Infinity Lost by S. Harrison

Finn Blackstone hasn't had what anyone would consider a normal childhood. Her father, CEO of Blackstone Technologies, is a recluse even his own daughter has almost never seen. Instead, she was raised by a nanny and security specialist, trained in tactical fighting and privately tutored until she was allowed to attend boarding school for her final years before graduation. 

This was just everyday life for Finn, until the dreams started. Strange dreams about things that seem almost like memories, but memories of events Finn never lived. And then the dreams start coming during the day, coinciding with a trip to Blackstone's headquarters. Finn had hoped the trip might mean an opportunity to confront her absent father. Instead, one of Blackstone's top secret advances turns deadly and Finn might be the only one who can stop it. 

Ugh, this is a hard one to review. I wish that Infinity Lost was a single title rather than the start to a trilogy. It's short, under 250 pages, and the balance of the plot as a whole is off. Three quarters of the book is set up for a final quarter of action and revelations, most of which are easy to see coming even if the full explanation has yet to be revealed.

As a single title, I didn't love Infinity Lost. I'm not even sure how much I liked it because so much of the story relies on the next two pieces. As a series start, it felt truncated and too forcefully split into pieces - almost as if it was one volume that was randomly cut into thirds for the specific purpose of dragging it out into a trilogy. Which may not be the case, but it certainly felt that way to me.

In theory, it's an interesting concept. Finn's own past is a mystery to her. She has enemies she isn't aware of. And what's the deal with her dad?! Stretching this out into three installments seems a bit unfair to the story, though. The full middle section of the book is tech talk, a show and tell of Blackstone's creations. It's foreshadowing, sure, but there's very little in the way of tension or action. The only pieces of suspense come from Finn's dreams/flashes of memory. Unfortunately those flashbacks break the book up, giving too much of a stop and go feeling to the narrative as a whole.

The second book, Infinity Rises, is actually due out next Tuesday but the third installment, Infinity Reborn, won't hit shelves until this summer, which means those final revelations are still six months out. Unfortunately I'm not sure I'll be able to decide whether I like the books or not until I have all three in hand.