Tag Archives: Dystopia

Review: When We Wake by Karen Healey

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When We Wake
by Karen Healey
Rating: ****
Date read 9/12/2013

I had a blog once where every entry’s title was a Bob Dylan song. So when I picked this up and saw that every chapter title was a Beatles song, I knew I wanted to read it. I enjoyed this book for reasons other than the chapter titles of course, but they added to my enjoyment.

A believable dystopia with engaging characters. I liked the central conceit, and I liked the unsentimental narration. Some of the situations were a little pat, but served the plot very well. I’m a fan, and I’ll be reading the rest of these when they come out.

Review: The Color of Rain by Cori McCarthy

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he Color of Rain
by Cori McCarthy
Rating: ****
Read 6/11/2013

Mmmm, science-fictiony whores & pimps. Points for fresh, in other words. Rain is desperate to get off of Earth with its (poorly explained) disease that’s making people “touched” and ships out with the first bad boy she finds. Engrossing but sometimes scary and sometimes hurtful adventures ensue. I never had a lot of doubt that things would come out okay for Rain in the end, but there’s enough collateral damage to not let me say it’s got a happy ending. A worthy debut, and an author I’m looking forward to seeing more of. My free review copy came from ALA Midwinter.

Review: Fiend by Peter Stenson

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Fiend
by Peter Stenson
Rating: zero stars
Read 5/25/2013
Oh my god I hated this book so, so, so much. I thought it was going to be dystopia with drug addicts, and I was thrilled. Then I found out it was dystopia with drug addicts AND ZOMBIES and I was annoyed. As I kept reading I was repelled and horrified and oh let me count the ways this book was not for me. Ewww. No one here to like, no one here to identify with, no one here to be redeemed. Also? Zombies. Ptui! My free review copy came from ALA Midwinter.

Review: Love Minus Eighty by Will McIntosh

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Love Minus Eighty

by Will McIntosh

Rating: ****

Read 04/05/2013

Wow, this was a wild and engrossing story. The worldbuilding was seamless, the characters strong, and the ending delightful in its ambiguity. At first, I was caught up in the horror of the poor bridesicles’ plight and I had to keep putting the book down and walking away. But as I got further into the book and got to know the characters, I couldn’t put it back down till I found out what happened.

I loved the way McIntosh connected all the threads together in the book, and I really enjoyed the ride. Recommended.

I got this ARC at ALA free.