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Survival Colony 9 (2014)

by Joshua David Bellin(Favorite Author)

4.44 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

1481403567 (ISBN13: 9781481403566)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Margaret K. McElderry Books

review 1: The problem, for me, at this point is that I have read so many dystopian novels that they all start to read and feel the same. Survival Colony Nine is different. It's dark and desolate and is not a fluffy romance disguised as a survival story. It is a survival story that features an unknown enemy and an unreliable narrator who has lost his memory. What came to mind when reading it was not other novels (although it has a Wool feel to it) but two TV shows: Falling Skies (for obvious reasons) and Battlestar Galactica (for less obvious reasons). This is a fight the humans can't win. Staying alive for one more day seems to be the daily goal. It's fifty years after the initial attacks and humans are reduced to a nomadic way of life. The main concerns are water and food. There is... more very little hope in this story. I really enjoyed it, and couldn't wait to see where it went next. That said, there are a lot of unanswered questions about many of the main characters. I'm not sure if they are setting up a series, because I could see companion novels featuring other colonies.
review 2: I imagine this would be more appealing to male readers, particularly teens. Everything was very stark, including characters and plot points. When characters did attempt to make some meaningful connection with an event, it felt manufactured. The continuity of the futuristic setting was interrupted by some references that I struggled not to dwell on -- they don't remember applauding, but someone passed on a verse of a song that my students today wouldn't even recognize? I personally did not connect with the main character who functioned more as a reporter of others actions and had very little personality himself. This is in part because he cannot remember anything before six months ago which is an essential plot point, but still, it left this reader struggling to care about him as a character. It had action, flamethrowers, and scary foes, but the plot is fairly dull until the 70% mark. That is where the book should have started. It was an expensive mistake for me, and I won't be rereading it, so it feels like a loss. Language and lack of any sensuality makes this appropriate for 13+ readers. less

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