Incarceron Review

Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery...more Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery. It is a terrifying mix of high technology -- a living building which pervades the novel as an ever-watchful, ever-vengeful character, and a typical medieval torture chamber -- chains, great halls, dungeons.

A young prisoner, Finn, has haunting visions of an earlier life, and cannot believe he was born here and has always been here. In the outer world, Claudia, daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, is trapped in her own form of prison -- a futuristic world constructed beautifully to look like a past era, an imminent marriage she dreads. She knows nothing of Incarceron, except that it exists.

But there comes a moment when Finn, inside Incarceron, and Claudia, outside, simultaneously find a device -- a crystal key, through which they can talk to each other. And so the plan for Finn's escape is born ...
Taken from GoodReads.

The premise of this book hooked me in about a second flat, and I have to admit, our US cover for Incarceron is pretty darn amazing. (Yes, I am a sucker for a good, artistic cover without weeping girls and hot, hot men.) So, without having ready any reviews, I decided to pick it up and give it a go.

The book starts in the prison, detailing legends of Sapphique, a wise man who is rumoured to have escaped the torturous prison, Incarceron. We quickly learn that Incarceron is no ordinary prison. It was designed to be a "paradise" - to remove the evils from the normal world and rehabilitate them. The closed system failed though, and the prison came to think for itself and its inhabitants. It can give and take live at a mere whim. So, while the prison is futuristic, the outside world's progress has been stalled, and Protocol prohibits advancement.

Basically, the world is in turmoil both in and outside of Incarceron, and while Finn struggles to stay alive in the prison, Claudia, the Warden of Incarceron's daughter, struggles to maintain her sanity outside the prison. When chance circumstances connect the two, the world(s) start spinning out of control.

Sounds awesome, eh? It is...truly, I love this story. That said though, it takes some time to get into the story. You know how when you try to read a science journal it's like reading Greek (for those of us who don't know it, of course)? Well, this is a bit like that. The scientific and technological jargon used really threw me off at first and made it hard to get into the story. Once the connections started to develop, I really began to enjoy it though.

I give this book a strong 4 out of 5, and I will definitely be waiting for the sequel, Sapphique, with baited breath! Check out the cover...

PS...they are making a film version of Incarceron! Click here to check it out!