Scott Reads It!

Seen at Scott Reads It Tempest is one of those books that arrived on the market with alot of hype and publicity. The movie rights were snatched by Summit Entertainment, the studio that made Twilight and Ender's Game. Reviews raved about Tempest saying how fantastic it was and how they couldn't wait for the sequel. I enjoyed Tempest but I wasn't obsessed with the book like most reviewers are. I was a bit reluctant to read Vortex, the sequel to Tempest. Vortex is in all aspects a better book than Tempest and I'm glad I gave it a chance. One of my major problems with Tempest was that it took way too long to reach the climatic action sequences that I craved. It wasn't until the very end of Tempest that those awesome time-travel action scenes came in and that really annoyed me. Vortex starts almost immediately with tons of action and adventure. One thing that really bothered me with Vortex was it's explanation of time travel. Every single time time travel was explained with a new concept, I felt even more lost. To make it even more confusing some of these explanations turn out to be false and are repudiated by the main character. It took 2 books (704 pages) but I think I finally know the difference between World A, World B and World C. I really do prefer the old cover of Vortex that my ARC has (the red-orange one) better than the current blue one. Vortex gave me a chance to connect with the characters in Tempest. I wasn't a big fan of Tempest because I didn't really feel like I liked any of the characters. In Tempest I didn't really have a chance to get to know any of the characters and connect with them. After reading Tempest I really thought Jackson was just some lovelorn rich kid who could time travel. In Vortex we see a different side of Jackson that is vulnerable and troubled. Jackson is completely damaged from losing his friends Holly and Adam. I didn't like how Jackson spent the beginning of the book moping for Holly and trying to forget her with a relationship with Stewart. Using someone just to forget your ex-girlfriend who you can't be with is not cool. Jackson felt a bit like a child in the opening of this book but I am glad he shaped up. I really wanted to get to know Jackson's ex Holly better but we didn't get a chance to know her. The new batch of characters that we met were not groundbreaking but they were certainly interesting. Agent Stewart turned out to be one of my favorite characters in Vortex. The plot of Vortex is easier to follow than Tempest's plot. There is none of the constant time-jumping that we saw in Tempest which took place almost every chapter. The time travel in Vortex is executed better because it isn't overwhelming and as constant. I really didn't see any of the plot twists coming at all and I was completely shocked at the end. With that intense cliffhanger at the end there is no way that I won't read book 3. Vortex is an intense high stakes sequel that you won't want to miss! If you weren't a huge fan of Tempest, I'd still recommend reading Vortex. I enjoyed Vortex a lot due to it's new cast of characters and fast pace. The explanations of time travel are a bit choppy and confusing but in the end I actually had a very thorough understanding of it. One of my favorite components of Vortex is Cross's writing style which made Vortex a compelling read. Vortex is a rare example where the sequel is better than it's predecessor and I definitely recommend it.