Solid - Shelley Workinger

Eighteen years ago, a rogue Army doctor secretly experimented with a chromosomal drug on unknowing pregnant women. When he was killed not long after the children were born, any knowledge and evidence seemed to die with him--except the living, breathing, human products of his work. 

Almost two decades later, the newly self-proclaimed "open-book" military unearths the truth about the experiment, bringing Clio Kaid and the other affected teens to a state-of-the-art, isolated campus where they soon discover that C9x did indeed alter their chromosomes--its mutations presenting as super-human abilities. The military kids, who come from across the nation and all walks of life, come into their own as lighter-than-air 'athletes'; 'indies' as solid as stone walls; teens who can make themselves invisible and others who can blind with their brilliance.

While exploring her own special ability, forging new friendships and embarking on first love, Clio also stumbled onto information indicating that the military may not have been entirely forthcoming with them and that all may not be as it seems...

Title: Solid

Author: Shelley Workinger

Genre: Young Adult, Adventure, Thriller

Publisher: CreateSpace

Publication Date: July 9, 2010

Format: ARC

Source: Received from author. Many thanks goes to Shelley Workinger for sending me a copy of her book for review. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review. 

Look for it: Amazon, Book Depository.

My rating: 3.5/5

When a secret military experiment is unveiled, the military realizes that they'll need to figure out what happened all those years ago. The unborn children who were part of the experiment are all in their teens now, and some of them are starting to show some super-powerful abilities. With a camp set up to explore these abilities, everything seems to be aboveboard. However all might not be as it seems. 

With a character-driven plot, this book is an engaging and fast-paced read. The relationships between the characters jump out to the reader, as they show how powerful friendship can be especially when forged under less than ideal conditions. Clio is the main character, and though she's a little shy at first, she bonds with a group of like-minded teens. When she realizes that they may have been brought to the facility under false pretenses, she divulges to the group and it is up to them to find out what is going on. 

Bliss, Miranda, Jack, Garrett and even Alexis bring much needed back up, and humour to the story as they all play off of each other. With the characters bringing completely different aspects to the group, and some having clashing personalities, it is interesting to see how they resolve situations. 

I wished we could have gotten more information about was the experiment, and also more of the characters as they dealt with the information given to them. Regardless, I did enjoy the book and the interactions therein, but I just wanted to see more. I'm definitely interested to see where Workinger is going to take the story next. 

All in all, a good storyline, with excellent, well-drawn characters. The military experiment adds intrigue and sinister undertones to let the reader know that all is not as it seems. Fans of adventure, or young adult books will enjoy this one.