Melanie Bosktad HorevCritiques

I tried to get into this awhile ago and never could get into the setting. I was always confused as to what was happening. I may try to get back to it later on, but it will be quite a bit later on as I've got so much on my plate right now. This is still a good book in my opinion, and what I read, but I didn't have the attention span to enjoy it.

A bit slower than other YA dystopian novels with similar concepts. A little heavy on the teen romance for my taste (wasn't really my thing when I was a teen either).

must say, i hated the first four chapters with a vengeance. the next four or five were better, but not much. from there on, though, it was like a completely different writer was in charge, plotting and pacing improved significantly, and the ending was mostly surprising and yet expected.

It’s a new twist on an old dichotomy of who’s the weaker sex. In this misandrist dystopian society, men have been reduced to stud bulls for breeding purposes. Women have been elevated to positions of power that allow them to choose men to breed with. The heinous practice of an annual Olympic style tournament identifies the most physically gifted men to mate with women, ensuring the next generation of children are improved specimens of physical and mental prowess. Unfortunately for the men, only the females are of value. Boys are sent to the nursery dome where they reside until they are old enough to breed with the women. Once men outlive their usefulness as breeders, they face an unpleasant and short-lived future. However, it gets worse when the young protagonist finds there are plans in place to remove the need for men forever. Scientific advances have made men obsolete and time is running out for those with a Y chromosome. ‘The Female Breeders’ examines the inequality of the sexes and touches on the mental and physical torment it imparts on individuals. Unfortunately, the book only brushes upon this when it examines it from the female perspective. More time on this would have provided much needed context by fleshing out the central female antagonist. Overall, it was an interesting concept, but not gripping by any stretch of the imagination. I’m of the opinion if you put a group of men together in a glass dome with a few women armed with weapons to control them, they’ll still try to crack onto them or at best launch an escape. Testosterone is weird like that. Hard to control when kept in check for too long. It’s nearly as unbelievable as a society of women trying to live together peacefully. Eventually boredom, gossip and cattiness will set in and Friday nights of Vodka shots, bad singing, drunken hussies and fistfights will emerge. Let the good times roll and keep your ‘Female Breeders’. Pass me a bottle of Scotch, a pack of cigarettes and gosh darn it, get me a good book, a bad man!

Quite entertaining. It reminded me of other books in which a 'society' is unaware that they are the subjects of a study or experiment. Expecting the sequel

“Blaze of Anger” is an interesting SciFi boo k with many twists and turns. The book has complex plots and characters. Each of the characters’ back stories unfolds throughout the book. Eden is the planet that people from Earth migrated to. Still, to go to the new world, each individual had emotions that had to be modified to remove the feeling of anger. Anger had caused problems on Earth, so it was thought. But as time evolved, the people of Eden split into two distinct groups. The people living in the dome lived a life appropriate to life in Eden; the dome met all their wants and needs. The other group was living in hell, as they lived outside the dome, with barely enough to survive their grueling work to help produce water for the people in the dome. They lived substandard lives, shortened by the atmosphere and heat and the minor medical care they received. A doctor in the dome had sympathy for the less fortunate outside the dome and risked punishment for his involvement in helping these people. As he did this, he discovered the secrets of the people’s lives and how they were intertwined. As the book ends, everything seems to fall into place. But since a sequel is coming, we know that Eden can’t last forever.
“Blaze of Anger” is an interesting read because of what I mentioned, and I highly recommend it to any sci-fi reader.

Good concept. But characters have to be hit over the head with clues, plot is a bit simple and slow to develop, and romantic and social tension is forced.

3.5-3.75 Stars
A satisfying ending to the Deep Blue Colony series, this final installment ties up loose ends nicely. All of the main cast of distinctive and eclectic characters are back too. Some parts of the story feel a bit rushed, so perhaps sections can be expanded in the future, and some characters got a little preachy on certain topics, but overall a solid addition to a good YA dystopian series. I enjoyed many characters, but I'm going to go with Pulli as my series favorite. He's a fun, intelligent, and respectfully-illustrated prevalent character with autistic behaviors that the author successfully includes throughout the series.

BookSirens Review Copy

Emergence is a thrilling YA dystopia, the sequel to Deep, and it's as intriguing as its predecessor. Unlike the first book in this series that takes place underwater, the setting for this story is on the surface. Along with a few old characters, the reader is introduced to several new characters. I love how this author manages to incorporate controversial social issues and themes throughout this series. It's well-written and I only got lost once very briefly. Lots of tension and twists throughout, I can't wait to read the next part. Again, nice cover art!

BookSirens Review Copy

I enjoyed this story and the characters! Sometimes it would contradict itself in the course of a few sentences, and some of the things they had access to and could do in a 100+ year old closed ecosystem seemed unrealistic. But, that didn't really detract from my overall enjoyment of the book, especially keeping in mind it is meant to be a YA book. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.

Deep was a fun read. It felt a bit like The City of Ember if it took place underwater. I enjoyed the relationships between Ryler, Anna, Red, Pulli and the others. I can't say I was surprised by the ending, but that's ok. I'm probably not going to continue this series, but I'm glad I read this first book. I received a free copy of this book as an ARC. My review is freely given and entirely my own opinion.

Interesting novel in the YA genre. Great plot twists that keep you reading and wondering what is going to happen next. I enjoyed the variety of characters and their interwoven plot lines. Foreshadowing was well done here as well as you are always getting hints to actually question how realiable the information you get given is.

An interesting quick read! I usually like a little more science and a little less romance with my scifi dystopian books but overall the characters were endearing and you're rooting for them. I didn't see the explanation coming so I went from 3 stars to 4+ at about 90% of the way through but it kind of fizzled/the ending was pushed so back to 3. Granted it is YA so maybe 3.5 for that genre specifically. Definitely looking forward to the sequel to see what they can do about everything though!

This story is a lot like the Ember series by Jeanne duPrau where a group of teens believe they’re living in a self contained world and fight to open up the world to their people. I felt the beginning of the story dragged and was a bit muddled until the teens made it to the surface when the story became a conspiracy story. I can’t wait to read the next book though!

Sort of interesting, and once the whole premise is finally explained some of the details which didn't fit make a bit more sense - but you spend most of the book thinking that isn't right. Rushed characters and a plot which which is fast paced, but still jumpy doesn't help and nothing explains why teenagers have to be the ones to do it all.

Ryler is the grandosn of one of the colony's rulers. He's not really known a life of privilege, being underwater all resources are limited and fragile. Doesn't really make sense why there were surface plants there, and gardens seemed particularly excessive. He's friends with a few people and the viewpoint switches between him and Anna who works in the colony computer support - quite why this team needs so many people is unclear.

The story opens with the passing/death/release of Rylis's grandmother, and him struggling to find balance in his life. His mother is scheduled to be the next President, but Rylis realises there's some opposition to this, mostly seemingly stirred up by on of the other leaders. So he and his friends investigate what they can and jumpt to some fairly surprising conclusions based on very little evidence.

Never really got on with this - the world was a clever idea but some of the implications were never thought through properly. Some of the physical description were confusing especially around the machinery which through out the necessary suspension of disbelief. Not actually bad - I've read an lot which has been a lot worse! but even for YA it didn't grip me.

Not interested in the reading the rest of the series.½

Deep is a story about a society living in a domed world under the ocean. The world above has been devastated by global warming and is now a toxic place. They don't know if they are the only survivors left. Don't worry, this story is not a preachy book about global warming, that is just the premise. This story follows two main characters Anna and Ryler. Ryler's grandmother is the president of this society until her sudden and curious death. And thus the ride begins. How did she really die? By whom? What is really going on? Who is trying to become the power in this dome? Why does everything look like it is spinning out of control? The characters are well written and the story is intriguing with many surprises that just keep coming. And of course like any good author of a series, it ends at a very key point that certainly will have you looking for the sequel.

HOLY COW, What a tale. I was so engrossed with Ryler, Anna, and Red's story that book one ended before I was ready for it to end, AND I MUST SEE HOW THEY SAVED THEIR FRIENDS BELOW IN THE OCEAN!!

An underwater YA dystopian novel that includes some Divergent and Maze Runner elements, but with its own unique storyline. The world-building is imaginative and hopefully will be expanded in any sequels. Some of the characters could use some more dynamics, but most are likeable at the very least. There are some quirky ones, but these supporting characters are central to the story and I applaud the author for including non typical mainstream characters. There's some surprises near the end that will pull readers back for the next book in this series. Love the cover art!"

BookSirens Review Copy

In order to ensure a non-violent, utopian society, men are relegated to hard labor and reproduction. Women have been genetically enhanced in one of five ways, designed to make them super-human. When scientist Need is assigned to interview males before they are chosen for breeding, she slowly realizes that they are human, with thoughts, dreams, and feelings.

Although I thought this was an interesting world, it needed a bit more development or explanation. The characters were engaging and showed development throughout the story. My biggest criticism is that the plot jumped quite a bit, glossing over important events and then giving a brief description of them. The book could have been more coherent if the author took her time with those plot points. Overall, a decent book, I will probably pick up the sequel.

""It wasn't rotten because it was run by males," ... "It was rotten because it was run by rotten people. Male or female, it doesn't matter. There's no monopoly on wickedness."""

In the future women rise up against the men who have oppressed them for so long and take charge of the world. While at first this world may seem like a utopia (no crime, statlrvatiin or povery), the reader quickly learns about the darkness that lies just close enough to the surface that it can be ignored by the women living in this future when convenient, but is still very clearly there. Men are reduced to animals and are seen as potential breeding stock and a work force to complete all the dangerous tasks that could easily get one killed. Women are reminded three times a day of how dangerous men are, and Neem is completely happy to believe it. Until seh actually meets a man though. She is tasked with interviewing potential breeders to keep the women who have been deemed genetically and otherwise desirable in the unp coming breeding season and she quickly learns that they are, in fact, human and not the brutes that they have always been made out to be. She grows concerned for their future and starts digging into what her whole world is actually all about.

This book was inspired by the abortion laws in Texas (which have of course, since spread). The author's anger against men comes through clearly, but she doesn't paint women as innocent either. She illustrates how either sex can be cruel and controlling towards the other. Although, ironically, reproductive rights are still heavily controlled as the government gets to choose who reproduce and who doesn't. I guess some things never change... I do wonder how trans and non-binary people are treated in this system. And how romantic/sexual desires work. One person talks about having a female partner, but I wonder how common this is!

I'd like to know how the different "breeds" of people arose. Yeah there is selective breeding, but the results already seem quite extreme? I'm also not quite sure how to feel about the reveal about Herria. I mean, it explains her in a deep way, but I don't think it's all that believable. I mean, I don't know what the future holds, but yeah. I think it wasn't given the weight it deserved. For one thing, someone would surely have noticed???

The book starts off a bit slow but it picks up. The start focuses on establishing the world, moving into Neem and her friends doing some sleuthing and discovering and becomes a whole lot more action packed in the last quarter or so. While K still have questions, this is definitely a very well thought out world that I'd love to see more of.

I thought I'd add, since apparently some people think this, that there is no sexual content in this book. It's bit about the act of breeding, but the cruel world that surrounds it. I think that dystopian lovers will enjoy this book. I'd describe this book as Divergent meets Handmaiden's Tale, with a smattering of other dystopian books thrown in. It's definitely quite a unique blend. While some parts could be a polished a little, this is easy to overlook as the story drags you in and takes you on a wild ride. I was surprised as how quickly the pages disappeared!½

What a timely piece of dystopian literature. In a world run by women who subjugate men, there is no war or hunger. But at what expense? This novel nicely depicts a world after women’s revolution, only for women for treat men as non-citizens without human rights. Book explores world in which we stop seeing half the population as human. It further explores differences, as the clans into which people are divided have distinct strengths. Though safe from the likes of men, women live in world where their characteristics/skills dictate their careers. I appreciated the relationships and emotional exploration in this book. We have strong friendships, first feelings of attraction towards another, jealousy, resentment. We see how exposure to those we fear can influence how we view others, and the risks we face to help stop unnecessary suffering. I look forward to next installment of this Female Saga series. Were the risks taken effective in leading to lasting change, even for a few if not many? Doesn’t look very promising at the end of this novel. Thank you to LibraryThing for offering this ARC for an honest review.

This is dystopian fiction with an interesting premise: females are in charge and males are enslaved and kept separate from the females in housing called domes. Men have only two purposes: to work in the mines and to father the next generation. Society is set up so that all females are part of groups called clans and each clan has benefited from genetic selection so that they have enhanced powers such as intelligence, strength, heightened senses, etc. While women have freedom of movement, through propaganda and as a result of their abilities, they are also slaves to society (although they do not perceive it as such). As you might expect, because of a series of startling revelations and dramatic events, a small group of rebels forms.

The story has lots of action but it is somewhat predictable and lacks a richness in the telling. The characters and their dialogue would have benefited from being less stereotypical and two dimensional.