Sunday, December 8, 2013

REVIEW: RIFT (CIPHER #2) by CINDI MADSEN

Rift (Cipher, #2)

Series: Cipher #2
Category/Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: 9/13
Format: eARC
Source: Received from author for review
Rating: 4 stars

Summer Davis is a Cipher, a person chosen to help people resolve problems with their loved ones before they die. She’s just gotten her second job when weirder-than-usual things start happening. There seems to be a rift between her and the afterlife, and she’s seeing things she shouldn’t, including people who have already passed on. As she struggles to help her new assignment, Liam, make amends with his incarcerated father, she finds it hard to balance being a high school student, Cipher, and girlfriend.

Troy’s been nothing but supportive, but Summer can see her secret weighs on him, and she worries the more she tells him, the sooner he’ll decide he can’t deal with her freaky life. But when a murderer is thrown into the mix, and the girl he killed keeps asking Summer for help, she’ll risk everything to make sure the guy gets what he deserves.





Rift, the second book in Cindi Madsen's Cipher series, about a young woman who's inherited the job of helping the dying mend relationships before they die. In the first book, Summer learned what it truly meant to be a Cipher, and came to terms with how it would affect her life. And she won the boy. In Rift, Summer continues to help those who need her, but she's also dealing with just how much this phenomena disrupts her life and relationships. But not only does she have this to contend with, but a strange occurrence has her seeing the dead, and the balance between average teenager and Cipher is harder to maintain.

So though I don't often read paranormal books, I really do enjoy this series. Some of that is attributed to the fact that I see this series as Magic Realism, with the paranormal being a part, but not all of the story. I feel that Madsen has done a thorough, and interesting, job of creating the Ciphers.

What I really appreciate about Rift, and the whole series, is that the heart of the story, is a young woman who is trying to not only help those who need her, but is also balancing school, a boyfriend, friends, issues with her dad, among others. This is a story that I enjoyed, but I feel is the perfect fit for teens. Many readers have taken issue with the portrayal of teens in some of the popular paranormal romances. These issues have included passive heroines, controlling heroes, and an unrealistic or unhealthy portrayal of the lives of teens. But in the Cipher series, Madsen has done a very nice job of conveying healthy, honest, and realistic situations. Not only is Summer a Cipher, but she is also dealing with a friend in crisis. She has a boyfriend she loves, but is unsure about taking the next step in their physical relationship. Her dad is ready to become more serious with his girlfriend, but Summer is afraid her mother will be forgotten. I find stories like this, in which any teen can find something to relate to, to be invaluable. And the fact that Summer's story is so thoughtfully told makes it more so.

Rift was a very good addition to the Cipher series. As usual, Madsen's writing is very charming and fast-paced. I'm not sure at all what is going to happen next in the series, but I'm excited to find out.


Favorite Quotes:
 
  "Keep your shirt on." Liam looked at her and grinned. "Or don't."
  Summer smacked him. "Very funny. And just so you know, no  matter how excited I get, the shirt's staying on. Who really rips their shirt off when they get impatient?"
  The car behind them honked, and she glanced in the rearview mirror. "See. He's obviously impatient and his shirt's still totally on him."   ~eARC, 77%
 
 
  "I do love Kendall. You know how she can be. She's bossy and demanding, but she's smokin' hot, and she can be sweet when she wants to be. And dude, so many guys are jealous-- they'd kill to be in my place."
  "Well, if that doesn't mean you're in love, I just don't know what does."   ~eARC, 83%

Cipher Series
 
Cipher (Cipher, #1) Rift (Cipher, #2)
(covers lead to GoodReads)
 


Purchase Cipher
 


About the author:
Cindi MadsenCindi Madsen sits at her computer every chance she gets, plotting revising, and falling in love with her characters. Sometimes it makes her a crazy person. Without it, she’d be even crazier. She has way too many shoes, but can always find a reason to buy a new pretty pair, especially if they’re sparkly, colorful, or super tall. She loves music, dancing, and wishes summer lasted all year long. She lives in Colorado (where summer is most definitely NOT all year long) with her husband and three children. She is the author of YA books All the Broken Pieces, Cipher, and Demons of the Sun and adult romances Falling for Her FiancĂ©, Act Like You Love Me, and Cinderella Screwed Me Over.

her website | Twitter | Facebook | blog



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16 comments:

  1. Love this review! I think I have the first one and plan to get to it in the new year!

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  2. I know how much you love Madsen's writing, Andrea. I one-clicked Cipher when I read your review of it. :) I haven't read it yet, of course, but I'm really, really liking your description of the story. And it sounds like something my older teenaged daughter might find interesting, too. Thanks for sharing a great review!

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  3. Wonderful review, not sure this one is for me, but I do love the covers :>)

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  4. Oh I like the sound of it. Sounds very different and original will have to look up book 1.

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  5. I've had so much going not his past year that this series has slipped through the cracks. I have both on my Kindle so I think I'll make a point of reading it over the holidays.

    I adore Cindi's writing and characters. (& of course Cindi lol)

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  6. Oh, great review Andrea! I've had Cipher sitting waiting for review for a lot longer than I wanted, but I haven't been able to get to it, it's on the top of my non-blog tour related pile. LOL, so your review of this one makes me want to get to it sooner!

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  7. I love magic realism! I know how much you love this author, and hope to eventually get the chance to read one of her books. I'm glad the story is relatable and the way the author pot rays her teens. I'm always passing along YA books to my nieces and nephews. This sounds like a very good one. Awesome Review Friend :)

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  8. Oh I still need to start this series! Glad you enjoyed.

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  9. I read the first book of this series and liked it... and I definitely want to read the second but when I read the synopsis I was kind of like ughhh is this going to be an annoying love triangle? So I put it off. Since you gave it 4 stars though I kind of feel like I should just go ahead and give it a shot!

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  10. Great review. I am glad you liked this. I have it to review also and I need to make the time to fit it in.

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