mlboyd20's review against another edition
4.0
I would like to thank the author for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Doing so does not sway my opinion in any way.
When I first started reading so many different cults and religions popped into my mind; the compound on the HBO series Big Love, Branch Davidians, strict Baptist, etc. The author was able to bring the story alive without offending any particular cult or religion because she seemed to bring to the table a mix bag of them. The brainwashing that you hear about is well played as the story progresses.
The story has a bit of shock value to it. You have an idea what the prayer circles are, but until you read this book you won't get the full jist of it. When you do, you will be angry and sickened and as the story goes on and you learn more, the angrier and disgusted you will get about them. The author sheds light on topics that are happening in the real world, past and present, and you will find yourself rallying along with Mia and Gabriel as they work to help overthrow the puppet and puppet master.
I was sucked into the story as soon as it started, the way the people described reminded my first and foremost and throughout most of the book are of the fundamentalist sec of the Mormon religion which broke away from the LDS church while the Reverend reminded me of a family members minister/pastor of their Baptist church, when I was a child. This intrigued me into reading even further and quickly the author snagged me for the haul. This curiosity mixed with the different layers of the story make for an interesting read.
Don't get me wrong, this is not a book with a religious message. This is a fictional story that has bits of mystery, thriller, killing, sex, romance, death, etc. This is a story through and through and I recommend it to anyone who likes any of what I had listed. I do suggest the reader be 15+ due to the nature of the sexual content that is not graphic, but the subject matter may be a bit heavy or confusing for those younger.
Why not a full five stars? Even though Mia wants out, I don't think she'd go along with Gabriel as fast as she did. Plus I think her attitude would have gotten her in trouble sooner than it did.
When I first started reading so many different cults and religions popped into my mind; the compound on the HBO series Big Love, Branch Davidians, strict Baptist, etc. The author was able to bring the story alive without offending any particular cult or religion because she seemed to bring to the table a mix bag of them. The brainwashing that you hear about is well played as the story progresses.
The story has a bit of shock value to it. You have an idea what the prayer circles are, but until you read this book you won't get the full jist of it. When you do, you will be angry and sickened and as the story goes on and you learn more, the angrier and disgusted you will get about them. The author sheds light on topics that are happening in the real world, past and present, and you will find yourself rallying along with Mia and Gabriel as they work to help overthrow the puppet and puppet master.
I was sucked into the story as soon as it started, the way the people described reminded my first and foremost and throughout most of the book are of the fundamentalist sec of the Mormon religion which broke away from the LDS church while the Reverend reminded me of a family members minister/pastor of their Baptist church, when I was a child. This intrigued me into reading even further and quickly the author snagged me for the haul. This curiosity mixed with the different layers of the story make for an interesting read.
Don't get me wrong, this is not a book with a religious message. This is a fictional story that has bits of mystery, thriller, killing, sex, romance, death, etc. This is a story through and through and I recommend it to anyone who likes any of what I had listed. I do suggest the reader be 15+ due to the nature of the sexual content that is not graphic, but the subject matter may be a bit heavy or confusing for those younger.
Why not a full five stars? Even though Mia wants out, I don't think she'd go along with Gabriel as fast as she did. Plus I think her attitude would have gotten her in trouble sooner than it did.
pixelski's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars review to come on blog tour
--- [Updated 25.09.2013]
“Idioms are idioms for a reason”
In a year of post-apocalyptic Dystopians, science-fiction and new-adult debuts, Escape from Eden was a really refreshing and different read – it touched on a subject I don’t think I’ve ever read before and I really enjoyed it.
Set in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, the cult following of Eden is led to believe that their way of life is perfect and their town of Edenton is a utopia. Except for our protagonist Mia who dreams of life outside Edenton and remembers a different time of freedom back in the normal world.
“Edenton was created to shelter us from these temptations and keep our focus on the worship of our true God.”
I quite liked Mia’s character and voice for the most part. She definitely grew on me as the book went on; in the beginning I thought she was a bit dull and I was VERY worried about her reaction to new Edenton boy, Gabriel – it was scarily close to insta-love and Nader put the brakes on just in time. That aside, I saw her determination as the story progressed and her ever growing doubt of the Reverend’s claim that Edenton had a perfect way of living. While bold most of the time, her actions could also be justifiably called stupid. I thought she ran into situations too much without thinking things through properly but I guess those actions can be excused because of the brainwashing nature of the compound. What really annoyed me about Mia though was how she kept getting distracted by Gabriel. He’s a boy, get over it. There were so many times where his close proximity in dire situations nearly cost them their lives because being so close to sexy Gabriel made her freeze up. HELLO THERE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS AT HAND *face palm* Otherwise I think I did like Mia. She was devoted to her mother and younger brother, she cared about her friends and had morals and strong values, but Nader didn’t make her out to be a saint/godly – and I loved that as Mia was quite relatable for that part.
“Weren’t things supposed to improve as you got older? You grow into yourself, understand who you are?”
Gabriel was the character I absolutely loved. He was switched on, quick to act and really efficient. I absolutely love characters like that. Whilst he still had that act-now-think-later attitude, his actions were justifiably smart. He didn’t dawdle, got to the point and I loved his snark. Ohmygoodness his snark was like the best part of the book. But Gabriel wasn’t without his faults. He’s haunted by a traumatic past and there’s no denying that for all his awesomeness, he’s also a player and a bit of a prick sometimes.
“Gabriel squinted, looked past Doc’s fingers, and said, ‘Hey Doc, did know your dreads are as thick as Snickers…’”
The secondary characters were an interesting mix. The Reverend himself was very rarely encountered first-hand by Mia – he was sort of in the distance but I think that highlighted his role in their compound and how close he really was to his people. I liked how many of the Edenton “family” annoyed me – they were all brainwashed and their actions and ways of thinking reflected this. More than once I got so pissed at Mia’s mum and her bunk mates I wanted to throw my Kindle but I think that shows Nader just did her job very well; she wrote characters that were such ardent followers of this cult it was highly believable!
Now the romance was quite interesting. Romance didn’t play a particularly large part in the book per se, but attraction and Mia’s reactions to Gabriel were very evident. I’m not sure how I feel about that as I mentioned before I got really annoyed with Mia’s priorities going all out of order as soon as Gabriel entered the scene. Nonetheless, Nader writes (first) attraction very well without the need to be graphic!
“My stomach fluttered. It was as if my body began to blossom, awaken, after seasons of cold.”
The plot played out as I expected it to – aka I predicted the main twist BUT I really liked how everything unfolded. It was enjoyable, action packed and you know what? For once, the protagonist doesn’t save the world on their own. And I loved that. Because it’s so unbelievable when a teenager just has the capacity to change a whole society and save everybody – Nader did the wonderful thing of using Mia as a catalyst that drove many events; I’m not saying Mia was passive-aggressive, she did a LOT but she didn’t do it all on her own and it made me relate to her all the more!
“All impulse and nerves, I spun and darted up the road, legs pushing and pushing, blindly leading me away…”
Overall, a very enjoyable YA that touches on a subject not dealt with often, written wonderfully in a manner that flowed and with characters that were fun and believable!
“Doubt everything, find your own light… Knowledge is freedom… Faith is not wanting to know what’s true.”
--- [Updated 25.09.2013]
“Idioms are idioms for a reason”
In a year of post-apocalyptic Dystopians, science-fiction and new-adult debuts, Escape from Eden was a really refreshing and different read – it touched on a subject I don’t think I’ve ever read before and I really enjoyed it.
Set in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, the cult following of Eden is led to believe that their way of life is perfect and their town of Edenton is a utopia. Except for our protagonist Mia who dreams of life outside Edenton and remembers a different time of freedom back in the normal world.
“Edenton was created to shelter us from these temptations and keep our focus on the worship of our true God.”
I quite liked Mia’s character and voice for the most part. She definitely grew on me as the book went on; in the beginning I thought she was a bit dull and I was VERY worried about her reaction to new Edenton boy, Gabriel – it was scarily close to insta-love and Nader put the brakes on just in time. That aside, I saw her determination as the story progressed and her ever growing doubt of the Reverend’s claim that Edenton had a perfect way of living. While bold most of the time, her actions could also be justifiably called stupid. I thought she ran into situations too much without thinking things through properly but I guess those actions can be excused because of the brainwashing nature of the compound. What really annoyed me about Mia though was how she kept getting distracted by Gabriel. He’s a boy, get over it. There were so many times where his close proximity in dire situations nearly cost them their lives because being so close to sexy Gabriel made her freeze up. HELLO THERE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS AT HAND *face palm* Otherwise I think I did like Mia. She was devoted to her mother and younger brother, she cared about her friends and had morals and strong values, but Nader didn’t make her out to be a saint/godly – and I loved that as Mia was quite relatable for that part.
“Weren’t things supposed to improve as you got older? You grow into yourself, understand who you are?”
Gabriel was the character I absolutely loved. He was switched on, quick to act and really efficient. I absolutely love characters like that. Whilst he still had that act-now-think-later attitude, his actions were justifiably smart. He didn’t dawdle, got to the point and I loved his snark. Ohmygoodness his snark was like the best part of the book. But Gabriel wasn’t without his faults. He’s haunted by a traumatic past and there’s no denying that for all his awesomeness, he’s also a player and a bit of a prick sometimes.
“Gabriel squinted, looked past Doc’s fingers, and said, ‘Hey Doc, did know your dreads are as thick as Snickers…’”
The secondary characters were an interesting mix. The Reverend himself was very rarely encountered first-hand by Mia – he was sort of in the distance but I think that highlighted his role in their compound and how close he really was to his people. I liked how many of the Edenton “family” annoyed me – they were all brainwashed and their actions and ways of thinking reflected this. More than once I got so pissed at Mia’s mum and her bunk mates I wanted to throw my Kindle but I think that shows Nader just did her job very well; she wrote characters that were such ardent followers of this cult it was highly believable!
Now the romance was quite interesting. Romance didn’t play a particularly large part in the book per se, but attraction and Mia’s reactions to Gabriel were very evident. I’m not sure how I feel about that as I mentioned before I got really annoyed with Mia’s priorities going all out of order as soon as Gabriel entered the scene. Nonetheless, Nader writes (first) attraction very well without the need to be graphic!
“My stomach fluttered. It was as if my body began to blossom, awaken, after seasons of cold.”
The plot played out as I expected it to – aka I predicted the main twist BUT I really liked how everything unfolded. It was enjoyable, action packed and you know what? For once, the protagonist doesn’t save the world on their own. And I loved that. Because it’s so unbelievable when a teenager just has the capacity to change a whole society and save everybody – Nader did the wonderful thing of using Mia as a catalyst that drove many events; I’m not saying Mia was passive-aggressive, she did a LOT but she didn’t do it all on her own and it made me relate to her all the more!
“All impulse and nerves, I spun and darted up the road, legs pushing and pushing, blindly leading me away…”
Overall, a very enjoyable YA that touches on a subject not dealt with often, written wonderfully in a manner that flowed and with characters that were fun and believable!
“Doubt everything, find your own light… Knowledge is freedom… Faith is not wanting to know what’s true.”
berls's review
4.0
I received this book for free from Book Nerd Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Escape from Eden immediately sucked me in and held my attention until the very end. The characters were very well written and believable. The plot moved the story forward well, and although there were a few moments I felt were a little less than believable or explainable, overall it kept me anxiously awaiting the next step.
As good as the story for Escape from Eden was, it was the characters that made it for me. Mia, who has lived in Edenton since she was 10 years old, is so well written. Mia grew up in this cult and is questioning the things she's been told to believe. She's different from the others around her and that's starting to make a tangible difference in what she wants in life. What I loved most though, was that Elisa Nader recognized that someone who'd grown up with that level of brainwashing would have a bit of an internal struggle to overcome. Mia is strong and she knows right from wrong - and she's struggling to make the right decisions for herself with that knowledge. But there's a certain amount of fear that come from growing up in a cult, not to mention love and concern for her mother, brother, and other friends. She's also dealing with new, unfamiliar feelings. All this combines to make a beautiful complex character, who grows throughout Escape from Eden. As things are revealed to her Mia gets stronger and morphs from someone who seemed timid and uncertain to a brave, strong, independent young woman. I couldn't help but love her.
Gabriel, whose family has just joined Edenton, stirs something in Mia that she's never felt before. A part of this is that Gabriel is more like Mia than she knows. Having just come in from the outside world - and not willingly, but forced by his family - he's not "drinking the kool-aid." This makes Gabriel both dangerous and oh-so appealing to Mia. And he recognizes something in her, that she is different, and thus is drawn to her. He's also a complex character, with may layers that reveal themselves slowly throughout the book, as he too grows and changes. Mia and Gabriel develop a relationship that depends so much on their desire to be free and is complicated by confusing romantic encounters. I loved the way Nader wrote their relationship - it was so incredibly believable. There is no insta-love here. Instead you have two teenagers, thrown into a very intense situation and they grow close as a result. But Mia is so confused by what their relationship; she doesn't know how to read the signals he's sending and that makes her doubt and suppress her own potential feelings.
The supporting characters are also really well written. I loved that Nader was able to so convincingly show characters, entirely through Mia's eyes, in so many different stages of belief and disbelief. You've got characters that believe thoroughly and could never be convinced otherwise. You have some who are scared not to believe. You have others who are wrestling with accepting truths that they don't want to believe and others who've always been aware. It's incredibly well done and believable. As a character driven reader, these characters really pulled me in and wouldn't let me go.
Escape from Eden is set within a remote jungle in South America where a cult - Edenton - has been established as its own little Garden of Eden, supposedly protecting its members from the outside world. There's so much more to this cult than religious manipulation though and the secrets are pushing in on you from the very start. I quickly formed opinions and suspicions about many aspects - and was pleasantly surprised that I was often wrong. There were some predictable moments, but there was enough going on that I don't think anyone could solve every mystery or call of twist or turn. Nader certainly keeps you on your toes!
Some of the shocking moments were truly appalling and worked really well to move the story forward, all while twisting your gut, or if you're like me - making you throw things (thankfully not my eReader!). There was one moment in particular that really got to me, but later didn't seem to fit the story and I kept waiting to see the incongruities work themselves out. They didn't - and perhaps I was over-thinking things - but it wasn't enough to make me dislike the story.
Nader did a really fantastic job of shocking the hell out of me at times and making me invested in the characters throughout. I enjoyed the twists and turns and was emotionally invested - a distressed - throughout. I definitely recommend for a good young adult dystopian read.
My Initial Reaction...
Escape from Eden immediately sucked me in and held my attention until the very end. The characters were very well written and believable. The plot moved the story forward well, and although there were a few moments I felt were a little less than believable or explainable, overall it kept me anxiously awaiting the next step.
The Characters...
As good as the story for Escape from Eden was, it was the characters that made it for me. Mia, who has lived in Edenton since she was 10 years old, is so well written. Mia grew up in this cult and is questioning the things she's been told to believe. She's different from the others around her and that's starting to make a tangible difference in what she wants in life. What I loved most though, was that Elisa Nader recognized that someone who'd grown up with that level of brainwashing would have a bit of an internal struggle to overcome. Mia is strong and she knows right from wrong - and she's struggling to make the right decisions for herself with that knowledge. But there's a certain amount of fear that come from growing up in a cult, not to mention love and concern for her mother, brother, and other friends. She's also dealing with new, unfamiliar feelings. All this combines to make a beautiful complex character, who grows throughout Escape from Eden. As things are revealed to her Mia gets stronger and morphs from someone who seemed timid and uncertain to a brave, strong, independent young woman. I couldn't help but love her.
Gabriel, whose family has just joined Edenton, stirs something in Mia that she's never felt before. A part of this is that Gabriel is more like Mia than she knows. Having just come in from the outside world - and not willingly, but forced by his family - he's not "drinking the kool-aid." This makes Gabriel both dangerous and oh-so appealing to Mia. And he recognizes something in her, that she is different, and thus is drawn to her. He's also a complex character, with may layers that reveal themselves slowly throughout the book, as he too grows and changes. Mia and Gabriel develop a relationship that depends so much on their desire to be free and is complicated by confusing romantic encounters. I loved the way Nader wrote their relationship - it was so incredibly believable. There is no insta-love here. Instead you have two teenagers, thrown into a very intense situation and they grow close as a result. But Mia is so confused by what their relationship; she doesn't know how to read the signals he's sending and that makes her doubt and suppress her own potential feelings.
The supporting characters are also really well written. I loved that Nader was able to so convincingly show characters, entirely through Mia's eyes, in so many different stages of belief and disbelief. You've got characters that believe thoroughly and could never be convinced otherwise. You have some who are scared not to believe. You have others who are wrestling with accepting truths that they don't want to believe and others who've always been aware. It's incredibly well done and believable. As a character driven reader, these characters really pulled me in and wouldn't let me go.
The Story...
Escape from Eden is set within a remote jungle in South America where a cult - Edenton - has been established as its own little Garden of Eden, supposedly protecting its members from the outside world. There's so much more to this cult than religious manipulation though and the secrets are pushing in on you from the very start. I quickly formed opinions and suspicions about many aspects - and was pleasantly surprised that I was often wrong. There were some predictable moments, but there was enough going on that I don't think anyone could solve every mystery or call of twist or turn. Nader certainly keeps you on your toes!
Some of the shocking moments were truly appalling and worked really well to move the story forward, all while twisting your gut, or if you're like me - making you throw things (thankfully not my eReader!). There was one moment in particular that really got to me, but later didn't seem to fit the story and I kept waiting to see the incongruities work themselves out. They didn't - and perhaps I was over-thinking things - but it wasn't enough to make me dislike the story.
Concluding Sentiments...
Nader did a really fantastic job of shocking the hell out of me at times and making me invested in the characters throughout. I enjoyed the twists and turns and was emotionally invested - a distressed - throughout. I definitely recommend for a good young adult dystopian read.
artsymusings's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. I'm still reeling from the thrilling ride Escape from Eden turned out to be. Anticipation kept me glued to the book until the very end. I've always been fascinated with brainwashing practices, cults and conspiracy theories so I knew I wanted to read this book as soon as I read the words fundamentalist preacher. But what I didn't know is how adrenaline packed, engrossing and action-filled Escape from Eden would turn out to be.
Escape from Eden is so much more than just a thriller mystery. It's exhilarating and controversial to read about humans being brainwashed willingly in the name of faith. Taking advantage of their adversary when, in their minds, they've no one to turn to except God. On the surface, Edenton is believed to be a self-sustaining utopian community located somewhere in the South American jungles. The people in the community work hard all day to serve each other doing whatever they're assigned to do silently. Shrouded in secrets, Edenton is far from perfect.
Mia works in the kitchen along with her peers. Tired of doing the same thing over and over, she secretly yearns to escape Edenton. Mia remembers life before Edenton and questions her mother on why it's better to give up freedom and exist on the Reverend's commands. She secretly writes and sketches in her journal in order to keep herself sane and escape the controlling environment of Edenton for a few moments every day.
Gabrielle is new to Edenton and his unflinching, defiant attitude has Mia intrigued. Running into trouble with the guards ever since his arrival, he notices Mia as well. He reveals the true purpose of Edenton and his plan of escaping to Mia who agrees to escape with him. But escape doesn't come easily and soon both of them find themselves into the heart of the Reverend's sickening plans for the unsuspecting community of Edenton.
Mia is such a headstrong, brave character who is willing to get to the bottom of every doubt she has. She has some pretty admirable qualities and I couldn't help but be in awe of her. Gabriele is such a risque character. I honestly don't have a better word to describe him. Always on the verge of uttering a quip, he has crashed and burned through life. Their relationship dynamic is portrayed brilliantly with sizzling moments, and disagreements in between.
Straight up violence, twisted preachings, illicit discoveries and damaging secrets, Escape from Eden is a truly compelling read which kept me on the edge throughout. Despite the underlying suspicions about the truth about Edenton, the story balanced perfectly between chilling, dark suspense to witty, evocative moments at every turn. I can't recommend this unique and captivating debut by Elisa Nader enough.
Escape from Eden is so much more than just a thriller mystery. It's exhilarating and controversial to read about humans being brainwashed willingly in the name of faith. Taking advantage of their adversary when, in their minds, they've no one to turn to except God. On the surface, Edenton is believed to be a self-sustaining utopian community located somewhere in the South American jungles. The people in the community work hard all day to serve each other doing whatever they're assigned to do silently. Shrouded in secrets, Edenton is far from perfect.
Mia works in the kitchen along with her peers. Tired of doing the same thing over and over, she secretly yearns to escape Edenton. Mia remembers life before Edenton and questions her mother on why it's better to give up freedom and exist on the Reverend's commands. She secretly writes and sketches in her journal in order to keep herself sane and escape the controlling environment of Edenton for a few moments every day.
Gabrielle is new to Edenton and his unflinching, defiant attitude has Mia intrigued. Running into trouble with the guards ever since his arrival, he notices Mia as well. He reveals the true purpose of Edenton and his plan of escaping to Mia who agrees to escape with him. But escape doesn't come easily and soon both of them find themselves into the heart of the Reverend's sickening plans for the unsuspecting community of Edenton.
Mia is such a headstrong, brave character who is willing to get to the bottom of every doubt she has. She has some pretty admirable qualities and I couldn't help but be in awe of her. Gabriele is such a risque character. I honestly don't have a better word to describe him. Always on the verge of uttering a quip, he has crashed and burned through life. Their relationship dynamic is portrayed brilliantly with sizzling moments, and disagreements in between.
Straight up violence, twisted preachings, illicit discoveries and damaging secrets, Escape from Eden is a truly compelling read which kept me on the edge throughout. Despite the underlying suspicions about the truth about Edenton, the story balanced perfectly between chilling, dark suspense to witty, evocative moments at every turn. I can't recommend this unique and captivating debut by Elisa Nader enough.
neenor's review against another edition
3.0
Oh my days, what an emotional rollercoaster! When I first read the Escape from Eden synopsis, I was intrigued. Although I don't really like books that have a heavily religious aspect, I was happily surprised by the fact that although it talks about religion, the book is about a lot more than that. Nader has created a unique idea - a paradise in the modern world where struggling people seek to find refuge under the guidance of the Reverand. However, the reality of this "Eden" is far from what the Bible promised, and the main character, Mia, alongside rebel Gabriel are about to find out what temptations lurk beneath the façade.
The idea of a man attempting to gain control and make this perfect Eden isn't something that hasn't been done before in humanity's past. In fact, when it was attempted before it did backfire, which kind of set the grounds for what was going to happen in this scenario. A group of people being brainwashed by a fascist is something that's extremely controversial in our society, mostly because it rests far too close to home in our history. It was interesting to see Nader's interpretation, and what she would do to try and change the outcome.
Mia was a pretty awesome protagonist - she didn't take nonsense from anyone! Nader characterised her to be a believable teenage girl in such an extreme environment, allowing the reader to be transported into the story alongside her. She was courageous, feisty, and she wanted to get to the bottom of her question she had, meaning that we, too, were able to have all of our questions answered.
I think Gabriel was a brilliant counter-part to Mia's personality. Their quirks bounced off one another, creating an intense chemistry between the two, whilst making their exchanges relateable and believable. I also liked the fact that despite the situation they were in, aspects of teen angst crept in every now and then, reinforcing the idea that essentially, they are just like us.
This is Nader's debut novel, yet she has already set the bar high. At this stage I wouldn't have expected such a rich, deep storyline, but that's exactly what we got. I couldn't put Escape from Eden down - there was always another cliffhanger, another question to be answered, another trick just around the corner. To create a story so addictive is an amazing writing tool, and I'm definitely going to look out for Nader's books in the future.
Overall, Escape from Eden was pretty amazing. No, it wasn't perfect, and I think certain scenes could have been made a bigger deal of. However, the build-up, the writing, and the characters were all brilliant and at such a high standard already. If you love dystopian, go and pick this up as soon as possible.
The idea of a man attempting to gain control and make this perfect Eden isn't something that hasn't been done before in humanity's past. In fact, when it was attempted before it did backfire, which kind of set the grounds for what was going to happen in this scenario. A group of people being brainwashed by a fascist is something that's extremely controversial in our society, mostly because it rests far too close to home in our history. It was interesting to see Nader's interpretation, and what she would do to try and change the outcome.
Mia was a pretty awesome protagonist - she didn't take nonsense from anyone! Nader characterised her to be a believable teenage girl in such an extreme environment, allowing the reader to be transported into the story alongside her. She was courageous, feisty, and she wanted to get to the bottom of her question she had, meaning that we, too, were able to have all of our questions answered.
I think Gabriel was a brilliant counter-part to Mia's personality. Their quirks bounced off one another, creating an intense chemistry between the two, whilst making their exchanges relateable and believable. I also liked the fact that despite the situation they were in, aspects of teen angst crept in every now and then, reinforcing the idea that essentially, they are just like us.
This is Nader's debut novel, yet she has already set the bar high. At this stage I wouldn't have expected such a rich, deep storyline, but that's exactly what we got. I couldn't put Escape from Eden down - there was always another cliffhanger, another question to be answered, another trick just around the corner. To create a story so addictive is an amazing writing tool, and I'm definitely going to look out for Nader's books in the future.
Overall, Escape from Eden was pretty amazing. No, it wasn't perfect, and I think certain scenes could have been made a bigger deal of. However, the build-up, the writing, and the characters were all brilliant and at such a high standard already. If you love dystopian, go and pick this up as soon as possible.
ajsterkel's review against another edition
2.0
If you’ve paid creepily close attention to my reviews, you probably know that I have a thing for cult books. I’ve read a lot of them. Like, a lot of them. Unfortunately, Escape from Eden wasn’t one of my favorites.
Sixteen-year-old Mia lives in a Jonestown-like community deep in the South American rainforest. She dreams of escaping from her life of constant backbreaking labor, but she has no idea how to go about doing it. Then she meets the rebellious (and unbearably sexy) Gabriel. Together, they uncover the secrets of their community and use them to defeat the corrupt Reverend.
If you love romance and thrillers, you’ll probably like this book a lot more than I did. Mia falls in insta-lust with Gabriel within the first few pages. Then the plot takes off and doesn’t slow down. This book is intense. If you like action, then you’ll love it.
My problem is that I don’t believe the action. The characters make decisions that don’t seem logical to me. The book starts with the Reverend murdering eleven people in front of the entire community. Nobody reacts to this. Most people don’t seem to care at all. People in cults aren’t brainless robots, so I have an issue with this mass non-reaction to murder.
Then there’s the whole escape thing. Escaping from the community seems pretty straightforward to me. There’s a road that connects the community to the nearest town, which Mia knows is 10 miles away. Mia and Gabriel have snuck past the guards before. Why is it so hard to figure out how to escape? Start walking and don’t stop.
I also had a hard time believing the personality-altering injection thing. And the ending . . . just . . . no. We all adore The Hunger Games, but . . . no. The plot is too farfetched for my tastes.
I did love that the book is Jonestown inspired. At first, I thought that would make the story predictable, but it isn’t predictable at all. Despite the believability issues, I appreciate that the author deviates from the real-life script.
The writing isn’t great. I actually got confused during one of the action scenes, but the dialogue is where this novel shines. The banter between Gabriel and Mia is kind of hilarious. I like both main characters and wanted them to live happily ever after.
This isn’t my favorite cult novel, but I’m not the right audience for it. You’d probably love it if you like romance and action. And if you don’t mind books that push the boundaries of believability.
Sixteen-year-old Mia lives in a Jonestown-like community deep in the South American rainforest. She dreams of escaping from her life of constant backbreaking labor, but she has no idea how to go about doing it. Then she meets the rebellious (and unbearably sexy) Gabriel. Together, they uncover the secrets of their community and use them to defeat the corrupt Reverend.
If you love romance and thrillers, you’ll probably like this book a lot more than I did. Mia falls in insta-lust with Gabriel within the first few pages. Then the plot takes off and doesn’t slow down. This book is intense. If you like action, then you’ll love it.
My problem is that I don’t believe the action. The characters make decisions that don’t seem logical to me. The book starts with the Reverend murdering eleven people in front of the entire community. Nobody reacts to this. Most people don’t seem to care at all. People in cults aren’t brainless robots, so I have an issue with this mass non-reaction to murder.
Then there’s the whole escape thing. Escaping from the community seems pretty straightforward to me. There’s a road that connects the community to the nearest town, which Mia knows is 10 miles away. Mia and Gabriel have snuck past the guards before. Why is it so hard to figure out how to escape? Start walking and don’t stop.
I also had a hard time believing the personality-altering injection thing. And the ending . . . just . . . no. We all adore The Hunger Games, but . . . no. The plot is too farfetched for my tastes.
I did love that the book is Jonestown inspired. At first, I thought that would make the story predictable, but it isn’t predictable at all. Despite the believability issues, I appreciate that the author deviates from the real-life script.
The writing isn’t great. I actually got confused during one of the action scenes, but the dialogue is where this novel shines. The banter between Gabriel and Mia is kind of hilarious. I like both main characters and wanted them to live happily ever after.
“We're hiding in a tree with people chasing us. Do you really think this is an appropriate time to make suggestive comments?” – Escape from Eden
This isn’t my favorite cult novel, but I’m not the right audience for it. You’d probably love it if you like romance and action. And if you don’t mind books that push the boundaries of believability.
“‘What is the matter with you?’
‘You want an alphabetical list?’” – Escape from Eden
melodicfate's review against another edition
4.0
*I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.*
I picked up this book, because it was about a girl who wanted to escape the cult her mother joined six years prior to the start of the story. I just thought that this would make for a really interesting and different read to the usual YA book. Thankfully, I was right. It was a book filled with suspense, some romance, and an underlying theme of family.
I liked Mia as a heroine. It was easy to see she was stubborn and strong. She had a fierce love for her brother, and a lot of frustration towards her mother. I always understood why she felt the way she did, and never thought she had any moments where I thought she was being annoying. I appreciated that when Gabriel came along, Mia didn't change her life around to suit him. She always did what she had to in order to survive, even when it meant going against his ideas.
Speaking of Gabriel, I did like him. He was charming, funny, and very sarcastic. I have to admit to liking that last bit. He helped make the story be less dark than it was. His backstory was so awful, and I felt terrible for him when it finally was revealed. However, it helped make Gabriel a more complex and three-dimensional character.
The side characters in this book were interesting. My feelings for so many of them changed throughout the course of the novel, and I thought that the characterization was really well-done. Between Mia's mother, Aliyah, and the Reverend, my feelings changed significantly from the beginning to the end of the story. I don't think I necessarily had any favorite characters apart from the main characters, but I definitely did love to hate Bridgette. She did become a bit more understandable near the end, but I never did totally like her.
As for the plot, I thought it was very interesting. As the synopsis suggests, it was about Mia trying to escape Edenton, and then it became about saving everyone from there as well. There was some action, and suspense as Mia had to try to not be caught and punished. There were some romantic scenes between Mia and Gabriel, which I liked since I thought they made a good couple. And there were some crazy parts, where you saw how brainwashed the Reverend's flock were. I think that those parts had the most impact upon me, since that kind of thing has happened in real life.
Therefore, I thought that this book was very good. It was a love story, a suspense novel, and it was about how cults can impact people. I thought that everything blended together nicely, and I was never bored. I got out of my thankfully short reading slump, and I definitely recommend this book to any YA reader looking for something different.
I picked up this book, because it was about a girl who wanted to escape the cult her mother joined six years prior to the start of the story. I just thought that this would make for a really interesting and different read to the usual YA book. Thankfully, I was right. It was a book filled with suspense, some romance, and an underlying theme of family.
I liked Mia as a heroine. It was easy to see she was stubborn and strong. She had a fierce love for her brother, and a lot of frustration towards her mother. I always understood why she felt the way she did, and never thought she had any moments where I thought she was being annoying. I appreciated that when Gabriel came along, Mia didn't change her life around to suit him. She always did what she had to in order to survive, even when it meant going against his ideas.
Speaking of Gabriel, I did like him. He was charming, funny, and very sarcastic. I have to admit to liking that last bit. He helped make the story be less dark than it was. His backstory was so awful, and I felt terrible for him when it finally was revealed. However, it helped make Gabriel a more complex and three-dimensional character.
The side characters in this book were interesting. My feelings for so many of them changed throughout the course of the novel, and I thought that the characterization was really well-done. Between Mia's mother, Aliyah, and the Reverend, my feelings changed significantly from the beginning to the end of the story. I don't think I necessarily had any favorite characters apart from the main characters, but I definitely did love to hate Bridgette. She did become a bit more understandable near the end, but I never did totally like her.
As for the plot, I thought it was very interesting. As the synopsis suggests, it was about Mia trying to escape Edenton, and then it became about saving everyone from there as well. There was some action, and suspense as Mia had to try to not be caught and punished. There were some romantic scenes between Mia and Gabriel, which I liked since I thought they made a good couple. And there were some crazy parts, where you saw how brainwashed the Reverend's flock were. I think that those parts had the most impact upon me, since that kind of thing has happened in real life.
Therefore, I thought that this book was very good. It was a love story, a suspense novel, and it was about how cults can impact people. I thought that everything blended together nicely, and I was never bored. I got out of my thankfully short reading slump, and I definitely recommend this book to any YA reader looking for something different.
reading_addict_lemon's review against another edition
4.0
I received this book for a honest review and as a part of the tour! Thanks!:) Original post on http://nervidetoamna.blogspot.ro/
This book was good and really I'm kind of glad because is a stand alone. And no, not because I disliked it or because the story was bad, but because it was good like this, without a sequel. It makes me angry that every book that appears or that I face it for the first time has a sequel or is a series. Is a good and refreshing thing to read a book that is a book, without thinking "oh, I need to wait for the next one to find out the end and the story wraps up."
I won't give any details about the action part, because, in my opinion, the synopsis says enough alone. If I speak too, then you won't need to read the book; you'll know what happened, what is the end, if someone dies, what is the "secret" of this book, etc. You need to read the book if you want to find answers to the questions.
As I said the novel was good, the idea wasn't original, in my opinion, but I enjoyed more because was full of suspense and kept me engaged. If the suspense hadn't been in the book then for me the book wouldn't have been good and maybe I wouldn't have finished it. I can't read or finish a book if doesn't make me curious. And this made me, I wanted to know what's going on, if Mia really escapes from there, how is in reality the whole situation, who is bad and who is good.
The characters were ok, they didn't impressed me, and actually just for some moments I could sympathize with them. Because most of the time they didn't felt, they didn't send me emotions, feelings. Yes, they felt, but for me wasn't real, palpable. Really, I read the book for the whole thing (idea, cover and suspense) and not for the characters. This book is good because is a stand alone, it has suspense, ok idea and ok characters. Is nothing awesome or original. In my opinion is not. If you liked it, loved it, then is your opinion. And I agree with you.
So, if this book sounds good to you, the idea or the cover appeal to you, I recommend it. As I said, and I'm repeating myself, for the third time maybe, I gave this book a big rate because of the suspense, the action part and the ending. Just for that. Some of you will say that all this is to love in a book, but for me the characters matter to, and is this book they were just actors. For me.
This book was good and really I'm kind of glad because is a stand alone. And no, not because I disliked it or because the story was bad, but because it was good like this, without a sequel. It makes me angry that every book that appears or that I face it for the first time has a sequel or is a series. Is a good and refreshing thing to read a book that is a book, without thinking "oh, I need to wait for the next one to find out the end and the story wraps up."
I won't give any details about the action part, because, in my opinion, the synopsis says enough alone. If I speak too, then you won't need to read the book; you'll know what happened, what is the end, if someone dies, what is the "secret" of this book, etc. You need to read the book if you want to find answers to the questions.
As I said the novel was good, the idea wasn't original, in my opinion, but I enjoyed more because was full of suspense and kept me engaged. If the suspense hadn't been in the book then for me the book wouldn't have been good and maybe I wouldn't have finished it. I can't read or finish a book if doesn't make me curious. And this made me, I wanted to know what's going on, if Mia really escapes from there, how is in reality the whole situation, who is bad and who is good.
The characters were ok, they didn't impressed me, and actually just for some moments I could sympathize with them. Because most of the time they didn't felt, they didn't send me emotions, feelings. Yes, they felt, but for me wasn't real, palpable. Really, I read the book for the whole thing (idea, cover and suspense) and not for the characters. This book is good because is a stand alone, it has suspense, ok idea and ok characters. Is nothing awesome or original. In my opinion is not. If you liked it, loved it, then is your opinion. And I agree with you.
So, if this book sounds good to you, the idea or the cover appeal to you, I recommend it. As I said, and I'm repeating myself, for the third time maybe, I gave this book a big rate because of the suspense, the action part and the ending. Just for that. Some of you will say that all this is to love in a book, but for me the characters matter to, and is this book they were just actors. For me.