librariann's review against another edition
Positively gripping sci-fi adventure that will appeal to those who enjoyed The City of Ember. Don't read the first without the second close by, as the ending is akin to a season-ending cliffhanger.
nerfherder86's review against another edition
4.0
A very interesting world, composed of three levels, which have different societies and class levels. Those on the very top are wealthiest and control all the water, and they only give water sparingly to those below them in exchange for the harvested food. and at the very bottom are the unknown wild creatures--but when the earth literally begins to shake and bring the three levels closer to each other, how will the rich spoiled top level people survive the revolt of the lower, downtrodden slave classes? And what if those creatures get loose on the upper levels?
bookdeviant's review against another edition
4.0
See more of my reviews on my blog the Book Deviant
I only vaguely remembered what happened in this series, and so it was like I was reading a completely new book. At first I couldn’t get into it, and it was sent back to the library before I could finish it. I later got it back in order to finish it and try to continue the series, and I have to admit that it was an enjoyable experience, for a middle grade novel.
The story kept me interested and I wanted to know what was going to happen next, but the way the story was told, specifically as a trilogy, made it hard to stay that way. Only so much happened in this story, and I constantly thought that there was no way this could have a satisfactory ending with how little was left and how much of the story was still unexplained.
In relation to the characters, I did enjoy them, but couldn’t help but think they were stereotypical in some ways. There was the orphaned, adventurous boy whom everyone knows because of their unfair treatment by someone. (Edgar specifically reminds me of Will, the main character from John Flanagan’s Ranger’s Apprentice, who was orphaned, people liked him, but he was constantly bullied.) There was the nerdy best friend, and the intimidating friend who just so happens to be a girl and might be shoved into a relationship with either the nerdy friend or MC at some point. And then lets not forget about the old professor type guy who is sort of a father figure to the orphaned MC. So, needless to say, I felt like a lot of the characters were stereotypical and overused in some ways, despite still enjoying them.
Final Rating: ★★★★☆
Overall?
As a story, I really enjoyed it. I felt like it could have been organized differently, maybe as a duology (at the time of writing this review, I have read the entire series), but I still found it interesting and worthy of finishing.
Would I Recommend?
As a middle grade read, I think it’s a good starter series, and that beginner readers will enjoy it. While I personally saw things that could be improved, as well as stereotypes, that’s probably just from years of reading and rereading other novels.
I only vaguely remembered what happened in this series, and so it was like I was reading a completely new book. At first I couldn’t get into it, and it was sent back to the library before I could finish it. I later got it back in order to finish it and try to continue the series, and I have to admit that it was an enjoyable experience, for a middle grade novel.
The story kept me interested and I wanted to know what was going to happen next, but the way the story was told, specifically as a trilogy, made it hard to stay that way. Only so much happened in this story, and I constantly thought that there was no way this could have a satisfactory ending with how little was left and how much of the story was still unexplained.
In relation to the characters, I did enjoy them, but couldn’t help but think they were stereotypical in some ways. There was the orphaned, adventurous boy whom everyone knows because of their unfair treatment by someone. (Edgar specifically reminds me of Will, the main character from John Flanagan’s Ranger’s Apprentice, who was orphaned, people liked him, but he was constantly bullied.) There was the nerdy best friend, and the intimidating friend who just so happens to be a girl and might be shoved into a relationship with either the nerdy friend or MC at some point. And then lets not forget about the old professor type guy who is sort of a father figure to the orphaned MC. So, needless to say, I felt like a lot of the characters were stereotypical and overused in some ways, despite still enjoying them.
Final Rating: ★★★★☆
Overall?
As a story, I really enjoyed it. I felt like it could have been organized differently, maybe as a duology (at the time of writing this review, I have read the entire series), but I still found it interesting and worthy of finishing.
Would I Recommend?
As a middle grade read, I think it’s a good starter series, and that beginner readers will enjoy it. While I personally saw things that could be improved, as well as stereotypes, that’s probably just from years of reading and rereading other novels.
eupomene's review against another edition
2.0
Warning: the first of a series. There is no satisfaction by the end of it. That was all right, though. I only cared to a certain extent. Atherton is a "made world" -- the story takes place in the distant future (actually about 100 years away) when the earth is almost uninhabitable and scientists are trying to find ways to fix things. Atherton has the unfortunate distinction of being created by a mad scientist and is collapsing on itself. I don't know that I'll seek out the other books once they are written, but I did find the world somewhat intriguing.
ghumpherys's review against another edition
3.0
My son really liked this series, so I listened to the audio of the first one. The audio book had a lot of background music and other sound effects that I found to be distracting. But the story itself was fairly interesting and it certainly left you hanging for the next book.
hope_hasarrived's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this tale of suspense, mystery, and lots of climbing up and down. The story follows the life of Edgar, a boy living in a 3-tiered world, and his journey to uncover answers to the new strange goings on in his small environment. Much of the underlying themes of the book involve the consequences wasting of the Earth's resources, the work of machines and industry destroying the planet, and other similar topics often covered in post-apocalyptic science fiction. I really like the creativity of the story's setting; it sounds like something I might come up with if I ever wrote a book :)
I would recommend this book to older children, teens, and young-at-heart adults alike!
I would recommend this book to older children, teens, and young-at-heart adults alike!
micaela_ru's review against another edition
3.0
My sister has been dying for me to read this book, and I finally did. Actually, I listened to it on an audiobook, which I've had problems with trying to be immersed in audio books before, but I didn't have a problem with this one. Very good, engaging story. Well written with enough descriptive detail to put you in the world and see the characters and the descriptions never got in the way. All of the characters were distinct and unique. I particularly am fond of Isabel on the protagonist side and Lord Finneas on the antagonist side. I can't wait to see how the story concludes in part 2 and 3.
Good read :)
Good read :)
zoewashburn's review against another edition
3.0
Don't really know what I would review this book bc I just remembered that I read it over 3 years ago. I remember not hating it tho I honestly barely remember anything about it.
brookepalmer796's review against another edition
4.0
Fantastic sci-fi for kids and very enjoyable for adults too!
psalmcat's review against another edition
4.0
The first in a kids' series called Atherton, about a future world created to rescue human beings from Earth by creating a world on a man-made satellite. Mad scientists, cliff-climbing, rabbits-sheep-and-figs, and planned communities. Pretty fun.