Icons (Icons #1) by Margaret Stohl

Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers the first book in a heart-pounding series set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts -- in order to save the future.

Hardcover, 428 pages

Published May 7th 2013 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 

2 Stars

I think it would be a little harsh to say that I hated this book, because I didn't. I just feel that it could have been more. It was as if we get a lot of filler story and not enough character development or depth to the story that I usually see in the first book to a series.

There is quite a bit of action and twists that happen, yet I didn't feel that I was gripped or on the edge of my seat. There are four different characters we learn about and two additional that play more minor roles, but all are prominent in the story. Partly I feel that I would have found the story more gripping if it were told from a different perspective, Ro or Tima for example had a lot more ambition and intuition than Dol showed.

The novel does end with a bang and I would like to see what kind of direction it takes. My personal opinion would be to read this right before the second book comes out. I think it would be more enjoyable to be able to continue on with the series immediately instead of waiting.