Quicksilver

by R. J. Anderson

Carolrhoda Lab

978-0-7613-8799-2

316 pp.

Ages 14+

2013

In Ultraviolet (reviewed here), R. J. Anderson's prequel to Quicksilver, teen Alison Jeffries had been hospitalized in a youth psych facility and receiving treatment after claiming to see a fellow student, Tori Beaugrand, disintegrate.  Though others saw her as acting out and a potential head case, Sebastian Faraday, who'd claimed to be a neuropsychologist, recognized Alison as a synesthete for whom the interconnectedness of her senses was overwhelming.  Moreover, Tori had disintegrated, when a relay (connecting to her embedded transmitter) transported her to a different world, from which both she and Faraday had come originally, and back to the experimentation of Mathis.  Ultraviolet ends with Alison and Faraday admitting that they cared for each other but Faraday staying behind to help Alison and Tori escape back to earth.

As Ultraviolet was primarily Alison's story, albeit contingent on Tori's existence, Quicksilver focuses on Tori and the need to keep her safe from those who would choose to study her "genetics".  Even with a change of name and appearance and a move far from Sudbury for Tori and her parents (who'd always known her history), trusting and staying inconspicuous are difficult.  This is especially so when Milo, a workmate of Tori's, witnesses Faraday's materializing into Tori's bedroom.  By concocting a scenario about an unethical company, Meridian, from which both Faraday and Tori are hiding, Faraday is able to enlist Milo's help in keeping Tori safe, and in helping to find the means to destroy the relay. Sadly but characteristically, there are the recurring misinterpretations of feelings, by Milo, Alison, Tori and others, as they attempt to understand new relationships. 

With layer upon layer of lies, coupled with the otherworldly truths regarding Faraday and Tori, Quicksilver becomes as complicated as Faraday and Tori's attempts to prevent Mathis from controlling them via the relay and its quicksilver, a programmable material.  Refreshingly R. J. Anderson keeps her characters from early success, choosing instead to demonstrate the need for creative thinking and perseverance.  Fans of engineering and inventions will love Tori's mechanical exploits, especially as she needs to use Milo as the male cover for her brilliance (apparently uncharacteristic of females).  And, if scientific intricacies and physics are not your strengths, then perhaps the schemes by which Tori, Faraday and Milo go to protect those for whom they care will have you considering their choices as effective or subterfuge.   Even the most brilliant of them aren't sure how to handle love and its often undecipherable messages. Regardless, Quicksilver has sophisticated plotting at its core, a prerequisite for complex speculative fiction.  Whether it be faeries or physics, R. J. Anderson has no qualms about synthesizing a tight weave of emotions, science and interpretation into a durable and unique story-telling fabric.

Look for my interview with author R. J. Anderson tomorrow, to commemorate the launch of her highly successful UK version of her Faery Rebels' series. 

Ultraviolet

by R. J. Anderson

Carolrhoda Lab

978-0-7613-7408-4

303 pp.

Ages 14+

2011

R. J. Anderson, author of Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter (HarperCollins Canada, 2009) and Wayfarer (HarperCollins Canada, 2010), continues her foray into speculative fiction, but this time immersed in the issue of youth mental health, a reality that could read like fiction.

Waking up in a hospital, Alison Jeffries learns quickly that she has been admitted to a psychiatric department after a psychotic episode that had her harming herself and assaulting  a police officer.  Upon her transfer to Pine Hills, a youth facility, she realizes that another Gr. 10 student from her school, Tori Beaugrand, disappeared on the same day of Alison's crisis, and that many believe that Alison had something to do with the girl's disappearance.  Of course, it also might be because Alison claimed that she'd made Tori disintegrate.

Because of her interactions with Constable Deckard (who returns several times to question her memory of the day's events), her therapy sessions with Dr. Minta (who seems to see every action of Alison's in terms of psychoses), visits from her family (or lack thereof), and a visit from her best friend, Melissa, Alison spends much of her weeks in Pine Hills recalling that day's events, particularly her memory of seeing Tori vanish before her eyes.  She believes that she might have always been "crazy", recollecting her mother's reaction to her sharing the colours and shapes and smells she associates with random items and feelings.

While she learns to interact with her Pine Hills' peers, who deal with anorexia, bipolar disorder, depression, paranoia, etc., her most significant relationship is established with the young Dr. Sebastian Faraday, a neuropsychologist from South Africa, whose unique violet eyes and startling beauty assure and calm her.  Faraday identifies Alison as a synesthete, one of only 4% of the population whose senses (sight, sound, touch, smell, taste) are interconnected.  Convinced that Alison is not crazy and that she is not responsible for Tori's disappearance, Faraday becomes a strong emotional support for Alison, causing some awkwardness for flirtatious patient, Kirk, whose anger and jealousy are brought to the surface, resulting in a destructive fire, the removal of Faraday from Pine Hills, and permission for Alison to visit home.

But, that is hardly the end of the story.  A whole new set of circumstances bring Alison's relationship with Faraday and the "madness" of her experiences with Tori into play, demonstrating the speculative nature of Ultraviolet.  Telling you any more than that would destroy the systematic "aha" moments that bring this story to its unpredictable resolution.  Fortunately, the story has not concluded, since a sequel, tentatively titled Quicksilver, is slated for publication in 2013.

R. J. Anderson seems to whip up amazing plots that are rich in their interconnectedness and their complexity, here taking mental health issues and wrapping them in fantastical elements, playing down the fear and anxiety of mental illness while revealing much about it.  Her characters can be enigmas, not unlike most of us, who change their minds and alter their behaviour, sometimes without apparent rationale.  But, they ultimately reveal themselves as complex beings and begin to see and be seen beyond first impressions.  Creating empathetic characters in speculative fiction is a skill that R. J. Anderson has demonstrated repeatedly, recognizing that the richness of her characters can carry any bizarre plot she may be imaginative enough to create. 

 

 Uploaded by LernerPublishing on Mar 30, 2011

The publisher, Carolrhoda Lab, is an imprint of Lerner Publishing, who has posted this very brief trailer for Ultraviolet.

Spoiler alert: If you'd like to see a Fan trailer for "Ultraviolet"that focuses on Alison and Faraday, check out this link BUT it does include a spoiler not revealed in this review.