Icons by Margaret Stohl

Icons is the first in a series of books by Margaret Stohl. The tagline: Your heart beats only with their permission - was enough to get me interested.

The story follows Doloria, Dol, who lives in the year 2080 ATD (After The Day). The Day was when The Lords came to Earth and was the day many, many people died including Dol's family. But Dol didn't die that day, even though she should have, and she doesn't know why.

Years later, Dol is living in a remote countryside under the watchful eye of Padre and her best friend Ro. Here they are far enough away from the Icons that they do not have to fear their control. They know that getting too close to the Icons can kill them by stopping their electrical energy, the way it has stopped all the other electrical energy within its vicinity.

But on her 17th birthday Dol and Ro are captured and taken to the Embassy. There they meet Tima and Lucas and realize that the four of them are different than other people. Are there more people like them? What else do the have in common? Do they have anything to do with The Lords? With mounting questions and little answers, the four of them try to find out who they are and what exactly their purpose is.

I was immediately engrossed in Dol and Ro's life. You don't learn very much of it but you get a small picture of what their life was like. Quiet, rural, fresh, and dirty. But as soon as they get captured and you're introduced to Tima and Lucas, things get a little too-fast paced and a bit confusing. I understand that Stohl was trying to introduce the four main characters early but I feel that the introduction to Tima and Lucas was rushed. I also feel that as much as we know about Dol and as little as we know about Ro, the connection she has for him is enough for the reader to feel a connection to him as well. When it comes to Tima and Lucas however, the fact that they are thrust so hurriedly upon us, makes it harder to make any sort of connection with them.

However, the action and the story are intriguing. The more you find out about The Lords and their powers the more you want to know. In between each chapter are also letters, memos, and reports that are sent to the Embassy that give you little glimpses as to what is happening on a larger scale. These help you piece the story together and make connections without giving too much away.

And the end of the book you've found out a bit of what is happening but nowhere near enough to see the entire picture. It has definitely left me waiting impatiently for the next book, Idols, which is set to come out in July. I'm hoping that in this next one, we are able to learn more about Tima and Lucas.

If you're looking for an interesting read about aliens and the powers of human emotion - give this one a try.


Overall, I give it 4 out of 5 cateyes.