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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
4.5 stars only because I liked Wool even more than Sand. But, oh my gosh, I want more! Just like with Wool, I didn't want this story to end. Please tell me there will be more!!!!!!
it was good. sense of wonder about the world.. but it kinda... never got going exactly... but it was very creative.
Review originally published at: http://www.lomeraniel.com/audiobookreviews/book-review-sand-by-hugh-howey/
The old world is buried in sand, and the people left try to make a living from the things they can recover from it. There are specialized sand divers, who use special suits and different techniques to be able to dive into the sand like they would do it in water. It is a very dangerous job but also very lucrative. The legend talks about the ancient city of Danvar, and many sand divers will perish trying to find it. Palmer is decided to show his worth and will try to find this old and dangerous place. Palmer and his family are not the same since their father left twelve years before and never returned. The big sandy depths hide many secrets, important for Palmer, his family and all their society.
I had my eye on Hugh Howey's books for a long time, and purchased this one and the Wool series through Audible Whispersync, but since I am always listening books for review I never found the right time. Due to one of the books I will be soon reviewing, a fan fiction inspired on Sand, I decided to jump on this one.
Howey describes the desert landscape with many rich and vivid details. It is almost possible to feel the sand stuck to your tongue, the heat from the sun, and the constant thirst. I knew about the sand divers before listening to this book, but for the life of me could not imagine how they went into the deep of the sand. Howey describes their equipment and techniques with great detail but without going into specifics. The most important thing is that he transmitted very well the difficulties the sand divers were against, and the feelings they had when they were under many meters of sand.
The characters were well developed, and their relationships and actions were realistic. It was easy to feel moved by their motivations, even if I did not completely agree with them at all times. The relationship among the family members was complex and had multiple layers, making it believable and making each character unique.
I greatly enjoyed the story. The intrigue was well built and there were some unexpected twists. When there was around one hour left I felt there was something wrong though. It seemed there was still a lot left to happen but just a little over an hour to tie the story up. The end felt rushed and I had the feeling that Howey was not telling us something. I wanted to explore the land to the East, and see how the people there lived. I really hope that Howey will write a continuation to this book and satisfy my curiosity. I read an old entry on his blog from 2014 saying that he was working on a sequel, and I hope he is getting close to finishing it. Sadly I could not find more information about it.
I found Karen Chilton's narration correct, and making different enough character's voices. I read some bad reviews regarding the narration of this book, but I have no complain about it. The audio production was also correct and there were no issues.
Despite the fact that the story seems unfinished, and the end felt rushed, I really enjoyed this book, its characters and descriptions. Mr. Howey, you can include me as one of your fans!
The old world is buried in sand, and the people left try to make a living from the things they can recover from it. There are specialized sand divers, who use special suits and different techniques to be able to dive into the sand like they would do it in water. It is a very dangerous job but also very lucrative. The legend talks about the ancient city of Danvar, and many sand divers will perish trying to find it. Palmer is decided to show his worth and will try to find this old and dangerous place. Palmer and his family are not the same since their father left twelve years before and never returned. The big sandy depths hide many secrets, important for Palmer, his family and all their society.
I had my eye on Hugh Howey's books for a long time, and purchased this one and the Wool series through Audible Whispersync, but since I am always listening books for review I never found the right time. Due to one of the books I will be soon reviewing, a fan fiction inspired on Sand, I decided to jump on this one.
Howey describes the desert landscape with many rich and vivid details. It is almost possible to feel the sand stuck to your tongue, the heat from the sun, and the constant thirst. I knew about the sand divers before listening to this book, but for the life of me could not imagine how they went into the deep of the sand. Howey describes their equipment and techniques with great detail but without going into specifics. The most important thing is that he transmitted very well the difficulties the sand divers were against, and the feelings they had when they were under many meters of sand.
The characters were well developed, and their relationships and actions were realistic. It was easy to feel moved by their motivations, even if I did not completely agree with them at all times. The relationship among the family members was complex and had multiple layers, making it believable and making each character unique.
I greatly enjoyed the story. The intrigue was well built and there were some unexpected twists. When there was around one hour left I felt there was something wrong though. It seemed there was still a lot left to happen but just a little over an hour to tie the story up. The end felt rushed and I had the feeling that Howey was not telling us something. I wanted to explore the land to the East, and see how the people there lived. I really hope that Howey will write a continuation to this book and satisfy my curiosity. I read an old entry on his blog from 2014 saying that he was working on a sequel, and I hope he is getting close to finishing it. Sadly I could not find more information about it.
I found Karen Chilton's narration correct, and making different enough character's voices. I read some bad reviews regarding the narration of this book, but I have no complain about it. The audio production was also correct and there were no issues.
Despite the fact that the story seems unfinished, and the end felt rushed, I really enjoyed this book, its characters and descriptions. Mr. Howey, you can include me as one of your fans!
It felt like Wool with sand instead of silos. Same isolated societies, just with strange sand suits (which don't really make any sense) instead of the topside death suits in Wool. I think if I hadn't read Howey's other stuff this might have seemed more novel.
I clicked 3 stars. Then 4. Then 3 again. Since my real rating is 3.5, I'm rounding up. Probably in part because Hugh Howey is just so darn nice.
Here are the cons first:
The footnotes. We get it, when the world is covered in sand, people come up with different names for it in different places -- like the Eskimos having 8 words for snow. But, why do almost all the footnotes appear in a clump? Why aren't they scattered throughout the story?
The fact everyone notices the sand in their mouths. If you are born into a world of sand, and there is sand in your mouth from day 1, do you really notice it being there? My guess is no. It gets mentioned frequently in this book.
The flatness (for lack of a better word) of the bad guys. Brock, the one bad guy we get to meet, is barely there. Yegery, who turns out to be a bad guy, is really more of a sad guy. The whole town of bad people? We know nothing at all about them, except that they are really bad.
The flowery/philosophical tone. It was a bit too high-flying for my tastes, but that is purely subjective.
The pros:
The way the family is apart but together. The family is drawn really well, even the dad who isn't there. Each member is a clear character (though Rob could have used a few more words to fill him out) I care about these characters and would read the next part of their story, despite the aforementioned cons.
The setting/location. I liked figuring out where things were happening. Hugh Howey does a great job of hinting and and letting you know where the story is set according to today's map.
Here are the cons first:
The footnotes. We get it, when the world is covered in sand, people come up with different names for it in different places -- like the Eskimos having 8 words for snow. But, why do almost all the footnotes appear in a clump? Why aren't they scattered throughout the story?
The fact everyone notices the sand in their mouths. If you are born into a world of sand, and there is sand in your mouth from day 1, do you really notice it being there? My guess is no. It gets mentioned frequently in this book.
The flatness (for lack of a better word) of the bad guys. Brock, the one bad guy we get to meet, is barely there. Yegery, who turns out to be a bad guy, is really more of a sad guy. The whole town of bad people? We know nothing at all about them, except that they are really bad.
The flowery/philosophical tone. It was a bit too high-flying for my tastes, but that is purely subjective.
The pros:
The way the family is apart but together. The family is drawn really well, even the dad who isn't there. Each member is a clear character (though Rob could have used a few more words to fill him out) I care about these characters and would read the next part of their story, despite the aforementioned cons.
The setting/location. I liked figuring out where things were happening. Hugh Howey does a great job of hinting and and letting you know where the story is set according to today's map.
Liked the setting and the ideas but had so many questions on how was it logistically possible to obtain fuel for generators, beer ,bread etc, things that require time to grow, that require water, that require fertile soil . Most of the things were not explained some of them briefly mentioned and that was one of the biggest issues for me. One other thing that set the author on the sidelines of my "To read" list ,for now, was that all of the POW's felt the same, they had samey thoughts, everyone talked the same way, there was a character that supposedly had an accent and talked weird? Nothing that was written there signalled anything that would indicate them as an outsider apart from 1 animal name difference that was specifically mentioned. The emotional beats did not land, character development is poor. Pacing and the premise are very cool though. Its a short and easy read for people interested in dipping their toes into science fiction (but i am not entirely sure whether it would be a good fit for a first "dip")
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Truly interesting premise but I found myself wanting more story. I guess that's good unless the story ends and you feel kind of like you got left standing alone after a first date with a goodnight kiss or something when you really really liked them....