Reviews

A Rap Upon Heaven's Gate by Hugh Howey

vancampc's review against another edition

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5.0

So I waited for the 5th part to be released before I started the series. The wait was awful, but I knew if I had to wait to continue the series while reading it, it would have been torture. So I devoured the books in one day, ignoring my children - taking breaks only to get work done because, well, I had to. But enough about me - this book is real, heart wrenching, and yet somehow hopeful (maybe I'm an optimist) while being innovative and creative. Again Howey creates a new yet very familiar world, and characters we grow way to attached to (all while knowing the end made the author cry). My 10 year old wants to read it (because, if Mom won't watch Funniest Home Videos with me, that must be one awesome book) - but no, he's too young. You have to have a sense of the injustice in our own world to fully appreciate this one...

ghttheguy00's review against another edition

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5.0

Hugh Howey does it again! What a wonderful series! This dystopian world was like nothing I've read before. Truly original ideas that made me THIRSTY for more. Can't wait to see what he has in store for us next, keep them coming Mr. Howey!

constant_reader_19's review against another edition

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5.0

Amazing! I loved this whole series...the end was perfect. Thank you Mr. Howey for another wonderful series.

kateofmind's review against another edition

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4.0

Got some thinking to do about this one.

si0bhan's review against another edition

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4.0

Hugh Howey writes his stories in such a way that you either buy many little sections to make up the whole book or (you do what I do) you wait until the entire collection is possible in book format. There is nothing wrong with this, I merely find it difficult to review each individual section as, for me, the whole is worth more than the parts.

So, with that in mind, here is a review of the collective for you (so you can make a decision about whether Sand is right for you):


After reading the Wool Trilogy, Hugh Howey earned a spot in my favourite authors list. Wool is to this day my favourite dystopian series meaning I had very high hopes for Sand. Whilst I did thoroughly enjoy Sand it was not as great as Wool – although, I guess nothing could be that great.

Howey once again creates a unique dystopian world, this time in a land covered by sand (hello title). Much like Wool we were given the what and the how – although this story was condensed to be much shorter than the Wool series. Sadly, however we were not given the why. When the book ended I still had questions concerning the why of the world. With Wool we were given the answers in the second book, Shift, but this one leaves us with that question hanging in the air. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the book. I just would have liked the answer to that. Still, with that in mind, such a thing was not possible in the story context. What we’re given is the myths of the world, as we’re seeing things in the way that the characters do.

Speaking of characters, Howey has once again created a world of loveable characters. Each character is unique in their own way, playing a vital role as the story unfolds. I will admit that I was attached to some characters more than others, but that was mainly due to being able to relate to them more than others. No characters were two dimensional, all had personalities and all played their part in the story, everyone growing over time.

There were a few predictable events, which was quite surprising considering how Wool was one shock after the other, yet despite this it was a fast paced engaging story. I was constantly telling myself I would read just one more chapter and before I knew it I’d read another fifty pages without even realising it.

All in all, it is another great story. If you’re a Hugh Howey fan I certainly recommend reading it. If you’re new to his wonderful worlds then it isn’t a bad place to start, although I would certainly point you towards Wool instead simply because I enjoyed it more.
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