Vessel by Lisa T. Cresswell

The sun exploded on April 18, 2112. It exploded in a Class X solar storm the likes of which humankind had never seen.

They had nineteen minutes.

Nineteen minutes until the geomagnetic wave washed over the Earth, frying every electrical device created by humans, blacking out entire continents, every satellite in their sky.

Nineteen minutes to say goodbye to the world they knew, forever, and to prepare for a new Earth, a new Sun.

Generations after solar storms have destroyed nearly all human technology on Earth and humans have reverted to a middle ages like existence, all knowledge of the remaining technology is kept hidden by a privileged few called the Reticents and books are burned as heresy.

Alana, a disfigured slave girl, and Recks, a traveling minstrel and sometimes-thief, join forces to bring knowledge and books back to the human race. But when Alana is chosen against her will to be the Vessel, the living repository for all human knowledge, she must find the strength to be what the world needs.

This book is based in the far future, after the sun has destroyed everything electronic and all machinery. It's as if the world as we know it has been pulled hundreds of years back. 

Alana is a slave to her masters, treated in the worse way possible not only by her masters but also by his wife's, who have spilled hot oil over her face. Leaving her scarred and hiding her face at all times. She barely manages to survive, having her own ways to find food when she didn't receive any from her masters. 

Recks is a story teller and thief, caught and inprisoned, waiting for his trial and possibly his execution. Alana is being made to feed the prisoner and his companion Kinder once a day. Keep them alive till their trial. 

But Alana finds herself going far beyond the task of feeding them once a day. Kinder is not well and dying. She finds ways of bringing them food and other stuff they may need. Slowly bonding with Recks who is kinder to her then anyone has ever been. 

They manage to escape with Alanas help. And that is where many adventures start for the two who have been separated from Kinder. 

Eventually they get caught by the Reticent, a sort of cult that has been ruling for some time. They discover that not everything they know about the day the sun destroyed everything is true. Far from it. They are being fed information and are being recruited for the Reticent. But what else will they discover? 

I can't really say much more about the story or I will give to much away. The book is sci-fi, which is not my first choice. But I have discovered so many new genres since I started blogging I really wanted to give this a try. And it was ok, I enjoyed reading it. Finished it in 48 hours. But it wasn't ground breaking. The idea was amazing and I feel it could have been taken so much further. Can you imagine a world without any technology, electricity and machinery? This alone should fill books. We are so dependent on all of those things. I would have loved to read more about a world without.  

The characters are great, I loved both Alana and Recks, their kindness is sadly rather unique. And I would like to think that there is still people who see the good inside a person rather then what's on the outside alone. 

What bothered me most was the fact that the horrible things, most of all rape, that happened to Alana, by the hands of her masters were just mentioned by passing. Like it was nothing, like that alone shouldn't make a story. Such serious matter should not be brushed off and made to look like even the victim didn't care much. I believe the story would have been fine without adding this subject to it. 

So if you like this genre and you have a chance to read this, go for it. It's a nice, easy flowing and quick read. 

However I do wish it's ending was different somehow.