Cadence (Cade) lives on a planet named Andana, barely eking out a living by playing music. Humans, in this future, are second class citizens and barely tolerated on some planets. Cade has grown up alone and has no idea where she came from. One day, a holographic Mr. Niven, comes to give Cade a disc which contains clues to her past. Cade discovers she is Quantum Entangled to a boy named Xan. She realizes that the noise in her head is quantum interference and that when it is silenced, Xan is in trouble. Cade must find Xan, but getting off Andana is tricky. She manages to secure passage on a smuggling ship, where she finds new friends willing to help her. Entanglement is much more complicated, with the Unmakers hot on their trail, trying to get to Xan first. Cade and her friends realize that their quest is really to save the human race.

A website compared this book to the tv series Firefly, but I have to admit that thought would not have occurred to me. But since I read the comparison, I can see some connections in a way that space is sort of a wild-west, no form of organized government and humans barely surviving. I think the world building and the introduction of new races, were lacking in detail. The descriptions of music and playing the guitar were very detailed, leading me to believe that the author has a lot of background knowledge in this area. I like that the ship was alive and could accept or reject passengers. The demise of the human race was a bit of a mystery throughout the story that was never really resolved. I really wanted to like this book because I heard he author speak and she is very lovely, but I had a hard time getting through the story. The book jacket is very attractive and will appeal to sci-fi readers, but I think that they will have a hard time getting through the text. This book is the first volume of a two volume series, so the character development is not complete in this book.

This book could be recommended to music lovers and also to a high school GSWA organization because the author does make a significant attempt to include a lesbian couple in her story. There is really nothing that is graphic, objectionable or controversial in this story so it would be appropriate for a school library. ( )

This is exactly what I've been wanting from YA Science Fiction. With a deliciously unique flavor and a fantastically written narrative, ENTANGLED is setting the bar high for teen sci-fi.

What I loved: Cade. She is such a fascinating protagonist. From her troubled upbringing to living off her music, her rocker style to her no-nonsense attitude, Cade is one hell of a girl. She also has flaws, makes mistakes, and can't make up her mind. Despite Cade being a super-special human with super-special abilities she isn't annoying, whiny, or entitled. Her quirky voice, interesting slang, and authentic outlook on life kept me turning the pages.

I also loved: The romance. Or should I say, lack thereof? Don't get me wrong, there is romance in this story. It is tertiary to the two more important plot points - Cade finding and rescuing Xan, and Cade's own journey of self-discovery. The romance is extra. It's delightful, and a little weird, and completely tantalizing, but it's not that big of a deal. And I really respect that in a YA novel.

And even more love for: The sci-fi elements! Quantum mechanics can often seem wonky or cliched in fiction, but it was not that way here. Big, fancy, sciency words weren't just thrown around to sound cool - the author knows what she's doing. Spaceships and aliens, quantum entanglement and telepathy, holograms and spacesickness. The science in this fiction is delightful.

I wanted more: Everything! Which I shall receive in the upcoming sequel.

Recommended: Highly! To all fans of science fiction and fantasy, aliens and spaceships, music and friendship. ( )

"It's like Firefly, and the main character has an electric guitar," was what I heard about this book at BEA, so I was absolutely up for this.

It lived up to its promise. A fun science fiction adventure, with the promised guitar, interesting alien races, menacing bad guys and a good ensemble spaceship crew. I'm a big fan of some of the perils the worldbuilding creates.
Though on reflection, I think it was more reminiscent of Farscape than Firefly. In a way that worked for me.

Thing that didn't altogether work: the central conceit of "Entangled," and what that means when two people are "entangled"... got a little murky for me. I wasn't sure what it actually meant in terms of powers conferred on people, and had some trouble decoding what it meant as a relationship: siblings? lovers? Although the events of the plot don't clearly telegraph a sequel (which is a huge point in this book's favor, set against most of the rest of YA lit, lately), I wonder if a sequel might more clearly explain how someone who is "entangled" can use that in this universe. ( )

"It's like Firefly, and the main character has an electric guitar," was what I heard about this book at BEA, so I was absolutely up for this.

It lived up to its promise. A fun science fiction adventure, with the promised guitar, interesting alien races, menacing bad guys and a good ensemble spaceship crew. I'm a big fan of some of the perils the worldbuilding creates.
Though on reflection, I think it was more reminiscent of Farscape than Firefly. In a way that worked for me.

Thing that didn't altogether work: the central conceit of "Entangled," and what that means when two people are "entangled"... got a little murky for me. I wasn't sure what it actually meant in terms of powers conferred on people, and had some trouble decoding what it meant as a relationship: siblings? lovers? Although the events of the plot don't clearly telegraph a sequel (which is a huge point in this book's favor, set against most of the rest of YA lit, lately), I wonder if a sequel might more clearly explain how someone who is "entangled" can use that in this universe. ( )

"It's like Firefly, and the main character has an electric guitar," was what I heard about this book at BEA, so I was absolutely up for this.

It lived up to its promise. A fun science fiction adventure, with the promised guitar, interesting alien races, menacing bad guys and a good ensemble spaceship crew. I'm a big fan of some of the perils the worldbuilding creates.
Though on reflection, I think it was more reminiscent of Farscape than Firefly. In a way that worked for me.

Thing that didn't altogether work: the central conceit of "Entangled," and what that means when two people are "entangled"... got a little murky for me. I wasn't sure what it actually meant in terms of powers conferred on people, and had some trouble decoding what it meant as a relationship: siblings? lovers? Although the events of the plot don't clearly telegraph a sequel (which is a huge point in this book's favor, set against most of the rest of YA lit, lately), I wonder if a sequel might more clearly explain how someone who is "entangled" can use that in this universe. ( )