Review: Catalyst by S.J. Kincaid

Summary

Tom Raines and his friends are eager to return to the Pentagonal Spire to continue training for the elite Intrasolar Forces, but they soon discover troubling changes: strict new regulations and the revelation that the Spire is under new military control. What begins as an irritating adjustment soon reveals a dangerous shift in reality. Those now in control are aligned with corporate sponsors and their ruthless agendas. And when the military academy begins welcoming new cadets with suspicious neural processors, the first step in a plan with horrifying worldwide ramifications, Tom is desperate to stop it, even if that means keeping secrets from his closest allies.

Then a mysterious figure, the other ghost in the machine, begins fighting against the corporations, but with methods even Tom finds shocking. And when the enemy comes for Tom, how much can Tom endure in the battle to save himself? He must decide if he can still fight when the odds of success seem to be sliding from his grip.

My thoughts

Catalyst is the ending of this fantastic series and it was AMAZING! It was better than I ever thought possible. S.J. Kincaid did a great job letting this series come to and end and gave us a story that blows your mind, just like the two previous books did.

Back when I started reading this series, I never thought I would get to read something like THIS. Especially this last book took such a mind blowing and horrifying turn that I couldn’t stop reading and wanted to stop (because I couldn’t take it anymore) at the same time. This one final blow put Tom in such a scary situation, I was screaming for someone to help him and get him out of it. I love to read from unreliable POVs and Catalyst comes with cruel characters who tamper with others’ minds in a way that made me both scared and fascinated. What happens to Tom at one point of this book was almost unbearable.

I think this part of the story made this last book the most emotional for me. It has all the good parts that the previous ones had, all the things that made me love this series so much and then added a ton of feels.

If you like character driven stories then you should definitely read this one. These characters are the best and the character development is fantastic.
Most importantly, this is a book about friendship. These characters become a family, they care for each other and would do anything to save the others. It was a great journey to see them grow, become attached and form this bond.

And what I like so much about this series is, that the idea is so unsettling but feels so real that it’s really scary. It’s easy to imagine for something like this to actually happen. I was grateful that the characters came with a great sense of humor because they were always able to make me laugh out loud, no matter how bad the situation they are currently stuck in.

Kincaid wrote three amazing books about a scenario that she describes so detailed and realistic that it becomes scary. A plot that constantly moves forward and great character development makes this one of the best SciFi series I’ve read so far and I couldn’t have wished for a better ending for this series.