This is my stop during the blog tour for Synchrony (Destiny #2) by Cindy Ray Hale. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours . The blog tour runs from May 5 till May 25, you can view the complete tour schedule here. I am running a few days behind for this blog tour and for that I apologize. I read both the first book in this trilogy, Destiny, as well as Synchrony which is book two. I have shared my thoughts below.
Destiny
(Book 1 of Destiny Trilogy)
Cindy Ray Hale
Genre: Contemporary Romance, YA
Destiny Clark, a young Mormon girl living in Tennessee, is wildly infatuated with Isaac Robinson, the headmaster's son at her Baptist high school. When they're cast together in the school's production of Les Misérables, Destiny is horrified to find that she has to be publicly humiliated by acting out her true feelings of rejection onstage.
As their rehearsals begin, Destiny realizes the unimaginable: Isaac has developed deep feelings for her despite their religious differences and the fact that he has a girlfriend.
But will they be able to find their place amongst the backbiters of their ultra-conservative world?
Weaving around Destiny and Isaac's alternating viewpoints, Destiny is the first book in a series inspired by the characters of Les Misérables and explores heartbreak, self-discovery, intolerance, and love.
As their rehearsals begin, Destiny realizes the unimaginable: Isaac has developed deep feelings for her despite their religious differences and the fact that he has a girlfriend.
But will they be able to find their place amongst the backbiters of their ultra-conservative world?
Weaving around Destiny and Isaac's alternating viewpoints, Destiny is the first book in a series inspired by the characters of Les Misérables and explores heartbreak, self-discovery, intolerance, and love.
Synchrony
(Book 2 of Destiny Trilogy)
Genre: Contemporary Romance, YA
Release Date: April 8, 2014
Release Date: April 8, 2014
When her parents discover she’s been sneaking out with Isaac Robinson, the forbidden Baptist boy, Mormon girl Destiny Clark decides it’s time to keep their relationship quiet. As their relationship moves to shakier ground, Destiny discovers that Isaac has a terrible secret, and she is left completely shattered.
The moment Destiny feels all hope is lost, Preston Nelson, her longtime church friend and Isaac's bitter rival, arrives like a beacon of light. It isn't long before two separate disasters strike for Preston and Destiny's best friend, Hannah. As Destiny helps them through their issues, she discovers that sometimes the best way to forget about your own problems is to help a friend in need.
Just as her heart begins to mend and her friendship with Preston begins to heat up, Isaac walks back into her life, threatening to rekindle the feelings she’d hoped to bury forever. Will Destiny and Preston find the synchrony they so desperately need, or will she find a way to forgive Isaac and return to his outstretched arms?
The moment Destiny feels all hope is lost, Preston Nelson, her longtime church friend and Isaac's bitter rival, arrives like a beacon of light. It isn't long before two separate disasters strike for Preston and Destiny's best friend, Hannah. As Destiny helps them through their issues, she discovers that sometimes the best way to forget about your own problems is to help a friend in need.
Just as her heart begins to mend and her friendship with Preston begins to heat up, Isaac walks back into her life, threatening to rekindle the feelings she’d hoped to bury forever. Will Destiny and Preston find the synchrony they so desperately need, or will she find a way to forgive Isaac and return to his outstretched arms?
My thoughts: I am going to review these books as one. Because I read them back to back I am not sure where the story ended and the second one picked up. I liked these books and the whole lover's triangle between Destiny, Isaac, and Preston. Barring the religious undertones, I bet you can find at least one triangle like this in every high school in America.
Destiny is only 15 when the book starts and is a Mormon attending Bethel Baptist High School. Her family are the only Mormon's that attend and they were former members of Bethel Baptist Church. When they converted, a lot of their friends didn't understand and broke off the friendship. While her brother Michael seems to be very well-liked, Destiny doesn't feel like she belongs anywhere. At the start of the school year she only has two girls that she calls friends, and one of them turns out to be Isaac's cousin.
There are actually two more books coming out, Complexity - book 2.5 and Harmony - book 3. I am going to have to read these because I want to know what happens with these three! There is also some smaller stories going on - one with Destiny's best friend Hannah and her boyfriend and another with Destiny's little sister Olivia, and a would be suitor. Both could be explosive all on their own.
Now that I have shared what I liked about the books, I do have to let you know about something that bothered me. I am a born-again Christian and felt a little bit like the Christians in this book weren't represented very well. They seemed to be the ones who were unaccepting, rumor mongerers, druggies, and having pre-marital sex. The Mormons on the other hand, all had close knit families, watched out for their siblings, dressed conservatively etc. And it wasn't until Isaac, (Christian) decides to learn more about the Mormon religion that he is portrayed in a much better light. I understand that this is central to the story line, the different religions and the conflicts between the two, but you don't run into very many good Christians in this story. Meanwhile, even though the Mormons are breaking some house rules, there is no comparison to what their Christian counterparts are doing. I am wondering if some of this is going to change in the next books though and look forward to finding out.
You can watch the book trailer here:
Are you Team Isaac?
Or Team Preston?
For more information on The Destiny Trilogy and Cindy’s upcoming books visit http://destinybycindyhale.blogspot.com/ or follow @CindyRayHale on Twitter.
Author Links:
Website / Website for destiny / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads / Google+ / Pinterest
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Synchrony. These are the prizes you can win:
- A $25 Amazon Gift Card (INTL), and a Destiny Swag Pack which includes: a signed copy of Destiny, a signed copy of Synchrony, a Destiny bookmark, a Destiny magnet, a Destiny keychain, and a Synchrony keychain.
- An ecopy of My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris and a swag pack
- A Camp Boyfriend swag pack by JK Rock
- An ecopy of Definitely, Maybe in Love by Ophelia London.
For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
