Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde

Imagine a world of no colour, or a world where you can only see one colour- red, yellow, blue, green, orange, or if you are lucky, purple. Welcome to the dystopian world of Chromatica. This is a society based on colortocracy, where a citizens standing is determined by their perception of colour. The citizens can only ever see one colour, and the higher the colour is on the spectrum, the higher the social standing attained. Those who see purple are the elite and those unfortunates without colour vision; those who only see shades of grey, are designated to the lowly peasant class.

The story is told through the eyes of Edward Russett, a 20 year old citizen of this world, who, as you may have deduced from his name, belongs to the reds. Eddie has been sent to the Outer Fringes to do a chair census after playing a prank on a prefects son. Here his curiosity, ambition and desire to change things lead him into adventure, intrigue and mystery, learning there is more to his world than meets the eye.

I really enjoyed this book as I liked the imaginative and original world in which the story has been set. Details including the fact that everyone is barcoded, spoons are coveted-being both rare and valuable, and the sometimes absurd rules from “the rulebook” that citizens must live by add to the story. I particularly enjoyed the consistent colour theme used throughout the world. Characters names denote the colour they perceive, colour is administered by swatchmen to heal ailments and there is even an illicit colour known as “chase the frog”. You will find satire, love, mystery and humour in this story. The only downside to this novel is that the sequel is not due out until 2013.

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde

The disappeared by Kim Echlin

This is a spellbinding love story that starts in Montreal, Canada, then moves to Cambodia, during the Khmer Rouge period of 1975-1979. The story begins when Anne, just 16 years old, meets Serey, an exiled Cambodian musician. They have an instant and deep attraction to one another and become inseparable. After the Vietnamese invasion, Serey returns to Cambodia to find his family. For 11 years, Anne hears nothing from Serey, then believing she has seen him on television during a political rally, decides to travel to Phnom Penh to find him. From here, the lovers tale is told against a backdrop of the horror, violence and tragedy of the holocaust taking place in Cambodia under the rule of Pol Pot. Echlin successfully conveys the fear, despair and oppression of the Cambodian people during this time through Anne's eyes. It is a beautifully written book, which could be read in one sitting. (Its less than 200 pages long). I particularly liked the short sentences and sparse style, and the mix of first and second person narration was really effective. I highly recommend it, just make sure you have a box of tissues close by.
P.S Its a great choice for a book group!

The disappeared by Kim Echlin