DEFIANT: A Dystopian Trio of Novellas by Mara Li, Jen Minkman, and Lis Lucassen

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Defiant. When the civilization you live in turns out to be a giant, messed-up deception, what do you do? Each of the teens in these three novellas (translated by Jen Minkman) rises up to defy the rigid social order of their worlds. 

The Defiant collection of three dystopian novellas comes out today on March 26, 2015! Woot!

Genre(s):

Young Adult / Dystopian / Action / Racism / Historical

Meet the Defiant

Meet Emma in The Red Messenger by Mara Li, whose twin sister Sophie recently died in a mysterious accident. She lives in an alternate reality in which the Nazis took over Germany. Think: a world with email, internet, and electricity coexisting with the continued torture of Jews tucked away in concentration camps and ghettos. Emma finds out that there was more to Sophie than she'd previously known...

Meet Leia in The Island by Jen Minkman, a strong-willed teenager who grows up in an isolated island society with rules and traditions based on one pre-apocalyptic book (Star Wars) that preached about the Force.  An aggressive young leader named Saul holds his power over the children using the doctrines of the Force. Leia must uncover the mystery behind that holy book...

Meet Justa in The Tribunal by Lis Lucassen, who lives in a post-World War IV society torn into two classes: Sectorals (the blond and light-colored ruling class) and Stateless (folks with more melanin, apparently). "Segregation is needed to maintain the established order. The Sectorate therefore upholds Inequality in order to prevent future uprisings...One exception only to Sectorial Segregation is acknowledged - before the Tribunal, all are equal." 

My Thoughts & Comments About Each Defiant Novella

The Red Messenger by Mara Li

I had learned about World War II concentration camps while I was in middle school, but I never imagined a dystopian world in which similar racism-induced horrors take place, but with modern and digital technology. This is a great concept, and I think it was well executed overall, with the exception of a few instances of plot-induced stupidity on the part of Emma that were used to push the story forward. The issues of racism and state-enforced athiesm are covered in this book. 

As an American, I was surprised at first about how directly this novella tackled the issue of the Jewish concentration camps, but then I realized that the Netherlands were deeply affected by the existence of Jewish death camps during the Second World War. 75% of the Jewish population was deported from the Netherlands to these concentration camps, and many Dutch authorities collaborated with the Nazis to achieve this. This is a painful part of the Netherlands' history, and I think this novel draws very well from the horrors of that era. The last part of the novella felt like it was straight from the 1940s. 

The Island by Jen Minkman

A wall divides the island, and there are rumors of the Other society living in it, called the Fools. When a mysterious guy washes up ashore one day, Leia's world is totally rocked as she comes to understand the truth behind her society. This is a civilization built by children after an epidemic wiped out most, if not all of the adults in the world. I didn't like the idea of a society built around a Star Wars book for kiddos, but I liked the novella explores how a society built by children would be like after a few generations. 

The Tribunal by Lis Lucassen

This one reads like a good courtroom drama. In light of Trayvon Martin's death and the 2014 Ferguson unrest in the United States, the theme of a lower-classed person being screwed over by a law system purports to be fair corresponds strongly with both historical and current events. The Tribunal explores the issues of racism, bias, and corruption in a law-based society which is segregated by color. 

Overall Rating for Defiant: 4/5

Find out more about Defiant, a collection of three novellas by Netherlands authors Mara Li, Jen Minkman, and Lis Lucassen:

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Light of Lorelei by Jen Minkman (Tales of Skylge #2)

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Light of Lorelei

by Jen Minkman

(Tales of Skylge #2)

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Tales of Skylge series, it's a dystopian fantasy series set on an island in which Sirens (merfolk) regularly pull haplessly enchanted island people towards the sea with their eerie music, where they tear them apart and consume their life force. 

Light of Lorelei continues the island's story from the first novel, Sound of Sirens (see my review). 

Aska is an orphan who is doomed to serve in a convent for the rest of her life because she is the offspring of a taboo relationship between Skylger and Current/Anglian individuals. The aftermath of a vicious siren attack on the convent leads Aska to find the truth behind the Sirens and the ruling class (Currents) of the island. 

St. Brendan's Fire has always been used to repel the Sirens, or so Aska was taught. However, the Sirens' reaction from the use of St. Brendan's Fire leads her to doubt its true purpose...

Aska has to decide whether to help the Skylger rebels conduct their research of the mysterious tower of St. Brendan's Fire. She meets a mysterious and handsome fisherman who starts turning up in places she goes. She also meets two young people who ask her to help them find the truth about St. Brendan's Fire. 

I came into the novel a bit confused, leaping from Enna and Royce's dramatic ending in Sound of Sirens into Aska's life in the convent. I also thought Aska might have been the daughter of Enna and Royce, except Aska's father was a Skylger. However, this was settled later in the novel.

The convent shows a different side of the island of Skylge, which I really enjoyed seeing. Because Aska's job at the convent is to serve the community and protect it from the siren's songs (by using the church's own hymns), Aska is able to see the island's events in a larger perspective. Because of her life as an outcast, Aska is a bit resentful, even if she is somewhat resigned to her station in life. 

She escapes from convent life by sneaking out to take evening walks, during which she meets Tjalling, a mysterious fisherman...who starts popping up wherever she goes. I was afraid Aska's relationship with Tjalling would be too similar to Enna-Royce, but I was pleasantly surprised. 

Actually, this novel surprised me many times.

There are so many twists and mind-boggling revelations in Light of Lorelei. I'd start thinking the story would go a certain way, and then--nope!--it'd head right into another direction, each time deepening my understanding of who the Sirens are and what their relationship to Skylge is. I really loved finding out about the Sirens and the truths behind the way things were on the island, particularly how the Currents have maintained their power over the Skylgers for so long. And Aska's true identity. 

I wish I could reveal more but that'd be spoiling too much. ;) Let's just say that this novel strikes a delicious balance between revealing the magical secrets of Skylge, the further development of the characters, and the fate of the Skylger-Anglian co-existence. 

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Find out more about Light of Lorelei by Jen Minkman (Tales of Skylge #2):

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Tales of Skylge:

1. Sound of Sirens

2. Light of Lorelei (this)

Sound of Sirens by Jen Minkman (Tales of Skylge #1)

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Sound of Sirens

by Jen Minkman

(Tales of Skylge #1)

After reading Jen Minkman's The Island series, I was stunned by how different this novel is in comparison to the ones in her former series, possibly because in this novel, possibly because Minkman draws inspiration from the history of her home country, the Netherlands. Sound of Sirens is well written, and while it took a while to set up, I loved the characters and the cultural and geographical details incorporated throughout the book.  

Sound of Sirens takes place in an island in which two groups of people live: the Currents and the Skylgers. The Currents are the rich ruling class who came from across the sea, while Skylgers are natives to the island. Electricity exists, but the Currents hoard it. The island is surrounded by mysterious merfolk whose siren calls lead hypnotized island folk to their watery doom. It seems that neither Currents nor Skylgers are immune to the call of the Siren. 

Enna, the Skygler main character, is the daughter of a woman who died after heeding the Siren's call. After her brother who returned from a long voyage gives her an LP that can only be played by electric devices, she befriends a Current guy named Royce. Who's hot. And popular with the girls. And somehow indifferent to all except Enna.

Thus begins a taboo Skygler-Current relationship, meanwhile Enna learns more about the monopoly that the Currents hold over electricity, and that there is more to the history of the island of Skylge than what was taught in history class.

Sometimes Enna comes close to falling into what I consider the "Bella Complex" in which she considers herself plain compared to Royce, and Royce is such a girl magnet that it's a wonder he doesn't sparkle in the sunlight.

However, she is not a Bella, because she's curious and passionate about the larger politics of the island. She doesn't want to hide or even defend herself from the scary politics; she wants to change the bigger picture--proactively. She wants to learn more about the history. She is proud of her Skylger culture and language, which is slowly disappearing beneath the Current rule.

The language in this book is simplistic and minimalist, and compared to her other series, Minkman writes with more familiarity about the details of Skylge because she is drawing ideas from her home country this time. It took some time to set up the world and its conflicts, but not too long. Once the island of Skylge was established, I wanted to find out how far Enna would go to discover the truths of the island, and how far the Currents would go to protect the status quo.

I can't wait to read the sequel!

My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars, rounded up to 5 stars

Tales of Skylge:

1. Sound of Sirens (this)

2. Light of Lorelei 

Review: THE WANTED by Lauren Nicolle Taylor (The Woodlands #4)

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The Wanted

by Lauren Nicolle Taylor

(The Woodlands #4)

Here are some facts about this book:

• The fourth and last novel in the series, The Woodlands 
• Will release on October 31, 2014
• A post-apocalyptic dystopian novel
• Responsible for at least two late nights beneath the blanket 
• Probably contains nicotine somewhere in there

Out of all the books in The Woodlands series, this one is my favorite because of the dual narrative and beautiful language that weaves together the sensory details with Rosa's inner thoughts. Rosa may think that she's horrible with metaphors, but her narrative voice is actually filled with vivid figurative language. 

The story is divided between the perspectives of Rosa and Joseph. Given the movement that Rosa and Joseph take part in against the oppressive regime of the Superiors, I had an idea of what would happen, but I had no idea how. The episodes between Rosa and Joseph are brief but important -- each scene moves the story forward and keeps me intrigued on what would happen next. 

Sometimes the perspective would switch and I'd whine, "No, but I wanted to find out what happened to Rosa." But soon enough, I'd be entranced with Joseph's side of the line. 

So what's going on in The Wanted?

Rosa is a prisoner of the Superiors and faces interrogations in multiple forms. They want information about her friends, the Survivors, and Joseph. She has to stay strong and defiant and not let them break her. 

I had no idea how Rosa was going to get out of that captivity. I was thinking that maybe Joseph could smash his way in to save her, but then that'd be really cliched and predictable. The story went nowhere in that direction. It was filled with plot twists that boggled my mind and kept me chasing down the rest of the story to find out what would happen. 

In the beginning of the series, I wasn't able to identify strongly with Rosa (even though I liked her a lot as a character), but in The Wanted, I cheered for her the whole way. I think it's partly because she has matured over the past few books, especially after the death of Apella, a girl who ultimately proved Rosa's judgmental views wrong with her sacrifice. And while Rosa does "size up" people when observing them, she's a lot less judgmental than before because she tries to see things from their side of the fence.

Joseph was forced to leave her and escape. He struggles with feelings of guilt over the violence he used in order to flee. In the meantime, he is helping with the Survivors' rebellion against the iron grip of the Superiors. With many readers, there was an issue of Joseph being too perfect. To me, he just came across as an optimistic sort of guy who knows what he wants. In this book, however, his optimism and values go under trials of loneliness, grief, guilt, and uncertainty. It was good to explore some inner turmoil and weakness within him because his negative reaction to certain actions shows us where his values are as a person. Even if he is an overall hero, he can still be prone to moments of weakness. 

Like with Rosa, some of the people in the Survivors have mellowed out a bit after their initial hostility towards each other, such as Deshi. I've gotten really fond of him and Rash as minor characters. I was even hoping for Deshi to hook up with another guy that comes into the picture in this novel, but *ahem* that did not happen, probably for the best. 

I'm going to miss Rosa, Deshi, Rash, and Joseph. They had a wonderfully cranky but loving dynamic. When I saw the novella The Willful, I was actually hoping that this series had been extended into a quintet. Overall, I enjoyed this wonderful ending to The Woodlands series. The main loop is concluded, but as with life, there is a lot of uncertainty in the details in the aftermath. Will Deshi and Hessa become close again? Will Rosa and Joseph move past this moment of disloyalty? Will they all be a family in five years, after things have settled down somewhat? I think so.

My rating:

Find out more about The Wanted by Lauren Nicolle Taylor on:

Amazon | Goodreads

Check out my reviews on the other The Woodlands novels:

The Woodlands (#1)

The Wall (#2)

The Wounded (#3)

Review: THE DEEP by Jen Minkman (The Island #3)

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The Deep by Jen Minkman

Note: I received a copy of this novella from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third installment in Jen Minkman's The Island novella series, which takes place in a post-apocalyptic world in which the inhabitants of an island are descendants of children who were spared from the plague. The first two novellas in the series were The Island and The Waves. 

Book Review: THE WAVES by Jen Minkman (The Island #2)

 

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The Waves: an Island novella (#2)

by Jen Minkman

Published: October 4, 2013

Genres: YA fiction / Dystopian / Post-Apocalyptic

Book Review: THE ISLAND by Jen Minkman (The Island #1)

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The Island

by Jen Minkman

(The Island #1)

Genres: YA Fiction / Dystopian / Star Wars / Post-Apocalyptic

Book Review: THE WOUNDED by Lauren Nicolle Taylor

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The Wounded

by Lauren Nicolle Taylor

Book 3 of The Woodlands Series

Published: February 28, 2014

Note: I was given an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Despite the controversy over Rosa's character (let's face it: she has a strong personality, and we probably wouldn't get along very well), I thought it was realistic for all the trauma she has gone through. Her determination to make things right for her family is also what distinguishes Rosa as a badass heroine. I actually thought Clara in the first book was some sort of lovable freak of nature. How does one go through such horrific things (like being pulled away from your family, forced artificial insemination) and still be nice and pleasant? One would become a tiger, trying to protect whatever they have left. 

And that's exactly what Rosa is. She is a protective tiger, ever so ready to protect her new-found family. Following her adventures from the second novel, she has become reunited with her dad, Pelo, but holds resentments against him for abandoning her as a child for the cause. With father and daughter reunited once more, they have to go back to The Wall, where the Survivors live. The path is paved with dangers, and once they return, they have to figure out what to do.

Top Five Fictional Worlds I Would Never Want To Live In

For this week, I'll be sharing the top five (couldn't come up with ten, hah) fictional worlds that I would never want to live in - in short, anything dystopian-like in the oppressive sense.

1. Menzoberranzan 

Home of the Dark Elves, Forgotten Realms

Menzoberranzan, by dangercook. Photo Source

Book Review: THE WALL by Lauren Nicolle Taylor (The Woodlands Series #2)

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Title: The Wall

Author: Lauren Nicolle Taylor

Genre: YA / Dystopian / Action / Adventure

Published: October 2013

If you haven't read Lauren Nicolle Taylor's first book, The Woodlands (click for my review), then you're in for a dystopian treat. 

First, let us get past the gorgeous face framed by poofy hair on the cover and go into the details. Rosa, Joseph, and their friends have made it to a new group called The Survivors, who are enemies of the Woodlands and its rulers, The Superiors. From here on out, they will need to move because the Woodlands forces will be coming for them. There are tons of twists and revealing them would only diminish your experience of the story, so I will refrain. But there are sacrifices, and the relationship between Rosa and Joseph grows stronger. 

Book Review: The Woodlands by Lauren Nicolle Taylor

The fiercely defiant face of Rosa on the cover was what drew my initial curiosity about this book. Once I started reading, I was sucked into the The Woodlands, a dystopian thriller full of defiance, love, adaptation, and hope in the face of oppressive circumstances. 

The Woodlands

By Lauren Nicolle Taylor

Amazon | Goodreads

(The ebook is free on Amazon right now, by the way.)

Goodreads Summary:

When being unique puts you in danger and speaking your mind can be punishable by death, you might find yourself fighting to survive. Sixteen-year-old Rosa lives in one of the eight enclosed cities of The Woodlands. Where the lone survivors of a devastating race war have settled in the Russian wilderness because it’s the only scrap of land left habitable on the planet. In these circular cities, everyone must abide by the law or face harsh punishment. Rosa's inability to conform and obey the rules brands her a leper and no one wants to be within two feet of her, until she meets Joseph. He's blonde, fair-skinned, green-eyed, and the laid-back complete opposite of Rosa. She's never met anyone quite like him, and she knows that spells danger.

But differences weren't always a bad thing. People used to think being unique was one of the most treasured of traits to have. Now, the Superiors, who ruthlessly control the concrete cities with an iron fist, are obsessed with creating a 'raceless' race. They are convinced this is the only way to avoid another war. Any anomalies must be destroyed.

The Superiors are unstoppable and can do anything they want. After all, they are considered superheroes by the general public. But not everyone sees them this way. When they continue to abuse their power by collecting young girls for use in their secret, high-tech breeding program, they have no idea that one of those girls has somehow managed to make friends even she didn't know she had. And one man will stop at nothing to save her.

Since this is a dystopian novel, let's talk about how this futuristic society works:

• The Superiors want absolute loyalty, and in order to create that loyalty, it must dissolve all other competing loyalties that each person has: family, ethnicity, common history - things that bring people together against outside forces such as the oppressive government. 
• Children are taken away from parents at the age of 18 (or sooner, if the parents have another kid - only one child per household) to learn a trade, and to leave their hometown forever. This destroys any loyalties a person may hold for their family or home community. 
• Children are indoctrinated from a young age with pro-government lines and pledges. 
• The government has a goal of creating a superior race: One race, created by the mixing of all the other races to create a race of people who look exactly the same. Their ideal look is that of light brown skin and blue eyes. It would be the perfect sort of nationalism - one in which the government is literally the creator and parent of each person. 
• Marriage: people are matched with partners, usually from different hometowns and races, and they are expected to produce one child. The goal is that, given time, with enough racial mixing and ethnic erasing, the future generations will have no sense of ethnic identity. 

What I Liked:

• I couldn't put the book down -  I love how Taylor sprinkles hints before shocking us with the revelation. The questions kept me going as I tried to piece together the hints. The story drops just enough hints for me to suspect there is something more than what's being shown, and even throw in a few guesses in the right direction before tying up the loose ends later on. 
• Twists - They kept me on my toes. I kept reading to find out what was really going on. 
• Rosa's smart and observant - She's good at seizing people up, but occasionally errs on the side of being too judgmental. We get to meet characters through her eyes, even when she turns out to be wrong. She is disgusted with weak-willed characters, partly because her mother failed to stand up to Rosa's cruel stepfather because she was too scared and meek. 
• Most characters are more than they appear - There aren't really any two-dimensional characters here. The characters that surround Rosa may act a certain way (thus causing Rosa to form certain judgments), but they are hiding an inner complexity. There are no single-minded characters; everyone acts a certain way for a reason that isn't apparent at first. 
• Rosa and Joseph don't hit it off right away - She's not going to be lovey-dovey right away. She has her own issues to deal with, especially considering her own personal history of being abandoned by her mother. Rosa struggles with her trust issues, but Joseph is patient and considerate. I would like to learn more about why Joseph is so devoted to Rosa, though. 
• Clara isn't as naive as she sounds - As the perfect foil, Clara embodies the good and hope in the world to Rosa. "I know you don't understand it, Rosa, but I love this baby. I am her mother. That is a strong bond. My love is MY choice, don't ruin it. (111)" Where Rosa is mistrustful, Clara is trusting and optimistic. But that quote indicates that Clara is mindfully hopeful about motherhood - she's loving and hopeful because she chooses to be. Clara is a lot wiser than she shows with her light demeanor, and rises to protect Rosa in her motherly way. 
• The concept of the maternal instinct is questioned - Rosa doesn't immediately feel the expected motherly love towards the fetus, which she refers to as "the leech." After having read through a lot of tropes about parental insta-love (which is pretty nice), finding this sort of ambiguity towards unplanned parenthood is refreshing and honest. 

What I Didn't Like:

• There are certain coincidences that are rather convenient for the plot, especially concerning the placements, relocation, and matching of Rosa and Joseph. I can't talk too much about this without spoiling, so I'll leave it here.

Overall, I'm really glad I read The Woodlands. The writing here is amazing. Questions after questions led me throughout the book, and the answers, when given, packed an emotional punch. I didn't want to leave Rosa at the end of the book. I'm still dying to know what happens in the sequel, The Wall.

The society divided into circles (like districts), the oppressiveness of the governments and the weak mother coupled with the strong daughter are similarities that The Woodlands has with The Hunger Games. If you enjoyed The Hunger Games, then you'll probably enjoy this book too. 

To be honest, I liked The Woodlands more than The Hunger Games because the characterization is a lot more complex here, and the plot isn't limited to a survival, must-win game plot. 

My Rating:

Thanks for reading! Have you downloaded The Woodlands yet? It's a great book!

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill -- Debut Book Review

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Published 2013

Release Date: September 6, 2013

Publisher: Hyperion

Genre(s): Sci-fi Thriller / Dystopian / Time Travel / Romance

Uh, okay--WOW. I mean, what else can I say? I just finished reading this book. I looked for it on the fifth after reading around some blogs on what to read--this one has gotten quite some buzz and the plot sounded interesting. I almost walked out of Barnes and Noble without buying it because it hadn't been shelved yet, but then an employee ran to me holding a bunch of copies. As she handed it to me, I knew I had to buy it.