Two Halves, One Brian

Book Stats

• Book 1 of the Silver Elite series
• Publication Date: 05/06/25
• Publisher: Del Rey
• Format: ebook
• Pages: 543
• Narrator POV: 1st person, from Wren’s POV

Book Rating

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/ 5

Spice: 🌶️🌶️/ 5

Summary & Review

I am so glad I finally got the chance to read this book! 😍 I’ve been seeing it posted all over social media, so while I had high hopes, I was also concerned that maybe it was overhyped? But no, it’s SO GOOD!

I now have 2 new book boyfriends, Cross and Kaine. If you don’t know who those are, you’re definitely missing out and you should immediately correct that. 😁

So this story follows Wren and all the chapters are from her POV. She’s one of the Modified, or Mods. The Silverbloods (since their veins glow silver when they use their powers). The Aberrant. The hunted and hated humans who have unique powers, after a toxin was released 150 years ago during some war or another. Now, many individuals who develop powers have to hide themselves away, or risk being either executed or sent to slave camps.

The “regular” humans, or Primes, are currently in power and are terrified of the abilities the Mods have. They’re fed fear all the time and many refuse to even be in the same vicinity as a Mod.

Clearly, as a Mod in this world, Wren is forced to hide. We learn early on that her mother gave her to her uncle Jim (who isn’t her uncle, nor actually named Jim) when she was only 5 because she started manifesting abilities and would’ve been in danger. Since, ya know, her mom worked for the Command.

So she and Jim lived in a dark area full of black mist, called the Blacklands. They survived for 3 years in this Hellscape, then resurfaced with new names, a ranch, and a cover story.

After some unfortunate events, Jim is captured for having previously deserted the Command, and for being a well known and feared member of the Uprising (a rebellion). And Wren is forced into the super talented group of soldiers in Silver Block. Most of whom compete to join the Silver Elite. And as the name implies, they are some of the most elite soldiers out there.

But their captain? He’s kind of an asshole and doesn’t trust Wren. So while she tries to flunk out and be sent back to her ward, Captain Cross refuses to allow that. He wants her close so he can keep an eye on her. Plus, he saw some of the amazing skills she has to offer, so she could potentially be a good fit for Command.

Anyway, I won’t spoil things, but all that happens at the beginning of the story.

Needless to say, this story takes off quickly. The writing is wonderful and I was immediately pulled in. I loved the story and the characters and just…everything. It was so well done!

And the banter? Fuckin’ fire. For real, the dialogue between Wren and Cross is fantastic and I absolutely loved the longing/yearning between their characters. My favorite trope. 100%.

I will say that there were a couple small plot points I was able to figure out pretty early on, but this story still kept me on my toes with all the twists, deaths, and betrayals. Like, whoa. Even the few things I expected didn’t make this story any less exciting.

And the ending? Absolutely perfect. I cannot wait for book 2! Which, thankfully, is available for me to borrow on Libby!

So yeah, my next few days are booked. 😉