Impostors: Volume 1 (Impostors, #1)

by Scott Westerfeld

Deception. Risk. Betrayal. Redemption. Master storyteller Scott Westerfeld is at the top of his game, and back to his most famous realm. A New York Times bestseller.

Frey and Rafi are inseparable . . . two edges of the same knife. But only one of them is ever seen in public.

Frey is Rafi's twin sister-and her body double. Their powerful father has many enemies, and the world has grown dangerous as the old order falls apart. So while Rafi was raised to be the perfect daughter, Frey has been taught to kill. Her only purpose is to protect her sister, to sacrifice herself for Rafi if she must.

When her father sends Frey in Rafi's place as collateral in a precarious deal, she becomes the perfect impostor. But Col, the son of a rival leader, is getting close enough to spot the killer inside her . . . .

• ISBN10: 1338151517
• ISBN13: 9781338151510
• Publish Date: 11 September 2018 (first published 1 September 2018)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Imprint: Scholastic Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 416
• Language: English

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

It’s hard to believe that after a decade, the Uglies series is being revived. Scott Westerfeld has decided to go back to the series, and I’ll admit more than a passing curiosity for what motivated him there. Still, beggars can’t be choosers, right? And I couldn’t be happier.
So, technically Imposters is actually the start of its own series, as opposed to being the fifth book in the Uglies series. It is, however, based in the same world, and the events that happened in the previous books are still considered cannon.
Imposters is set a decade after the Uglies series ended, if not more. Tally is little more than a legend, an idol that people recall and still look up to. Nobody that Frey (the main perspective) knows has ever met Tally, not that it’d be safe to admit that. Not in her father’s city, anyway.
Frey is a twin, but she and her sister are very different, while still being so striking similar. All their differences were manufactured by her father. Where Frey was learned to fight, kill, and protect, Rafi was trained to be sociable, polite, and remarkable. The world only knows about one of them, and that’s the way their father wants it.



Upon reading the description it’s pretty clear that Imposers has sort of a King Louie vibe to it. Two twins, both with the potential to rule, but only one of them given the opportunity. Sounds familiar, right? Of course, knowing Scott Westerfeld, it wasn’t hard to assume that he’d apply his own twist on the trope.
Frey is the main perspective, and thus the twin we get to know better throughout the course of the book. Which is ironic, considering most of her world doesn’t, or rather, didn’t, know that she existed. Her whole purpose in live was to protect Rafi, even to the point of sacrificing herself. It’s heartbreaking to think that a child would be raised to think like that…but when looking back on rulers in the past, this wasn’t an unheard of occurrence (not the twin part, per se, but everything else).
Despite her upbringing, or maybe in spite of it, Frey is a witty, brilliant, and loving person. She adores her sister with everything she has, which is probably the only thing her father truly succeeded in accomplishing with her – because Frey would sacrifice herself to save Rafi, without hesitate. But I also believe that Frey would sacrifice herself to save anybody that she cares for – as proven again and again in this novel.
Rafi was also an intriguing character, and a lot of that had to do with us not knowing her as well. Her personality traits and motivations were revealed much more slowly than Frey’s were. And unlike Frey, we didn’t have an eagle eye view into her thoughts, so even then we had reason to question the truth of her words of motivation behind them. There was one major reveal about her that I absolutely adored. It wasn’t the reveal (though that was quite good) as much as the logic behind it, both what was happening and how it was discovered. It was very well done.
I love how political this novel ended up being. You could see the movements Frey’s father was making, and even understand his reasoning (even if you didn’t even remotely agree with it). Likewise I could see what Col’s family was doing, and while I respected their actions a whole lot more, I likewise understood what they were trying to accomplish.
There were plot twists and revelations I didn’t see coming, and if I’m being honest I couldn’t be happier about it. While the core of the plot may not have been terribly unique, the way Scott Westerfeld portrayed it made all the difference, turning it into a unique telling once again.
I’ll admit that the main plot didn’t remind me as much of the Uglies as I had anticipated. I think I’m okay with that, on the whole, especially since the book was so good. That being said, the fight scenes in particular really reminded me of the old series I loved so much. Perhaps it was the tech, or the way Westerfeld writes his action scenes…but it felt like I was coming back home in those moments – even despite the intensity of those points.
I was a little sad that Tally was little more than a reference in this book…but at the same time I had to admit that if anybody deserved a chance to take a break for a while, it’s her. She’s been through enough, don’t you think? Though I’d be curious to see what she has to say about the state of the world as it stands.
As I mentioned earlier, Imposters is the first is a new series by Westerfeld. Conveniently, the series is also the name of the first book. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the next one, or even when it will be coming out. But I can assure you that I’m looking forward to it.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

4.5*

Confession time! I didn't love the Uglies series. I just didn't. I liked the first book, but by the end? I legit one-starred the 4th book, honestly just out of severe boredom. So to say I was skeptical of Impostors is putting it mildly. It was mostly curiousity that led me to pick up the copy that showed up on my doorstep. And the verdict? Holy crap, I am so glad that I am a curious sort!

I devoured this book. I liked the characters, the plot, the setting... I truly can't think of anything that I didn't like, come to think of it. My only complaint in the whole thing was that Mr. Westerfeld, sir, I need a map because I cannot figure out where all these towns are. I beg of you, map. 

Erm anyway. The action started and never stopped. There were little throwbacks to the first book, but it wasn't overwhelming at all- I needn't have remembered much (which is good since I read it five years ago) and if you really wanted, could probably read this on its own without the first four. Because it's set, appropriately, years later, in a very different sort of world.

I basically could not stop reading, it sucked me in from the very start. A few extra tidbits that I loved:

• •Short chapters! This is a personal thing, but goodness I love a short chapter- plus it makes for very easy "one more chapter"-ing late into the night.



• •All the characters, not just Frey, were great. Even some of the more minor characters were awesome- and a few were perfect for a couple of lighter moments that were great in the midst of a pretty dark situation.



• •Frey learned a lot about herself during the book, and I enjoyed her development. 



• •The stakes always seemed high, danger was always around the corner.

Bottom Line: Is book 6 out yet? Because I am totally in, and cannot wait to see what else this world and these characters have in store for them! And also, excited about those maps ;)

[nightingalereads]

3.25 stars

I read the Uglies series back in middle-school, around the same time I read The Hunger Games. Since then, my love for Uglies has not faded with time - in fact, the more I reflect on it, the more impressed I am at how insightful the story was in regard to cultural and technological development. I will stand by my opinion that Scott Westerfeld predicted the rise of YouTube stardom, especially in his book Extras.

So, Impostors:

I was excited about this continuation series, while of course being wary of disappointment. Thankfully, Scott Westerfeld's writing is as immersive and illustrative as ever. It has that same hard-to-explain quality to it that made reading Impostors feel like coming home. My only true complaint would be that the world-building lacked some fleshing out. We get references to hoverboards and crash bracelets and such, but I finished the book still a little fuzzy about what all has changed since the original series (this new one is set a decade or two post-Tally' story, I believe).

I enjoyed Frey, our protagonist, and loved her storyline of being a fighter decoy for her twin sister, Rafia. Frey's shadowed childhood and the development of their sister-bond kept me curious because it's such a fraught yet familiar dynamic. I think Westerfeld really nailed the conflict of what each sister struggled with. That said, the book could've spent more time building the characters. Impostors has a decent amount of action and moves along at a nice clip, but I think sometimes that came at the expense of natural character development. Some relationships felt rushed, while others felt too unexplored. Hopefully, the sequel will expand on these elements, because the potential is huge.

Overall, I loved getting to throw myself back into the world of Uglies. And YES there are references to Tally, the Rusties, the Pretty Regime, etc! I'm dying to see where the sequel takes us.