The Glimpse

by Claire Merle

London, in the not too distant future, and people are now divided into Pures and Crazies, according to the results of a DNA test, with the Crazies sectioned off to live within 'the City', on the other side of the Community wall. Until the age of fifteen, Ana has lived a privileged existence amongst the Pures, but her whole world crumbles when she finds out that her DNA test was faked, which makes her one of the Crazies. She has just three years before she will be cast out of the Community . . .

But Ana meets Pure-born Jasper and is offered a ticket to freedom when he asks her to Join with him. She looks forward to a 'normal' life, and fulfilling her dreams of becoming a musician. Then, just a week before the Joining ceremony, Jasper goes missing; it appears he is somewhere in the City, and no one knows why. Ana sets off on his trail, which takes her through the underbelly of society and into the pits of the human soul. And as she delves deeper into the mystery of Jasper's disappearance Ana uncovers some devastating truths that destroy everything she has grown up to believe, but she also learns to love as she has never loved before.

• ISBN10: 0571280544
• ISBN13: 9780571280544
• Publish Date: 5 June 2012 (first published 1 June 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Faber & Faber
• Edition: Main
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[anne]

Strong female lead, great action, dystopian genetics story

[Joséphine]

Ana to me was a believable character. There was no pretension of noble motives in attempting to save Jasper, especially when their relationship became delicate in his captivity. While Ana set out for Jasper, she also set out for herself. I appreciated that a lot. Also, she had the maturity of an older teen, knowing how to handle secrets, yet portraying her still lesser developed moods, as expected of a teenager.

I thought it interesting that Ana was put in a position of intense scrutiny to prove that she was not inferior to the Pures. She had honed her act to face intense psychological examinations, under the tutelage of her father. As much as she resented having to appear perfect, she continued to appease the authorities with her control in order to remain in the Community. All these years she had been fed the notion that any display of heightened emotions point to possible mental instability. Since her father had developed the study of DNA for hereditary mental illnesses, she trusted fully in the established system. Once in the City though, she recognizes that the Crazies might not be as dangerous as she had come to believe. At the same time, their treatments (or lack thereof) were not preventing four-year-olds from attempting to commit suicide. This set her off in a pursuit for the truth and she took me right along with her as I read the pages of the book.

During her time in the City, Ana meets Cole and his two siblings. She forges a friendship with his sister and a slow romance ensues between Ana and Cole. As much as the characters became predictable, the plot did not suffer as a result. In the end, I found myself sympathizing with the Crazies precisely because of the injustice they experienced.

Fuller review here.