Flicker

Ember in Space, Book 1

By: Rebecca Rode

Narrated by: Stacey Glemboski

Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Getting sold to the empire was never part of the plan.

Ember lives two very different lives. By day, she's a mysterious Roma future-teller, and by night, she struggles to care for her sick father. All she wants is the power to control her own life - no arranged marriage, no more poverty. Her future-reading talent is what will get her there. But when the Empire discovers her gift, Ember's life changes forever.

Ember soon finds her innocent talent is far more dangerous than she believed. The Empire wants to turn her into a deadly weapon. But Ember has plans of her own, and they don't include living under the Empire's control.

Because even the best weapons can backfire.

©2017 Rebecca Rode (P)2017 Rebecca Rode

Flicker is more of a Flare of a good book

Stacey does a fabulous job narrating this book.

This was mostly fast paced and interesting. The flaws are with the main character, Ember. Like how can she be so ignorant about the war between Empire and the Union?
(The deathbed confession from her dad about Earth being in the outer reaches don't hold water because she's scared of the visiting, important soldiers.) I'm also confused how she's geld captive for so long and doesn't ask questions or flicker everyone to find the answers. Lack of world building doesn't even offer explanations if or how news or communication are delivered.
Ember has a fluid personality. Or multi personality. One minute, she wants to be strong and defiant; the next she's a crumpled mess. One moment, she wants to walk behind a man, as she was brought up; the next she wants to be a mouthy, back talking, I'll-tell-you--you-don't-tell-me-what-to-do - only she's clueless and has no plan nor support. One minute, I have to have my dad; the next, she'd rather sacrifice him than kill a stranger. One moment, she defies a plan to escape (yeah, I know, right?) cuz she thinks she can come up with a better plan within the next several hours (she has never planned ANYTHING) and falls asleep (without hatching a plausible plan nor enlisting help) only to wake up beyond the time limit and the Union is caught in the cross hairs (really, they relied on a girl who has not proven her worth? How are they even fighting a war without contingency plans if X doesn't happen by YZ time?)
I liked the story. The delivery was less than mediocre.
As most trilogies, it's a continuation of the war and where did everyone she knew from the ship go?
Three stars for the book - it held promise, no character development, flimsy romance (oh you beyrayed me and lied to me but let me sulk and not confront you until you keep chasing me around, trying to explain) where he loves her (instalove on his part. Wtf? He told her she needed to shield herself but never teaches her how) and morons fighting a war ...
It's baffling. As much as I enjoy Stacey's narration, I'll be skipping the rest of this series.

Great world building

I really loved this. It would be a great read for a teen or adult. Very clean but with violence. No profanity that I can recall. Definitely interested in where the story goes. The characters are believable & you care for them. Of course there’s the evil ones you don’t care for either.
Ember is a seer and stolen away to be a flicker but soon realizes she is a flame.... she hold life or death in her ‘hands’ through her mind.
She has a huge heart and is being used for evil.
Can’t wait to start the next book in a few days!

Wonderful narration.

I was voluntarily provided this review copy at no charge by the author, publisher and or narrator.

Makes me want control of the Light Inside!!

This book is great and I found myself putting my headphones on while at work and when I went shopping. I didn't want to stop listening, the Narrator is great and I would listen to her stuff in the future. I do not know if this is a multi-part series but I hope so.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Getting some of these books free has really opened my eyes to some great genres.

Nice start to a series

Where does Flicker rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Not sure, but it is high up in the list.

What about Stacey Glemboski’s performance did you like?

I love how smoothly she moved from male and female characters, and also how she did action scenes.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It got me interested but that is about it.

Any additional comments?

I really had no idea what I would get from this story but it is amazing and refreshing, I love how everything builds up and leaves you wanting more, its a good book and worth a try. I got this book for free for my honest review. my honest review.

Decide Who You Will Be

With the ability to read people’s past, present, and future by looking into their “inner light”, Ember is kidnapped and thrown into a government training facility for the Empire. The Empire and the Union have been locked in a war for years. Hoping to gain an advantage, Flicker’s are used as weapons, interrogators, and other stations to help win the war. With her father sick back on Earth, Ember must find a way to get back to him in order to keep him alive but no one leaves the school. She soon finds out that her gift is far more dangerous than she ever believed and now she must find her true self and what she wants to become.

From the very beginning, I was hooked. Everything happens so fast that it doesn’t really give time to be boring. There is so much to learn about this world but it is very easy to follow. This new world isn’t complex, mostly because there is this war going on and it’s easy to imagine what Flickers are. I really enjoyed the descriptions that Road provided for the story. It was easy to imagine how each scene happened. This was definitely an interesting concept and I wanted to know more about it.

Ember was definitely an interesting character. I really liked her spunk and how she really tried to keep to her Roma ways. The most important thing to her is her father and she tries everything to get back to him. This was the only thing I wish wasn’t so dragged out. I loved that Ember tried absolutely everything to get back to Earth but it took so much of the beginning of the book that I think could have been used on something else. It did help develop Ember’s character and really made you want her to succeed even more. Stefan was an interesting character as well. His background was given pretty early but I still enjoyed learning everything from him. Even though his and Ember’s relationship was very obvious, I still liked it. It never felt forced upon and did feel natural. I wish there was more of a development between her and Mare though.

Overall, this story was good! I really enjoyed the whole set up of the world and the characters. This held my interest right from the beginning and I definitely wanted to know more. As Ember discovered more of what was really happening, it made me want her to succeed even more. I am excited to continue this series, especially after that ending! I highly recommend this story for anyone who is looking for a fast-paced, easy sci-fi story.

Stacey Glemboski did a fantastic job narrating this story. I am SO glad she did a slight accent for Ember. It gave her more of an authentic Roma feel to her character without making the accent so heavy it was hard to follow. Each scene was delivered great and really made the words come alive. I would definitely recommend this audio!

Deep dystopian space adventure

This book was an impulse purchase for me—I’d never read anything by this author before, but really loved the premise. I was totally blown away by the story, the characters, and the world built here, all very nuanced and complex. This was deeper and darker than I expected, a similar flavor to Red Rising. I hope the other books in the series make it to Audible soon. I really can’t wait to read more!

A great start to this series, looking for more

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Wow, what a great start to a series! This book pretty much hooked me from the very start. It has a well executed blend of paranormal/fantasy and science fiction. The characters and their world were interesting and the story line kept my interest the whole time. I will definitely be interested in the next book.

I Was Hooked

Having never heard of the author nor listened to the narrator, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I am pleased to say that I found both of their efforts to be impressive and entertaining.

Following the all too common slow exposition, during which Ember’s backstory is established, the story becomes quite compelling. Following her kidnapping, Ember undergoes a complete transformation as she discovers the truth about her Flicker ability.

The writing is of good quality and the story is fluid. The romance catapults to love a bit too quickly for my tastes, but it is fiction after all. The climax is very satisfying in build up, pace, and outcome.

Stacey Glemboski’s narrating is pleasant to listen to. Her “Roma” accent, which she impressively uses for the main character, is consistent and appropriate sounding. She does a good job with the male voices too, not straining to sound too deep.

At one point there is a song, and Glemboski’s singing is melodic and smooth.

After knowing nothing about Rode and Glemboski before, I now find myself eager to hear the next one. I will be frequenting Rode’s website until the release date is announced!

Full disclosure: I received a code to purchase this book for free in return for an honest review.

Great story and characters

‘The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be’.

Ember is half Roma, and she tries to make a living from the tourists who visit Earth. Humanity has fled and expanded over the Galaxy, and only the Roma were left behind. One day her village receives the visit of a ship of the Empire, and some soldiers seem to take interest in Ember’s special powers. They decide to take her with them and use her as a weapon, but she has just one thing in mind: going back home to take care of her sick father.

This book trapped me from the start due to beautifully developed characters and an interesting story. The characters are well defined, and the dialogs rich and natural. Ember is a strong and independent woman, who has everything to change the course of things, but she has her ideas clear and doesn’t loose focus. She knows what is important in life and doesn’t get distracted by shiny things.

Another detail that made this book very appealing was the world building. It seems there is an ongoing war between the Empire and the Union, a war in which the Roma didn’t take part. Everyone around Ember affirms that the Empire should win this war, but it is not clear to her why this should be the winning side. The people from the Union are evil, everybody knows this, but nobody can give any details about it.

Ember’s main goal is going back home to take care of her father, but she gets mixed in something bigger. There is a lot of action in this book but, as said, also great characters. The most amazing events are empty without characters I don’t care for. I cared dearly about Ember and her companions, and suffered along with them. If a book can do this to me, I consider it a complete success.

Stacey Glemboski has become one of my favorite narrators. I had the pleasure of listening to her in another audiobook recently and I was glad to be able to enjoy her voice again. She has wonderful interpretation skills, transmitting the characters’ emotions like if you were listening to them. Her voice range is quite ample, and her male voices are realistic and quite good.

I loved LOVED this audiobook, and I do hope the next one gets released soon, so that the questions about the Empire and the Union get answered. It seems I can’t get enough of Ember’s story and Glemboski’s voice. I would recommend it to anyone into science-fiction and who enjoys great characters.

I received a copy of this book in audio format from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Great Read

Flicker (Ember in Space #1) by Rebecca Rode was a great read. Ember is a Roma future-teller who is looking to find a cure for her dad who is sick. Her talents have started to get her noticed by the Empire. I really enjoyed reading Ember's story and can't wait to read more by Rebecca Rode.