Words on Icons by Margaret Stohl (Icons #1)

Kids w/ magic fight aliens
Jan 30, 2015
3 min read

A group of high-tech aliens now controls Earth. In order to keep everyone under control, they've set up the icons, a set of thirteen thingys (I'm not really sure what else to call them.) that set off deadly electromagnetic pulse waves that can kill anything within a select distance. The thirteen icons are placed around the world to ensure that nowhere is too far from a deadly icon. Humanity has been enslaved and work in the Projects, building who knows what for their new masters, who some call the "No Face".

Dol has lived a simple, happy life in the country since the day that the icons came. She doesn't know why she survived when every other member of her family was killed. But whatever it is, it has marked her as special. A dot on her arm marks her as a Weeper, someone who can take the sorrow of outhers for her own use. Her best friend, Ro, also has similar abilities, although his are much more destructive.

Dol and Ro are captured by the Embassy, what could be considered the shard of government the world has left. There, they meet two other teens with similar powers. Lucas, the Ambassador's son, can convince people to do pretty much anything for him. Tima uses her fears - and there are many things that scare her - to channel her power. Even though the four can't seem to get along, they find a common enemy in the Embassy and the alien Lords, and, with the help of the rebellion, set out to learn more about themselves and how they can destroy the icons.

Dol's fear and confusion about her powers and how to use them makes her feel very relatable. She is capable of so much, and yet she doesn't really know how to use it. Ro's power lets him channel his anger into becoming very strong physically. He trie to do what's best, but his temper gets a hold of him far too easily sometimes, and he lets his anger cloud his thinking. His loyalty to Dol redeems him, though. I'm not sure what to think of Tima. She comes off as very hostile, yet she seems very broken. She doesn't really have anyone left. As for Lucas, I love his character! Nothing is really black and white for him, and he just wants people to care about him for real, not just because he tricks them into loving him with a few mind games. He's a very lonely person trying to do the right thing.

I recognized the author, Margaret Stohl, from he writing when she cowrote Beautiful Creatures with Kami Garcia. Those of you who have read the book/seen the movie might already know this, but it's boring. Very, very boring. But after seeing the book trailer for Icons and browsing for a while, I decided to give it a try. What the heck, right?

I'm glad I did! The characters were very relatable and real, and I loved the idea. This was interesting and original. I couldn't put it down, and the book kept teasing me with new info to help keep me hooked. This is a great book for a sci-fi fan, and this would be good book for people who liked The 5th Wave. 4/5 stars.