Gone - Book Review

Gone (Gone #1)
by Michael Grant

What is it about:
In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young.

There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what's happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day. It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your birthday, you disappear just like everyone else...

What did I think of it:
People have been telling me that if I loved the The Enemy series by Higson, I would also love the Gone series by Grant. So I picked up the first book.

Hmmmm...

If I had read this book before reading the The Enemy series I would most probably have liked it better. Now I couldn't help comparing and I found Gone lacking.

And before everyone says it's because there are no zombies and everyone knows I'm a zombie fanatic: that might have been part of it, but it's not the only thing.

There's a clear difference in storytelling. Higson's characters are more real in my opinion. They're a glorious shade of grey. You can loathe a character one moment, but understand and sympathize with him/her the next. Grant's characters are more black and white. There are a few minor characters who are in the grey zone, but the major characters fall clearly either in the white or the black zone. Because of this I couldn't relate to any of them.

Apart from that the premise made it difficult to believe in what was happening as well. Adults disappearing: check! I can live with that. Bring on the mayhem! But when the kids go exploring and discover more about the disappearances, it got a bit iffy for me. Maybe there will be a perfect explanation in later books, but for now it didn't work for me.

All in all this was entertaining, but it didn't make me want to grab for the next book to find out more. I don't think I'll continue with this series.

Why should you read it:
It's entertaining YA speculative fiction.

Eve and Adam - Book Review

Eve and Adam
by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

What is it about:
And girl created boy…

In the beginning, there was an apple—

And then there was a car crash, a horrible injury, and a hospital. But before Evening Spiker’s head clears a strange boy named Solo is rushing her to her mother’s research facility. There, under the best care available, Eve is left alone to heal.

Just when Eve thinks she will die—not from her injuries, but from boredom—her mother gives her a special project: Create the perfect boy.

Using an amazingly detailed simulation, Eve starts building a boy from the ground up. Eve is creating Adam. And he will be just perfect... won’t he?

What did I think of it:
Let's start with the bad: it's in present tense.

There's probably tons of people who like present tense, but to me it feels unnatural and it drags me out of the story. There's only a few people who can write present tense in a way that feels natural to me and Grant and Applegate aren't among those people.

Apart from that this is a fun, enjoyable and fast read.

Eve is a bit superficial and her best friend Aislin is one of the most clueless teenagers I've come across in Young Adult books, but they're likeable enough. I liked Solo best. He's the ward of Eve's mother with his own agenda that might clash with Eve's.

The story was uncomplicated and interesting. I liked how even though it seemed predictable the story still managed to surprise me from time to time.

There were some events that could have been left out. Especially the antics of Aislin and her boyfriend Maddox didn't add anything to the story in my opinion.

But that aside I really enjoyed this book and I might reread it in the future when I'm in the mood for a fast, no nonsense YA read.

Why should you read it:
It's a nice YA read.