Name: The Glow
ISBN: 9798551377085

Aubrey Hadley

For fans of Red Rising, Divergent and of Brandon Sanderson's Skyward. ✨A futuristic alien world, supernatural abilities, an ancient conspiracy, and the power of love and friendship; a teenage girl's life changes when she is abducted from home and becomes the human race's last hope to survive a deadly illness.✨ Harper just wants to be a normal seventeen-year-old girl, playing soccer with her friends and going to school, not understanding why her mom keeps her inside, locked away from the outside world. But once Harper stumbles upon a mysterious glowing figure in the Nevada desert, a chain-of-events is triggered that will change her life forever. As the world experiences a deadly pandemic, Harper is taken far from home and held captive in the Base of Ki: a massive dome with a sheening white city and fantastic technology controlled by beings from another solar system. Was this why her mom was so keen to protect her? Now she must form alliances -- and fast -- if she has any hope of returning to Earth. Harper's about to learn who she can rely on and who her real friends are, embarking on a journey that will expose her to dangers she doesn't yet understand . . . *First published as Glow: Book I, Potency, now extensively rewritten, thanks to helpful reader feedback *

The Glow

** spoiler alert **
           This fast paced story will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat and make you binge the pages! 

I am not one to gravitate to towards scifi, this one reeled me in! I am a sucker for past pace stories and this was exactly that. Harper reminded me a lot of my niece, she loves science and is in absolutely awe with science. I loved the determination of the main character and the support of the side character. The effort that was placed by the characters to find out how they could save the world from this unknown sleep syndrome was pretty intense! It's crucial to me to connect with the characters in order to be completely pulled into the story, I was pretty satisfied with what I had at hand during the unraveling of the story. I would love to learn more of a back story on some of the characters! 

The fact that the book is based on a syndrome affecting the world, this totally gave me vibes of the pandemic we are dealing with. The author did an amazing job with the character development of the characters, the world building definitely helped me put together this new world. Scifi is always a little tricky for me to follow but this was done in a way that I didnt get lost. 

I look forward to reading more from Aubrey Hadley. This story was definitely a pleasant surprise and it definitely gave me that push to dive more into scifi! Thank you so much to the author for gifting me a copy of the book! Great story!

Shelby Goodwin

Despite my lifelong infatuation with aliens and galaxies and rocket ships (oh my!), I typically struggle to connect well with most sci-fi novels. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I connected with The Glow! This book is EXACTLY the kind of YA science fiction novel that speaks to my Ancient Aliens-obsessed, space exploration-loving soul.

Tension between the Ancients/Alien race and the Humans/Human Hybrid serves as the focal point for the novel, but the initial premise is catalyzed by conflict due to the Sleeping Syndrome, a global pandemic that’s plaguing the entire human race. This of course interested me immediately due to its extreme relevance to our life today! 

The MC Harper (an endearingly relatable teen who just wants to play soccer and hang with friends) suddenly finds herself navigating a nightmarish world of family secrets, betrayal, and more. Throughout the story, Harper easily won me over with her rebellious, determined spirit, and an especially fierce sense of loyalty, especially to her sister Olivia.

With burgeoning supernatural powers and intergalactic clashes abound, I couldn’t help but get completely lost in this high-stakes sci-fi mystery and that ending left me totally ready for the next installment! I can also highly recommend the audiobook version--the voice actor brought these characters to life so wonderfully and helped to reinforce how beautifully written this book truly is!

Tatiana Alvarez 

Thank you so much to the author for collaborating with me and sending me a free copy of her book!

The Glow is a sci-fi, futuristic world where aliens study and walk amongst the humans. A seemingly normal girl named Harper, deals with things all normal teens deal with, but specifically the strained relationship she has with her mother. However, her life changes quickly after a deadly pandemic (I know, too real) runs rampant in the world. With everyone distracted, Harper is taken away from her home and held as a captive in the Base of Ki. Harper knows there is only one way to get back to her family, specifically her little sister Olivia, and that is to make alliances.

I am not a sci-fi reader. It is just not a genre I gravitate towards, but Hadley's writing is phonemical. It is easy to follow, the descriptions are easy to understand, and I did not feel as if I were lost in the countless amount of information that some sci-fi writers put into their books.

What really helped me get into the story was Harper. She is the main protagonist in The Glow and the story is written in her POV. She was relatable, despite the fact she was part alien, and I loved seeing her development from the start of the book until the end. I appreciated her strained relationship with her mother because I feel like a lot of teenagers can relate to that. Not being understood. Everything made more sense to me when Harper's mother came clean about her birth.

The author sent me the audiobook and the reader is just amazing! Readers can either make or break a story, but I found myself unable to stop listening. Loved all the different voices and emotions the reader was able to express. Overall, this book was such a fun read and I'm excited to see where this series goes.

Chiara Vitale Zelaia

Dystiopian novels often have the ability to make my heart race while I’m reading them, My mind simply can’t stop thinking “what if this will happen in our future?” Add to that an alien invasion and a pandemic, and you have me sweating nervously in bed! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the world of THE GLOW.

This is the first book in a dystopian sci-fi series following Harper. In her world, humans are facing the Sleeping Syndrome, a highly contagious syndrome that kills people in their sleep. As if this weren’t enough to upset the balance of Harper’s life, she’s also not what you’d call an ordinary teen. She sees glowing figures and, soon enough, she’s kidnapped by them and taken to the Base of Ki. As I said, aliens and pandemics. What comes next? Well, you’ll have to read the book to find out!

I was immediately able to resonate with Harper as a character. Her familiar situation is strained, but in her bond with her sister, Olivia, I found an echo of the bond I share with my own sister, and this created an instant connection between the protagonist and me. The union of complex characters, mystery and surprising plot twists made this a story that was hard to put down. It did have some slow parts, but in the long run it helped to introduce the secondary characters on the Base of Ki and develop bonds between characters. I loved the friendship between Harper, Jacqueline and Adam and the lack of a romantic sub-plot (though I love them) was refreshing and kept Harper focused on her mission to escape the Base and save Earth.

Overall, this was a read I thoroughly enjoyed and recommend it to all fans of dystopians and sci-fi.

Maria Elena Vitale Zelaia

Some books come into your life at the perfect time to make you feel like you’re living in some sort of dystopian sci-fi version of the world. This is one of them. 

The Glow is the first book in a sci-fi series. It follows Harper, an extraordinary girl living not quite the normal life she would like. In Harper’s version of the world, humans are facing the Sleeping Syndrome, a highly contagious sickness that kills people in their sleep. Soon, a pandemic erupts. Sounds familiar? In the times we’re living, these were the perfect premises to have my heart skip several beats. If that weren’t enough, Harper sees mysterious glowing figures, and she’s then taken by them to the Base of Ki. A pandemic leading to a possible post-apocalyptic world and aliens? This is the kind of story I love. (In books or movies. Let’s pray aliens don’t suddenly decide to come and play.)

The book was intriguing from the beginning. I was very interested in Harper’s life, because it’s evident that something is amiss by her mother’s attitude. Initially, I mistook the mother’s fear of the Sleeping Syndrome for the concern I see on my parents’ faces because of the current pandemic, but then it’s clear there’s something more to it. Me loves a good mystery. 

While I thought the plot was going to go in one direction, it surprised me and did something different. I loved the twist that brings us to the alien base and everything we discover there. The characters we meet at the Base of Ki are all very interesting. Some have faced unspeakable traumas on Earth and they use that hatred to further the alien cause against the human race. But not everyone is like this. I especially loved Adam and Jacqueline, and I love Harper’s interactions with both of them. 

The book ends in a way that makes me very excited to know more, especially about Brett. I feel like he’s a character that carries a lot of mystery. 

This book is perfect for fans of sci-fi and dystopian. Thank you to the author for sending me a copy!

The Glow

Reviews

Highlights