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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
A cautionary tale about global warming's effect on the near future, this is an interesting book with some surprising reveals along the way. Not highly suspenseful, but it does keep you reading.
The dystopian world that Makepeace Hatfield wakes up to find is the result not of a nuclear holocaust or disease pandemic, but rising seas and food scarcity, which prompt violent human reactions. Mass migration quickly leads to a refugee crisis of epic proportions. Natives of the Far North come into conflict with the hordes of ungrateful newcomers, and soon war, disease, and starvation become ways of life. Out of the chaos, entrepreneurial slave traders establish a lucrative business wrangling unfortunate souls across the tundra to remnants of industrial centers further south.
Makepeace leaves home to search for a civilization she believes must still exist, but this is where Makepeace eventually ends up - an industrial center carved out of the ruins of an old military base, where a hard but fair commandant rewards individual slaves for years of good labor by granting small rewards. For Makepeace, this means a chance to avoid the fields and tend a small garden instead; eventually, this also means the chance to become a warden. For others, it means getting the recognition to be sent to "The Zone" - a mysterious area thousands of kilometer from base where slaves believe they will be reintegrated into society in a large industrial town.
The truth about The Zone is, of course, far more terrible than this, and forces Makepeace to make difficult decisions about the future. Ultimately, Makepeace chooses a path that leads back to the base, where an even more horrible discovery awaits - a discovery that holds the key to unlocking a tragic secret from Makepeace's past.
The dystopian world that Makepeace Hatfield wakes up to find is the result not of a nuclear holocaust or disease pandemic, but rising seas and food scarcity, which prompt violent human reactions. Mass migration quickly leads to a refugee crisis of epic proportions. Natives of the Far North come into conflict with the hordes of ungrateful newcomers, and soon war, disease, and starvation become ways of life. Out of the chaos, entrepreneurial slave traders establish a lucrative business wrangling unfortunate souls across the tundra to remnants of industrial centers further south.
Makepeace leaves home to search for a civilization she believes must still exist, but this is where Makepeace eventually ends up - an industrial center carved out of the ruins of an old military base, where a hard but fair commandant rewards individual slaves for years of good labor by granting small rewards. For Makepeace, this means a chance to avoid the fields and tend a small garden instead; eventually, this also means the chance to become a warden. For others, it means getting the recognition to be sent to "The Zone" - a mysterious area thousands of kilometer from base where slaves believe they will be reintegrated into society in a large industrial town.
The truth about The Zone is, of course, far more terrible than this, and forces Makepeace to make difficult decisions about the future. Ultimately, Makepeace chooses a path that leads back to the base, where an even more horrible discovery awaits - a discovery that holds the key to unlocking a tragic secret from Makepeace's past.
adventurous
dark
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Liked it, didn't love it. In the ever expanding genre of post-apocalyptic fiction, this one falls on the more ruminative side of things, which I appreciate. I liked many of the ideas here, and the female main character was likable and intriguing, but it honestly needed a few more action set pieces to keep things moving. A slow burn that never quite catches fire. Oh man, that's a good line. Chew on that, Kakutani!
Probably one of richest protagonists in the genre in an equally rich story.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Nothing revolutionary in the narrative or the prose to be found here, it's pretty formulaic in how it pans out but it's still a good ride.
The world is interesting, nice to read something set outside of North America and offering a different part of the world even if we don't get to understand it from the POV of someone indigenous to the region.
Because of it's length, you can read this in a day or two so definitely a good one for a cold or rainy day.
The world is interesting, nice to read something set outside of North America and offering a different part of the world even if we don't get to understand it from the POV of someone indigenous to the region.
Because of it's length, you can read this in a day or two so definitely a good one for a cold or rainy day.
I liked "Far North" because its so very human. Its full of surprising twists and develops at the same time a very plausible version of a near future. Definitely good for reading at any time plus makes you think!
I read this hungrily, and felt the cold and awfulness of the setting while doing so! A story set in a kind of dystopian/alternate future Siberia mixed with lots of Wild West tropes, which chronicled the depressing path of a fierce woman's life that she refuses to give up. I loved some of the scenes created, and connected to the main character. Her gender was hidden for a time but also crucial to her characterization and I was surprised how integral it was to each beat in the plot. Her life was pretty horrid, and she knew it, and tried to find truth in living at the end of things. It was a good read despite having nearly no hope in it, I promise!
Beautifully written. Among the best post-apocalpytic dystopias I've read.
The end of civilisation...
Makepeace Hatfield lives alone – the last resident of the town of Evangeline in Siberia. Some unexplained catastrophe has destroyed civilisation and decimated humanity. But one day Makepeace sees something that makes her think that somewhere remnants of civilisation may still exist and she sets off to find out...
This is a pretty standard post-apocalypse story, and I might as well start by saying I found it rather dull and pointless. We never know what caused the catastrophe – possibly climate change, though if so it doesn’t seem to have had much impact on the snowy wastes of Siberia. And, while we see humanity’s struggle to survive, there’s nothing terribly insightful about it. Scenes of horror and misery abound, there’s the usual cult religious aspects that are always included as part of apocalyptic dystopian fiction, man’s inhumanity to man is given full play, and we see that those who had stuck to their old traditional ways of life are better suited to survival than those who had lived in cities, far removed from nature and with skills that are useless in this new/old society. It has been compared (probably by the marketing people) to The Road, but it has none of the profundity or bleak beauty of that book – this is simply a kind of adventure story that quite frankly doesn’t have enough adventure in it.
While there are lots of descriptions of the wildlife and mentions of the local indigenous tribespeople, I never found the setting came to life for me. I can’t quite put my finger on why. I think it may be because I felt that survival in the Arctic region should have been much tougher, oddly, than it’s portrayed. Perhaps that’s my misunderstanding of the region – I know people have populated the area for millennia so clearly survival is not impossible – but I can only say I didn’t feel the cold seeping into my bones as much as I anticipated.
I’m struggling to find much to say about this one, to be honest. It is quite readable, the writing is good and Makepeace is a likeable heroine. I didn’t hate it, but I suspect I’ll have forgotten all about it in a couple of weeks. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
Makepeace Hatfield lives alone – the last resident of the town of Evangeline in Siberia. Some unexplained catastrophe has destroyed civilisation and decimated humanity. But one day Makepeace sees something that makes her think that somewhere remnants of civilisation may still exist and she sets off to find out...
This is a pretty standard post-apocalypse story, and I might as well start by saying I found it rather dull and pointless. We never know what caused the catastrophe – possibly climate change, though if so it doesn’t seem to have had much impact on the snowy wastes of Siberia. And, while we see humanity’s struggle to survive, there’s nothing terribly insightful about it. Scenes of horror and misery abound, there’s the usual cult religious aspects that are always included as part of apocalyptic dystopian fiction, man’s inhumanity to man is given full play, and we see that those who had stuck to their old traditional ways of life are better suited to survival than those who had lived in cities, far removed from nature and with skills that are useless in this new/old society. It has been compared (probably by the marketing people) to The Road, but it has none of the profundity or bleak beauty of that book – this is simply a kind of adventure story that quite frankly doesn’t have enough adventure in it.
While there are lots of descriptions of the wildlife and mentions of the local indigenous tribespeople, I never found the setting came to life for me. I can’t quite put my finger on why. I think it may be because I felt that survival in the Arctic region should have been much tougher, oddly, than it’s portrayed. Perhaps that’s my misunderstanding of the region – I know people have populated the area for millennia so clearly survival is not impossible – but I can only say I didn’t feel the cold seeping into my bones as much as I anticipated.
I’m struggling to find much to say about this one, to be honest. It is quite readable, the writing is good and Makepeace is a likeable heroine. I didn’t hate it, but I suspect I’ll have forgotten all about it in a couple of weeks. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
"Strange how it is that men never act crueler than when they're fighting for the sake of an idea. We've been killing since Cain over who stands closer to God "