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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
I did finish this book because I was hoping for the big reveal. I was sorely disappointed. This book had promise and the author did do a bit of world building, however, none of the characters were really likable. I didn't ship for either of the love interests (one was creepy in fact) and I found the constant repetitions annoying. There is a rat, I want to escape, blah blah. Unfortunately, I don't care enough to read another book by this author to find out what happens. The rising action was predictable and fell flat.
Wow, this book is so fast paces that I read it in two days. Although the beginning was very weird and vague, the story soon started to get really interesting and mysterious. Also I didn't see that plottwist coming, holy moly! Four stars. :)
“A smile can hide so much. A smile can be a lie.”
This book disappointed me in the beginning. I thought there was so much more in the plot than described in the book. Because, really, a kind of zoo full of humans, with aliens watching your every move? That screams for awesomeness. But still, on 75% of the book, the feeling I was left with was meh. Just meh. I liked the last quarter of the story, so that's the reason I give it 2 stars. I will read the next books, but I just thought there was going to be more to the story, what left me disappointed.
This book disappointed me in the beginning. I thought there was so much more in the plot than described in the book. Because, really, a kind of zoo full of humans, with aliens watching your every move? That screams for awesomeness. But still, on 75% of the book, the feeling I was left with was meh. Just meh. I liked the last quarter of the story, so that's the reason I give it 2 stars. I will read the next books, but I just thought there was going to be more to the story, what left me disappointed.
Cora, Lucky, Leon, Rok and Rolf are not where they are suppose to be. None of them understand where they are or who brought them here, and why so many different environments can be so close to each other.
When they enter the empty town littered with places replicated from different cultures and strange black windows, they soon find out how far away from home they really are and otherworldly captors are keeping them locked up-cage like for examination and observation.
While the other attempt to settle in and follow the three rules to stay alive:
They all must follow three rules
1. Figure out the puzzles in each habitat for tokens
2. Take care of themselves and stay healthy
3. Procreate
Cora doesn't believe that this is the end for them and attempts to make a run for it. The only thing is, she has to make the others believe that its better to go back home than stay in this cage
My Review
I'm a bit torn with this book, while I loved the idea of caged up humans and the world building was thoroughly and interestingly thought-through, I had a tough time really enjoying the book and getting interested in the characters well-being. The pacing was slight slow moving, but major plots points were well spaced and detailed enough to leave enough to the imagination and not continue for pages. The book was told from multiple points of view with Cora's being the main focus and although I sometimes do get confused between characters in these types of books, I actually enjoyed the different voices and being able to see how each of them felt and responded to their environment. The multiple POV also help execute each characters secrets and their change in personalities in their current environment.
I really liked the cover it's very eye catching and follows with the book concept and while it doesn't have that sci-fi feel it still captures that sense of captivity and caught somewhere foreign.
Personally for me the book fell flat with the characters, none of them were really memorable except for maybe Mali, but she also didn't have a huge role or create many pivotal moments like I thought she would. I couldn't see Cora as the protagonist, but I also couldn't see anyone else either. There was no thought into her escape plan, which I could understand in the beginning to being so desperate to leave. But even after failed attempts there wasn't any regrouping to figure out a new plan and with no outside forces playing into or affecting her escape plan it all seemed pointless. Lucky and Leon had great potential as secondary characters, as both her driving force and wall, but I personally felt that they haven't been explored enough yet. Hopefully the characters will grow more in the next book to at least feel that they are invested in escaping their cages, bother personal and physical.
While a interesting concept,full of secrets it left very to little in rooting for the characters survival.
It will be interesting to see what happens next and whether we get more out of the characters and see what's happened to Earth
When they enter the empty town littered with places replicated from different cultures and strange black windows, they soon find out how far away from home they really are and otherworldly captors are keeping them locked up-cage like for examination and observation.
While the other attempt to settle in and follow the three rules to stay alive:
They all must follow three rules
1. Figure out the puzzles in each habitat for tokens
2. Take care of themselves and stay healthy
3. Procreate
Cora doesn't believe that this is the end for them and attempts to make a run for it. The only thing is, she has to make the others believe that its better to go back home than stay in this cage
My Review
I'm a bit torn with this book, while I loved the idea of caged up humans and the world building was thoroughly and interestingly thought-through, I had a tough time really enjoying the book and getting interested in the characters well-being. The pacing was slight slow moving, but major plots points were well spaced and detailed enough to leave enough to the imagination and not continue for pages. The book was told from multiple points of view with Cora's being the main focus and although I sometimes do get confused between characters in these types of books, I actually enjoyed the different voices and being able to see how each of them felt and responded to their environment. The multiple POV also help execute each characters secrets and their change in personalities in their current environment.
I really liked the cover it's very eye catching and follows with the book concept and while it doesn't have that sci-fi feel it still captures that sense of captivity and caught somewhere foreign.
Personally for me the book fell flat with the characters, none of them were really memorable except for maybe Mali, but she also didn't have a huge role or create many pivotal moments like I thought she would. I couldn't see Cora as the protagonist, but I also couldn't see anyone else either. There was no thought into her escape plan, which I could understand in the beginning to being so desperate to leave. But even after failed attempts there wasn't any regrouping to figure out a new plan and with no outside forces playing into or affecting her escape plan it all seemed pointless. Lucky and Leon had great potential as secondary characters, as both her driving force and wall, but I personally felt that they haven't been explored enough yet. Hopefully the characters will grow more in the next book to at least feel that they are invested in escaping their cages, bother personal and physical.
While a interesting concept,full of secrets it left very to little in rooting for the characters survival.
It will be interesting to see what happens next and whether we get more out of the characters and see what's happened to Earth
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
bad bad bad. so bad. I listened to this so I slogged through to the end. This book drug on so horribly it was like watching paint dry. Read at your own demise. Waste of my time. THIS is definitely YA and terribly done.
Tense, exciting, stayed up WAAAYYY too late in order to finish it :) Wanted to give it 4 1/2 stars, but didn't know how ...
This was a VERY interesting book, which I thought was a one-off. I thought it was going to end on a bad note, until I realized there is a second book that came out last week! Woot!
*I received this book from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*
This book had a decent plot and pretty good writing. The biggest issue for me is how often the characters fought and how unrealistic their escape plans are. It was just really difficult for me to get into the book. I think the Shepherd's writing was solid, but the book as a whole felt disjointed. I never fully bought into either love interest because it seemed like there were so many other things to be concerned about. Overall, I would give it 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it to sci-fi fans.
This book had a decent plot and pretty good writing. The biggest issue for me is how often the characters fought and how unrealistic their escape plans are. It was just really difficult for me to get into the book. I think the Shepherd's writing was solid, but the book as a whole felt disjointed. I never fully bought into either love interest because it seemed like there were so many other things to be concerned about. Overall, I would give it 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it to sci-fi fans.
This wasn't a bad book, the writing was decent, and the characters in the cage interesting enough, and the theme was unique and intriguing, with a bit of sci fi, and post apoc. I loved the premise: A bunch of humans are plucked up and thrown in a kind of laboratory/zoo kind of environment, and have to figure out what is going on, and how to get out. And Shepherd's writing and the overall atmosphere of the book hooked me in enough that I read it through to the end, and onto the follow up novels.
But what let it down for me was the romance side of things, there didn't seem to be enough to justify the interest between the alien and Cora. It just came across as creepy, he watched her for years, captured her, experimented on her, and yet she falls madly and instantly in love with him, based off a couple of small interactions. It felt forced, and unrealistic.
So overall, the premise hooked me in, the writing style kept me reading, but the characters and the plot let me down.
But what let it down for me was the romance side of things, there didn't seem to be enough to justify the interest between the alien and Cora. It just came across as creepy, he watched her for years, captured her, experimented on her, and yet she falls madly and instantly in love with him, based off a couple of small interactions. It felt forced, and unrealistic.
So overall, the premise hooked me in, the writing style kept me reading, but the characters and the plot let me down.
I...do not know how I felt about this book. It held my attention, certainly. And the premise was interesting. I mean, a human zoo in space? Who wouldn't want to read that? The characters were good, if not a little on the cliche side. But there was just something about it that I can't put my finger on that made me feel uncertain about it. And it wasn't my inane fear of aliens. Maybe it was the forced romance that I wasn't feeling until the end? I don't know. But I did like it enough to feel like I want to read the next book.