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clairereviews's review
4.0
I was invited to read this sampler by HarperCollins via Netgalley.
After centuries of waiting in secret, twelve unbroken bloodlines - armed with hidden knowledge and lethal training - are called to take humanity's fate in their hands..
Sarah is at at her graduation ceremony in Omaha, Nebraska - perfect SATs, star athlete, her life ahead of her. Then a meteor wipes out half her school. But Sarah is not hurt and not surprised. Because Sarah is the 233rd Player of the Cahokian line, and she knows what this means: Endgame is here.
Jago walks the streets of Juliaca, Peru after the meteor hits. There's looting and violence but he's not scared. He is the 21st Player of the Olmec line and he's ready: Endgame is here.
Turkey... Mongolia...China...
Twelve meteors fall. Cities and people burn. The news is full of the end of the world. But Sarah, Jago and ten others are already plotting and planning for the fight. They are the Players and Endgame is here. All but one of them will fail. But that one will save the world. We hope.
Once I'd read the brief synopsis in the email inviting me to read this sampler, I was really excited to find out more. Undoubtedly, comparisons will be made with The Hunger Games, such as the age of the competitors and the ultimate fight to the death until a single victor remains. But is there enough of a difference that Endgame can stand apart? The sampler is just long enough to briefly meet a couple of the contestants, to whet the reader's appetite for more. Action, drama, young love and adventure combine to ensure this will appeal to teens and young adults. That this will be at least a trilogy, I'm sure. If the book lives up to my expectations, I fully expect to see it brought to life on the big screen. For now though, adding it to my 'highly anticipated' list will suffice. Roll on October 7th..
After centuries of waiting in secret, twelve unbroken bloodlines - armed with hidden knowledge and lethal training - are called to take humanity's fate in their hands..
Sarah is at at her graduation ceremony in Omaha, Nebraska - perfect SATs, star athlete, her life ahead of her. Then a meteor wipes out half her school. But Sarah is not hurt and not surprised. Because Sarah is the 233rd Player of the Cahokian line, and she knows what this means: Endgame is here.
Jago walks the streets of Juliaca, Peru after the meteor hits. There's looting and violence but he's not scared. He is the 21st Player of the Olmec line and he's ready: Endgame is here.
Turkey... Mongolia...China...
Twelve meteors fall. Cities and people burn. The news is full of the end of the world. But Sarah, Jago and ten others are already plotting and planning for the fight. They are the Players and Endgame is here. All but one of them will fail. But that one will save the world. We hope.
Once I'd read the brief synopsis in the email inviting me to read this sampler, I was really excited to find out more. Undoubtedly, comparisons will be made with The Hunger Games, such as the age of the competitors and the ultimate fight to the death until a single victor remains. But is there enough of a difference that Endgame can stand apart? The sampler is just long enough to briefly meet a couple of the contestants, to whet the reader's appetite for more. Action, drama, young love and adventure combine to ensure this will appeal to teens and young adults. That this will be at least a trilogy, I'm sure. If the book lives up to my expectations, I fully expect to see it brought to life on the big screen. For now though, adding it to my 'highly anticipated' list will suffice. Roll on October 7th..
booksnbookends's review
3.0
I was invited to read this free sampler by HarperCollins via NetGalley.
This book seemed very similar to another dystopian book which I've recently read - The Hunger Games. It had an intriguing concept with some good characters but the sampler didn't immediately make me want to go and buy the book and read it. The writing was good and it flowed well, the meteors crashing before each player's selection added risk, danger and tension to the story. Going through each character was a little monotonous, each character's location, site of meteor crash etc. was detailed before the book really started going.
Though there's meant to be some kind of code to work out through the book, the intermittent numbers and random letters at times made it a bit annoying and challenging to read. Thankfully the author cleverly put the code at the end of each chapter so after a while I knew when I could avoid the code - mainly as I was pretty sure I couldn't work it out from just a sample of the book!
The final part of the sampler finally became a bit more interesting, with an explosion on a train which two players are faced with. I'm not going to spoil anything, so that's all you're getting. It was gripping and it made the read worthwhile, an interesting concept but lies very close to bordering another version of many dystopian novels I've previously read.
This book seemed very similar to another dystopian book which I've recently read - The Hunger Games. It had an intriguing concept with some good characters but the sampler didn't immediately make me want to go and buy the book and read it. The writing was good and it flowed well, the meteors crashing before each player's selection added risk, danger and tension to the story. Going through each character was a little monotonous, each character's location, site of meteor crash etc. was detailed before the book really started going.
Though there's meant to be some kind of code to work out through the book, the intermittent numbers and random letters at times made it a bit annoying and challenging to read. Thankfully the author cleverly put the code at the end of each chapter so after a while I knew when I could avoid the code - mainly as I was pretty sure I couldn't work it out from just a sample of the book!
The final part of the sampler finally became a bit more interesting, with an explosion on a train which two players are faced with. I'm not going to spoil anything, so that's all you're getting. It was gripping and it made the read worthwhile, an interesting concept but lies very close to bordering another version of many dystopian novels I've previously read.
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