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twentystitches's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
This book isn't half bad! The world imagined was really interesting and thought provoking, the lore of the gangs etc was cool and it was really engaging and addictive. A few technical discrepancies (how on earth did they survive for so long??) but overall pretty good
patchworkbunny's review against another edition
4.0
In Way Down Dark, James Smythe’s trademark bleakness gets the young adult treatment. What, you weren’t expecting a cheery book were you? There is a sense of futility on board the Australia. That no matter what you do, you can’t undo the choices made by previous generations. It can feel impossible to escape the circumstances you were born into. Something that has become a general feeling amongst disillusioned, younger generations today.
Life on board the Australia is tough but Chan makes the most of it and stays out of trouble. It’s what her mother would have wanted. There are social hierarchies to navigate, the ship containing an entire city of sorts, with all the sordid elements that comes with. There are those who rule through fear and those who attempt to create what little community they can. Are there are, of course, the religious fanatics who live at the top of the ship in the dark, who roam the lower levels looking for people to bring to their cause. But if there is a god, why has he left them here?
It’s a hard book to review without spoiling part two, because that is where everything shifts. You might work it out beforehand; there is a massive hint. I think my mind made the connection early on but didn’t translate it into any sort of relevance to the story. But it is what makes the book so good, and without it, it did start to feel like one of many other stories in space.
If you’re reading it and feeling the hope drain from your veins, just keep going. Chan’s life does seem like it can’t go anywhere, and certainly things can’t get better as they only seem to be getting worse. Personally, there was a bit too many long action scenes for me. The fighting, violence and damage inflicted is crucial to the overall story and tone, but it did mean I lost interest in some of the passages, wanting to skip onto whatever happens next. But, I’m not a huge fan of action scenes in general, so this is just personal preference.
I hope the next book has a little more world-building from outside Chan’s world. Ship is presented as the whole world, with their own mythologies, but what on Earth (literally) has happened to get them to this point. Don’t get me wrong, I think the world within the ship is crafted wonderfully, full of ominous shadows and creaking metal. The ship feels on its last legs, long past the duration of its intended purpose.
It is a trilogy but I was satisfied by the ending of this first book. It manages to feel like a conclusion as well as the start of something new. Something new and exciting that I definitely want to read more of. And that’s exactly how trilogies should be done.
Review copy provided by publisher.
Life on board the Australia is tough but Chan makes the most of it and stays out of trouble. It’s what her mother would have wanted. There are social hierarchies to navigate, the ship containing an entire city of sorts, with all the sordid elements that comes with. There are those who rule through fear and those who attempt to create what little community they can. Are there are, of course, the religious fanatics who live at the top of the ship in the dark, who roam the lower levels looking for people to bring to their cause. But if there is a god, why has he left them here?
It’s a hard book to review without spoiling part two, because that is where everything shifts. You might work it out beforehand; there is a massive hint. I think my mind made the connection early on but didn’t translate it into any sort of relevance to the story. But it is what makes the book so good, and without it, it did start to feel like one of many other stories in space.
If you’re reading it and feeling the hope drain from your veins, just keep going. Chan’s life does seem like it can’t go anywhere, and certainly things can’t get better as they only seem to be getting worse. Personally, there was a bit too many long action scenes for me. The fighting, violence and damage inflicted is crucial to the overall story and tone, but it did mean I lost interest in some of the passages, wanting to skip onto whatever happens next. But, I’m not a huge fan of action scenes in general, so this is just personal preference.
I hope the next book has a little more world-building from outside Chan’s world. Ship is presented as the whole world, with their own mythologies, but what on Earth (literally) has happened to get them to this point. Don’t get me wrong, I think the world within the ship is crafted wonderfully, full of ominous shadows and creaking metal. The ship feels on its last legs, long past the duration of its intended purpose.
It is a trilogy but I was satisfied by the ending of this first book. It manages to feel like a conclusion as well as the start of something new. Something new and exciting that I definitely want to read more of. And that’s exactly how trilogies should be done.
Review copy provided by publisher.
pantsreads's review
2.0
2.5/5
Interesting addition to the dystopian genre. Very gritty, and at times uncomfortable (but not in an entirely bad way). Full of plot holes ... I think? (I hope they're explained in the sequels.)
Check out my full review on Forever Young Adult.
Interesting addition to the dystopian genre. Very gritty, and at times uncomfortable (but not in an entirely bad way). Full of plot holes ... I think? (I hope they're explained in the sequels.)
Check out my full review on Forever Young Adult.
dearestdorian's review against another edition
2.0
Cool title, dull story.
It's fitting that the Australia is falling apart and rife with violence and a highly unstable political system. After all, the country is peopled entirely with criminals...
So you'd think a book which focuses on a ship named after Australia would be a lot more interesting.
Alas, it took too long for this particular story to begin, and in the end, not much really happened.
Overall, would I recommend it?
No.
There's too little in it for me to split this review into sections for plot, character, and so on, which is the way I've been reviewing lately. I didn't get to a point where I was skimming, but finishing this book was a relief, because now I no longer have to struggle through it. I didn't hate it, but there was nothing there to love.
It's fitting that the Australia is falling apart and rife with violence and a highly unstable political system. After all, the country is peopled entirely with criminals...
So you'd think a book which focuses on a ship named after Australia would be a lot more interesting.
Alas, it took too long for this particular story to begin, and in the end, not much really happened.
Overall, would I recommend it?
No.
There's too little in it for me to split this review into sections for plot, character, and so on, which is the way I've been reviewing lately. I didn't get to a point where I was skimming, but finishing this book was a relief, because now I no longer have to struggle through it. I didn't hate it, but there was nothing there to love.
brettmichaelorr's review against another edition
5.0
Read more reviews like this on my blog!
Gritty. Dark. Brutal. These are buzzwords that are routinely used in reviews of Young Adult novels, but never have these words been more fitting than for James Smythe's WAY DOWN DARK, the first novel in the AUSTRALIA trilogy. The 'Australia' itself is a colossal spaceship sent adrift through space, searching for a new home after the destruction of Earth - but the ship has been floating for hundreds of years without communication or governmental control. Instead the ship and its inhabitants are left to rule themselves, forming classes and factions that vie for control of Australia. I said this was dark and gritty, and to be honest, the level of gruesome detail borders on the nauseous at time. Most of the book involves discussions of the 'Pit', the lowest level of the 80-floor vertical ship, a place where everything rotting and dead has fallen and accumulated. Bodies and waste have piled up here, serving as the mass grave for hundreds, perhaps thousands of people over the years. Be warned - you might need a strong stomach to get through some of the chapters. The book follows Chan, a teenage girl who attempts to make a small difference against the mounting war between the 'free people' of Australia and the Lows - vicious bandits who border on the psychopathic. The Lows - originally called that because they lived on the lowest levels of the ship - have been amassing power, conquering the ship section by section, and they will kill and destroy everything in their quest for control. Added to the mix are the mysterious Pale Woman - holy priestesses who live in the topmost floor of the ship and worship a modified form of the Bible that has three Testaments rather than two. This 'new' bible contains additions that tell about the destruction of Earth, the story that everyone on the ship believes. I can't say anything without revealing a massive spoiler, but suffice to say, if you know about the history of the country - my own country, as it happens - Australia, then you might have your own suspicions about the big plot-twist. I was hoping for it, but it still floored me, and spurred on the the second half of the novel in a big way. WAY DOWN DARK appeals to its own Biblical themes too - the Pale Women talk of 'ascension' and allude to Revelations and the Apocalypse. The Four Horsemen are there - War, as the Lows and Free people engage in a bloody struggle; Famine as the ship's primary source of food, a sustainable arboretum, is contested; Conquest as the Lows sweep across the entire ship, led by a power-crazed king; and Death itself that hangs over the ship, slowly whittling down the population of Australia. Chan might even be Christ of the second coming, redeeming and saving those whom she believes are pure and deserve hope, and condemning those who have wronged her. Out of all this comes a gripping novel, short and thrilling. The action never lets up, only broken for the occasional plot reveal. The world of Australia is impeccably described, and has clearly been thought through in detail; right from the first page, the reader is transported to this desolate ship in the middle of space, where trust is rare and power is the new currency. WAY DOWN DARK will stay with you long after the final page has closed, and it ends on a cliffhanger that will certainly kickstart the sequel with a bang. WAY DOWN DARK is already available in all good bookstores, and I recommend it to anybody who loves YA Sci-Fi or Dystopians.
Gritty. Dark. Brutal. These are buzzwords that are routinely used in reviews of Young Adult novels, but never have these words been more fitting than for James Smythe's WAY DOWN DARK, the first novel in the AUSTRALIA trilogy. The 'Australia' itself is a colossal spaceship sent adrift through space, searching for a new home after the destruction of Earth - but the ship has been floating for hundreds of years without communication or governmental control. Instead the ship and its inhabitants are left to rule themselves, forming classes and factions that vie for control of Australia. I said this was dark and gritty, and to be honest, the level of gruesome detail borders on the nauseous at time. Most of the book involves discussions of the 'Pit', the lowest level of the 80-floor vertical ship, a place where everything rotting and dead has fallen and accumulated. Bodies and waste have piled up here, serving as the mass grave for hundreds, perhaps thousands of people over the years. Be warned - you might need a strong stomach to get through some of the chapters. The book follows Chan, a teenage girl who attempts to make a small difference against the mounting war between the 'free people' of Australia and the Lows - vicious bandits who border on the psychopathic. The Lows - originally called that because they lived on the lowest levels of the ship - have been amassing power, conquering the ship section by section, and they will kill and destroy everything in their quest for control. Added to the mix are the mysterious Pale Woman - holy priestesses who live in the topmost floor of the ship and worship a modified form of the Bible that has three Testaments rather than two. This 'new' bible contains additions that tell about the destruction of Earth, the story that everyone on the ship believes. I can't say anything without revealing a massive spoiler, but suffice to say, if you know about the history of the country - my own country, as it happens - Australia, then you might have your own suspicions about the big plot-twist. I was hoping for it, but it still floored me, and spurred on the the second half of the novel in a big way. WAY DOWN DARK appeals to its own Biblical themes too - the Pale Women talk of 'ascension' and allude to Revelations and the Apocalypse. The Four Horsemen are there - War, as the Lows and Free people engage in a bloody struggle; Famine as the ship's primary source of food, a sustainable arboretum, is contested; Conquest as the Lows sweep across the entire ship, led by a power-crazed king; and Death itself that hangs over the ship, slowly whittling down the population of Australia. Chan might even be Christ of the second coming, redeeming and saving those whom she believes are pure and deserve hope, and condemning those who have wronged her. Out of all this comes a gripping novel, short and thrilling. The action never lets up, only broken for the occasional plot reveal. The world of Australia is impeccably described, and has clearly been thought through in detail; right from the first page, the reader is transported to this desolate ship in the middle of space, where trust is rare and power is the new currency. WAY DOWN DARK will stay with you long after the final page has closed, and it ends on a cliffhanger that will certainly kickstart the sequel with a bang. WAY DOWN DARK is already available in all good bookstores, and I recommend it to anybody who loves YA Sci-Fi or Dystopians.
The Good
A dark, bloody YA that doesn't pull any punches. A perfectly described world of chaos and power, with two massive plot-twists that make this one of the best novels of the year.
The Bad
The gruesome details can be a little nauseous, but aside from that, I can't specifically name anything 'bad'.
The Verdict
Brutally dark and intense, WAY DOWN DARK delivers a thrilling entry to the AUSTRALIA series with a twisting plot that makes it one of the best new releases this year.
tanninsandtales's review against another edition
The Earth is no more and its last inhabitants boarded the spaceship Australia - in the hopes of finding a new home. Years have passed and the ship hasn't yet landed anywhere.
The story begins with Chan promising her dying mother she will survive. Sounds rather trivial, but as one gets to know what Australia is like, we understand that surviving in such an environment is - at the very least - challenging. Aside from poor hygiene and lack of medicine, there are multiple gangs. One of them, "The Lows" are particularly brutal.
[b:Way Down Dark|25202767|Way Down Dark (The Australia Trilogy, #1)|James Smythe|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1427130144s/25202767.jpg|44915024] is an action packed story of survival. Not only does Chan want to stay alive but she wants others to live as well. In her mission of protecting people from the dangers aboard the ship, Chan ends up discovering that there is more to Australia than she would have thought.
This first installment in The Australia Trilogy is full of action and violence whilst also depicting friendship and hope. Not exactly my kind of story but I can easily see why many would enjoy it.
(Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.)
The story begins with Chan promising her dying mother she will survive. Sounds rather trivial, but as one gets to know what Australia is like, we understand that surviving in such an environment is - at the very least - challenging. Aside from poor hygiene and lack of medicine, there are multiple gangs. One of them, "The Lows" are particularly brutal.
[b:Way Down Dark|25202767|Way Down Dark (The Australia Trilogy, #1)|James Smythe|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1427130144s/25202767.jpg|44915024] is an action packed story of survival. Not only does Chan want to stay alive but she wants others to live as well. In her mission of protecting people from the dangers aboard the ship, Chan ends up discovering that there is more to Australia than she would have thought.
This first installment in The Australia Trilogy is full of action and violence whilst also depicting friendship and hope. Not exactly my kind of story but I can easily see why many would enjoy it.
(Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.)
pixe1's review against another edition
2.0
"The 100" but with less context and more plot holes. This seemed like a YA novel that was violent on the level of GoT, with only a semblance of plot. And I'd go so far to say that the ending is such a massive cliffhanger that it's not even a full novel because absolutely nothing is resolved. The whole thing made me roll my eyes and left me less than interested in the sequel(s).
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
2.0
First, READ THE SYNOPSIS. I did not and I thought this trilogy would be set in post-apocalyptic Australia. It's not. Not at all. This is a book about a ship in space called Australia I'm so disappointed in this one probably in part because my expectations right from the start were completely off.
The story had an interesting beginning that was brutal and bloody and the first scene is pretty surprising. Then it seemed to drag on a bit as we met a huge cast of characters - full of kids, adults (and how they all tied together), merchants, neighbors, a big religious group, and even bad guys with names. It was overwhelming and I may have enjoyed the story more if I'd been able to remember how the names tied together and when someone popped back up or died. Honestly, there was just no way to keep track of everyone!
But then the big twist. I was okay with most of it up until that part and I was even okay with the big change. It's the end that left me with no reason to continue with the series. And also
Spoiler
which makes the plot twist so much more obviousThe story had an interesting beginning that was brutal and bloody and the first scene is pretty surprising. Then it seemed to drag on a bit as we met a huge cast of characters - full of kids, adults (and how they all tied together), merchants, neighbors, a big religious group, and even bad guys with names. It was overwhelming and I may have enjoyed the story more if I'd been able to remember how the names tied together and when someone popped back up or died. Honestly, there was just no way to keep track of everyone!
But then the big twist. I was okay with most of it up until that part and I was even okay with the big change. It's the end that left me with no reason to continue with the series.
Spoiler
How can you let the bad guys win over and over and think I'll want to read more?Spoiler
who doesn't push the button? I mean, c'mon?stephanimichelle's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve been trying to catch up on some books I’ve been sent to review via Bookbridgr; I had started reading a chick lit novel in case you were all getting YA fatigue, but the characters really annoyed me, so I had to put it down for a bit.
Way Down Dark is the first book in a trilogy, set in a bleak dystopian future.
Chan and her mother Riadne live in the “free” section of the ship Australia. It is free in that the people who live in that section don’t belong to a gang. There are 3 main gangs onboard: The Lows who live in the bowels of the ship, are thugs and like to fight each other; The Bells who are big, brawny, aggressive and stupid; and the Pale Women, who live at the top of the ship in darkness, praying and reading religious texts. At the very bottom of the ship is the Pit, where the bodies of the dead decompose along with the rest of the ship’s detritus.
The inhabitants of Australia believe that they were part of an escape attempt; the Earth was destroyed, so the colonies sent out ships in all directions looking for a new home. Centuries later they still haven’t found a new home and the ship is falling apart.
Australia is a brutal, vicious place. Only the strong survive and strength seems to be measured by the number of people who are afraid of you. Violence is the only way to advance in society; to gain control you must take it by killing the current leader.
As the story begins Chan’s mother is dying from a tumour; to protect her daughter, Riadne comes up with a plan to make it look like Chan killed her. Chan needs the rest of the ship, especially the Lows and their terrifying leader Rex, to believe that she is a formidable opponent and not to be messed with, but this is just the beginning of a territory war that may tear the whole ship apart.
On the whole I enjoyed this book, Chan is a strong female protagonist who you really want to survive, but there were a few things that bugged me, and a few times I thought she acted in ways which were really, really stupid.
If you’re at all familiar with the history of Great Britain and the colonies the big “twist” probably won’t come as a huge shock. I could see it coming very early on, but it was still enjoyable.
It’s wonderful that in a culture where violence thrives, and you have to be able to fight to survive, Chan reveres life and doesn’t want to be a murderer, but on at least 3 occasions I was screaming “just kill the b*tch” at the book. As I was on a train this went down quite well with my travelling companions.
My main annoyance was that the author seemed to run out of ways to explain how Chan was feeling- the phrase “never felt pain like it” was used at least 4 times, and twice within a couple of pages.
On the whole a very interesting and fast paced story, I have the sequel on my to-be-read pile and look forward to reading it.
Way Down Dark is the first book in a trilogy, set in a bleak dystopian future.
Chan and her mother Riadne live in the “free” section of the ship Australia. It is free in that the people who live in that section don’t belong to a gang. There are 3 main gangs onboard: The Lows who live in the bowels of the ship, are thugs and like to fight each other; The Bells who are big, brawny, aggressive and stupid; and the Pale Women, who live at the top of the ship in darkness, praying and reading religious texts. At the very bottom of the ship is the Pit, where the bodies of the dead decompose along with the rest of the ship’s detritus.
The inhabitants of Australia believe that they were part of an escape attempt; the Earth was destroyed, so the colonies sent out ships in all directions looking for a new home. Centuries later they still haven’t found a new home and the ship is falling apart.
Australia is a brutal, vicious place. Only the strong survive and strength seems to be measured by the number of people who are afraid of you. Violence is the only way to advance in society; to gain control you must take it by killing the current leader.
As the story begins Chan’s mother is dying from a tumour; to protect her daughter, Riadne comes up with a plan to make it look like Chan killed her. Chan needs the rest of the ship, especially the Lows and their terrifying leader Rex, to believe that she is a formidable opponent and not to be messed with, but this is just the beginning of a territory war that may tear the whole ship apart.
On the whole I enjoyed this book, Chan is a strong female protagonist who you really want to survive, but there were a few things that bugged me, and a few times I thought she acted in ways which were really, really stupid.
If you’re at all familiar with the history of Great Britain and the colonies the big “twist” probably won’t come as a huge shock. I could see it coming very early on, but it was still enjoyable.
It’s wonderful that in a culture where violence thrives, and you have to be able to fight to survive, Chan reveres life and doesn’t want to be a murderer, but on at least 3 occasions I was screaming “just kill the b*tch” at the book. As I was on a train this went down quite well with my travelling companions.
My main annoyance was that the author seemed to run out of ways to explain how Chan was feeling- the phrase “never felt pain like it” was used at least 4 times, and twice within a couple of pages.
On the whole a very interesting and fast paced story, I have the sequel on my to-be-read pile and look forward to reading it.