Cameron, Sharon. The Knowing.

Cameron, Sharon. The Knowing. Scholastic Press  2017     435p  $18.99   ISBN 978-0-545-94524-0    ms/hs     Science Fiction. E-BN         

Sometimes the elements of storytelling come together in such a fashion that the reader is propelled forward through the pages of a novel.  Sometimes the characters are charismatic and so well-developed that they are in control of a story, and the reader is just along for the ride.  In this novel both of the above characteristics are present, and the reader will appreciate the journey taken by young Beckett to find the lost city of Canaan on a planet far from Earth.  When he meets Samara, the two spark a relationship that is as unique as they come.  Samara is one of the Knowing, a group of descendants of previous travelers into space who set themselves apart from others in the Underneath, keeping secret the trait that separates her from typical humans.  Samara can scan her mind for memories, both painful and joyful, and can even remember information scanned from books.  Samara has been climbing up to the Outside where she uses her skills to help wherever possible, since the Outsiders are not part of the Knowing, and it is there that she meets Beckett.  Both Beckett and Samara grow to distrust people whom they previously trusted, and as the plot thickens, it becomes detrimental to both that they have broken the rules of their civilizations.  Beckett interferes in a colony when he is supposedly there to learn.  Samara interferes by choosing to forget, thus exposing her colony to dangers from the outside.  The paradox?  If Samara achieves her goal of forgetting events like the pain of her brother’s death and the role she played in her friend Nita’s death, will she also forget her love for Beckett?  If Beckett achieves his goal of breaking into the Underneath with a potion that will make all of the Knowing forget, will the colony then be overrun by the commander of the space ship and her followers and returned to Earth, where they will be virtual slaves?  The drama unfolds, the climax is exciting, and the falling action wraps up a nearly perfect book.  Sharon Cameron shows herself to aptly provide fresh new voices in futuristic scenarios that are believable yet unbelievable at the same time.  Her use of technology is remarkable, as are her imaginative ideas about what could happen in the future. Middle-school and high-school libraries have to stock copies of this novel, as well as its companion novel, The Forgetting.  Stand-alone novels they are, yet readers who love Cameron’s writing style will want to dive into another quickly.

Summary: In a settlement called Canaan, Sam is one of the Knowing, a group who has moved underground, believing itself to be special because members never forget anything.  She respects her skills but rebels.  Beckett is on an expedition from Earth to find the lost colony established years earlier.  He violates every rule about remaining uninvolved, and together, Sam and Beckett try to save the Knowing and the Outsiders.    

Science Fiction                               --Martha Squaresky

Cameron, Sharon. A Spark Unseen.

Cameron, Sharon.  A Spark Unseen.  Scholastic Press  2013     335p  $17.99  ISBN 978-0-545-32813-5      hs  Steampunk  VG

Katherine moves to Paris with two purposes: to protect her inventor uncle and to find her love, Lane.  Both purposes put her in danger from elements she does not suspect.  This is the sequel to The Dark Unwinding, which was not read by this reviewer.  Coming in in the middle of the story left many things not fully understood.  It appears that the emphasis in this second novel is on the historical and political aspects of the time rather than the typical Steampunk inventions; plot and action take second place.  That fact alone makes this a good read, rather than an excellent read.

Katherine awakens to spoil a kidnapping attempt on Uncle Tully.  She realizes that it is no longer safe on the farm.  Faking his death, she quickly escapes to a home owned by her grandmother in Paris.  Her ulterior motive is to search for her love, Lane.  Every person and every event is tied to the history of the time.  There is very little emphasis on the inventions of Uncle Tully.  Spies and intrigue take center front with the governments of both France and Britain eager to exploit Uncle Tully’s inventions.  Being on her own, Katherine is not sure who she can trust.          

Summary: In this sequel to The Dark Unwinding, Katherine moves to Paris with two purposes: to protect her inventor uncle and to find her love, Lane.  Both purposes put her in danger from elements she does not suspect. 

Historical fiction, Invention-Fiction                             --Joan Theal

Cameron, Sharon. The Dark Unwinding.

Cameron, Sharon.  The Dark Unwinding.  

Scholastic Press  318p  $17.99     978-0-545-32786-2     2012       VG          Historical Fiction

Beholden to a beastly aunt, Katharine has no choice but to go to Stranwyne Keep to send her supposedly mad uncle to an asylum, so that his wealth will pass to her greedy aunt.  But once she arrives, Katharine learns that there is more at stake than her aunt’s bank accounts, and she must decide whether her own future is more important than the future of thousands of workers.  The title and the cover give a reader every reason to suppose that this will be a steampunk novel; however, a mentally challenged inventor and pre-electric inventions do not necessarily steampunk make.  The story has more of the feel of a historical novel that happens to have windup toys, than an actual steam punk novel.  So readers expecting steampunk based on the gears in the cover art will be disappointed, but that doesn’t make it a poor novel by any stretch of the imagination.  

The novel tells the story of young Katharine Tulman, who is trapped by her lack of fortune and forced to serve as the executor of a detestable aunt’s estates in order to remain fed and clothed, and in that capacity she is often sent to perform unpalatable tasks.  At the beginning she is sent by her vicious, vapid relative to declare one of her uncles insane so that his estate and money will pass to the aunt who controls Katharine’s strings.  Upon her arrival, Katharine is treated with sullen hostility by the staff and tenants of the Keep, who know her purpose, and yet she is charmed by her uncle, whose understanding of the world is childlike except when it comes to clockwork and mathematics.  The decision Katharine must make will determine the futures of thousands of people dependent on her uncle, and if she does as her aunt wishes, they will be sent to workhouses or orphanages; but if she defies her aunt, she will be turned out on the streets.  She agrees to give the place a month’s trial before reporting back to her aunt and declaring her uncle incompetent, during which time she learns that there is more to the situation than she had initially supposed.  One of the topics this book deals with is civil rights, notably the rights of women and of people possessing exceptional and abnormal mentalities.  It also touches on the historical tensions between France and Britain at the time, and introduces a lifelike cast of characters who are more than two-dimensional placeholders in a gothic tale.

           

Inventions–Fiction, Inheritance and succession–Fiction, Great Britain-History-Victoria, 1837-1901-Fiction               --Bethany Geleskie