lexieb's review against another edition
3.0
Somewhere between a 3 and a 3.5. It was a quick, enjoyable read with a very interesting concept, but I feel like too much was packed into too few pages; I never truly felt the magnitude of the situation, which made things considerably less exciting. Also, I can't say I'm wild about either boy; Julian, despite a few redeeming moments, is unforgivably awful, and Neil . . . well, I suppose he's nice and lovely, but he was a bit too bland, and while this is by far a matter of personal preference, the uber-Christian boy has never really done much for me.
Still, I liked Felicia, I liked the idea behind the novel, and I liked Lenore Appelhans's writing, so I'll definitely be picking up the next installment.
Still, I liked Felicia, I liked the idea behind the novel, and I liked Lenore Appelhans's writing, so I'll definitely be picking up the next installment.
greergreer's review against another edition
2.0
Humm...... Not to sure what I read. I read the whole book, it was an easy read, nice writing style.
Angels, different plains where you hang out when you're dead and people you don't really care about.
Could not connect with any character in this book. I pretty much disliked them all so I didn't really care if they were dead. I don't think that was how the story was supposed to make me feel but oh well. Life sucks then you die at least for everyone in this book.
Angels, different plains where you hang out when you're dead and people you don't really care about.
Could not connect with any character in this book. I pretty much disliked them all so I didn't really care if they were dead. I don't think that was how the story was supposed to make me feel but oh well. Life sucks then you die at least for everyone in this book.
bookishnicole's review against another edition
5.0
This is one book that I had been really looking forward too and I really loved it. I loved this totally new concept of the underworld being a place that you could connect into the net and relive your memories or those of other people on the net. When someone rents your memories, you get credits that you can use to get other peoples memories, and so the cycle continues.
I loved how that whole net worked, that it was something that I think YA readers will be able to relate to. I really liked Felicia, the only time she got on my nerves was when she would go on and on about how important Neil was to her. It may have been more helpful to understand the seriousness of their relationship at the beginning of the book, but I can also understand why that was revealed to us later.
One of the great techniques used in this book was being able to use the memories to look back on what happened in Felicia's life that made her feel that she was unworthy of Neil and his supreme-self. I also liked that we kinda got to know who Julian was gradually through the book. I wasn't sure how I really felt about him and the pending love triangle that might happen.
I did feel a little gyped at the end with the big confrontation scene, but I wont elaborate past that. There were a lot of interesting other characters that I'm hoping we learn more about in book two.
Side note: I was so bummed that I got caught in the rain with this book and it got totally destroyed.
I loved how that whole net worked, that it was something that I think YA readers will be able to relate to. I really liked Felicia, the only time she got on my nerves was when she would go on and on about how important Neil was to her. It may have been more helpful to understand the seriousness of their relationship at the beginning of the book, but I can also understand why that was revealed to us later.
One of the great techniques used in this book was being able to use the memories to look back on what happened in Felicia's life that made her feel that she was unworthy of Neil and his supreme-self. I also liked that we kinda got to know who Julian was gradually through the book. I wasn't sure how I really felt about him and the pending love triangle that might happen.
I did feel a little gyped at the end with the big confrontation scene, but I wont elaborate past that. There were a lot of interesting other characters that I'm hoping we learn more about in book two.
Side note: I was so bummed that I got caught in the rain with this book and it got totally destroyed.
karennaftel's review against another edition
1.0
What in the world did I just read?
It felt like the author got 1 third through the book then decided they didn't want to put any more effort into it and rushed the last bit.
It felt like the author got 1 third through the book then decided they didn't want to put any more effort into it and rushed the last bit.
storytimed's review against another edition
1.0
YA by rote. Self-absorbed protagonist, awful love interest, gimmicky worldbuilding. The idea of a San Junipero-ish afterlife where everyone gets to relive other's memories sounds interesting, but the novel never spent enough time thinking through the implications of its own premise.
leigh_darling's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this. As usual, I shook the Nook for extra pages. Sadly, there were none. I will have to re-read this since I really feel like I missed something. But I highly reccomend this book.
missprint_'s review against another edition
3.0
Felicia Ward doesn't know how long she has been in Level 2. Time is hard to track when you're dead and your body no longer needs food or sleep or air. With the constant lure of a memory chamber to help her relive her fondest memories, sometimes it's hard to even remember she is living in a hive in Level 2 and not back home with her family and her boyfriend Neil in the life she had before the car accident.
She could look at other, less comforting, memories. But what's the point in reliving the moments from her past that Felicia wishes she could forget?
Everything Felicia thought she knew about her post-death existence is thrown into question when another girl in the hive turns up dead and Julian, a handsome boy from Felicia's life, shows up in Level 2. On the run with Julian, Felicia will have a chance to reunite with Neil--but at what cost? Soon, Felicia will learn that the truth behind Level 2--and her own place there--is more shocking than she could have imagined in The Memory of After (2012) by Lenore Applehans.
The Memory of After is Applehan's first novel. It was previously published under the title Level 2.
Applehans offers a haunting story of life and what comes after in this story that combines flashback memory sequences with Felicia's after-life in Level 2. The Memory of After is an austere story that focuses on Felicia and the truths to be found about death and what comes next.
The story, much like Felicia herself, is divided between Felicia's memories of Neil and her present escape with Julian. While this story offers a love triangle, it may feel one-sided as Julian is often a much more vivid character compared to too-good-to-seem-real Neil. (Much of the storyline with Neil takes place at church or bible study or other religious activities which while handled well, may pull non-Christian readers out of the story.)
This high-octane blend of action and science fiction mind games create a story that is both engrossing and original. Although the plot often moves in starts and stops because of Felicia's memories, the storylines are well-balanced. Applehan's uses the memory chambers effectively throughout the novel to effectively present information.
The Memory of After is a strong and twisty debut sure to appeal to science fiction fans who like their action to take place in surprising worlds. If you want to find out what happens to Felicia next you can also check out the sequel Chasing Before.
*A copy of this book was acquired from the publisher for review consideration at BEA 2014*
Possible Pairings: Matched by Ally Condie, Delirium by Lauren Oliver, Starters by Lissa Price, Unwind by Neal Shusterman, The Program by Suzanne Young, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
She could look at other, less comforting, memories. But what's the point in reliving the moments from her past that Felicia wishes she could forget?
Everything Felicia thought she knew about her post-death existence is thrown into question when another girl in the hive turns up dead and Julian, a handsome boy from Felicia's life, shows up in Level 2. On the run with Julian, Felicia will have a chance to reunite with Neil--but at what cost? Soon, Felicia will learn that the truth behind Level 2--and her own place there--is more shocking than she could have imagined in The Memory of After (2012) by Lenore Applehans.
The Memory of After is Applehan's first novel. It was previously published under the title Level 2.
Applehans offers a haunting story of life and what comes after in this story that combines flashback memory sequences with Felicia's after-life in Level 2. The Memory of After is an austere story that focuses on Felicia and the truths to be found about death and what comes next.
The story, much like Felicia herself, is divided between Felicia's memories of Neil and her present escape with Julian. While this story offers a love triangle, it may feel one-sided as Julian is often a much more vivid character compared to too-good-to-seem-real Neil. (Much of the storyline with Neil takes place at church or bible study or other religious activities which while handled well, may pull non-Christian readers out of the story.)
This high-octane blend of action and science fiction mind games create a story that is both engrossing and original. Although the plot often moves in starts and stops because of Felicia's memories, the storylines are well-balanced. Applehan's uses the memory chambers effectively throughout the novel to effectively present information.
The Memory of After is a strong and twisty debut sure to appeal to science fiction fans who like their action to take place in surprising worlds. If you want to find out what happens to Felicia next you can also check out the sequel Chasing Before.
*A copy of this book was acquired from the publisher for review consideration at BEA 2014*
Possible Pairings: Matched by Ally Condie, Delirium by Lauren Oliver, Starters by Lissa Price, Unwind by Neal Shusterman, The Program by Suzanne Young, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
leesuh's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. Can we just sit here for a moment so I can let this book sink in? Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans was way different from what I was expecting based on the jacket synopsis. I can’t even recall what I was expecting, but I don’t care at all, because Level 2 was pretty freaking awesome. This book has a very interesting take on the after life. It managed to be revolved around religion and mythology without being overpowering or preaching in any direction. Honestly, it’s really kind of difficult to explain without spoiling anything… but it was super cool. Trust.
Level 2 is almost like two stories in one—the story of Felicia, the main character, before she died, and Felicia after she died while she’s in level 2. The main focus is Felicia while she’s in level 2, where they have memory chambers that she can access her old memories in.* It’s while she’s watching her old memories that we get to see her life before she died. Felicia got to choose what memories she watched while she was in a chamber, so her entire backstory was given to us in a jumbled mess of her favorite memories, mostly about the guy she was in love with.
It was interesting to be a part of this “pick-and-choose” way of reliving the past, but man… it was confusing, to say the least. I think it was intentional to keep the readers on their toes, but I was rather bemused for most of this book. It wasn’t until nearly the end that things made sense. It could have been very annoying, but it kept me reading and wanting to know what was going to happen. Appelhans walked a very fine line, but I think she did it well.
Felicia was a decent character to follow. I loved how strong of a character/person she was. She was troubled, but she didn’t allow it to make her gullible or unable to make her own decisions. For a lot of the story she had no idea what was going on, but she kept her mind the entire time. Love, love, love.
There was this huge secret (from her life before death) that Felcia was apparently super guilty about. It uprooted her entire life et cetera, et cetera. I don’t know if it was just me, but I didn’t think too much of it. I thought it was going to be something way worse than it was. I mean, it was bad, but from the way she was acting I thought it was going to be horrible-times-a-million when it wasn’t. (Honestly, I’m still sort of confused as to what that was all about. Alas.)
As a whole, the story was interesting and decently paced, but at the end I feel like it was a little rushed and too easy. The whole climax didn’t last very long when I wish it would have and some things could have been explained more thoroughly. Still, I’m looking forward to the next book to see what happens next, because I’m completely unsure where this is going… and I kind of like it.
*There were memory chambers within level 2 that the people could go into to replay their old memories. The people got to choose what they wanted to watch when they wanted to watch it however many times they wanted to watch it. It’s sort of like a giant YouTube of memories, but with some other factors added in.
Level 2 is almost like two stories in one—the story of Felicia, the main character, before she died, and Felicia after she died while she’s in level 2. The main focus is Felicia while she’s in level 2, where they have memory chambers that she can access her old memories in.* It’s while she’s watching her old memories that we get to see her life before she died. Felicia got to choose what memories she watched while she was in a chamber, so her entire backstory was given to us in a jumbled mess of her favorite memories, mostly about the guy she was in love with.
It was interesting to be a part of this “pick-and-choose” way of reliving the past, but man… it was confusing, to say the least. I think it was intentional to keep the readers on their toes, but I was rather bemused for most of this book. It wasn’t until nearly the end that things made sense. It could have been very annoying, but it kept me reading and wanting to know what was going to happen. Appelhans walked a very fine line, but I think she did it well.
Felicia was a decent character to follow. I loved how strong of a character/person she was. She was troubled, but she didn’t allow it to make her gullible or unable to make her own decisions. For a lot of the story she had no idea what was going on, but she kept her mind the entire time. Love, love, love.
There was this huge secret (from her life before death) that Felcia was apparently super guilty about. It uprooted her entire life et cetera, et cetera. I don’t know if it was just me, but I didn’t think too much of it. I thought it was going to be something way worse than it was. I mean, it was bad, but from the way she was acting I thought it was going to be horrible-times-a-million when it wasn’t. (Honestly, I’m still sort of confused as to what that was all about. Alas.)
As a whole, the story was interesting and decently paced, but at the end I feel like it was a little rushed and too easy. The whole climax didn’t last very long when I wish it would have and some things could have been explained more thoroughly. Still, I’m looking forward to the next book to see what happens next, because I’m completely unsure where this is going… and I kind of like it.
*There were memory chambers within level 2 that the people could go into to replay their old memories. The people got to choose what they wanted to watch when they wanted to watch it however many times they wanted to watch it. It’s sort of like a giant YouTube of memories, but with some other factors added in.