I did not realize this was going to be as short as it was. I got the eBook on someone's recommendation. I liked it. The premise was interesting. But, maybe because it was just a novella, the world building didn't seem very rich or complete and there wasn't a whole lot of character development. The very beginning, when the Sheriff is climbing the stairs, seemed to drag. I did like the explanation about why those who cleaned the sensors outside cleaned them and didn't just run away, but I kind of saw it coming, so I wasn't really that surprised at the ending. It was different, though, and I liked it. Three stars. ( )

Interesting, but a lot of questions.... More than answers. And it feels like the 5 parts should have been one... ( )

SF (2012) A collection of several shorter stories that tell the story of people in a distant future who exist totally underground in a silo. Whenever anyone transgresses or express the desire to get ?out? of the silo they are ?cleaned? or in effect kicked out of the silo to fend for themselves which always means a death sentence. One young mechanic is promoted to sheriff only to find herself on the outs with her bosses and is sent out for ?cleaning?. Sure she will die she is amazed to find that are other silos in the immediate area and quickly finds her way into one that appears to be abandoned. Meanwhile, not all is well back in her old silo as an revolution is coming to a head and the order of things is soon threatened. Very good as these silo ?prisoners? become aware that there is more outside than death and cleaning.REVIEW by MICHAEL BURGINOriginally a self-published series of e-novellas, Hugh Howey's Wool has generated almost as much press for what it is seen to represent as it has for its enthusiastic fan response. Some have proclaimed it yet another nail in the coffin of traditional publishing, while others have pointed to it as proof the post-apocalyptic genre still has some life in it. But the ultimate takeaway from any discussion of Howey's dystopian novel, now published in print and audio versions as a full-length novel by Simon & Schuster, should be that Wool is a riveting read, thanks to memorable characters and a vividly rendered world, both of which linger with the reader long after the last page has been turned. Howey's path to publication is proof that fascinating characters and evocative world-building can win over readers, no matter how hollowed out a genre has become or what format a book arrives to market in.The world of Wool is first introduced to the reader through the eyes of Holston, the sheriff of a post-apocalyptic community that lives in an immense, self-sufficient silo. The rules of the community are strict, with most mentions of the outside taboo and any expressed desire to leave the silo resulting in the community's version of capital punishment¥a one-way trip out of the silo to clean the viewing lens of its external camera before succumbing to the toxic environment.The second section focuses on the journey of the Silo's mayor and deputy to recruit Holston's replacement. The rest of Wool follows the adventures of Holston's successor, a resourceful female engineer named Juliette (Jules) as she discovers that certain aspects of the community inside the silo that are as deadly as the outside is thought to be.Saying more risks puncturing the tension that is a hallmark of the book. Suffice it to say, Wool reminds the reader how fulfilling a steady diet of small surprises, deftly delivered, can be. And even the most jaded post-apocalyptic enthusiast should enjoy how skillfully Howey confounds expectations and delays certainty.Though the human interactions are well-wrought, the most consistently compelling relationship in Wool exists between the main characters and the silo itself. In some ways, it's a mutualistic relationship between an inorganic behemoth and the humans that inhabit, maintain and are protected by it. Yet in its very premise, Wool suggests that even though it may be human nature to aspire to that which is greater than itself, the attempt to do so ravages as often as it preserves.

Truly an epic and suspenseful novel. Though it starts as a crime story in a unique surrounding (silo), the plot quickly becomes something else entirely. The direction changes so many times that it is really hard to classify the scifi subgenre. Besides that, the drama is captivating. You're told early on that something is going to happen, but not what. I found that extremely compelling.
Definitely continuing with this series shortly... ( )

I liked parts of it a lot but the over all plot felt shaky. I am not sure how long I will keep reading if it doesn't improve for me. ( )