Teaser Tuesday Prelude

The Tuesday Prelude is a meme that was inspired by Should Be Reading's Teaser Tuesday. Since I could never just stick to two lines, I decided to expand this weekly post a bit by introducing you to more than just a little piece of the story.

This week, I'm diving into Altered by Jennifer Rush ~ I'm currently listening to this little beauty on audio, and it's incredible... Especially with the complexity of Anna and Sam...

Anna has grown up knowing Sam, Cas, Trev, and Nick, four genetically altered boys who are contained in the lab where her father is constantly working to study their every movement. But Sam has always been special.

The whole time I'd known the boys, they had suffered from amnesia, an unplanned side effect of the alterations. Despite that, I felt like the others had shown me parts of who they were, deep down. All of them but Sam. Same gave only what he thought was necessary. The things that truly defined him were still a secret.

Despite this mysteriousness, or perhaps because of it, Anna sneaks down into the basement most nights to play a game of chess with Sam. She's curious about him, and, more importantly, she feels different around him. More.

For some reason, everything I said and did around Sam felt weightier. As if merely his presence could shake my soul, make me feel. He savored every detail I gave him, as if I was his last link to the outside world. I guess in some ways I was.

Their relationship is... tense... in more ways than one. Sam acts more like a machine than a human being, doing what needs to be done to escape the basement, even if that means using Anna.

"We were never friends, Anna. I was a prisoner in your basement for five years. ... I wanted out, so I did what I needed to do to win your trust. If you had been in my position, you would have done the same thing." 

Sounds a little cold, but you have to imagine what Sam's been through, being used as a lab rat for some genetic experiment. But as their fight for their lives continues and grows more dangerous, something changes or is at least brought to the surface.

"It's written all over your face." He pushed a lock of hair out of my eyes. "I'm not going anywhere." 

What I love about their relationship is that it's believable. It's push and pull, up and down, hesitation and diving in head first. They care about each other, but it's not all googly eyes and promises of forever. It takes time to develop, overcoming obstacles, secrets, and revelations. It feels real.

I didn't know what Sam and I had, if we had anything at all, but the void opening in my chest told me that it was enough, that maybe the connection between us was real...

*heartbreaking*

Love this book SO much! Review coming soon :)


Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~

(P.S. It was brought to my attention that I should include a linky for this post, so keep scrollin' and you'll find it (: ...)