mooncloud94's review
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
serendipitysbooks's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
When She Woke had me thoroughly absorbed from the get-go. It’s set in a dystopian near future where the lines between church and state have been virtually eradicated, and the world-building is fabulous. And all too plausible. It’s almost a cross between The Scarlet Letter and The Handmaid’s Tale. Hannah has been convicted of murder for having an abortion. Her sentence is to be “chromed” - have her skin colour genetically altered for a period of sixteen years and a thirty day period of imprisonment, total isolation in her cell during which her every move is broadcast to the public. I enjoyed following Hannah’s journey, especially because she was proactive, not passive. As always I appreciated seeing religious hypocrisy highlighted. I felt that the first half of the book was the strongest, and I wasn’t convinced by an event or two in the latter third. But overall a fabulous if frightening read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abortion, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry
jamiebh's review
5.0
I have a thing for dystopian novels but this novel blew me away. The setting is at times so scarily realistic and and at other times so creatively futuristic. I love the parallelism to The Scarlet Letter (even though I was never a fan of this book when I read it in high school). I wish the ending had given the reader more but I'm thankful to walk away feeling invested enough in these characters to care what happens next. Now I want to read Jordan's debut novel Mudbound.
enderbug's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
thebookheap12's review against another edition
4.0
When She Woke is set in future America, where after a massive war, a Revolution of sorts occurred, and basically, the Church now governs the laws. This book is a re-telling of The Scarlet Letter but reminded me a lot of The Handmaid’s Tale and 1984- in a good way. I opened this book not really remembering what it was about and I was fascinated from the start.
As someone who has written a fair few essays and delivered some presentations on why we should or should not have Sexual Offender Notification Laws (SORN) available to the public, this book takes the idea of the Notification Laws to a whole new level. Those who commit crimes are not only imprisoned for a time, but once they are released “on parole” so to speak, their skin is discoloured so that from just looking at them, the public know exactly what type of crimes they have committed. Minor crimes are coloured Yellow. Sexual Offenders are coloured Blue and Murder, like Hannah? Murder is Red. As the book points out, those who are coloured blue don’t last very long in society- “their bodies just turn up…hung..shot”. This is already not too far from cases of vigilantism, both in America and Britain, sometimes due to the SORN laws making personal details available for all to see- and sometimes just because someone “looks” like a certain type of criminal who would be coloured blue in this future society…
But since Hannah is a Red, lets talk about why she is a Red: I imagine this is the extreme view of what would happen should the “pro-life” political party get into power. Hannah has committed second degree murder because she had an abortion of an illegitimate child, because the father is a powerful figure in the society who’d never acknowledge or support the child. She is sentenced to thirty days imprisonment and 16 years of being coloured Red. She is disowned by her family and her religion. While in prison, Hannah is confined to a cell where her every move is televised throughout the day for the rest of society at home. The channels switch through a large amount of prisoners, but Hannah has no idea when she is or is not on television.
This is the most original dystopian novel I’ve read in a fair while so I just want to gush over the world building and society for a bit because folks, this is how a dystopian world is written. Take notes!
I found this world fascinating, as I’ve said, both as a criminology/criminal justice student and also as an Atheist. To quote Gideon from Criminal Minds “I’m tired of people using their religion to justify the terrible things they do”- and this book examines what would happen if we were to let religion become the divine power behind deciding the laws of society. It takes away objectivity, human rights, specifically women’s rights (surprise there- not) and also the many of the rights of freedom.
I enjoyed Hannah’s character from the start, if only because she is so rebellious despite growing up in this confined and suffocating religious society, unafraid to ask questions and think for herself. Her morality defines her own choices, rather than the fear of mortality. I always admire characters who stand up for themselves, despite being faced with grim odds. Atticus Finch says “the one thing that does not abide by the majority rule is a man’s conscious. Before I life with others, I have to be able to live with myself”. This is one of my all time favourite quotes, and Hannah seems to live by it too. She feels she can accept any punishment society may lay on her, but at the end of the day she feels no remorse or shame for what she did, as she keeps being told she should- but rather relief because she knows that it was the best thing for both herself and the unborn baby, rather than the child being born into a life of shame and stigma because of it’s parents.
Like a lot of reviews on this book however, I found the story lost a bit of it’s “oomph” upon reaching the final part of the book. I was riveted up to the halfway point and once Hannah left the “School”, I found my attention wandering. I still wanted to know what happened at the end, but I just wasn’t enjoying it quite as much as I originally did. I also couldn’t help but feel like Hannah’s “relationship” with Simone came out of nowhere and it felt like it was just done by the author to tick a box, not for any other reason- to me, anyway.
Other than that, if you are a fan of dystopians, I really recommend this book, if only for the fantastic world building and the societal issues addressed within its themes!
***
For more of my reviews, please visit TheBookHeap
http://thebookheap.wordpress.com
As someone who has written a fair few essays and delivered some presentations on why we should or should not have Sexual Offender Notification Laws (SORN) available to the public, this book takes the idea of the Notification Laws to a whole new level. Those who commit crimes are not only imprisoned for a time, but once they are released “on parole” so to speak, their skin is discoloured so that from just looking at them, the public know exactly what type of crimes they have committed. Minor crimes are coloured Yellow. Sexual Offenders are coloured Blue and Murder, like Hannah? Murder is Red. As the book points out, those who are coloured blue don’t last very long in society- “their bodies just turn up…hung..shot”. This is already not too far from cases of vigilantism, both in America and Britain, sometimes due to the SORN laws making personal details available for all to see- and sometimes just because someone “looks” like a certain type of criminal who would be coloured blue in this future society…
But since Hannah is a Red, lets talk about why she is a Red: I imagine this is the extreme view of what would happen should the “pro-life” political party get into power. Hannah has committed second degree murder because she had an abortion of an illegitimate child, because the father is a powerful figure in the society who’d never acknowledge or support the child. She is sentenced to thirty days imprisonment and 16 years of being coloured Red. She is disowned by her family and her religion. While in prison, Hannah is confined to a cell where her every move is televised throughout the day for the rest of society at home. The channels switch through a large amount of prisoners, but Hannah has no idea when she is or is not on television.
This is the most original dystopian novel I’ve read in a fair while so I just want to gush over the world building and society for a bit because folks, this is how a dystopian world is written. Take notes!
I found this world fascinating, as I’ve said, both as a criminology/criminal justice student and also as an Atheist. To quote Gideon from Criminal Minds “I’m tired of people using their religion to justify the terrible things they do”- and this book examines what would happen if we were to let religion become the divine power behind deciding the laws of society. It takes away objectivity, human rights, specifically women’s rights (surprise there- not) and also the many of the rights of freedom.
I enjoyed Hannah’s character from the start, if only because she is so rebellious despite growing up in this confined and suffocating religious society, unafraid to ask questions and think for herself. Her morality defines her own choices, rather than the fear of mortality. I always admire characters who stand up for themselves, despite being faced with grim odds. Atticus Finch says “the one thing that does not abide by the majority rule is a man’s conscious. Before I life with others, I have to be able to live with myself”. This is one of my all time favourite quotes, and Hannah seems to live by it too. She feels she can accept any punishment society may lay on her, but at the end of the day she feels no remorse or shame for what she did, as she keeps being told she should- but rather relief because she knows that it was the best thing for both herself and the unborn baby, rather than the child being born into a life of shame and stigma because of it’s parents.
Like a lot of reviews on this book however, I found the story lost a bit of it’s “oomph” upon reaching the final part of the book. I was riveted up to the halfway point and once Hannah left the “School”, I found my attention wandering. I still wanted to know what happened at the end, but I just wasn’t enjoying it quite as much as I originally did. I also couldn’t help but feel like Hannah’s “relationship” with Simone came out of nowhere and it felt like it was just done by the author to tick a box, not for any other reason- to me, anyway.
Other than that, if you are a fan of dystopians, I really recommend this book, if only for the fantastic world building and the societal issues addressed within its themes!
***
For more of my reviews, please visit TheBookHeap
http://thebookheap.wordpress.com
hollyreadsforfun's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
michalice's review against another edition
5.0
When She Woke arrived in my post unsolicited, and once I had read the synopsis I thought it sounded interesting, but had to put it to one side in order to finish books that I had requested. Once I had made some headway with my review pile I picked up When She Woke and made a start on it.
One of the things that drew me in was the cover, and while it is very captivating I didn't think it suited the story, but when I looked on goodreads I found this cover [bc:When She Woke|11045709|When She Woke|Hillary Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348512152s/11045709.jpg|15966434] and I personally think this one matches the story and portrays the protagonist perfectly. This would definitely capture my attention if I saw it in a bookshop.
When She Woke is a surprisingly great read, and while I had not heard of this book or the author before, I am glad I received a copy. When you read the story you get to understand the red skin more. In the world Hillary has created, any person who commits a crime has melachroming, having their skin colour altered, to fit their crimes, from red, yellow, blue etc. The criminals are also sent to state prison, and depending on their crime spend a set amount of days there, then have to remain their colour for another set time.
Our protagonist, Hannah, had an abortion, and was quickly discovered. However she refused to name the father, and the person who carried out the procedure, earning herself 30 days in Crawford State Prison, and 16 years of being a Red.
As the story progresses and we get to learn more about Hannah and her world, we get to see how bad it is for the Chromes in a world where their crimes are on display. While part of me agrees with the melachroming for some cases I also got to see how hard it was for Hannah to try to go back to her normal life. It was impossible, her family don't want to know her, people look down at her or try to attack her, it's a cruel, violent world and my heart broke for Hannah and what she has to suffer through. When she finally finds a safe place to stay for a while, all is not what it seems, and while I wont go into detail about what happens while she is there, the owners of this supposedly safe house are just as bad s the rest of the world. Not all is bad for Hannah, she makes new friends that stick with her through thick and thin, and they all have each others backs. She also learns more about herself and what she truly believes in, and not what is thrown at her face by others. By the end of the book Hannah has grown as a person and as a character and I was very disappointed to see her go.
Hillary is not afraid to tackle hard to issues, like politics, religion, and criminal punishment, and it makes for a gripping read. When She Woke was impossible for me to put down, and I grudgingly did it for necessities like sleeping and going to work and while I may not have heard of Hillary before, she is now on my list of authors to watch.
One of the things that drew me in was the cover, and while it is very captivating I didn't think it suited the story, but when I looked on goodreads I found this cover [bc:When She Woke|11045709|When She Woke|Hillary Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348512152s/11045709.jpg|15966434] and I personally think this one matches the story and portrays the protagonist perfectly. This would definitely capture my attention if I saw it in a bookshop.
When She Woke is a surprisingly great read, and while I had not heard of this book or the author before, I am glad I received a copy. When you read the story you get to understand the red skin more. In the world Hillary has created, any person who commits a crime has melachroming, having their skin colour altered, to fit their crimes, from red, yellow, blue etc. The criminals are also sent to state prison, and depending on their crime spend a set amount of days there, then have to remain their colour for another set time.
Our protagonist, Hannah, had an abortion, and was quickly discovered. However she refused to name the father, and the person who carried out the procedure, earning herself 30 days in Crawford State Prison, and 16 years of being a Red.
As the story progresses and we get to learn more about Hannah and her world, we get to see how bad it is for the Chromes in a world where their crimes are on display. While part of me agrees with the melachroming for some cases I also got to see how hard it was for Hannah to try to go back to her normal life. It was impossible, her family don't want to know her, people look down at her or try to attack her, it's a cruel, violent world and my heart broke for Hannah and what she has to suffer through. When she finally finds a safe place to stay for a while, all is not what it seems, and while I wont go into detail about what happens while she is there, the owners of this supposedly safe house are just as bad s the rest of the world. Not all is bad for Hannah, she makes new friends that stick with her through thick and thin, and they all have each others backs. She also learns more about herself and what she truly believes in, and not what is thrown at her face by others. By the end of the book Hannah has grown as a person and as a character and I was very disappointed to see her go.
Hillary is not afraid to tackle hard to issues, like politics, religion, and criminal punishment, and it makes for a gripping read. When She Woke was impossible for me to put down, and I grudgingly did it for necessities like sleeping and going to work and while I may not have heard of Hillary before, she is now on my list of authors to watch.
juliojulio's review
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
good beginning, really good ending. conflicted on the middle but at least i’m satisfied by the way it ends.
nikkiblack17's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
chyse's review
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5