Gravity grabbed me from the start and wouldn't let go. I read this baby in one sitting. The year is 2133 ...❉ A human and alien treaty is in place From that moment on {the signing of the treaty}, we were no longer just human beings - we were hosts. We provide them with antibodies through the Taking so they can survive on Earth, which is the only reason we're alive. Had their bodies responded to Earth as they had hoped, we would all be gone. Genocide of the human species. Instead, they needed us - and we needed them. Our planet was destroyed, and they alone possessed the ability to terraform Earth back to health. ❉ At age 10, children are given their Patch and told about the Taking {Because of the patch} ... our bodies don't feel the Ancients receiving our antibodies ... our daily supplements guarantee we have plenty ... our assigned Ancient will come into our room at midnight ... the Ancient will Take for thirty minutes before returning to Loge, their planet ... When we first meet Ari Alexander, she's 10 and about to receive her patch. After we learn a little about the Patch, the Taking and the events following World War IV, the story jumps ahead seven years. Ari is peering out of her window, in hopes of spotting her Ancient (alien), when she realizes her Patch is missing. Fearing punishment, execution or a dose of a 24-hr memory serum, she does everything she can to prepare herself for her patchless Taking. What happens next makes Ari question everything she's been taught and believed about the world she lives in. Other than what felt like an overuse of the word composite throughout the book, I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It was hard, at first, to remember that these kids are growing up in a world where certain things are taken as a given and not to be questioned. Later, when they finally did begin to question things, we really get to know more about what's going on behind the scenes and the intensity of the story picks up. Ari has a big decision to make - continue on and do what she's always been told is right or trust her instincts and do what she knows is right?Some readers may be turned off by the insta-love factor, but I was not. I enjoyed getting to know each of the characters and, for me, their relationships felt real and understandable considering the world they live in. It's like gravity disappears when he's around and I'm lost, no longer sure of anything.It's as though chaos and perfection slammed into each other and he's the result. Certain realizations will be clear to the reader before they become clear to Ari, but not unrealistically so. She is a strong, fierce and courageous. I am glad that I waited to read this book because I have little time to wait for the next book, [b:Hover|16032322|Hover (The Taking, #2)|Melissa West|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1354511362s/16032322.jpg|21802937] due out in Aug, which takes us Loge.
