Five Seven Five Review: White

Book: Five Seven Five
Author: C.E. Wilson
Series: The Boy With Words
Standing: Book 1 (ongoing)
POV: 1st person by White
Setting: modern day
Genre: YA fantasy, sci-fi

Source: ebook, author (thank you very much, C.E.!)
Pages: 214
Release: November 20th, 2015

Goodreads White Frost has only known the darkness.  Luckier than most, White’s cousin provides her with what seem to many as little more than scraps of paper, but they hold deep secrets. The papers he provides are cryptic collections that hint at a world beyond dusty hallways and candlelight. These words give White hope that she can be one of the great people in her colony. A Chosen One. A member of a group of the strongest people who are allowed to escape the darkness and venture out into the Unknown. At eighteen years old, White is too young to become a Chosen and decides to take her cousin's advice and wait patiently. But when a tragedy upends her life, White realizes that if she wants to truly understand what the mysterious words on paper mean, she’ll have to go beyond every boundary set by her society – including ones set by her own cousin.  When White finally decides to seek the truth, what she finds is more astonishing than anything her cousin could have prepared her for.  Blinding light.  Colors beyond black and gray.  A world where tears fall from the skies.  And an incredible being who may or may not be the Creator of it all.  Everything she’s ever wanted is right in front of her, but this information comes at a price White is not sure she can pay. She has always suspected that her hunger for knowledge is simultaneously her greatest strength and weakness, and now she must ask herself if the answers she sought are worth endangering not only her life, but the lives of everyone she’s ever known.  Five Seven Five is the first book in a two part Young Adult series entitled The Boy with Words.

First of all, I would like to thank C.E. for her patience with me! I had a few issues trying to get a copy, but instead of giving up on me, she went out of her way to help me out. Words cannot express my gratitude! Now onto my review :)

Five Seven Five tells the story of White Frost, a girl who has grown up in a dystopian-like world of darkness. Only a few selected ones are allowed to venture out past Zone Ten into the Unknown, and the Chosen Ones always return battered, bruise, and completely sworn to secrecy about what's out there. White's cousin, Shade, is one of the Chosen Ones, and frequently returns with scraps of paper with strange writings of colours and other things she's never heard of. But when tragedy strikes, White finds herself venturing out past Zone Ten in search of the truth. And what she finds changes everything.

When I first read the synopsis of this book, my first thought was of Plato's Allegory of the Cave. Though this book does contain elements of the allegory, it is nothing like it. It is completely different and unique in its own essence!

Right off the bat, we are introduced to White's curious personality. Her curiosity is fuelled by the slips of paper her cousin, Shade, brings her from the Unknown, but is held in check by Shade. However, her curiosity doesn't stop her from questioning everything and trying to get answers any way possible. White is a very brave and courageous protagonist, always wanting to see more in the world, trying to comprehend exactly what is out there in the world. Her sense of wonder and amazement brings back memories of what it means to truly experience nature for the first time, and makes you yearn to be able to see things from her perspective.

Kes complimented White's personality quite nicely. He wasn't the polar opposite of White, and was equally curious. But whereas he held many of the answers White wanted, he wasn't obnoxious about it. He was a generally good guy, someone who was patient yet excited to tell White about everything. Also, Kes is part of the reason why the novel is titled Five Seven Five. At first, I never quite understood what it was referring to, but after reading Kes explain it, I have to say that the author is very brilliant in an English literature sense. Kes's writings are wonderful and beautiful, about scenery and first encounters. If only more people wrote things like those!

Nature takes a large role in this novel, but nothing like I've ever read before. Apart from Kes's writing, the descriptions of nature are vivid with pure sensation. I was very impressed by the lush language White used to describe what she saw, even in the simplest terms. The author brought experiences with nature right back to the basics, making it a very refreshing new look on the outside world.

What I particularly liked was how this story was able to bridge contemporary with science. The circumstances leading to White's entire civilization is quite realistic; I wouldn't put it above humans to do what ends up happening to her. Humans are naturally curious species, always wanting to test the limits, and often resort to drastic measures with unforeseeable consequences. I can only guess at what will happen in the next book, since there are so many ways for humans to do the wrong thing...

I would have liked the novel to be a tad longer, as I desperately wanted more external conflict. But since this is a series, I'm absolutely positive that the next novel will be contain it. This book is fabulous, and really captures the essence of human wonder, curiosity, and breathtaking sensational experiences from a completely different perspective. If you're looking for a way to see the world just as it is, in all its beauty without any filters, definitely pick this up!