The Rift Uprising (Rift Uprising Trilogy Series #1)

by Amy S. Foster

Overview

“High emotional stakes and an intriguing premise make this first entry in Foster’s (When Autumn Leaves) new trilogy a solid next read for those who enjoyed Pierce Brown’s Red Rising or Veronica Roth’s Divergent." -- Library Journal

An alternate reality that feels all-too-real, The Rift Uprising is the explosive start to a new trilogy that blurs the line between parallel universes—not to mention YA and adult science fiction—from acclaimed lyricist and storyteller Amy S. Foster.

Normal seventeen-year-old girls go to high school, binge watch TV shows all weekend, and flirt with everyone on the face of the Earth. But Ryn Whitaker is trying to save it.

Ryn is a Citadel. A soldier. A liar. Ryn and her fellow Citadels were specially chosen and trained to guard a Rift—one of fourteen unpredictable tears in the fabric of the universe that serve as doorways to alternate Earths. Unbeknownst to her family, Ryn leaves for school each day and then reports for duty as an elite, cybernetically-altered soldier who can run faster, jump farther, and fight better than a Navy SEAL—which comes in handy when she’s not sure if axe-wielding Vikings or any number of other scared and often dangerous beings come through the Rift. A fine-tuned weapon, Ryn is a picture-perfect Citadel.

But that’s all about to change.

When a young man named Ezra is pulled through the Rift, Ryn finds herself immediately drawn to him, despite her training. What starts as a physical attraction quickly grows deeper, and Ezra’s curiosity throws Ryn off balance when he starts questioning the Rifts, the mysterious organization that oversees them, and the Citadels themselves—questions that lead Ryn to wonder if the lies she’s been telling her family are just the surface of a much bigger lie told to her. As Ryn and Ezra desperately try to get to that truth, they discover that each revelation blurs the line between the villains and the heroes even more. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062443137
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	07/04/2017
Series:	Rift Uprising Trilogy Series , #1
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Amy S. Foster is a celebrated songwriter, best known as Michael Bublé’s writing partner, and has collaborated with Beyoncé, Diana Krall, Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, and a host of other artists. She is also the author of the novel When Autumn Leaves. When she’s not in a studio in Nashville, she lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family.

Editorial Reviews

The first book in Foster’s The Rift Uprising series is a fun, fast-paced outing that hits the ground running with brilliant worldbuilding and a fiercely protective heroine.

RT Book Reviews (4 stars)

I absolutely loved The Rift Uprising. Its superbly written words kept me riveted, never quite sure what twist or scare might come next. Most importantly, I fell in love with the characters, both good and bad. They felt completely real. Highly recommended, and I’ll be anxiously awaiting the sequel.

James Dashner

10/15/2016
Ryn Whitaker appears to be a normal 17-year-old teenager—but she is also a member of a cybernetically enhanced group called Citadels, who help guard the 14 Rifts, which serve as openings to alternate Earths. The Citadels patrol and watch for any dangerous beings who slip through, such as the alien Karekins or old-world Vikings. Ryn understands that her conditioning and superhuman skills make her the ultimate soldier, but even soldiers are human. When Ezra, a young man, comes through the Rift, there's an instant connection with Ryn, in spite of her training. Ezra is different, extremely intelligent, and asks many questions about the Rifts and their origins. The negative response from Ryn's team and her commander raises doubts in Ryn, and she embarks on a search for answers that may lead to unexpected results. VERDICT High emotional stakes and an intriguing premise make this first entry in Foster's (When Autumn Leaves) new trilogy a solid next read for those who enjoyed Pierce Brown's Red Rising or Veronica Roth's "Divergent" series.—KC

Library Journal

2016-08-01
Superpowered teens guarding the gateway to the multiverse...what could go wrong?Ryn is a Citadel, one of a group of teenagers who were implanted with chips that gave them superpowers that make them the perfect soldiers to guard the Rift, a portal to millions of parallel Earths. All kinds of dangerous creatures come through the Rift, but Ryn is totally unprepared for the latest "Immigrant"—a really cute guy named Ezra who’s just her type. Ryn’s life is carefully controlled. It has to be—she’s a soldier in a top-secret military organization pretending to be a high school student in a highly selective gifted program. She’s constantly lying to maintain her cover story. She doesn’t need disruption—but that’s exactly what she gets, because pretty soon Ezra starts asking questions that reveal just how little she really knows about the organization that controls her life. Plus, there’s the inconvenient fact that Ryn can’t get too close to him without triggering the part of her programming that “turns you into a maniac if you touch anyone you might be remotely attracted to.” The premise doesn't hold up to much scrutiny, and the various crises resolve themselves too quickly, but Foster (When Autumn Leaves, 2009) has set up an intriguing world, and the plot moves along so quickly that there’s no time to quibble. This fun, fast-paced thriller will entertain readers looking for their next teens-save-the-world genre fix.

Kirkus Review