the have-nots, and her efforts to beat back the rich people who taunt and oppress her and her family will have you cheering for her along with everyone else in the book. She is most definitely the underdog in this race, so every victory is super special, and every defeat will squeeze your heart.
"Strength is forgetting everything I've taught you and becoming a machine. It's reaching inside yourself and finding you are not someone to be toyed with. It's taking every doubt you have and crushing it beneath your heel."
Victoria lives in Dallas with her husband and hearts cotton candy something fierce.
Find Victoria: Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook |Instagram | Goodreads
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