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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
Other than the obvious similarities to Across the Universe, Chasing the Stars and a number of other Young Adult fiction novels that I've previously read, this book did not meet the same standard.
Aside from the fact that the protagonist is self-aware, which seems like it was intended as justification for her impulsive actions, the representation of mental illness in this story is badly put together and leaves the main character feeling and being described as "crazy". This was a painful read for me and left me feeling angry towards the protagonist's decisions and the topic of mental health.
The only reason I have given it two stars is because I don't have the heart to give anything one star. Just my opinion.
Aside from the fact that the protagonist is self-aware, which seems like it was intended as justification for her impulsive actions, the representation of mental illness in this story is badly put together and leaves the main character feeling and being described as "crazy". This was a painful read for me and left me feeling angry towards the protagonist's decisions and the topic of mental health.
The only reason I have given it two stars is because I don't have the heart to give anything one star. Just my opinion.
2 1/2 stars.
*Received this from publisher to give an honest review of book*
I am always looking for a good sci-fi book that involves politics and looking at the human behavior. Kate Ling created such an interesting and unique world.
She touched on topics that I feel we are sometimes afraid to speak about. Topics such as freedom of will, mental illness, discrimination and a lot more. Kate wrote about these issues with a beautiful and strong-willed voice, she made me feel like even if I was in the same situation I would also want to stand up for my own right!
But saying all that I had so much hope for this book from reading the blurb but unfortunately, I was let down and it did not reach my expectations
It is set in first person point of view but the writing style is quite different. I wasn't a fan of how it was written. It had a lot of 'telling' and not 'showing' like we were told that Seren felt sad instead of as a reader finding out by her actions in the book. The scenes that I thought seemed the most important were often skipped over and rushed ( the last chapter)
The characters weren't amazing. I ended up loving the one person who we are meant to hate way more than any of our main characters. Seren was very immature and selfish. She never thought about anyone but herself. She thought the world was against her and every bad thing that was happening was towards her and her alone. She never once tried to understand her sister Pen (who was actually a really great person) she didn't give a crap about Ezra or anyone. Even Dom she didn't even care about that much.
I felt she thought that she was be than everyone else because she didn't want to just settle when in reality these people like her sister, dad, Ezra, and everyone else on the ship decided to make the most of their situation. I felt that Seren thought it was stupid for other people to be happy with the way they lived because she wasn't happy with it which annoyed me because at least they were trying.
Dom annoyed me also. Not as much as Seren but he was still quite an idiot.
I think the main reason that I didn't like the two main characters was because this was the worst case of instant love that I have ever read about.
literally the moment she laid eyes on him she thought she was in love and they were both willing to completely wreck not only their own lives but a lot of other people's lives that were involved because they thought they were so in love.
The romance was really forced. It didn't feel real at all to me. I honestly felt more passion and love between Seren and Ezra then I did with Dom and her.
Now a story focused on Ezra's side of the story would be great!
I feel that this plot had so much possibility to hold a great story but the writing did not execute it enough. It lacked focus on where the storyline was going and wasn't consistent with the characters thought patterns.
But I don't want to just say bad things about the book. I thought the description of the 'places' was written really well and I do think that what the author created was a really interesting and unique world. I wish we had heard more about the background of how this all came about.
I don't want to just be a downer on this book. I do feel that though it had more cons then pros it was still an interesting read and the cover of the book is beautiful!
*Received this from publisher to give an honest review of book*
I am always looking for a good sci-fi book that involves politics and looking at the human behavior. Kate Ling created such an interesting and unique world.
She touched on topics that I feel we are sometimes afraid to speak about. Topics such as freedom of will, mental illness, discrimination and a lot more. Kate wrote about these issues with a beautiful and strong-willed voice, she made me feel like even if I was in the same situation I would also want to stand up for my own right!
But saying all that I had so much hope for this book from reading the blurb but unfortunately, I was let down and it did not reach my expectations
It is set in first person point of view but the writing style is quite different. I wasn't a fan of how it was written. It had a lot of 'telling' and not 'showing' like we were told that Seren felt sad instead of as a reader finding out by her actions in the book. The scenes that I thought seemed the most important were often skipped over and rushed ( the last chapter)
The characters weren't amazing. I ended up loving the one person who we are meant to hate way more than any of our main characters. Seren was very immature and selfish. She never thought about anyone but herself. She thought the world was against her and every bad thing that was happening was towards her and her alone. She never once tried to understand her sister Pen (who was actually a really great person) she didn't give a crap about Ezra or anyone. Even Dom she didn't even care about that much.
I felt she thought that she was be than everyone else because she didn't want to just settle when in reality these people like her sister, dad, Ezra, and everyone else on the ship decided to make the most of their situation. I felt that Seren thought it was stupid for other people to be happy with the way they lived because she wasn't happy with it which annoyed me because at least they were trying.
Dom annoyed me also. Not as much as Seren but he was still quite an idiot.
I think the main reason that I didn't like the two main characters was because this was the worst case of instant love that I have ever read about.
literally the moment she laid eyes on him she thought she was in love and they were both willing to completely wreck not only their own lives but a lot of other people's lives that were involved because they thought they were so in love.
The romance was really forced. It didn't feel real at all to me. I honestly felt more passion and love between Seren and Ezra then I did with Dom and her.
Now a story focused on Ezra's side of the story would be great!
I feel that this plot had so much possibility to hold a great story but the writing did not execute it enough. It lacked focus on where the storyline was going and wasn't consistent with the characters thought patterns.
But I don't want to just say bad things about the book. I thought the description of the 'places' was written really well and I do think that what the author created was a really interesting and unique world. I wish we had heard more about the background of how this all came about.
I don't want to just be a downer on this book. I do feel that though it had more cons then pros it was still an interesting read and the cover of the book is beautiful!
It had potential to be so good, but everything just felt rushed and too melodramatic for my tastes.
I would not expect to like this kind of book. The main characters were idiots but I still felt along with them. I cried a bit and got rather grumpy with them. A very complete and believable world.
dark
tense
slow-paced
De bemanning van het ruimteschip Ventura is al 84 jaar op weg naar een locatie in het heelal waar leven zou zijn. De 16-jarige Seren werd aan boord geboren, heeft de aarde nooit gekend, en weet dat ze de eindbestemming nooit zal bereiken. Het duurt nog meer dan tweehonderd jaar voordat de Ventura bij de dichtstbijzijnde bewoonbare planeet is. Nu het steeds meer tot Seren doordringt dat zij de eindstreep van dit NASA-project niet gaat halen, slaat ook de twijfel toe. Niet alleen over het nut van de missie, maar ook over haar rol op het ruimteschip.
Dit gevoel wordt nog eens versterkt als Seren aan het einde van haar middelbareschooltijd een Verbintenis met een van haar klasgenoten moet aangaan. Door middel van deze Verbintenis wordt uitgemaakt wie haar levenspartner wordt. Het idee achter dit paringsritueel is dat de voorplanting, en dus de toekomstige bemanning van de Ventura, gewaarborgd blijft. Als Seren dan ook nog gekoppeld wordt aan de knappe, maar in haar ogen leeghoofdige Ezra, wordt het duidelijk dat zijzelf iets moet veranderen aan haar leven. Dan loopt ze Dom tegen het lijf, een jongen die haar hoofd op hol brengt en er precies dezelfde ideeën op na lijkt te houden. Kunnen ze samen de wetten van de Ventura tarten?
Vanaf de allereerste pagina Eenzaam en extreem ver weg wordt Seren neergezet als een dwarse tiener. Ze is het niet alleen oneens met de besluiten van de leiding van het ruimteschip, ook haar opa, vader en oudere zus moeten het regelmatig ontgelden. Zij geloven namelijk wel heilig in het project en volgen gedwee de regels om de samenleving op het ruimteschip draaiende te houden. Daarnaast stort ze zich vol overgave in haar relatie met Dom. Herkenbaar voor iedereen die voor het eerst verliefd is; aan de andere kant vraag je je af hoe betrouwbaar de ‘ik hou van jou en ik blijf de rest van mijn leven met je samen’-beweringen zijn uit de mond van een zestienjarig meisje. De naïviteit van Seren is dus tegelijk ontwapend en tenenkrommend. Af en toe zou je haar willen vragen tien seconden langer na te denken over de beslissingen die ze neemt. Tegelijkertijd is ze wel het personage dat voor de nodige actie zorgt omdat ze juist niet in de pas loopt.
Voor de fans van sciencefiction- of dystopische young adult-boeken is Eenzaam en extreem ver weg wellicht ietwat teleurstellend. Door de focus op de relatie tussen Seren, Ezra en Dom heeft het meer weg van een contemporaine liefdesgeschiedenis die zich toevallig in de ruimte afspeelt. De cliffhanger aan het einde van het verhaal maakt nieuwsgierig naar het tweede deel in deze Ventura-saga, maar doet ook vermoeden dat we nog niet van deze liefdesdriehoek af zijn.
Dit gevoel wordt nog eens versterkt als Seren aan het einde van haar middelbareschooltijd een Verbintenis met een van haar klasgenoten moet aangaan. Door middel van deze Verbintenis wordt uitgemaakt wie haar levenspartner wordt. Het idee achter dit paringsritueel is dat de voorplanting, en dus de toekomstige bemanning van de Ventura, gewaarborgd blijft. Als Seren dan ook nog gekoppeld wordt aan de knappe, maar in haar ogen leeghoofdige Ezra, wordt het duidelijk dat zijzelf iets moet veranderen aan haar leven. Dan loopt ze Dom tegen het lijf, een jongen die haar hoofd op hol brengt en er precies dezelfde ideeën op na lijkt te houden. Kunnen ze samen de wetten van de Ventura tarten?
Vanaf de allereerste pagina Eenzaam en extreem ver weg wordt Seren neergezet als een dwarse tiener. Ze is het niet alleen oneens met de besluiten van de leiding van het ruimteschip, ook haar opa, vader en oudere zus moeten het regelmatig ontgelden. Zij geloven namelijk wel heilig in het project en volgen gedwee de regels om de samenleving op het ruimteschip draaiende te houden. Daarnaast stort ze zich vol overgave in haar relatie met Dom. Herkenbaar voor iedereen die voor het eerst verliefd is; aan de andere kant vraag je je af hoe betrouwbaar de ‘ik hou van jou en ik blijf de rest van mijn leven met je samen’-beweringen zijn uit de mond van een zestienjarig meisje. De naïviteit van Seren is dus tegelijk ontwapend en tenenkrommend. Af en toe zou je haar willen vragen tien seconden langer na te denken over de beslissingen die ze neemt. Tegelijkertijd is ze wel het personage dat voor de nodige actie zorgt omdat ze juist niet in de pas loopt.
Voor de fans van sciencefiction- of dystopische young adult-boeken is Eenzaam en extreem ver weg wellicht ietwat teleurstellend. Door de focus op de relatie tussen Seren, Ezra en Dom heeft het meer weg van een contemporaine liefdesgeschiedenis die zich toevallig in de ruimte afspeelt. De cliffhanger aan het einde van het verhaal maakt nieuwsgierig naar het tweede deel in deze Ventura-saga, maar doet ook vermoeden dat we nog niet van deze liefdesdriehoek af zijn.
Concept: amazing, pretty unique!
Execution: not so good. I felt like there are so many possibilities with this story and the author did not use them at all. Some stuff was pretty cliché, but I don't really mind that.
Sometimes the dialogue was lacking; it felt off, a bit unrealistic and forced. A plot device to deliver information to the reader, not something an actual person would say.
The characters wherent all consistent. One being described as a pessimist and all of the sudden feeling crazy optimistic about something? Uhm.
I loved Seren, even thought she was so flawed. I could relate to her alot, but I wished she had pulled throught in the end, and was a bit braver. Then again, maybe she goes throught some character development in the next books? Let's hope she becomes more independent and learns to love herself and see herself as a strong individual even without Dom. She'd be perfect then.
I LOVE the slytherin dude that Ezra is, absolutely amazing character, all thought he could have been painted less clumsily, more nuanced.
Big issue I had with this book: it is incredibly straight. And I feel like that's a shame, because, in the context of a society where marriages are forced and you don't get to choose who you're making kids with... it would be so interesting to see how that affects queer people as well. The story would be 1000 times better if we had a queer mc and main love arc.
But the describtions of what it feels like to be in love for the first time- adorable! Very real, very overpowering emotions.
The ending was a mess thought. Very sudden, abrupt, not really an ending that made sense to me.
Too much was happening after so many pages of what felt like the lead up - because let's be honest we all knew what was going to happen, and the "plot twists" we saw coming from miles away.
Overall, this was very promising but did not quiet deliver. Then again, it was actually better than I expected, because I didn't get my hopes up too much. I definatly enjoyed it and I'm interested to see if the author saves some of her lacking plot and character development in the next books.
Execution: not so good. I felt like there are so many possibilities with this story and the author did not use them at all. Some stuff was pretty cliché, but I don't really mind that.
Sometimes the dialogue was lacking; it felt off, a bit unrealistic and forced. A plot device to deliver information to the reader, not something an actual person would say.
The characters wherent all consistent. One being described as a pessimist and all of the sudden feeling crazy optimistic about something? Uhm.
I loved Seren, even thought she was so flawed. I could relate to her alot, but I wished she had pulled throught in the end, and was a bit braver. Then again, maybe she goes throught some character development in the next books? Let's hope she becomes more independent and learns to love herself and see herself as a strong individual even without Dom. She'd be perfect then.
I LOVE the slytherin dude that Ezra is, absolutely amazing character, all thought he could have been painted less clumsily, more nuanced.
Big issue I had with this book: it is incredibly straight. And I feel like that's a shame, because, in the context of a society where marriages are forced and you don't get to choose who you're making kids with... it would be so interesting to see how that affects queer people as well. The story would be 1000 times better if we had a queer mc and main love arc.
But the describtions of what it feels like to be in love for the first time- adorable! Very real, very overpowering emotions.
The ending was a mess thought. Very sudden, abrupt, not really an ending that made sense to me.
Too much was happening after so many pages of what felt like the lead up - because let's be honest we all knew what was going to happen, and the "plot twists" we saw coming from miles away.
Overall, this was very promising but did not quiet deliver. Then again, it was actually better than I expected, because I didn't get my hopes up too much. I definatly enjoyed it and I'm interested to see if the author saves some of her lacking plot and character development in the next books.
