Review: A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray

A Thousand Pieces of You 

Author: Claudia Gray

Series: Firebird

Pages: 368

Publisher/Source: Harper Teen

Amazon

Release date: 4^th November 2014

Synopsis: Every Day meets Cloud Atlas in this heart-racing, space- and time-bending, epic new trilogy from New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray.

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their radical scientific achievements. Their most astonishing invention: the Firebird, which allows users to jump into parallel universes, some vastly altered from our own. But when Marguerite’s father is murdered, the killer—her parent’s handsome and enigmatic assistant Paul—escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite can’t let the man who destroyed her family go free, and she races after Paul through different universes, where their lives entangle in increasingly familiar ways. With each encounter she begins to question Paul’s guilt—and her own heart. Soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores a reality where we witness the countless other lives we might lead in an amazingly intricate multiverse, and ask whether, amid infinite possibilities, one love can endure. 

Review: 4 out of 5 stars

Time travel books are usually hit or miss for me, but I am happy to say that this one kept me entertained from the beginning.  I would actually buy a copy of this book for the stunning watercolour cover alone! It is eye-catchingly beautiful and the story within is just as wonderful.

A Thousand Pieces of You is superbly written with a unique and gripping concept, great characters, and creative world-building.

Marguerite Caine is the daughter of physicist parents who designed a piece of technology known as the Firebird that enables the user to enter a parallel universe. When her father is murdered, presumably by his protégé, Paul Markov; Marguerite enters the alternate dimensions to track him down and to seek her revenge.

The plot for A Thousand Pieces of You was fast-paced and filled with surprised as Marguerite travels between the worlds – we get to meet very different versions of the main characters which I think was done very well although time spent in one dimension in particular I found a tad too tedious. The setting for each dimension was detailed and established faultlessly.

Marguerite was a kind, caring artsy character that I could easily relate to and connect with, she was believable in her reactions and despite acting before thinking on occasion I liked her. The secondary characters were mostly developed; I believed Paul was innocent from the onset but I could never quite get a clear reading on Theo who also worked very closely with her parents; I didn’t feel he could be trusted so I was eager to see how the story would play out. The bad guy wasn’t as fleshed out as the others but I liked learning the motive behind it all.

The romance is an aspect I didn’t completely love, we have a love-triangle of sorts and I was a little stumped at Marguerite’s indecisiveness, one minute she wanted to be with Theo and in the next moment it was Paul – we also have a sex scene which I didn’t feel fit in at all.

Overall, A Thousand Pieces of You is a well plotted and detailed world with a great cast of characters; I am very excited to get hold of the next installment.

About the author: Claudia Gray is not my real name. I didn't choose a pseudonym because my real name is unpleasant (it isn't), because I'd always dreamed of calling myself this (I haven't) or even because I'm hiding from the remnants of that international diamond-smuggling cartel I smashed in 2003 (Interpol has taken care of them). In short, I took a pseudonym for no real reason whatsoever. Sometimes this is actually the best reason to do things.

I live in New Orleans. So far, in life, I've been a disc jockey, a lawyer, a journalist and an extremely bad waitress, just to name a few. I especially like to spend time traveling, hiking, reading and listening to music. More than anything else, I enjoy writing.