Book Title: DECEPTION IS OUR REMEDY by Alexandra Gavranovic
Category: YA Fiction (Ages 13-17), 412 pages
Genre: YA dystopian; YA survival stories; Sci-fi Fantasy
Publisher: Dumetella Press
Release date: March 2024
Content Rating: PG: Some minimal fight scenes and acts of violence
What if everything you thought you knew about the world - and yourself - was a lie? What would you do?
For 17-year-old Callista, growing up in a world stripped of all its color after the great climate crisis, every day looks the same in her Neighborhood. There are no other kids her age except for her best friend, Reggie. There are no events or activities. And there is no leaving. Cal rarely even steps outside her house except to pick up the month’s worth of dry, rationed food courtesy of the Government or for her routine trip to the doctor, which always leaves her feeling groggy and depleted.
And while she knows that she should just accept this life, she can’t help but wonder if there is something she isn’t being told. From whispered conversations she overhears of her parents to nightmares that feel more like memories jarring her awake in the middle of the night, Cal finally decides to find out for herself if there is something beyond the towering gates of her Neighborhood. Something that can provide answers.
But what she finds is more shocking than she could have imagined. When a giant floating object of immense light transports her to an abandoned city, Cal meets more people her age who also grew up in Neighborhoods. And, like the orb of light she can suddenly summon with her mind, these other people are also gifted with special abilities.
Before she can determine what is going on, they are all herded to a special Academy for the gifted, where they will learn to hone their abilities with other students just like them.
But as Cal unravels her nightmares, everything she thought she knew about her former life starts to rip at the seams. And, as she spends more time with her fellow students in the Academy, she begins to wonder if she really escaped the Neighborhood at all.
Deception is Our Remedy is a fast-paced, dystopian adventure that will leave you guessing at every turn.
From an Album Cover to a Story: An Author’s Inspiration
Writing and publishing my novel, Deception is Our Remedy, took four years. I started in February 2020 and published it on March 17, 2024. It is funny for me to look back at how it all started. I get my story ideas from my imagination. Sometimes, it’s just a thought that passes through my mind as I try to fall asleep. Other times, it’s through dreams. My personal favorite way of getting inspired is through the album art of different song artists. For example, Callista’s story was inspired by the album art of the various songs by the EDM artist LIONE. I saw a vision through the cover art that grew and changed from there. This cover art gave me the ideas for Callista’s ability, the setting, and the Academy uniforms. From there, my writing process starts. Once I get my basic idea down, I let it sit for a while. I try to combine my methods of inspiration by thinking about the idea and the album art when I’m trying to fall asleep. Since I know this is one of my most creative times, I can think of expansions for my ideas and sometimes end up dreaming up more ideas.
The hardest part of the writing process for me during my first time writing was not coming up with ideas. It was creating a plot that connects them all seamlessly. My writing process was sort of the opposite of what I thought it was “supposed” to be. Once I had the ideas from the albums, I didn’t do much planning. I just wrote until I ran out of ideas. This left me with a story full of plot holes and lacking the character development I wanted to create. After my editor pointed out some of this, I had to go back and pretty much rewrite the entire story. This led to my manuscript over doubling in size. I learned a lot from the process, though. I found my creativity and learned to value my methods of inspiration. Now, when I have a late-night epiphany, I try to expand on it right then rather than just write it down. While the idea is still fresh, I let it flourish. I can’t believe that an album cover led to me being a published author. But if I had a choice, I wouldn’t change my path at all.
My Review:
What would you do if you were stuck in a never-ending bland existence yet feel like there should be more to life?
This is how the story starts, with the young Callista being quite cognizant of the fact that things are not what they appear to be. She feels that she is being lied to and, because of this feeling, she finds it difficult to trust those around her.
I won't go into what happens but I will say it is a pretty quick paced story right from the start. I enjoyed reading about teenage characters that actually acted and reacted the way you might expect teens to. I read a lot of YA books where the teen characters read more like middle aged people, so it is always a treat when people act their age in books.
I enjoyed the dystopian setting as well as the abilities that the characters have. The story moves along well and it didn't really feel like I had read over 430 pages when I finished it. The writing draws you in and the characters keep you engaged.
I would say this is a solid four star read. I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys a dystopian setting, characters with special abilities, a cast of characters that keeps you guessing on who you can trust, and a plot that keeps you reading to see how it will end.
Alexandra Gavranovic lives in Georgia where she is studying Public Relations. She has been writing and crafting stories since she was a young girl, and enjoys the process of being creative. When she’s not studying for her college classes, Alix enjoys spending time with her two cats and her dog, reading dystopian novels, and playing video games. She is also an avid pianist with 12 years of experience. Deception Is Our Remedy is her first published novel.
connect with the author: website ~ instagram ~ tiktok ~ goodreads
Thank you so much for your review!!! I’m so glad you enjoyed following along with Callista’s story.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a fantastic novel. Thanks for sharing and hosting this tour.
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