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marianagmzz's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
laurencarter's review
4.0
Amber is one of my favourite characters from the Adaptation series so, a short story about her? Sign me up.
This explored Amber's life before meeting Reese and went into her sexuality during her younger teen years also going between her life on Earth and her home planet.
It also really delves into what Amber's life is like on Kurra and how it differs from Earth, Malinda Lo has really created such a big world.
I really hope Malinda Lo writes book three, even though book two ended pretty closed...
This explored Amber's life before meeting Reese and went into her sexuality during her younger teen years also going between her life on Earth and her home planet.
It also really delves into what Amber's life is like on Kurra and how it differs from Earth, Malinda Lo has really created such a big world.
I really hope Malinda Lo writes book three, even though book two ended pretty closed...
michelleheegaard's review
5.0
I really enjoyed returning to this series after a long break. This short story was definitly the way to return. I loved it.
It was really interesting to see how it was on the other planet and to be inside Amber's head. I ecspecially loved that we got to see how Amber got her name. That was really interesting
It was really interesting to see how it was on the other planet and to be inside Amber's head. I ecspecially loved that we got to see how Amber got her name. That was really interesting
taschima's review
4.0
*If Dean Winchester approves who are we to say otherwise? ;)
This is why novellas are taking the world by storm and have become such an expected thing nowadays. In Natural Selection we get to see the world through Amber's eyes. While sometimes the format of the novella itself led to some headache (for some example when Amber was going from telling things from her past and then to the present) the story is one you don't want to miss, not if you plan to read Adaptation's sequel Inheritance.
"It was horrible at first. I missed my parents and my Imrian friends, and after four years on Kurra, Earth felt like an alien planet. The food was weird, the clothes were strange, and I had to speak English all the time, which meant I had to remember to call my parents mom and dad rather than ama, aba, and ada."
While Natural Selection isn't a bridge between novels it is still very much a must read. In Adaptation we didn't get to know Amber as much as I would have liked, something I made note of in my review. But with Natural Selection I feel like now I can properly root for Amber, I've come to care about her. We get to read about her past, how she was born on Earth and raised half here and half in her home planet, how she is kind of a celebrity but doesn't act like it, who she is and what she wants out of life. We also get to learn more about the planet Kurra. I now find myself appreciating more the kind of story Malinda Lo is trying to tell with these aliens who are not that different from us. Why do we always assume that if it's an alien story they must be extremely different from us (ala Futurama), why can't they be alike us but different at the same time?
"Humans were just so incredibly different from the Imria. Their emotions were so volatile that even though I tried to close myself off to them, sometimes they still broke through unexpectedly. At the beginning, it felt like I was trapped in an unending game of dogde ball, and I couldn't keep my defenses up 24/7."
Natural Selection is also really good in that it gives us a lot of information on the planet Kurra and the Imrians. It tells us about their traditions, their way of life, their interactions and their overall stand on visiting Earth. It shows us the kind of society they are. The only annoying thing I found was in the language- how they call their parents is ama, aba, and ada. Confusing? Definitely. Their family structure is also very interesting—Amber has two dads and a mother—but never fully explained. Has it always been this always? How does it exactly work? They seem to all live together happily, so I am just curious.
Now I am dying to read Inheritance. I want to re-evaluate the relationship between Amber and Reese, and I want to read more about Amber. It's a shame the book won't be written with her POV, I like her now more than I like Reese >.< I also want to see what is going to happen, will the humans embrace or retaliate against the aliens? Will Reese and David tell the press the truth? And yes I don't want to be that girl BUT, will Reese choose Amber or David at the end of the day? DYING TO KNOW!
astrologicalblues's review
5.0
I’ve fallen in love with both Adaptation and Inheritance and I feel slightly ashamed that I didn’t hear about this novella until after I finished the second book in the series. I’m not complaining, of course. I’ve been craving to learn more about Amber, even more so when I finished the second book. But, most of all, I wanted to learn more about her home called ‘Kurra’ and this would hopefully hold me over until the third book is released.
Natural Selection focuses on Amber before she met Reese- before the events of Adaptation even happened. This focuses on a fifteen year old Imerian of her experiences on the planet Earth and her experience of going through kibila- as explained in the book description on Goodreads, a traditional Imrian coming-of-age ceremony during which Amber will choose her name and identity for the next fifteen years- side by side. It switches back and forth between Earth and Kurra between each chapter, highlighting just how different and how similar these two places really are.
On Earth we concentrate on Amber (who was known under another name at the time) and her adventure, before she returned back to Kurra, on a school field trip camping with her close friend Morgan. She gushes throughout the story how much she likes Zach although Amber thinks otherwise, but she deals with it… if only if it means she gets to stick close to Morgan herself.
It’s a short book but I feel like that I’ve learned a lot about Amber during this short time with her. She finds herself stuck between two worlds and two cultures. I won’t say much about it, since explaining it would spoil the actual book and it’s worth reading about her yourself rather than hearing about it from a reviewer, but it was interesting to see a glimpse on how she tried to handle things and how she tried to remain herself during the trials.
I will admit, however, that I gushed when she left the trip with a particular necklace similar from one of her teachers showed her: a piece of amber with a piece of curled frond inside of it. Although I doubt that it’s a genuine piece (but I doubt many places who sell items that are ‘genuine’), it clicked in my head on how she decided to change her name to Amber and that despite all the bad that happened during the trip the teacher still influenced her positively.
I still wonder if she returned back to that place to see Morgan and many of her classmates again. But, still, it’s a minor thing and I still loved this little ebook and I can’t wait for the third book. If you have read Adaptation and/ or Inheritance and loved it, I would highly recommend this but it’s not necessary to continue the series. If you want a bit of insight on this secondary character, though, this will be more than just a treat.
Natural Selection focuses on Amber before she met Reese- before the events of Adaptation even happened. This focuses on a fifteen year old Imerian of her experiences on the planet Earth and her experience of going through kibila- as explained in the book description on Goodreads, a traditional Imrian coming-of-age ceremony during which Amber will choose her name and identity for the next fifteen years- side by side. It switches back and forth between Earth and Kurra between each chapter, highlighting just how different and how similar these two places really are.
On Earth we concentrate on Amber (who was known under another name at the time) and her adventure, before she returned back to Kurra, on a school field trip camping with her close friend Morgan. She gushes throughout the story how much she likes Zach although Amber thinks otherwise, but she deals with it… if only if it means she gets to stick close to Morgan herself.
It’s a short book but I feel like that I’ve learned a lot about Amber during this short time with her. She finds herself stuck between two worlds and two cultures. I won’t say much about it, since explaining it would spoil the actual book and it’s worth reading about her yourself rather than hearing about it from a reviewer, but it was interesting to see a glimpse on how she tried to handle things and how she tried to remain herself during the trials.
I still wonder if she returned back to that place to see Morgan and many of her classmates again. But, still, it’s a minor thing and I still loved this little ebook and I can’t wait for the third book. If you have read Adaptation and/ or Inheritance and loved it, I would highly recommend this but it’s not necessary to continue the series. If you want a bit of insight on this secondary character, though, this will be more than just a treat.
morgandhu's review
4.0
Malinda Lo's novella Natural Selection, set in the same fictional universe as her novels Adaptation and Inheritance, focuses on Amber Gray, the Earthborn alien who is a key character and love interest for the protagonist of the novels.
This is a prequel of sorts, giving us a glimpse into Amber's early life as a child of two cultures and her struggle to develop a sense of self that includes both her heritage and her adopted culture. As Amber and her polyamorous. family (one mother, two fathers) move back and forth between the two planets, her experiences and relationships give her the chance to explore her identity in both worlds.
Lo's work is notably GLBT-friendly - something I am very happy to see - and Amber's preference for relationships with other girls plays a large part in her coming to see who she is. On Earth, she is attracted to her best friend, who rejects Amber when she is outed by the boy her friend has been pursuing; on her own world, same-sex relationships are seen as perfectly natural, and it is in part through a shared rite of passage with a girl who sees her as a prospective lover that she comes to terms with the differences between her two worlds and finds a way to be herself in both.
I find myself hoping that Lo will write more about Amber, and the protagonists from the two novels.
This is a prequel of sorts, giving us a glimpse into Amber's early life as a child of two cultures and her struggle to develop a sense of self that includes both her heritage and her adopted culture. As Amber and her polyamorous. family (one mother, two fathers) move back and forth between the two planets, her experiences and relationships give her the chance to explore her identity in both worlds.
Lo's work is notably GLBT-friendly - something I am very happy to see - and Amber's preference for relationships with other girls plays a large part in her coming to see who she is. On Earth, she is attracted to her best friend, who rejects Amber when she is outed by the boy her friend has been pursuing; on her own world, same-sex relationships are seen as perfectly natural, and it is in part through a shared rite of passage with a girl who sees her as a prospective lover that she comes to terms with the differences between her two worlds and finds a way to be herself in both.
I find myself hoping that Lo will write more about Amber, and the protagonists from the two novels.
bettyreads's review
4.0
Enovellas are such a tease. I would read so much more from Amber's perspective because gah she's so intriguing. I could read forever about the differences between Kurra and Earth and her trying to find herself in both places. I just love this world that Malinda has crafted. The conversation between Amber and Nasha where Nasha was like why would humans just limit themselves to just liking the opposite sex is so real.
debrasbookcafe's review
4.0
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