Michael Grant (4)Reseñas

4,5 Sterne für diesen wirklich gelungenen Abschluss!

Too good.
Too short.

Adversity

Fantasy

Science Fiction

Fantastic end to a fantastic series!

This series is both terrifying and amazing.

This series is crazy. And I love it.

While I definitely enjoyed this, I kind of kept expecting Peggy Carter to make an appearance? Which is very ridiculous, but still. I feel she would have felt at home with these ladies at times.

Recommended by Sarah. I good read. I can understand why she likes the series.½

I read this volume 2 of a series as it was cheap in a charity shop and the black cover was intriguing. It is basically a young adult novel based on a 'Lord of the Flies' situation when everyone over the age of fifteen has disappeared from an area surrounding a beach resort in California and the children have to survive within an enclosing dome. That would have been fine, but a lot of other elements are thrown in, including animal mutations - coyotes have become intelligent enough to talk, for example - strange superpowers which often seem of little use to the child who develops them, a malevolent creature lurking in a mine which has mind control powers, a vendetta developing between standard humans and 'freaks' as the superpower kids are known, a war between the resort and another area centred around a former school, the leaders of the two communities being half brothers, and a person with an eating disorder. Plus there is an autistic little brother who seems to have developed a very powerful ability he doesn't really control. This all made it a bit too much to deal with and the book constantly swapped between multiple viewpoints so it wasn't easy to 'invest' in the characters.

One big issue was pacing. There's a lot about the problems of the community with the lack of food becoming critical. It takes ages for the action to get going to address the major crises that develop. When it does it is sometimes too fast and furious which doesn't leave space for real issues to be explored - such as an important character developing radiation sickness due to their earlier heroism - which become throw-away lines. Part of the problem is that some characters, especially Sam the leader of the resort town, spend a lot of time on internal monologues of self-doubt, depression etc. and this drags down the pacing.

I did find Sam in particular an irritating character. It seemed the obvious solution was to delegate the silly little problems where children were complaining about each other to a wider committee to leave Sam free to concentrate on important things such as was his half-brother planning action that would have severe consequences for everyone. With divided attention, he was running all over the place and never addressing major problems which then spiralled out of control. I understand that these are under-fifteens, but there were some responsible characters and it would have been better to, if necessary, imprison the boy who was stirring up hatred against those with super powers, especially since that included Sam himself. I gather though, that this development becomes important in later books.

It was an OK read but overlong and on the basis of this volume I wouldn't bother with the rest of the series, though I take the point that I'm not the target reader. So for me 2 stars.

Maybe even 1.5*...

Perhaps I wouldn't have been so disappointed in this young-adult novel if I hadn't been expecting it to be a sci fi story. It definitely is NOT science fiction! There is no basis in science at all so I guess it could be called fantasy - though paranormal describes it better. Not content with the initial fantastic improbable event - the disappearance of all people 15 or older (don't worry - that isn't a spoiler, it happens at the beginning of the first chapter) {I have previously ranted about how I feel about this sort of unscientific age-related "sci fi" in another book review. Suffice it to say that how biologically different do you think a person is at 14 years 354 days from the way he/she is at exactly 15 years?} - the author brings in paranormal abilities, rapid & unusual animal mutations & some unknown but evil force.

The book is very dark and violent; it is not what I would want a 10-15 year-old to be reading if I was a parent. The basic message is similar to "Lord of the Flies" but not as well done in my opinion.

The story is quite thrilling, enough so that it is fairly easy to overlook all the improbable plot devices while reading (or listening in my case) to it, so I didn't feel the book deserved 1*. If it had an ending with more resolution, I would have been happy with a solid 2* but instead the book ends with no major issues resolved, clearly intending there to be a sequel or series to follow, and leaving this reader unsatisfied.

I once saw a review for this book that compared it to Stephen King's version of Lord of the Flies. This analogy could not be more perfect, because if Stephen King had written Lord of the Flies, it would be this book. The other all thought process of it, kids and teenagers trapped in a town without any adult supervision, add some superpowers, and bam! You've got a wonderful story. It is both terrifying and beautiful to read.

Everone over 15 have disappeared, all systems fail, there ia a barrier that burns, and when you turn fifteen you disappear on your birthday. Now survive. Great story and performance.

FROM AMAZON: 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.

A great novel very similar to the lord of the flies, Michael Grant tells of a town that is ran by children when the adults mysteriously vanish. with Gangs and disasters this novel is packed with action, contains cringe worthy parts and a tint of magic. overall a good read

3.5 Stars

This book had a compelling premise but the author couldn't seem to really do anything really interesting with it, except continuously throw in increasingly absurd elements that push the reader's suspension of disbelief to its limit (I mean, talking animals, really?). The first half of the book is tedious and slow, and although the action picks up a lot in the second half, Gone never quite reaches its potential. Most of his characters were poorly developed and easily forgotten, and the only one who really intrigued me was Diana. I don't really believe that so many bullies would still be so cruel in such a strange and desperate situation, and the author never really explains the motivations behind the more 'evil' characters (wanting power is too simple I think).

While Grant did try to develop back stories for most of his characters, a lot of it felt like a poor attempt to add depth to characters whom he hadn't truly developed by way of their words or actions. Mary's bulimia, for example, didn't really add much to the understanding of her character, her motivations; it just seemed like a quick way to add depth to her character without really telling the reader anything about her actual personality, and I highly suspect it was also thrown in there to make the novel seem more up-with-the-times and to appeal to a readership who can possibly identify with or just like to read about such things (after all, teen issues books about eating disorders, mental illness, etc. are quite popular these days).

The writing was mediocre at best and littered with far too many sentence fragments. Michael Grant also does not have a very solid grasp on how kids talk to each other. The dialogue did not ring true over half the time and the pacing of the book was far too slow, with a lot of unnecessary scenes, extraneous dialogue, not enough explanation and absolutely no resolution at the end of the book. It was just a mostly tedious, way-too-long disappointment. I'm still interested in the basic premise (everyone over the age of fourteen disappearing-- if someone could write this convincingly I'd definitely read it) but everything else fell flat.

Though I’ve said it in every review of the GONE saga and its spin-offs, it bears repeating that I am very far removed from the YA demographic these books are aimed at, but I good story is a good story and always worth reading. HERO is the final book in Michael Grant’s spin-off from his popular teen dystopia saga of the trapped children and teenagers in the FAYZ, the previous books in the series being MONSTER and VILLAIN. In this spin-off, mysterious meteors crash to earth and unleash a mutagenic virus giving humans various abilities, usually manifesting itself in a physical transformation. As Grant stated at the beginning, these three books were his hand at trying to create his own superhero universe extrapolated from his original series. I had some criticisms of the previous two books, but thought they worked because Grant is good writer when it comes to action, suspense, and the ability to create really good antagonists.

In HERO, the Rockborn Gang—Dekka, Shade, Cruz, Malik, Armo, and Frances—having saved Las Vegas in VILLAIN, now find their hands full when another meteor comes down in New York City and creates a new and particularly nasty Big Bad. This time around, the Gang is joined by Sam Temple, Astrid Ellison, and Edilio Escobar from the original series. The plot is simple: the threat makes itself known, the Rockborn Gang confront it, have their butts kicked, regroup, double down, and come up with a plan. There is a final confrontation, which to Grant’s credit, is not an easy victory. In between there is a lot of personal drama as the protagonists sort out who they are, their feelings for one another, and the price of being a super hero and doing what has to be done to stop equally empowered villains who have no guilt when it comes to the harm they do. It is pretty much what we have seen in the other two books. And when I said Grant had a knack for writing great villains, I was talking about Vector, HERO’s main nasty, a sentient hive of insects capable of inflicting unending suffering and pain upon their victims that not even death will deliver them from. That Vector was a rapacious capitalist before being transformed is something of a trope—nobody writes about a mutated barista gone bad.

HERO is enjoyable, but it breaks no new ground, pretty much following the same path laid out in the previous two books, which is one problem I have with this spin-off series. A good trilogy should build action and suspense throughout, with the establishment of an ongoing threat at the beginning and a final well earned payoff in the finale, with conflicts and subplots resolved. What Grant did was basically write three potboilers. There is nothing wrong with that, but he managed the art of an ongoing series so well in the GONE books, it felt like a letdown here. Grant stated in the Author’s Note that it was his intention to create a superhero universe, and freely admitted to being influenced by Stan Lee’s X-Men. Another problem with HERO is that certain characters prominently featured in the first two books, like Tom Peaks and Jason DeVeere, barely made cameos in this one. I thought they would do way more with Drake Merwin, a hateful piece of work from the GONE series, who it seems was brought back for no other reason than him being a fan favorite, and that he helped strengthen the connection to the original books. It might have been better if Grant had started over from scratch when creating his super hero universe and not tied it to his previous success. It can be said that he used the tired tropes of present day super hero comics such as heavy handed diversity and overrepresentation of queer characters, though some of that might have been editorial dictates.

But the big problem with HERO is the final Big Reveal with the mysterious Watchers in the final chapter, and the cliffhanger Grant winds the series up with. I won’t go into the details except to say that I found it very unsatisfying, and disliked the way it undermined the entire GONE saga. After reading it, I couldn’t help but wonder if Grant really had his heart in this spin-off all along, and didn’t just write it to wring more money from its avid fans. In the end, he openly invites writers of fan fiction to finish the story. Michael Grant, you are no Stan Lee.

So this is where the GONE saga truly comes to an end as teen dystopias have gone out of style recently. It was a decent ride even if a tire blew on the last turn. There is still hope of a live action adaptation, but as I’ve stated in previous reviews, that might prove to be problematic now due to the content. Maybe we should just be thankful with what we’ve got on our bookshelves.

Hardest title to pronounce so far.

This is a good first book to the series. It doesn't spend so much time setting up the sequels that it forgets to have a plot of its own, and at the same time has some good foreshadowing. I did feel that the twist of Caine being Sam's twin was sort of cheap, but it redeemed itself with a well-written conclusion. Little Pete creating the FAYZ was sort of a foregone conclusion once it was revealed what he could do, and he is sort of a catalyst rather than his own character but his impact in the FAYZ is earth-shattering to say the least. In the end, this was sort of X-Men meets Under the Dome with some Lord of the Flies thrown in for good measure. Not bad, and definitely one of the better-written YA books out there.

This books is probably "GOOD" or even "GREAT" for many people, but for me...it's not. I need a bit more HOPE or JOY in my stories. These are just too depressing. I have to give up. These kids are stranded with mutant creatures and infighting and no food and...I just couldn't read about it anymore. This series is like "Unfortunate Events" in that I just have to give up and find something that has a little more silver-lining to the cloud.

What a great book! My only complaint is that, as a Mom, I had some struggle with just wanting the adults to come back already! GRR. But I love all of the dimensions of the characters, there weren't just GOOD guys and BAD guys. Some of the good did bad things and some of the bad did good things. I also love that there's a few characters that don't necessarily have an allegiance. All of this seems very real to me. When you have a community of people with struggles determining power, it's not set up clear in the beginning what teams would be, this book feels very real with how allegiances falter, especially when death is at the door.

As I have stated in all of my reviews of the books in Michael Grant’s GONE series, I am many years beyond the reading demographic these YA books are geared toward, but I love a good story, and the original series, centered on the FAYZ at Perdido Beach, California, was a great story with a great premise. The previous book in the series, MONSTER, was a continuation with the action now taking place all around the world, with the introduction of a lot of new characters; it had its faults, with the main criticism being that it simply was not the GONE story so many had fallen in love with over six books. But it had enough of the author’s strong points, namely a knack for creating great villains, staging action scenes, and serving up gore, to make it a decent read.

The eighth book in the series, VILLAIN, continues the story set up in MONSTER, as the group of super powered heroes who came together in that book: Shade Darby, Dekka Talent, Cruz, Armo, Malik, and newcomer, Frances Spector, take on a new mutated threat in Las Vegas. This title character is Dillon Poe, a particularly nasty little narcissistic piece of work, a kid who dreams of making it big as a comedian, and who can morph into a serpent like creature with the power to command individuals with his voice alone. The Ranch, the requisite secret mutant creating government facility, also figures in the story, as do returning bad guys like Justin DeVere, Tom Peaks, and Vincent Vu, although some of them are underused, so too is uber sadist Drake Merwin, a favorite from the first series, though in Drake’s case, he’s clearly being saved for another book.

VILLAIN is noticeably shorter than MONSTER, and that is all to the better, as no time is spent with clunky character introductions and back story. It’s a quick read that plays to Grant’s talent in getting the reader invested in the action and characters with a spare use of words; and the battle of Las Vegas, which takes up the second half of the story, is well written, especially in the way it describes how Dillon uses his power to take over the free will of individuals and twist them to his selfish whims. There are scenes of carnage which are truly cringing inducing in the best way. Heroes and villains still “morph” in underwhelming transformations, and the learning curve when it comes to mastering powers is still way too easy, but I get it that Grant dispensed with anything that might have slowed the story down this time; middle books in a story arc can often end up bogging down a narrative, something Grant manages to dodge in VILLAIN.

I enjoyed VILLAIN better than MONSTER, even the ostentatious diversity played better in this book, while the promised return of some fan favorites in the latter book was teased further in the former, setting things up nicely in the next book, HEROES, the final volume in the series. And if the GONE series never gets that live action TV or movie adaptation that has been rumored for years, then why not an animated series done in the same manner as the DC animated films put out by Warner Brothers? Why doesn’t somebody not pitch that to Netflix?

Evening has just witnessed her own death. Watched as her arm was crushed, her leg severed, and the blood, so much blood accompanied by a horrific screaming that she realises is coming from herself. She doesn't think she will survive this, is sure no one could survive this. Then after what they say was fourteen hours of surgery, Evening wakes up clean, bandaged and with less and less pain. Her severed leg reattached and healing at a remarkable rate, Evening is no longer in hospital but is recuperating under her mothers care in a facility that is more used to lab rats than human patients.

Adam has just witnessed his own creation, watched as a girl put him together piece by piece. Once born he is given many facts but there is only one true thought that is his own. Evening, he loves Evening.

Solo has just witnessed one unscrupulous horror to many. Over the years he has come to despise Terra Spiker and her facility, has plotted how to expose her amoral, unethical and illegal practices to the world. The day is coming when he will have all the evidence he needs to bring her down. Then that day arrives and he has more then enough to prove Spiker Biotech should be shut down, there is only one problem, Evening. He never expected to develop feelings for the bosses daughter, never thought he would have to chose between covering up a crime or protecting the girl he loves.

Eve and Adam is a creation story that begins with an apple and ends with a boy, created and brought to life by a girl. Only there is more to creation then pushing a few buttons, and sometimes perfect isn't at all what we are looking for. This is a story that goes beyond themes of friendships, loss, gang violence and identity. A story that strays into the realm of human experimentation, genetic modifications and corporate cover-ups. Alongside the philosophical, scientific and even artistic implications of life and creation is a dangerous, bloody and romantic story that you just can't resist.

Not bad. The story is definitely progressing into some interesting developments. I listened to the audio because I really didn't want to put in the work of the larger book after reading the big 850-page book I recently finished. The narrator isn't bad but his voice can get annoying at times.