Review of Oppression by Jessica Therrien

Elyse is almost 90 years old in her real life, but to the rest of the world she is only 18 years old. She was born with some strange genetic abnormality that causes her to age five times slower than a regular person. She was orphaned at the age of 50, though she seemed to be a mere 10 years old. She and her parents were in a car accident. Prior to that, they had always told her that she would learn to live under the radar, as they had. Her adoptive mother quickly discovered how necessary that was, but was unable to answer any of Elyse's thousands of questions.

The only person who currently knows her secret is her best friend Anna. The two of them met in elementary school, but Anna is a regular human. Elyse can't imagine life without her.

When Elyse decides to check out the coffee shop below her new apartment, she is shocked when the cute boy behind the counter already knows her name. For reasons she cannot understand, she trusts him when he grabs her hand and tells her to come with him. He already knows her name, as do a bunch of other young people whom she meets through him. By meeting them, she begins to learn the truth about herself and others just like her. They are all descendents of Greek gods and goddesses, but she is more special than the rest of them. She has an important role to play and they have been waiting a long time for her.

I recently finished reading Pulse of Heroes by A. Jacob Sweeny, and this book reminded me of that one in many ways. Heroine is a descendent of Greek gods and goddesses, has secret powers, is the chosen one to save the population, and had no idea about any of it. Yet this one was different enough that I could still enjoy it as its own story. It did take me a bit to get started in those first couple of chapters. Once the story got rolling, though, I was hard-pressed to put down the Kindle.

I liked the character of Elyse. She has been on her own for so long, she isn't sure what to do with her sudden group of new friends. With all of her secrets, she has never had the chance to have a group of friends who are also her peers. I'm a little partial to Sam, who is a descendent of Dionysus. She has a fierce devotion to her best friend, Anna, and Anna's daughter Chloe. Her attraction to William is cute, because she has never even been kissed before. They have an intense connection that would seem implausible under normal circumstances, yet makes perfect sense given their backgrounds. She is going to grow into herself and her abilities, especially as she eventually understands more about them. People criticize the book for characters being in their 80s and 90s, yet acting like teenagers. In their world, though, they are teenagers. They are not normal humans, so you cannot have the same expectations of them.

Elyse is also in grave danger, because of her special position. Sometimes it is hard to know whom you can trust. A few of the characters are easily the bad guys; a couple seem to waver back and forth. I have a feeling that more of the reasoning behind their battles will be revealed as the series continues. I also hope we get to know more about the other characters and their roles as the series continues. I look forward to reading more of them.

This book is available both in hard copy and for your Kindle.