I was really bored while reading this. I wanted to stop early on, but it has so much hype that I figured it got better. It's definitely aimed at younger readers than me so that may be why it didn't click for me. I've seen a lot online lately about teens or people with mental illness recommended not to read it. I think I get that the author is saying to step in, speak up, your actions have consequences, etc., but I agree some with the ones against it also. It's weird because you hear from the girl constantly and she doesn't seem like someone mentally ill or at the end of her rope. It seems more like a prank to get even, like you expect her not to have really went through with it and be playing a joke or something. I can't make the jump. Also, some of the kids deserved to get into trouble. One at least deserves major consequences, but some were just plain being teenagery and didn't deserve feeling like they caused her death. Seems like a lot of lives ruined just for some drama.

I want to thank the author for gifting The Learner for an honest review.

If you know me, even a little, you know I’m big into science fiction and out there books, movies, etc.  When this book was offered up through AToMR, I was all over it.  And here, to have a gorgeous alien who sticks by the rules go and fall in love, you know there’s going to be trouble!

As I read it there were many interesting moments.  Regeneration taken to a whole new level, romance that has never been experienced before, discovery from both the alien and human views but the moments were a bit dulled down by the story going on and on and really not getting anywhere for a really long time.  The over use of the alien term for humans and the alien race/rulers started to grate on my nerves.  After so many references to humans in the alien language, I was like, ok, I get it, now get on with the story, stop with the alien language use.  Heck, she’s been there long enough, and changing enough that the whole alien language barrier should have been long shrugged off.

Jared, jarred into wanting to knowing more about NayeLi, due to an odd occurrence which becomes even odder when he discovers not only that people can’t seem to remember her, even after just seeing a photograph of her, becomes the friendly stalker.  A man with a kind heart and a deep loss, he soon finds what he’s been missing in his life.  He finds it a bit hard to come to terms with the fact that she’s an alien, which should have pretty obvious after several things he’s seen her do.

A romance that shouldn’t be, a romance that has never been before, a romance that can only end badly, this is a romance worth watching, worth feeling the newness, worth the discovery.  An ending that even after all the earlier monotony will surprise you.

Again, I wish to thank the author.  I recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of scifi alien/human romance mixed with mystery and intrigue.   I had started off giving this book a solid 3 stars, but with the last ¼ of the book finally breaking free of the backstory and getting along with the present story, I am upping it to 3 ½ stars.

Here's my idea of NayeLi: