2 out of 4 stars
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Jeremiah Jericho just turned sixteen. This sweet sixteen he won't get a car like others his age. Instead, he discovers that his dad has left him a chip that allows him to see the thoughts of others and manipulate their feelings. Now, not only must he learn to use his new gift, but he must also avoid the government who wants to get their hands on this technology. Happy Birthday, Jeremiah.
Jeremiah Jericho: Allowance by Azariah Scott is a young adult science fiction. With around 475 pages, the book is a medium length read, as internal dialogue takes up quite a bit of space in the pages. There are adult themes in the book, so I would only recommend it for mature teenagers.
I liked the premise of the book: a boy who's still going through puberty thrust into special abilities and intrigue. Jeremiah is an average teenager who just wants to fit in. The secondary characters are fun and different; several of them appear as voices in Jeremiah's head. The novel has humorous moments to break up the seriousness.
Though this book deals with futuristic technology, it's more of a coming of age book. There are undertones of dealing with abusive relationships as well. Jeremiah's own family has relationship problems as do many of those he helps with his gift. The details aren't explicit, but the themes are dark. The abuse is realistically portrayed, which means it doesn't always have a positive outcome.
The formatting could use work, as it was tedious to read. To show different internal dialogue, one voice was left-justified and another right. Because of the way it was written, there were unnecessary line breaks, which made me lose the flow of the story. Also, some words ran together, causing me to believe this was not professionally edited.
My other complaint was the randomness of some of the interactions. I found myself having to reread passages multiple times to glean the details needed to move on with the story. If I struggled, I know young adults would.
One last point. This book is another one that seems to stop. Nothing is wrapped up; I guess you'd call it a cliffhanger, but the author didn't even try to come to a good stopping point. I kept clicking trying to get to the next chapter before I realized that was it. Azariah Scott could have chosen a better place to end, in my opinion.
After all this, I rate Jeremiah Jericho: Allowance 2 out of 4 stars. The lack of professional editing and choppy flow made me rate the book lower. It's a great start with important themes handled in an exciting way. It just needs a good editor to bring it all together. Once the author makes some changes, I'd love to look at this again.
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Jeremiah Jericho: Allowance
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That's frustrating. I understand that authors look for ways to entice readers to continue the series, but I think the best way is having a good solid book.
