TEST
Earth that was could no longer sustain us, we had messed it up so badly. Oh wait, that’s a paraphrase of the start of Joss Whedon’s Serenity. And the premise of Pixar’s Wall-E. Shrug. I’m going with it, it works here, too.
So Earth could no longer sustain us and we were headed off to a new place to destroy – er, colonize – it. Two ships, the Empryean and the New Horizon, take off, ready to make a home for those few left. Our first major hurdle is that women could not conceive in space. After much science magic, the first generation of children is born aboard Empyrean and it is determined that in future all women must get pregnant muy rapidamente. To that end young Kieran, Empyrean’s oldest space born child, is determined to propose to his girlfriend of ten months, fifteen year old Waverly. He wants to do this right. He doesn’t just want a baby, but a family. He reminds Waverly that it’s not just his personal desire – it’s their duty. If humanity is going to continue to exist, if there are to be enough people to actually terraform their new home, they need to start having more children. Now.
Waverly doesn’t think like Kieran. She is far less about duty and far more about being her own person. She’s willing to do what she has to, she just wants more time to think things through and be who she is. Violence wrests all that from her. The sister ship New Horizon makes an unprecedented attack on the Empyrean, taking all the young women off the ship. The attack changes the world of Kieran and Waverly forever, decimating the adult population of one ship, making a prison ship of another. Now they must each step into leadership roles that neither are prepared for and begin to fight for the survival of their species – and their way of life.
I take a lot of things into account when I read a book, especially when it is for review. Is it fun to read? Is it a page turner? Is it well written? How are the elements of fiction worked through out the story? If it doesn’t entertain, does it make me think? And does the whole thing make any sense? These questions are tough to answer when it comes to this particular novel.
It definitely starts as a page turner. Something big is about to happen; We are clued in to that almost immediately as Kieran and Waverly discuss the unusual behavior of the New Horizon and the even weirder response by the captain of the Empyrean, someone Kieran is very close to. We also know that something is already not so right on Empyrean. There is a scene twenty scant pages in where Waverly, working at her family garden, fends off an attack by a pedophile. There is a conversation between Waverly and her mother that lets us know something was off about her father’s death. There is the unrest people feel as the Captain fails to explain what New Horizon is doing right outside their window when it should have been many thousands of miles ahead of them. The atmosphere on the ship is like the tension on a taut piece of string. It has to snap. The only question is when – and what will cause it?
Where I ran into problems was slightly beyond that scene in the garden. It seems that when the people on Earth were deciding who belonged to which crew they divided people in to two groups: Secular and religious. Right away this answered my question as to what the heck had happened on the planet; it was clear that we had finally elected/been take over by leaders so stupid our species was doomed. It was also clear that conflict between the two ships was inevitable. They hadn’t just packed off two ships of humans; they had separated two apparently opposing groups so that when they reached the planet they were colonizing they would not have dealt with each other for at least one generation. How were they supposed to get along once they got there? Call me crazy, but avoidance and segregation do not sound like tools for building an integrated society. Wouldn’t our odds of establishing a thriving colony be better served by establishing one that actually has a shot at cohesion?
In fairness to the author, she doesn’t overtly favor one group over the other. Not till the very end anyway. Both have the good fortune to be led by cheating, lying thugs. Where the author and I probably differed in our opinion was that I felt like the captain of one of the ships had actually been given motive to turn creepy. The other seemed like he had just been born to be bad. The people who made up the ships’ crews were a mix of good and evil, which brought some hope into a pretty glum situation. I mean, the last hope for humanity being led by evil. Not exactly something to be excited over.
Beyond the set up of an adversarial situation between religious and secular people, we have the issue of how women are treated in this society. On the religious ship they seem to be holding their own. But on the secular ship we learn things are far worse. What we learn really disturbed me and I did not feel that the author truly addressed that issue. I can’t get into more without moving into spoiler territory, but I would have liked to see the issue be more addressed in this novel.
Equally disturbing was the level of violence. In the Hunger Games, (which this book strives to be compared to) the violence is associated with the evil people. The Capitol is behind the games, behind the suppression of the districts, at fault for the war that inevitably follows. In this novel, both sides dirty their hands. I was especially discomposed by a character whom Waverly seems to be forming an alliance with. He hurts children. It is blamed on his father being a bully, but that doesn’t change the simple fact that he hurts children.
In the end I found the book fascinating. I found myself wondering what was going to happen to these people (they are so messed up, how can they survive?) but I didn’t like them and I found much of what the author seemed to be saying, especially at the end, disturbing. It wasn’t so much her final message but the things she overlooked to get it out that scared me. I wouldn’t recommend this as a young adult read for your kids. For adults, it assuredly isn’t a fun way to pass time. And it lacks the brilliance that make a Hunger Games, Twilight or Harry Potter a must read. You must decide for yourself if what I said intrigued you enough that you want to read it, but honestly I think there are much better YA options out there.
Grade: C-
Book Type: Young Adult
Sensuality: Subtle
Review Date: 29/10/11
Publication Date: 2011/09
I've been an avid reader since 2nd grade and discovered romance when my cousin lent me Lord of La Pampa by Kay Thorpe in 7th grade. I currently read approximately 150 books a year, comprised of a mix of Young Adult, romance, mystery, women's fiction, and science fiction/fantasy.
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.