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2.85 AVERAGE
2.85 AVERAGE
Great premise, so-so execution. I loved the authors' graphic novels Brain Camp and City Of Spies, which also have great premises and plotting, and the storyline here is compelling, with characters in a tough, potentially complicated Dying Earth situation. But the writing is frustratingly blunt and simple, and so are the emotions that drive people. Everything feels rushed, with people veering from one emotional extreme to another and reversing their motivations — or instantly falling in love — within the space of a sentence or two. It's reminiscent of Michael Grant's Gone series if the entire thing was compressed down to one hurried volume. So much about the world is never explained or developed, and never makes sense. For instance, the book summary presents the "married at 15, pregnant at 17, dead at 19" concept as though it's a Logan's Run-like societal imperative, but it's just one of many arbitrary statements meant to provoke drama, and never fleshed out in the book. People assume they will be dead by 19, but there's no specific reason, apart from harsh conditions, and their society is barely sketched out, so it never seems plausible that such a community could sustain itself. A quick, exciting, but unsatisfying read that leaves a lot of big questions behind.
This is the story of Esther. In a post-apocolytic United States, all that are left are children. Those children only live until the age of 19 and then they die. Something has poisoned the rain and the water, and no matter how much they try to avoid it, eventually the sickness comes for them all.
Esther lives in a city called Prin, which is run by the older teenagers in the group. Every day is a looming threat of disease, hunger, and attacks by outsiders called variants (children born that are neither male or female at birth). But Esther just wants to live a normal life while she can - hang out with her best friend and her sister, and avoid having to work hard. She becomes an outside in the society, but soon meets Caleb and he changes everything. Soon Esther has something worth fighting for.
This is an okay book. I actually found it by accident at my library while I was looking for something else. I love a good apocolyptic story line. The writing isn't great, but it was an interesting enough story. It is how I assume kids would run things who are under the age of 19 and trying to figure out how to survive and create future generations.
This is a trilogy, so I think I will at least try the second book to see where it is going.
Esther lives in a city called Prin, which is run by the older teenagers in the group. Every day is a looming threat of disease, hunger, and attacks by outsiders called variants (children born that are neither male or female at birth). But Esther just wants to live a normal life while she can - hang out with her best friend and her sister, and avoid having to work hard. She becomes an outside in the society, but soon meets Caleb and he changes everything. Soon Esther has something worth fighting for.
This is an okay book. I actually found it by accident at my library while I was looking for something else. I love a good apocolyptic story line. The writing isn't great, but it was an interesting enough story. It is how I assume kids would run things who are under the age of 19 and trying to figure out how to survive and create future generations.
This is a trilogy, so I think I will at least try the second book to see where it is going.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Murder
Minor: Terminal illness, Dementia, Fire/Fire injury
It was okay. I read a couple of the other poorer reviews and I agree with a lot of the stuff said. The concept of the whole world itself had flaws. It wasn't as clearly explained as it could have been and there were a lot of facts that didn't quite fit together.
All the things that didn't quite work for me that I can think of at the moment after finishing the book at 1am:
-horrible explanation of exactly when or how this future dystopian came into being
-why did no one decide to grow their own crops and raise livestock? Not even at the end.
-why had no one thought of aquifers and underground springs to begin with. It's not like its some big secret. And what made that water safe and not any other water? The water that rains soaks into the ground. It could contaminate it. The access to the water with the spring was above ground. Why didn't that especially get contaminated.
-what made joe go into hiding in the first place? If he knew he was like a decade almost olde than everyone else. Why didn't he mention something. And why did no one else notice.
Also, as someone else had pointed out in their review, the whole idea of 12 year olds settling down in "partners" as an official pair and starting a family that young is weird in my opinion. I guess they really have no other choice considering they all die at 19 but still.
All the things that didn't quite work for me that I can think of at the moment after finishing the book at 1am:
-horrible explanation of exactly when or how this future dystopian came into being
-why did no one decide to grow their own crops and raise livestock? Not even at the end.
-why had no one thought of aquifers and underground springs to begin with. It's not like its some big secret. And what made that water safe and not any other water? The water that rains soaks into the ground. It could contaminate it. The access to the water with the spring was above ground. Why didn't that especially get contaminated.
-what made joe go into hiding in the first place? If he knew he was like a decade almost olde than everyone else. Why didn't he mention something. And why did no one else notice.
Also, as someone else had pointed out in their review, the whole idea of 12 year olds settling down in "partners" as an official pair and starting a family that young is weird in my opinion. I guess they really have no other choice considering they all die at 19 but still.
This book reminded me of Rebel Nation and Dan Wells' most recent book. It was difficult for me to connect with Esther.
It took me about a week to read too, not normal for me for young adult. I was interested enough to stick with it.
It took me about a week to read too, not normal for me for young adult. I was interested enough to stick with it.
DNF I was hoping to dig right in to learn about Esther but the POV changed so much as well as the location without notification that it became really hard to follow so I stopped reading. Too many others have said exactly what I thought of with this book.
Graded By: Jenny
Cover Story: Dystopia Parking Lot
BFF Charm: Maybe?
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Drum Solo
Bonus Factors: Overlord, Dystopia
Relationship Status: Wrong Number
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Dystopia Parking Lot
BFF Charm: Maybe?
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Drum Solo
Bonus Factors: Overlord, Dystopia
Relationship Status: Wrong Number
Read the full book report here.
I listened to the audiobook; the narrator did well! Interesting world, post-apocalyptic, not sure how many years or what exactly happened. That might be explained in the next book. Only people under 19-ish survived, and pretty much that’s the life expectancy.
It seems like I just finished another book recently with the same situation, yet the world was much different.
I don’t recall bad language, but , ya authors, you don’t have to have sex scenes. Really, you don’t. They add nothing to the book and kids are exposed to more than enough as it is.
It was , however , a very good read.
It seems like I just finished another book recently with the same situation, yet the world was much different.
I don’t recall bad language, but , ya authors, you don’t have to have sex scenes. Really, you don’t. They add nothing to the book and kids are exposed to more than enough as it is.
It was , however , a very good read.
With so many great dystopian novels on the book shelves at book stores.. I was very disappointed by this one. The characters weren't well developed, the world building was awful and the writing was atrocious. I don't like to give bad reviews so I will end on the positive that at least I will only have to read the first one in the series.