saluki's review
3.0
WW IV has decimated the Earth and its population. To ensure survival, humans make a treaty with Aliens named Ancients to restore the habitat for food sources while Ancients use humans to acquire antibodies so they can acclimate to Earth. After many years the end result of the treaty is the promised coexistence. At the beginning of the book we learn time for coexistence should be now...
This is science-fiction that isn't bogged down with scientific facts. The world-building is good, the plot is good though at times convenient coincidences narked me, and although many have touted the inst-love label for the main characters, I didn't see it that way as they'd known each other, albeit distantly, for years.
The novel is more about survival of the fittest rather than the romance element. It didn't blow me away but, with that ending, I want more.
This is science-fiction that isn't bogged down with scientific facts. The world-building is good, the plot is good though at times convenient coincidences narked me, and although many have touted the inst-love label for the main characters, I didn't see it that way as they'd known each other, albeit distantly, for years.
The novel is more about survival of the fittest rather than the romance element. It didn't blow me away but, with that ending, I want more.
erinarkin20's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this one and would rate this at a 4.5 if I could.
The story was interesting and kept me turning the pages. The Earth has been transformed after WWIV destroyed it. At the time, the leaders developed a treaty with an alien civilization called Loge. The agreement was that The Ancients would fix the Earth and when it could support it, The Ancients would live on Earth with the humans. In the meantime, every night at midnight every human,ten years and older, participates in The Taking which involves The Ancients siphoning antibodies into themselves to help them acclimate to the Earth's atmosphere.
I really liked the characters in this story. Ari is the main character and her closest friends are Gretchen and Law. There is an interesting dynamic here because they grew up together and recently due to who Ari's parents are and who Law's parents are, an agreement was made to create a union between their families to strengthen the view of the system. Ari's dad is the commander which makes her next in line for that role and Law's mother is the President. Ari is smart and tough. Because of who her dad is and her future role, she has had to push herself and she is determined to prove herself but also do some good for the world.
Enter Jackson - he has a lot of secrets and I won't give any away here. We find out early on that he is Ari's Ancient and he has a lot resting on his shoulders. I don't want to give anything away here so I'm not going to say a lot. I loved him - he is caring and protective and only wants to do what is right.
Yes, there is a relationship developing here between Ari and Jackson but it doesn't override the rest of the story...which is important. There is a lot of action and it is a very fast paced book. I will say that if you aren't a fan of cliffhangers you will want to wait for the next book to come out before reading this. I will definitely be reading the next book of the series when it comes out and am going to go file this onto my "really want to read" shelf immediately.
The story was interesting and kept me turning the pages. The Earth has been transformed after WWIV destroyed it. At the time, the leaders developed a treaty with an alien civilization called Loge. The agreement was that The Ancients would fix the Earth and when it could support it, The Ancients would live on Earth with the humans. In the meantime, every night at midnight every human,ten years and older, participates in The Taking which involves The Ancients siphoning antibodies into themselves to help them acclimate to the Earth's atmosphere.
I really liked the characters in this story. Ari is the main character and her closest friends are Gretchen and Law. There is an interesting dynamic here because they grew up together and recently due to who Ari's parents are and who Law's parents are, an agreement was made to create a union between their families to strengthen the view of the system. Ari's dad is the commander which makes her next in line for that role and Law's mother is the President.
Spoiler
Unfortunately they did not count on the feelings Gretchen and Law would have for each other as well as those between Ari and Jackson.Enter Jackson - he has a lot of secrets and I won't give any away here. We find out early on that he is Ari's Ancient and he has a lot resting on his shoulders. I don't want to give anything away here so I'm not going to say a lot. I loved him - he is caring and protective and only wants to do what is right.
Yes, there is a relationship developing here between Ari and Jackson but it doesn't override the rest of the story...which is important. There is a lot of action and it is a very fast paced book. I will say that if you aren't a fan of cliffhangers you will want to wait for the next book to come out before reading this. I will definitely be reading the next book of the series when it comes out and am going to go file this onto my "really want to read" shelf immediately.
sunnydee's review
4.0
Kurz-Meinung:
Auf dieses Buch habe ich mich sehr gefreut. Schließlich geht es um Aliens und das mag ich ja bekanntlich sehr. Inhaltlich war es auch recht interessant. Die Variante wie Außerirdische und Menschen hier 'zusammenleben' fand ich originell. Das Problem war aber, das hier vieles zu unrealistisch und einfach gelöst wird. Da kommt ein Mädel ohne Probleme an hochgeheime Informationen, eine Labormitarbeiterin kann einfach mal so eine riesige Menge eines Medikaments aus dem Labor entwenden und und und. Hier passte aus meiner Sicht vieles nicht.
Auch der Gewaltfaktor war eine Problem für mich. Ich muss nun wirklich nicht lesen, wie Kinder und ganze Familien zu Tode gequält werden. Noch viel schwieriger war für mich dann auch noch die völlige Gleichgültigkeit der Aggressoren zu akzeptieren. Sicher gibt es/gab es das auch im realen Leben, aber bei mir bildet sich bei solchen Szenen so viel Widerwillen und Abscheu, dass ich das Buch stellenweise nicht mehr 'genießen' konnte.
Mich wundert es selbst, dass ich mich trotzdem nicht für 3 Sterne entscheiden konnte. Das liegt wohl hauptsächlich daran, dass mir die Grundidee sehr gefallen hat und das ich den Schreibstil als sehr angenehm empfand. Auch die Chemie zwischen den einzelnen Charakteren gefiel mir. Trotzdem war auch das alles nichts besonderes.
Der weibliche Hauptcharakter gefiel mir allerdings wirklich gut. Sie war genau die Mischung aus taff und emotional, die ich mag. Jackson, der männliche Protagonist, war mir sehr sympathisch, was aber bei so gut wie jedem Jugendbuch bei mir der Fall ist. Die Erwachsenen stießen mich teilweise durch ihre Abgebrühtheit und Emotionslosigkeit eher ab.
Der Actionanteil war zwar mittelmäßig was die Quantität angeht, aber an Brutalität war es für mich persönlich wirklich grenzwertig für ein Jugendbuch. Dazu habe ich ja oben schon etwas gesagt, aber das schlimmste war die teilweise Gelassenheit/Ignoranz mit der auch Ari damit umging. Hier wurde zwar ihre Entrüstung thematisiert, aber das war dann auch schnell wieder vergessen. Wenn ich so etwas mit ansehen hätte müssen, oder gar indirekt beteiligt gewesen wäre, hätte ich damit wohl noch Jahre, wenn nicht mein ganzes Leben, mit zu tun gehabt.
Ich bin mir noch sehr unsicher ob ich die Reihe wirklich weiter verfolgen werde. Das Ende war relativ offen und Ari befand sich an einem Ort von dem ich mehr erfahren möchte, aber ob das ausreicht um mir mehr von dieser Brutalität/Emotionskälte anzutun, weiß ich nicht.
Meine Wertung:
3,6 von 5 Sternen
Auf dieses Buch habe ich mich sehr gefreut. Schließlich geht es um Aliens und das mag ich ja bekanntlich sehr. Inhaltlich war es auch recht interessant. Die Variante wie Außerirdische und Menschen hier 'zusammenleben' fand ich originell. Das Problem war aber, das hier vieles zu unrealistisch und einfach gelöst wird. Da kommt ein Mädel ohne Probleme an hochgeheime Informationen, eine Labormitarbeiterin kann einfach mal so eine riesige Menge eines Medikaments aus dem Labor entwenden und und und. Hier passte aus meiner Sicht vieles nicht.
Auch der Gewaltfaktor war eine Problem für mich. Ich muss nun wirklich nicht lesen, wie Kinder und ganze Familien zu Tode gequält werden. Noch viel schwieriger war für mich dann auch noch die völlige Gleichgültigkeit der Aggressoren zu akzeptieren. Sicher gibt es/gab es das auch im realen Leben, aber bei mir bildet sich bei solchen Szenen so viel Widerwillen und Abscheu, dass ich das Buch stellenweise nicht mehr 'genießen' konnte.
Mich wundert es selbst, dass ich mich trotzdem nicht für 3 Sterne entscheiden konnte. Das liegt wohl hauptsächlich daran, dass mir die Grundidee sehr gefallen hat und das ich den Schreibstil als sehr angenehm empfand. Auch die Chemie zwischen den einzelnen Charakteren gefiel mir. Trotzdem war auch das alles nichts besonderes.
Der weibliche Hauptcharakter gefiel mir allerdings wirklich gut. Sie war genau die Mischung aus taff und emotional, die ich mag. Jackson, der männliche Protagonist, war mir sehr sympathisch, was aber bei so gut wie jedem Jugendbuch bei mir der Fall ist. Die Erwachsenen stießen mich teilweise durch ihre Abgebrühtheit und Emotionslosigkeit eher ab.
Der Actionanteil war zwar mittelmäßig was die Quantität angeht, aber an Brutalität war es für mich persönlich wirklich grenzwertig für ein Jugendbuch. Dazu habe ich ja oben schon etwas gesagt, aber das schlimmste war die teilweise Gelassenheit/Ignoranz mit der auch Ari damit umging. Hier wurde zwar ihre Entrüstung thematisiert, aber das war dann auch schnell wieder vergessen. Wenn ich so etwas mit ansehen hätte müssen, oder gar indirekt beteiligt gewesen wäre, hätte ich damit wohl noch Jahre, wenn nicht mein ganzes Leben, mit zu tun gehabt.
Ich bin mir noch sehr unsicher ob ich die Reihe wirklich weiter verfolgen werde. Das Ende war relativ offen und Ari befand sich an einem Ort von dem ich mehr erfahren möchte, aber ob das ausreicht um mir mehr von dieser Brutalität/Emotionskälte anzutun, weiß ich nicht.
Meine Wertung:
3,6 von 5 Sternen
mikrokosm0s's review against another edition
4.0
Cover so pretty. *____* .. Well this was just way better than I was expecting. There was a point around the 60% mark where I thought the book would fall apart due to the scenes and what was happening...too fast and made no sense. BUT, not bad overall. Beginning was a little confusing and a bit of information overload which leads me to my next point. In the end, there was not enough background on the Ancients and I wish there was more reasoning behind it or a more substantial basis for things. Major cliffy at the end.
Even with the little blip in the middle, i'm tempted to give this 5 stars and add it to my favorites shelf, but i'll wait a few days and see if the story still sticks with me. Easily 5 stars for entertainment value, but will I remember this book a few months from now?
Even with the little blip in the middle, i'm tempted to give this 5 stars and add it to my favorites shelf, but i'll wait a few days and see if the story still sticks with me. Easily 5 stars for entertainment value, but will I remember this book a few months from now?
vitsa's review
1.0
Right so, this book was a waste of 4 hours of my life, 4 hours I will never get back.
Character are underdeveloped, flat and stereotypical.
Ari is one of the most annoying characters I have ever encountered. She is whiny, emotional and really stupid. The fact that the author tries to make her look like this badass makes it even worse.
So there is a war looming ahead, against evil antibody-sucking aliens, and her great plan is to handover the military strategy, because why not. A handsome young guy said it was all going to be ok.
This brings me to Jackson. Jackson – the proverbial mysterious asshole. He’s tortured, he’s gorgeous and he’s an Alien, what more could you want! He’s also controlling, dismissive and secretive, in other words “prince charming”.
I think that in the interest of my own sanity I should steer clear of YA for a while to come.
Character are underdeveloped, flat and stereotypical.
Ari is one of the most annoying characters I have ever encountered. She is whiny, emotional and really stupid. The fact that the author tries to make her look like this badass makes it even worse.
So there is a war looming ahead, against evil antibody-sucking aliens, and her great plan is to handover the military strategy, because why not. A handsome young guy said it was all going to be ok.
This brings me to Jackson. Jackson – the proverbial mysterious asshole. He’s tortured, he’s gorgeous and he’s an Alien, what more could you want! He’s also controlling, dismissive and secretive, in other words “prince charming”.
I think that in the interest of my own sanity I should steer clear of YA for a while to come.
amarylissw's review against another edition
3.0
I might've liked this book better if it wasn't for the rough and inconsistent writing. . . .
dani_bugz's review
4.0
I really don't understand why the ratings aren't higher on this one! Not that 3.8 is bad, but generally I avoid books under 3.9 on goodreads; but I loved this one!
Unlike other reviewers, I didn't think the romance was insta-lovey at all, and I am a massive hater of insta-love. I thought the romance developed well, and that the two main characters were fairly fleshed out. It was easy to get through, completely addictive and oh-so original. I love love loved the aliens, their world and abilities - again, so ORIGINAL!
I mean sure it wasn't an amazing read; the secondary characters were a bit flat and some things weren't properly explained, but hey, it was still quite well done. There were a few things lacking, but I have a feeling the author will get around to them or initially had to cut them out due to word limits.
Would recommend for an easy, light, entertaining read.
Unlike other reviewers, I didn't think the romance was insta-lovey at all, and I am a massive hater of insta-love. I thought the romance developed well, and that the two main characters were fairly fleshed out. It was easy to get through, completely addictive and oh-so original. I love love loved the aliens, their world and abilities - again, so ORIGINAL!
I mean sure it wasn't an amazing read; the secondary characters were a bit flat and some things weren't properly explained, but hey, it was still quite well done. There were a few things lacking, but I have a feeling the author will get around to them or initially had to cut them out due to word limits.
Would recommend for an easy, light, entertaining read.