Scan barcode
writewanderread's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
teeggzz's review against another edition
1.0
I didn't even finish this book. I was really expecting more from this book because it sounded really good but I was left dissappointed.
I only got halfway through this book because it was so sllloooooooowwwwww. And I was getting really really bored. I didn't even really like the characters that much either as they weren't very relateable.
This book was due back to the library so I just took it back and I don't think I'll ever finish it. This has got me into yet ANOTHER reading slump and I only just got out of one!
This story just bored me and it was such a waste of time. It may have gotten better at the end but there was really nothing that made me want to keep reading soooooooo im not gonna read it.
1 star.
I only got halfway through this book because it was so sllloooooooowwwwww. And I was getting really really bored. I didn't even really like the characters that much either as they weren't very relateable.
This book was due back to the library so I just took it back and I don't think I'll ever finish it. This has got me into yet ANOTHER reading slump and I only just got out of one!
This story just bored me and it was such a waste of time. It may have gotten better at the end but there was really nothing that made me want to keep reading soooooooo im not gonna read it.
1 star.
ambeesbookishpages's review against another edition
3.0
The full review can be found at The Book Bratz
NOTE: This review contains spoilers
I just want to note that reading this book with the knowledge that an actor helped write it affects my views on it at all. Though I do like Peter Facinelli. This book was good, it wasn't amazing and it isn't something I will rave about, it was good.
Hundreds of years ago something called the Red Rain whipped out 50 million people on earth. Now, earth is in ruins. Animals are extinct, there is virtually no plant life and food is made synthetically in a lab. One day while scavenging Deedra spots a beautiful boy across the river, and when he tires half way across she helps him. They soon go their separate ways. Deedra works for the Magistrate under a strict set of rules and never questions them. But when an incident with the Magistrate's son occurs and then he wounds up dead Deedra questions many things, including her friendship with Rose. The boy she helped across the lake.
I don't know where to begin. Do I talk about Rose, and him being a plant? Do I talk about the fact that Deedra falls in love with a plant? I LOVE what the authors were going with. The planet is dying, humans destroyed it. So now their hope is in a boy that is part plant. It is actually a cool idea. I wish that the book focused more on Rose, how he came to be, and exactly what he was, then how it focused on Deedra getting him out of prison for the murder of the Magistrate's son. I see that the questions are left off for another book, but in all honesty, I wasn't impressed with this one and I am not all that eager to read book two when it comes out.
This book wasn't a total bust though. There is a reason I rated it two stars. The idea is original and interesting and the romance was awkward at moments but it wasn't instant, it developed faster then I prefer but it was no where near instalove. This one just wasn't for me. I get frustrated when I think about this book for the fact that not much is answered, a great plot and romance only gets a book so far. Maybe I will be on the look out for book two when it comes out. We'll see.
NOTE: This review contains spoilers
I just want to note that reading this book with the knowledge that an actor helped write it affects my views on it at all. Though I do like Peter Facinelli. This book was good, it wasn't amazing and it isn't something I will rave about, it was good.
Hundreds of years ago something called the Red Rain whipped out 50 million people on earth. Now, earth is in ruins. Animals are extinct, there is virtually no plant life and food is made synthetically in a lab. One day while scavenging Deedra spots a beautiful boy across the river, and when he tires half way across she helps him. They soon go their separate ways. Deedra works for the Magistrate under a strict set of rules and never questions them. But when an incident with the Magistrate's son occurs and then he wounds up dead Deedra questions many things, including her friendship with Rose. The boy she helped across the lake.
I don't know where to begin. Do I talk about Rose, and him being a plant? Do I talk about the fact that Deedra falls in love with a plant? I LOVE what the authors were going with. The planet is dying, humans destroyed it. So now their hope is in a boy that is part plant. It is actually a cool idea. I wish that the book focused more on Rose, how he came to be, and exactly what he was, then how it focused on Deedra getting him out of prison for the murder of the Magistrate's son. I see that the questions are left off for another book, but in all honesty, I wasn't impressed with this one and I am not all that eager to read book two when it comes out.
This book wasn't a total bust though. There is a reason I rated it two stars. The idea is original and interesting and the romance was awkward at moments but it wasn't instant, it developed faster then I prefer but it was no where near instalove. This one just wasn't for me. I get frustrated when I think about this book for the fact that not much is answered, a great plot and romance only gets a book so far. Maybe I will be on the look out for book two when it comes out. We'll see.
beastreader's review against another edition
4.0
I was not fazed by the fact that this book had actor, Peter Facinelli's name connected to it. I was more interested in the postapocalyptic aspect of this book. The pre and post genre is still hot and picking up steam in the book world and I am thrilled about this fact.
So anyways back to the book. The world that Deedra and Rose resided in was very vivid and believable. I could picture that this is what the world would look like if it was destroyed. Deedra is a strong, independent female heroine. Than there is Rose. While his name may indicate a feminine flower Rose is anything but feminine. He was very complex and intriguing. The way that he spoke and interacted made me really connect with him. Rose and Deedra reminded me of another couple that I liked from author Isaac Marion's book, Warm Bodies. If you have read Warm Bodies then you will get what I mean. While this is not a zombie book, the way that Rose came into his own skin and the emotions that he felt was like the same way as "R" in Warm Bodies. The ending was a good one.
So anyways back to the book. The world that Deedra and Rose resided in was very vivid and believable. I could picture that this is what the world would look like if it was destroyed. Deedra is a strong, independent female heroine. Than there is Rose. While his name may indicate a feminine flower Rose is anything but feminine. He was very complex and intriguing. The way that he spoke and interacted made me really connect with him. Rose and Deedra reminded me of another couple that I liked from author Isaac Marion's book, Warm Bodies. If you have read Warm Bodies then you will get what I mean. While this is not a zombie book, the way that Rose came into his own skin and the emotions that he felt was like the same way as "R" in Warm Bodies. The ending was a good one.
erincataldi's review against another edition
3.0
An intriguing new take on the teen teen post-apocalyptic/dystopian genre from bestselling YA author, Barry Lyga (and Peter Facinelli and Robert DeFranco). Cool concept but not earth shattering, I'm wondering if there will be more in this series, the ending certainly leaves room for that! Basically the premise of this story is that Earth is almost dead. Concrete and death are everywhere, the air is mostly unsafe and the only green thing that grows is death. Nobody alive remember what the world used to be like. They are content to live in the ruins and live off off genetically modified "rations." Deedra never questions anything, she just goes with the flow and works hard, without causing trouble. That is until she meets Rose. Rose, crosses the dangerous and toxic river from another territory and is unlike anything Deedra has ever encountered before. He KNOWS things and turns her small isolated world upside down. Until.... duh duh duh, shit happens. Cool book and I would be up for reading a sequel maybe. It didn't rock my socks but it was a fast read.
missrmaxwell's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
ruthelibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
I received my e-ARC from Netgalley. In return, I offer my honest review.
"After The Red Rain" is an attempt at a unique view of the post-apocalypse genre. For the most part, it accomplishes what it initially sets out to do. Deedra, our primary protagonist, knows nothing of the world before what she currently experiences. In her world, the internet is made up of Wikis, which all offer conflicting viewpoints and information about history. For Deedra, she chooses to not care, because she believes things were probably worse than they are now. In short, trees, grass, plants, and happiness were always scarce, so she chooses to worry about her here and now.
For that, I applaud the novel in taking a fresh look at a character's beginnings. Barry Lyga said recently, in a webinar for Booklist called MythMasters, that he wanted to explore a world where most people had no idea what things were like before whatever apocalyptic event happened. The novel does excel in creating this world. There is a sense of hopelessness in the people that inhabit this world, but they take it in stride and deal with it.
Rose, our other protagonist, is a mysterious young man who had been wandering this world for an unknown amount of time. He is androgynous in a way that leans him toward a feminine appearance from afar. He is a kind soul, and spends a great amount of energy valuing life on principle. There are action scenes in this novel where he goes to some length protecting the very people who mean him harm. It is refreshing to read about a character like that, especially a male one.
Overall, I thought the world building was great and mostly believable. While I do find it hard to believe that trees, grass, and animals are rare given that the human race seems to be going fairly strong by the population count given in the ARC, I didn't let it bother me too much. I would have liked to see the characters scavenging more and seeing more of how they cope in this world.
My main issue with this title is in two things: the characterization of certain people and a seemingly pointless death. In terms of characterization, Deedra's character took a backseat to Rose's around the 30-40% mark. Where she started as being self-motivated and curious, her attention turned and focuses in on Rose entirely after a while. It was irritating as suddenly her whole being revolved around this young man. While I understand how awesome and powerful first love can be, it didn't seem very realistic. Some of the antagonists in this novel came off as really stupid due to the needs of the plot, particularly during interrogation and action scenes. Additionally, Rose does something very out of character at the very end of this book. I will not spoil it, but it was something I couldn't imagine him ever doing.
Finally, the pointless death of a character, who shall go unmentioned, did not elicit pain or sadness in me, but outrage and confusion. Their death occurred off screen, and my anger was more at the authors pulling the trigger for seemingly no reason. While in the text, it is clear why this person died, it still came off as pointless and there for a quick tear jerk.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, and I think there is definitely content here many would enjoy. Teens are likely to eat up this book if they are devout readers of the post-apocalypse genre. I would definitely recommend this to the teens at my library that are looking for something different in their post-apoc YA reads. That being said, this novel left many things unanswered and is setting up for a possible sequel. The good news is the main conflict in this novel is definitely resolved, but those that like to have all the pieces to the puzzle might be off-put by the ending.
"After The Red Rain" is an attempt at a unique view of the post-apocalypse genre. For the most part, it accomplishes what it initially sets out to do. Deedra, our primary protagonist, knows nothing of the world before what she currently experiences. In her world, the internet is made up of Wikis, which all offer conflicting viewpoints and information about history. For Deedra, she chooses to not care, because she believes things were probably worse than they are now. In short, trees, grass, plants, and happiness were always scarce, so she chooses to worry about her here and now.
For that, I applaud the novel in taking a fresh look at a character's beginnings. Barry Lyga said recently, in a webinar for Booklist called MythMasters, that he wanted to explore a world where most people had no idea what things were like before whatever apocalyptic event happened. The novel does excel in creating this world. There is a sense of hopelessness in the people that inhabit this world, but they take it in stride and deal with it.
Rose, our other protagonist, is a mysterious young man who had been wandering this world for an unknown amount of time. He is androgynous in a way that leans him toward a feminine appearance from afar. He is a kind soul, and spends a great amount of energy valuing life on principle. There are action scenes in this novel where he goes to some length protecting the very people who mean him harm. It is refreshing to read about a character like that, especially a male one.
Overall, I thought the world building was great and mostly believable. While I do find it hard to believe that trees, grass, and animals are rare given that the human race seems to be going fairly strong by the population count given in the ARC, I didn't let it bother me too much. I would have liked to see the characters scavenging more and seeing more of how they cope in this world.
My main issue with this title is in two things: the characterization of certain people and a seemingly pointless death. In terms of characterization, Deedra's character took a backseat to Rose's around the 30-40% mark. Where she started as being self-motivated and curious, her attention turned and focuses in on Rose entirely after a while. It was irritating as suddenly her whole being revolved around this young man. While I understand how awesome and powerful first love can be, it didn't seem very realistic. Some of the antagonists in this novel came off as really stupid due to the needs of the plot, particularly during interrogation and action scenes. Additionally, Rose does something very out of character at the very end of this book. I will not spoil it, but it was something I couldn't imagine him ever doing.
Finally, the pointless death of a character, who shall go unmentioned, did not elicit pain or sadness in me, but outrage and confusion. Their death occurred off screen, and my anger was more at the authors pulling the trigger for seemingly no reason. While in the text, it is clear why this person died, it still came off as pointless and there for a quick tear jerk.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, and I think there is definitely content here many would enjoy. Teens are likely to eat up this book if they are devout readers of the post-apocalypse genre. I would definitely recommend this to the teens at my library that are looking for something different in their post-apoc YA reads. That being said, this novel left many things unanswered and is setting up for a possible sequel. The good news is the main conflict in this novel is definitely resolved, but those that like to have all the pieces to the puzzle might be off-put by the ending.
jenbsbooks's review
3.0
With all books being series these days, I'll admit there being some appeal to a single, stand-alone book. I glanced at the reviews and almost decided not to bother, but I needed something while waiting for my holds to come in from the library, so I thought I'd give this a chance. I liked it.
I grabbed this as an audiobook download. There were times I wished it was print, some phrases and words I wished to highlight. Listening ... it's hard to remember exactly. Some interesting thoughts on belief and knowing. Several words that while I understood (well, some I really should have looked up to be sure), aren't in everyday vernacular. I like to note those when I read.
The world was an interesting set-up, nothing astounding. Rose ... his backstory as revealed a bit later requires some major suspension of disbelief, more than most YA post-apocalyptic tales, but I was okay with it. With the title, and a mere mention of the "red rain" and what it was ... I did think that was glossed over and should have been hit harder.
This did feel a bit like an environmental agenda. Bad humans destroying the planet and all.
3.5 stars
I grabbed this as an audiobook download. There were times I wished it was print, some phrases and words I wished to highlight. Listening ... it's hard to remember exactly. Some interesting thoughts on belief and knowing. Several words that while I understood (well, some I really should have looked up to be sure), aren't in everyday vernacular. I like to note those when I read.
The world was an interesting set-up, nothing astounding. Rose ... his backstory as revealed a bit later requires some major suspension of disbelief, more than most YA post-apocalyptic tales, but I was okay with it. With the title, and a mere mention of the "red rain" and what it was ... I did think that was glossed over and should have been hit harder.
This did feel a bit like an environmental agenda. Bad humans destroying the planet and all.
3.5 stars
rcaivano's review against another edition
Not really my favorite book. On the ruined planet Earth, where 50 billion people are confined to megacities and resources are scarce, Deedra has been handed a bleak and mundane existence by the Magistrate she works so hard for. But one day she comes across a beautiful boy named Rose struggling to cross the river--a boy with a secretive past and special abilities, who is somehow able to find comfort and life from their dying planet. That's from Amazon. He's part human and part plant and it's just weird