Ashwin “Ash” Sood is a little too posh for M's tastes, a little too good looking, and has way too many secrets. He desperately wants the ancient map M inherited from her archeologist father, believing it will lead him to a relic with the power to destroy the world. M obviously can't trust him.
Equally desperate to find the relic for reasons of her own, M forms an uneasy partnership with Ash. From the catacombs of Paris, to a sacred forest in Norway, to the ruins of a submerged temple in Egypt, together they crisscross the globe in their search. But through it all, M can never be sure: Is she traveling with a friend or enemy? (Pub Date: Sep 11, 2018)
Our Review
Having read Sanctuary Bay, I knew this book would be different from your usual YA, but I didn't think it would be this different.
3.5.
Memphis has just lost her father, with whom she had a very deep connection, and now she has to stand still at one place instead of having archeological adventures around the world as well as deal with her guardians, the most normal and boring couple she's ever met. That's when Ash turns up saying her father is actually prisoner to a millenary cult who wants his help to bring back the Egyptian god Seth, consequentially destroying the world. For that, they need the map M's father left her, and she's not about to trust anyone with the treasure, unless she goes with Ash find the treasures from the map herself.
To be honest, this wasn't my thing, but I don't think this is the problem I had with this book. The authors imagined this long story, filled with twists and mythology. But they either didn't condense it all the best way or they didn't have the space they needed for that. I keep thinking it's the latter—this would have been better sprayed through a trilogy or something. The way it was, a lot of it wound up rushed and sometimes silly, when you can see there was serious research and thought toward the making.
The second problem is that it focused too much on how M didn't trust Ash, even the title is about it. I don't think that was the point of the book at all, and it made the non-action scenes a little too repetitive.
Even though this book surely needed more working, it still got a lot of great elements. If you're a fan of mythology, you'll probably feel excited about how well the authors managed to connect everything. From religions to folklore to ancient gods, there was so many interesting facts, and in a fun way—there wasn't a single time I felt I was reading for class. I can't evaluate how accurate it all was but the fact that it didn't make the book drag, on the contrary, it made it all feel very interesting isn't to be overlooked.
I recommend this to those looking for a nice YA adventure with the plus of supernatural, reminiscent of The Da Vinci Code.
Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
About the Authors
LAURA J. BURNS and MELINDA METZ have written many books for teens and middle-grade readers, including Sanctuary Bay, Crave, and Sacrifice, as well as the Edgar-nominated mystery series Wright and Wong. They have also written for the TV shows ROSWELL, 1-800-MISSING, and THE DEAD ZONE. Laura lives in New York and Melinda lives in North Carolina, but really they mostly live on email, where they do most of their work together.
I DO NOT TRUST YOU
By Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz
Published by Wednesday Books
**On Sale September 11, 2018**
Hardcover | $18.99
ISBN: 9781250052308| Ebook ISBN: 9781466853911
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