Chapter 25 -- A Breath of Fresh Air

Let's get this over with, folks... moving right along...

If you get this reference, your childhood was awesome

Eden wakes up to "soft rustling sounds" -- yup, our friend the spider monkey is back.  It knocks something over and starts fussing and begging, and Eden tries to shoo it off but it keeps begging.  She screams, it screams, we all scream for ice cream (dang I'm gonna need some after this chapter), and the monkey takes off, leaving behind some unidentified object that Eden ends up kicking under the bed.  Ten bucks this is important for some stupid reason later...

Out of nowhere we get this bit, which could have used some setup in my opinion:

If only Austin were there to protect her.  If only she had paid attention to his warnings.  Never again would she be blinded by pride.  For Earth's sake, she had bought into the hatred against her own kind.  She had longed for a color-blind mate when she was more prejudiced than the worst of the FFP.

She glanced at Rebecca's portrait.  Sorry, Eden's eyes pleaded.  Thanks to you, I'll do better. -- p. 177-178

...wait, what?  Could it be?  Could we actually have gotten...

"Crikey, mates, we've got ourselves a genuine moment of self-awareness on the part of our racist lil' sheila here!  Ain't it beautiful?  Our main character's finally acknowlegin' her own flaws!  Cherish this moment, mates, before it's gone forever!"

We haven't gotten a visit from Steve in ages...

Seriously, folks, I am genuinely shocked that we got a moment of actual self-awareness from our clueless protagonist.  True, it's buried in more stupid (you can't convince me after all this time that she was fond of Austin at all, and "her own kind" carries some racist implications of its own), but after chapter after chapter of sheer head-desking stupidity, a moment of clarity like this feels like a breath of fresh air after slogging through a landfill.  Breathe it in, folks, I doubt we'll get another one of these for awhile...

Eden looks out the window and sees that the storm has transformed the compound, scattering leaves and branches.  Eden thinks that if she's to survive in this world, she needs to do the same and shake off her old ways and achieve a "personal evolution."  About freaking time, girl...

She even thinks about taking some advice from Bramford about opening her mind.  Wow, do miracles never cease?  There's some nonsense about giving the "Real Eden" the chance to breathe, then we're back to Rebecca.

She looked toward the gated hut.  Did poor Rebecca languish there, filled with similar regrets?  How Eden longed to sit and talk with her, like sisters in an Old World novel.  They'd laugh and cry over how foolish they'd been to fall for a couple of jerks like Jamal and Bramford. -- p. 178

Or maybe Rebecca will recognize you for the spoiled and wretched little brat you are and refuse to speak to you.  Stop drawing assumptions about this Rebecca chick that we haven't even met yet.

She spots a couple of cockatoos (Latin name?  Sic infernum!) and marvels that they mate for life, and vows to be wiser if she ever has another chance to find her own mate.  Don't try to keep us in suspense, we all know where THIS is going...

She spots Lorenzo and Charlie leaving their huts, wearing actual clothes, and realizes they're leaving.  Before they can leave the compound, though, they come across a dead harpy eagle laying on the ground.  For once we don't get the Latin name -- thank heaven for small miracles -- but we're helpfully reminded that "the bird's showy, feminine crest of feathers" and "stern vulture-like features" are reminiscent of the harpy from Greek mythology.  Hey Foyt, I think most of your readers can figure out where the harpy eagle got its name just fine...

The eagle's bleeding from neck bites, and Eden realizes Bramford killed it and that it's one of the donor species needed for his procedure.  I'm still failing to see where Bramford gets the eagle part of his new genetic makeup from, but hey, maybe Foyt figured eagles aren't sexy enough.

Eden imagined Bramford stalking the raptor, as it tracked its own prey, possibly a sloth or monkey.  He must have ambushed the surprised eagle with lightning speed and impeccable timing.  She shuddered to think of the actual attack -- Bramford's springing action, the desperate harpy flailing its long talons in defense, the bloodthirsty roar as Bramford lunged at the huge bird.  Hot and dizzy, Eden leaned against the window to catch her breath. -- p. 179-180

Foyt... this is NOT normal.  No sane person is going to be turned on by imagining an animal getting ripped to shreds or otherwise brutally killed.  You aren't making a compelling romance by including these weird scenes, you're just making it look like Eden is into zoosadism.  (I ain't defining that, look it up on your own...)

Lorenzo and Charlie haul the bird off, and Eden knows she'll be following them when they come back -- into a jungle full of predators and poisonous creatures, she realizes.  NOW you think about this...

The idea paralyzed her.  Why couldn't she just stay there at camp and wait for a better option?  She was just a Pearl, after all.

And yet, she could almost hear Rebecca nudging her.  Remember your promises, Eden. -- p. 180

Um... I don't remember Eden making promises to anyone.  Did I miss something?

Apparently there's a stereotype that Pearls are cowards, because Eden's taking now to remember "not all Pearls were cowards."  It would have been nice to have this stereotype established beforehand in this world's culture, Foyt.  And yes, I know black people like to mock how wussy white people are on the Interent, but still, this feels out of the blue.

Eden remembers brushing her mom's hair, and how she wasn't afraid of death.  She also remembers another Emily Dickinson poem ("Because I could not stop for death..."), and I find myself wanting to apologize to Emily for having her name dragged through the mud like this.  

Still a better use of Emily Dickinson's name

than this dreck...

Also "the notion of a soul living past the grave was as illogical as love."  I'm not sure why all these dystopian books think society's going to ditch religion entirely in the future -- religion is still going strong after all these thousands of years, and many people actually cling tighter to their faith in times of catastrophe.  But of course our oh-so-enlightened protagonist can't be religious, can she?  *sigh*

Lorenzo and Charlie head for the main gate, and Eden sneaks out to follow them.  She passes by her father on the way, who's still asleep, and vows to be strong in order to save him.  Actually, I think you're just going to get him into deeper crap by doing this, girl, but hey, you haven't listened to anyone else up to this point.  Why should you listen to the reader/sporker?

She runs after the men, still wearing Rebecca's white dress (and getting mud on it, who wears a white dress in the freaking jungle), and hears a "sharp cry."  She thinks it's the girls who are always so freaked out by any mention of Rebecca, but it's coming from the locked-up hut, and she wonders if Rebecca saw her.  She considers ditching her plan and going to investigate the hut instead, but instead vows to come back with help and runs after the men... and end chapter.

Can you tell I'm sick and tired of this book?  Even with the brief moment of much-needed self-awareness, this chapter was exhausting to get through.  I just want to be freaking done with this madness...

Hope to have the next chapter up here soon.  Let's see if we can get through this together...