charliesmom's review against another edition
2.0
Ugh, this book. This has been on my tbr for years, and I just got around to it. I loved the idea of an underwater city and of sirens, but the story was really just lacking pizazz. First of all, it was very slow paced, which you probably wouldn’t expect out of a relatively short book. The majority of the story is just the main characters inner dialogue about missing her sister. Very snooze-tastic. The entire story is leading up to an event that only takes place the last 50 pages or so, and the whole rest of the story really doesn’t build up to these last pages where literally the entire plot is shoved into. And although the last 50 pages should have been a blast to read, because finally all the dots were connecting, it was anything but. It simply didn’t make sense, and I felt like the author was grasping at strings trying to bring a climax to the story. The characters.... well, extremely dull is an understatement. Basically there is one person we get to know, and very little development goes into her. Then there’s her love interest, who honestly she has a handful of encounters with that are all practically small talk with nothing else. Overall, there was some potential for this book, but not enough to make it worth reading. Not my favorite.
fictionalkate's review against another edition
4.0
Atlantia has always been home to Rio. But she has never loved the underwater city as much as her mother or twin sister Bay. When Rio's chance to go to the world above is taken away from her, Rio not only loses her dream of Above but also her sister. Not wanting to lose everything, Rio comes up with a plan to escape Below. It has never been done before but Rio isn't like everyone else. She is a secret Siren. But before Rio can make it Above, secrets about Atlantia come out and Rio might be the only one who can save the underwater city before it is too late.
Rio is one of those characters that I loved to read about because she's a somewhat unlikely heroine (despite her super special secret). She is scared and confused after having lost both her sister and her mother without getting to say goodbye. But not willing to let the world take advantage of her, Rio goes to vast lengths to get what she wants. She loves her mother and Bay and she finds it hard finding out secrets they kept when they were with her in Atlantia. What I liked most about Rio is how strong and smart she is. She's not one of those characters who run into danger with half-baked plans. She is a planner and she thinks everything though. I also adored the romance which developed for Rio and True. Their interactions are adorable and they work as a couple. Beautifully paced, the romantic storyline worked perfectly for me as a reader.
The setting of Atlantia is an interesting one. I was expecting this to be a book about mermaids with this story taking place under the sea. And whilst Atlantia does take place underwater, the city is inhabited by humans living in a reverse snow-globe (with the town staying dry on the bottom of the ocean and the water separating them from the land Above). The way of life for those who live Below was an interesting on and it made a lot of sense to me.
After reading Atlantia I realized there just aren't enough books about Sirens! I've not read another YA novel about these mythical creatures and I loved how Ally Condie approached the idea of them. I also loved how the society world with their unique brand of religion and governing bodies. The plot does have a few twists and I really liked how events developed across the novel.
Atlantia was an interesting book with a fantastic setting. It's interesting with a few twists and secrets coming out as Rio discovers the truth behind Atlantia. I loved that this book was a standalone and thought it delivered the perfect amount of story for its pages. Romance, mystery, supernatural creatures which aren't quite what they seem and a very likeable heroine - Atlantia is a fantastic read which adds something just a little bit different to the YA scene.
Thanks to Penguin Teen Australia for the review copy
Rio is one of those characters that I loved to read about because she's a somewhat unlikely heroine (despite her super special secret). She is scared and confused after having lost both her sister and her mother without getting to say goodbye. But not willing to let the world take advantage of her, Rio goes to vast lengths to get what she wants. She loves her mother and Bay and she finds it hard finding out secrets they kept when they were with her in Atlantia. What I liked most about Rio is how strong and smart she is. She's not one of those characters who run into danger with half-baked plans. She is a planner and she thinks everything though. I also adored the romance which developed for Rio and True. Their interactions are adorable and they work as a couple. Beautifully paced, the romantic storyline worked perfectly for me as a reader.
The setting of Atlantia is an interesting one. I was expecting this to be a book about mermaids with this story taking place under the sea. And whilst Atlantia does take place underwater, the city is inhabited by humans living in a reverse snow-globe (with the town staying dry on the bottom of the ocean and the water separating them from the land Above). The way of life for those who live Below was an interesting on and it made a lot of sense to me.
After reading Atlantia I realized there just aren't enough books about Sirens! I've not read another YA novel about these mythical creatures and I loved how Ally Condie approached the idea of them. I also loved how the society world with their unique brand of religion and governing bodies. The plot does have a few twists and I really liked how events developed across the novel.
Atlantia was an interesting book with a fantastic setting. It's interesting with a few twists and secrets coming out as Rio discovers the truth behind Atlantia. I loved that this book was a standalone and thought it delivered the perfect amount of story for its pages. Romance, mystery, supernatural creatures which aren't quite what they seem and a very likeable heroine - Atlantia is a fantastic read which adds something just a little bit different to the YA scene.
Thanks to Penguin Teen Australia for the review copy
ro13's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
scorpi07's review against another edition
3.0
I like the concept behind this story, but the writing didn’t grip me and there were many contradictions/sloppy pieces of plot.
kellyk_15's review against another edition
5.0
This book was much better than I expected it to be. Even if you didn't like Matched, like I did, I recommend this book.
jaihams's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
icelandicbookworm's review against another edition
I got 60 pages in and was just not feeling it.
It was one of the books on by tbr cart that if I would not read it this year or would not enjoy it, I would dnf it.
It was one of the books on by tbr cart that if I would not read it this year or would not enjoy it, I would dnf it.
moonchild720's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the Matched trilogy so much I jumped at the first chance I got to read this book. I wasn't super impressed. I felt that it was kind of boring for my taste. In the beginning not much was happening. Towards the end it definitely got better but this was just not a favorite for me.
rheamsbrittany's review against another edition
3.0
I would first like the say that this book as a retelling was okay. just okay. This book on its own was still just okay. I was very excited when I first started. the premise seemed promising. the world they inhabited underground seemed to be interesting enough when you're given description to make you wanna learn more. but the store was Flat..no pun intended on her voice. maybe the voice made a difference because I did listen to the audio book. Even still, the ended happened way too fast and just wasn't the Big Bang I was expecting and hoping for in this book. Not horrible but I wouldn't ever want to reread this.
msjerboa's review against another edition
Great premise, just couldn't really get into the book.