Moongazer

Oct 11, 2012 Katy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

How to I review this book without spoiling it? Overall, I basically struggled with this book until the last quarter, at which point, I was totally sucked in for a bit.

The prologue was really interesting and makes you want to know what's going on. But then the first part of the book throws you into the daily life of a typical teenage college girl. It was a bit weird because even though Skype detected some odd behavior, I find it a little hard to believe that she JUST noticed them out of her 18 or...more How to I review this book without spoiling it? Overall, I basically struggled with this book until the last quarter, at which point, I was totally sucked in for a bit.

The prologue was really interesting and makes you want to know what's going on. But then the first part of the book throws you into the daily life of a typical teenage college girl. It was a bit weird because even though Skype detected some odd behavior, I find it a little hard to believe that she JUST noticed them out of her 18 or 19 years. And why is she all of sudden having nightmares?

Then Skye is thrown into the world of Terra, and underground wasteland where people are struggling to survive. Mancusi may have attempted at world-building, but the little she did give us did not stretch far beyond your typical dystopian setting with an oppressive government and rebels wanting to start a revolution.

So the first half of the book pretty much dragged, and honestly, I kept waiting for Mancusi to explain to us what the heck was going on. The second half began to become a bit more interesting as we find out who Mariah is and what role she plays in the revolution.

However, it wasn't until the last quarter or so with Mancusi's big twist that the story really blew me away, and I was able to see, in hindsight, how everything fell into place.

Having said that, after the big explanation, I think the book did slack off a bit. It was almost as if Mancusi tried so hard to jam pack the big reveal, and then she was in a rush to tie it all together with the ultimate plan. I was a bit disappointed how that turned out, though I want to make a note that it was quite possibly that (view spoiler) And I also felt the final showdown was a bit too simple and maybe even too easy.

Like I said, the epiphany was quite mind-blowing for me, and I wish the rest of the book had been more interesting before and after the fact. I think if Mancusi introduced the concept a little sooner (say halfway through, if not earlier), and if she had taken more time to build on it for a solution other than their quick plan, it would have been so much more intriguing.(less)

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Oct 13, 2012 Syahira Sharif rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley, dystopian, young-adult

Skip to the end if its too long for you.

Alternity is about a normal girl named Skye. She studies in a course that she love, in a university that she love, doing a dream job as a beta tester for Sims Medieval/WoW game called 'RealLife : Medieval Times' and have a boyfriend who is a DJ for the hottest club called Luna. But she's plagued with horrific nightmares of someone chasing after her and calling her by a very different name and wanted her to stop "chasing the moon".

One night, she was lead to...more

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Jun 04, 2011 Tez rated it 5 of 5 stars

The author originally wrote this story as a screenplay for a university course, and it benefits us all that she resurrected it as this novel. I sorely miss Dorchester's SHOMI imprint, and Moongazer was not only one of its launch titles, but also one of the best. The whole concept - even the name - of Moongazing, what it entails, its effects, why it exists...everything is brilliantly executed. The different societies - and how they each operate separately and together - humanise Mariah Quinn's wo...more

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Feb 20, 2013 Mary rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mmm-2013

Obviously none of the folks who gave this book a good review has ever seen the original Total Recall movie or read the Phillip K. Dick short story, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale," from which the screenplay came.

Alternity is just a repackaging of that premise, and not a very good one at that. There are plot holes you could drive a tank through, and the entire plot telegraphs itself in flashing neon letters about 10 pages into the book. And, it is too close to the screenplay and story to e...more

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Jan 31, 2013 Dawn Vanniman rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Skye Brown is a college girl with a nice job, good friends and a hot boyfriend.

Then she starts having dreams about a place called Terra where she's mistaken for a girl named Mariah. Mariah just might be a traitor, but Skye knows she's NOT Mariah.

At the very beginning I was a little lost, but quickly found my footing and moved on. I did flip back and forth a couple times until I caught the rhythm of the story.

Skye - she's ok,...more

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Jan 10, 2013 Tahlia Newland rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, ya

Alternity is an excellent, tightly-written, action-packed, science fiction romance with an intriguing twist on reality that is a little reminiscent of that in The Matrix. I enjoyed it a great deal, and the story held me so thoroughly that I read it in one afternoon and evening.

Skye is your normal sort of New York dwelling teenager, except for her rather too vivid nightmares. The world of her dreams, post-apocolyptic subterranean Terrra, is a dismal place, (thought author Mancusi manages to infus...more Alternity is an excellent, tightly-written, action-packed, science fiction romance with an intriguing twist on reality that is a little reminiscent of that in The Matrix. I enjoyed it a great deal, and the story held me so thoroughly that I read it in one afternoon and evening.

Skye is your normal sort of New York dwelling teenager, except for her rather too vivid nightmares. The world of her dreams, post-apocolyptic subterranean Terrra, is a dismal place, (thought author Mancusi manages to infuse some light into it through the beautiful character of Dawn and simple scenes where the Dark Siders show their resilience). It’s no wonder that those on Terra who can afford it want to travel to earth where they can sit in the sunshine without dying from radiation poisoning. Skye knows nothing about Terra until she finds herself there, apparently due to a case of mistaken identity. Then, she wants to get back to earth as quickly as she can, but when she discovers the plight of the downtrodden in Terra’s society and sees how they look to her to help them, she cannot leave them to their fate.

Her life on earth, the one she thought so important before, now seems somewhat shallow, but what can she do? She isn’t who they think she is, or is she? Just when we think we’ve worked it out, Mancusi throws in a plot twist I never saw coming.

The only two characters we really get to know are Skye and Dawn—both likeable and easy to relate to—the others remain somewhat vague, but apart from the senator, who came across as a fairly one-dimensional, evil slime-bag, they’re peripheral to the story. The love that grows between Skye and Dawn is the typical YA, heart-throbbing kind, so deeply embedded in their psyches that it remains as a constant no matter how shattered their sense of self is. There is always something inspiring about such a love, and the writer manages to keep it subtle enough to avoid eye rolling by the cynics.

The prose was well written, the plot different and unpredictable, and the ending excellent. For a while there, I was worried. It could have ended horribly in many ways, but I’m glad to say that the author came through with the goods, no nasty cliff-hanger, no smart twist to rip the ground from under you, just a good solid ending that left this reader well satisfied.

This book poses questions; how real is our reality, who are we really, what is more important, our personal comfort or the well being of many? All very good topics for contemplation.

I highly recommend this book for teens and adults who aren't cynical about the YA kind of love.
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Jan 02, 2013 Susan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

WOW!!! That was an epic rollercoaster ride. The concept of this book is totally mind blowing. It starts off a little confusing but stick with it. I promise you won't be disappointed!!

The book begins with our heroine, Skye. She is a college student in Manhattan who works for a video game design company in her spare time. She is true techno-geek and I loved her from the start! Skye starts having nightmares about a place she's never seen and people she doesn't know who keep chasing her and people f...more WOW!!! That was an epic rollercoaster ride. The concept of this book is totally mind blowing. It starts off a little confusing but stick with it. I promise you won't be disappointed!!

The book begins with our heroine, Skye. She is a college student in Manhattan who works for a video game design company in her spare time. She is true techno-geek and I loved her from the start! Skye starts having nightmares about a place she's never seen and people she doesn't know who keep chasing her and people from her life who keep popping in telling her to not gaze at the moon. She wakes from the dreams exhausted and confused not understanding what it all means. Then one night she goes to a nightclub suddenly she awakes in Terra, the world she's been dreaming about.

Waking up in a new world surrounded by new people Skye is soon told that she looks like a girl named Mariah, a senator's daughter, who is the leader of the Eclipsers, a group of Terran's who are starting a rebellion against the government. At first she wants nothing to do with this group or their rebellion, she only wants to go home to Earth. She soon finds that the people of Terra are traveling to Earth frequently via moon gazing.

Very soon after entering this strange world she meets Dawn. Dawn was Mariah's former boyfriend and he is the reason why Mariah choose to rebel against the Terran government. Dawn believes that she betrayed him and the rebels to the government though and this has clouded the feelings he had for her with a feeling of anger and betrayal. He warns Skye that moon gazing is dangerous and that she's safer in Terra with the rebels. Of course at first she doesn't believe this. Its very obvious from the beginning that Dawn is still struggling with the fact that he still loves Mariah even though he believes she betrayed him and the rebellion. His feelings of betrayal and love are projected to Skye but she doesn't want him to rebound his feelings for the legendary Mariah to her.

I was impressed by the intensity of these two characters and the way they develop throughout the story. It doesn't read like it's forced or rushed...it all flows naturally.

The plot was a thrill ride from the very beginning. There were so many surprises and so much excitement that I couldn't put this book down. I was hooked and stayed on the edge of my seat from the very first chapter all the way through to the surprising end. The world that Mari created was truly amazing. The world of Terra felt vivid, like you were actually there with the characters taking in this strange world. This story is not just about a girl thrown into a foreign world. It's a lesson in forgiveness, the unending cycle of oppression and war, and of course a love that overcomes it all. A fantastic read from start to finish!!

I'm really looking forward to picking up Tomorrowland and reading it next. (less)

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Nov 29, 2012 The Twins Read rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: michelle-s-shelf, nicole-s-shelf, sent-for-review-by-publisher

Due to the slightly shady cover, we were both afraid that Alternity would turn out to be a disappointing read. It had a really interesting summary and a totally unique plot and while this book did not exactly wow us, it really caught us off guard as it was a decent read.

Mancusi's characters, while having good intentions to keep us interested, did not exactly keep us wanting more. While we did find Skye a bit dense sometimes, and Dawn so unlike other male protagonists out there, we found ourselve...more Due to the slightly shady cover, we were both afraid that Alternity would turn out to be a disappointing read. It had a really interesting summary and a totally unique plot and while this book did not exactly wow us, it really caught us off guard as it was a decent read.

Mancusi's characters, while having good intentions to keep us interested, did not exactly keep us wanting more. While we did find Skye a bit dense sometimes, and Dawn so unlike other male protagonists out there, we found ourselves quite indifferent to them. Skye had a decent voice, albeit a bit confusing at times. Skye's easy to follow, however, and we think that's a good thing. Dawn on the other hand, was probably the antithesis to the usual brooding, sullen, YA male lead. He was unafraid to show his emotions, and we do think that's a point for him. Duske, the evil-because-he-simply-is-evil guy, was smarmy and detestable at best, but he's not given much character aside from that. It's like he's the ultimate bad guy, and that's it.

What's keeping us from giving this one a high rating? Well, there was a scene where Skye had to act like she was all for the dark side, and we couldn't help but cringe at how obviously bad at acting she was. But no matter how bad we thought her acting was, Duske still fell for it, which lead us to question Duske's judgment. We found that this scene was too convenient for Skye and the other revolutionaries.

Another thing we didn't like about this book was the portrayal of romance and relationships, and how the story often focuses on the romance. Sure, Skye resembled Dawn's ex-girlfriend to a T (we won't spoil why) and Dawn is this pretty awesome guy, but that still doesn't give them license to fall in love with each that quickly. Dawn, who has been supposedly pining for Mariah for a long time, has been too hasty in discarding his feelings for Mariah in order to start anew with Skye. Skye also seems to have no remorse about giving in to her fast-growing attachment to Dawn, especially when she keeps pining for her life back in Earth where she has Craig, her boyfriend. The good thing about Mancusi's Alternity is that it's easy to read, and does not attempt to choke the reader with a lot of information. Instead, Mancusi eases the reader, through Skye, to adjust to the different reality that is Terra. The pace is relatively quick, and it gets faster as the book draws to an end.

All in all, Alternity is a good read if you don't want to get into the heavy stuff. We'd recommend this for people who're after the more romantic aspect when it comes to science fiction, and for people who're trying to ease into reading this kind of genre.
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Nov 28, 2012 Gillian rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

3.5 Rating

Alternity is a book that, while not perfect, is greatly enjoyable. If you’re a fan of post-apocalyptic dystopias, alternate realities, rebellions, romance, and totalitarian governments all tossed together with a little humor and a lot of gaming references, Alternity will work for you.

The narrative begins in a tangle of confusion, but it’s appropriate, because that’s how Skye feels. Once you figure out what’s going on, it actually makes very clear sense. Honestly, I caught on to the tr...more

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Oct 12, 2012 Farrah rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review also appears on my blog at http://www.thegoldenruleof666.blogspo...

Um...wow. That was only completely epic!! Mari Mancusi is officially one of my favorite authors. I read her book, Tomorrow Land, and adored it. Alternity was just as amazing!

The concept of this book is a mindbender. A girl wakes up to find out her whole life was a lie. Literally. I love that kind of mind twister, so when I found out an author I liked was writing a one, I was thrilled. And, after reading it, I'm even m...more This review also appears on my blog at http://www.thegoldenruleof666.blogspo...

Um...wow. That was only completely epic!! Mari Mancusi is officially one of my favorite authors. I read her book, Tomorrow Land, and adored it. Alternity was just as amazing!

The concept of this book is a mindbender. A girl wakes up to find out her whole life was a lie. Literally. I love that kind of mind twister, so when I found out an author I liked was writing a one, I was thrilled. And, after reading it, I'm even more ecstatic.

Skye was a confusing character. But not in a bad way. She just didn't know who she was. And just when you think you've figured it out, something comes up and changing this up. She was understandably befuddled. At first, she wanted nothing to do with the world she woke up into. And that was a little frustrating to read through. But I can't fault her, because, if I was in her situation, I would want to deal with the strange world I was suddenly thrown into. But, later, she proves herself. She was brave, selfless, and clever and she assimilated into her new world and the situation she inherited. And, damn, she could handle herself in a fight, with her beast katana skills. She really was an admirable character.

I LOVED Dawn. Oh, how I adored him. Despite believing that he was betrayed by the girl he loved, he still loves her completely, mind, body, and soul. His love for Mariah/Skye was an all-consuming, epic-love-story kind of love. It just warmed by heart. Even when he's angry with Skye for Miriah's betrayal, after finding that she doesn't remember anything, he is so sweet to her and so determined to protect her from the dystopian government. And when he finds out the truth about Sky/Mariah (no, I won't tell, no matter how much I want to), he still stands by her. And, btw, the truth about his as surprising as the truth about Skye.

The plot was a thrill ride. There were so many twist, so many surprises, that I was positively winded by the time I finished the book. I kept me hooked all the way through, on the edge of my seat. And the world Mari created was just amazing. With the world-building done meticulously, the world of Terra felt vivid. A dark and barren place controlled by a corrupt government. Truly fantastic setting. The ending, much like Tomorrow Land, was a perfect ending that wrapped up the book nicely.

If you like dystopians, or just books that never cease throwing surprises at you, you will adore Alternity. I certainly did :)

5/5

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy!(less)

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Jun 19, 2013 Jaime rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I won this in a Goodreads giveaway.

I don't usually enjoy dystopian novels, but the description sounded great:
Skye Brown thought she was your typical college student--good grades, hot boyfriend, and an internship that pays her to play videogames.

Video games? A college student (that is, not a high school teen like so many other books)? I'm in.

It's not "post apocalyptic" in the sense that there are few people and everything went to hell on earth. It's post-nuclear, to where it's 2107 (though prob...more I won this in a Goodreads giveaway.

I don't usually enjoy dystopian novels, but the description sounded great:
Skye Brown thought she was your typical college student--good grades, hot boyfriend, and an internship that pays her to play videogames.

Video games? A college student (that is, not a high school teen like so many other books)? I'm in.

It's not "post apocalyptic" in the sense that there are few people and everything went to hell on earth. It's post-nuclear, to where it's 2107 (though probably not based on our current time), over a century after warring countries nuked each other. You know, kind of like what we're heading to now.

Skye awakes on Terra but believes she's from Earth, both of which are different planets. There she begins with the Indys, where the people of power are. A group called the Circle of Eight, made up of the royals, runs the government. And Skye comes to learn that she is really Mariah, a royal daughter, a person who is supposed to be in the Circle.
She learns this from the Dark Siders, where the Eclipsers are headquartered. The latter group is made up of those (both Dark Siders AND Indys) who have been rebelling against the government.

Recently, the government began 'Gazing - Moongazing - which allowed people to travel to Earth. But Skye and the Eclipsers (one of whom is Dawn, Mariah's former boyfriend) are determined to expose the lies.
And the truth.

The Dark Siders are deep underground, where the poor and those with deformities are kept and controlled by the government. Indys are also underground, though in a much more NYC-type city. Deformities are caused by radiation, and the government is putting most of its efforts into going to the surface with drones that are not susceptible to radiation poisoning.

(view spoiler)(less)

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Oct 23, 2012 Kassie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: such-a-wasted-premise-pity, so-conflicted, frustrated-with

Ok so this book was good, if not average in the beginning, awesome at one point (predictable plot twist but well executed) then had a rushed if not disappointing ending. The insta love? Really dislike it. It would have been great if Dawn just grew to care about Skye not fall for her in days, I mean how many scenes did they have together, 6? Smh. If it was a friendship you know, where it was implied that they would be more later, after the book was over, after They were positive they loved each...more

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Nov 05, 2012 Bethany rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, dystopian, netgalley, sci-fi, post-apocalyptic

I received a copy of this book through Netgalley on behalf of NLA Digital Liaison Platform LLC.

Alternity was an exciting and intriguing story. Skye Brown is just your average NYU student. She goes to school, hangs out at clubs with her DJ boyfriend and goes to work as a beta tester for RPG games. Her life is everything she could wish for.

Then come the nightmares; vivid dreams of another place called Terra, another life, one where she doesn't know who she is. In these dreams, people call her Mar...more

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Oct 12, 2012 Ioana rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: apocalypse-now, arc, dystopia, my-reviews, netgalley, romance, scifi, young-adult

This novel was originally published in print as Moongazer, back in 2010, which made for some confusing 10 minutes when I discovered two books with the same blurbs.

Skye, the MC, is a normal college student. She has a roommate, friends, an annoying cousin and a sweet boyfriend. She also has terrifying, vivid nightmares, from which she wakes up scared and on the verge of having an asthma attack. I felt like the author tried too hard to make her the perfect geek. She’s in film school, she has a job...more

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Nov 01, 2012 Heather rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

(This review is also on my blog The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl).

When I read the synopsis of Alternity by Mari Mancusi, I knew I would probably love this book! I wasn't wrong. This book is amazing!

Skye is just your average 18 year old girl. There's nothing that different about her. She has a fantastic boyfriend, she goes to school, and she works as a video games tester. She's been having these strange nightmares about being in a weird place. They're making her lose sleep...more (This review is also on my blog The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl).

When I read the synopsis of Alternity by Mari Mancusi, I knew I would probably love this book! I wasn't wrong. This book is amazing!

Skye is just your average 18 year old girl. There's nothing that different about her. She has a fantastic boyfriend, she goes to school, and she works as a video games tester. She's been having these strange nightmares about being in a weird place. They're making her lose sleep until one day she actually wakes up in the place from her nightmare. Now she doesn't know who to trust. And why do people keep calling her Mariah?? Skye soon discovers she's arrived on another planet, and something sinister is going on.

The title to this book is great!! Alternity - like an alternative reality. It definitely fits right in with the story. From what I've heard, this book was originally released under the title of Moongazing. I'm glad the author decided to change the title as Alternity sounds like a much more interesting title.

I love the sci-fi feel of this cover. The picture of Skye on the front with a katana and the moon in the background is perfect for this story. I'm usually not a fan of just putting a pretty face on the cover, but it seems to work with this book.

I thought the world building and setting were fantastic!! The author has us believe that the planet of Terra is very much like Earth would be if there was to be some sort of post apocalyptic event. There's no sun, no sky...just bleakness. The underground bit of Terra is portrayed rather well with it being full of the poor people of Terra and those who have been mutated by radiation due to having to mine for the rich people.

The pacing for Alternity is beyond fantastic! In fact, I couldn't put this book down! Each chapter had me looking forward to the next as everything just flowed really well. Never, not even for one moment, was I even remotely bored reading Alternity.

The dialogue is fantastic in this book. I especially enjoyed the dialogue between Dawn and Skye. There are a few swear words but not many. The only minor annoyance I found was that at two points in the book, the author goes from using present tense to past tense.

The characters in this book are very believable. Skye was a great protagonist. She felt like a real person. In fact, I found myself wanting to be friends with her especially as we both have a love for video games! I love the fact that she started out a bit unsure of herself but throughout the story, she became a strong person. Dawn came across as a lovely guy. He wants what's best for his people, and he'll do whatever it takes to protect them. Duske makes an excellent villain. He's very charming, but he can be very very vile. He is very believable as being a bad guy, and he plays the role excellently.

Alternity by Mari Mancusi is a well executed book that will leave you feeling as if you are a part of the book. This is definitely one of those books that you have to read as you will not be disappointed!

I'd recommend this book to everyone aged 16+, especially those who are fans of dystopian or post-apocalyptic novels. However, I feel this is one of those books that can be enjoyed by almost everyone.(less)

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Nov 25, 2012 Kristin (Blood,Sweat and Books) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

*I downloaded this book off Netgalley to review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated in any way for providing them.

Review:

The best way I can describe Alternity is Metropolis meets V for Vendetta which meets something else altogether in a back alley somewhere. Unfortunately the book doesn't quite pull off the mashup of this surreal,technological,Dystopian world well. I want to start with the cons first because I feel that they outweighed the positives.

Cons

World Building- The World o...more *I downloaded this book off Netgalley to review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated in any way for providing them.

Review:

The best way I can describe Alternity is Metropolis meets V for Vendetta which meets something else altogether in a back alley somewhere. Unfortunately the book doesn't quite pull off the mashup of this surreal,technological,Dystopian world well. I want to start with the cons first because I feel that they outweighed the positives.

Cons

World Building- The World of Terra seems like it was built with just enough information to satisfy the casual reader but not enough to really envelop the senses of someone familiar with the genre. I felt that the World was lacking richness and depth. It's almost like the Author couldn't make up her mind how she wanted it to be so just gave up trying entirely.

Skye- Where do I start? Skye is just not a likable character she is stubborn, a bit prudish and definitely not the heroine I was expecting her to be. I got angry at Skye insisting she needed to get back to the "real" world but actually never giving any good reason why. I could understand if she was worried her family might be upset with her absence or worrying over her boyfriend but they aren't mentioned as a reason. Hell if she had said she was worried about missing to many classes I'd even be happy. Now not everything about Skye was bad she was enjoyable to read about while interacting with Dawn and her character did come to life at the end but sadly it was to little and late for me to care.

Pacing- I enjoyed the first couple chapters but then the book slowed way down and for no real good reason. It also became way to technical and I definitely feel that was to blame for the pacing problem. It did pick back up at the end and that was this books saving grace so to speak.

Pros

The Plot- I liked the concept of Alternity and the bare bones of the story was certainly unique but the execution could of been much, much better.

The Ending- I really enjoyed the "twists" in the story. While I could tell where things were heading I definitely was left satisfied when all was revealed.

Skye's Narration- I felt that while yes Skye was a pretty dull character I liked seeing the story unfold through her eyes. It was almost like watching a movie.

Overall this book had some hits and a bunch of misses but in the end it was a good read. I have however come to the conclusion that I think this Author isn't for me. This is the second book I've read by Mari Mancusi and the second time I've been left feeling less than satisfied. Many of the main problems in Tomorrow Land I felt transferred over to this book as well. Certainly give this book a shot and judge for yourself. It was at least worth a one time read. In the end I will be giving Alternity by Mari Mancusi ★★★. Worth a read, worth your time but definitely not without some major bumps along the way.(less)

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Oct 17, 2012 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: r2r-complete, read-2012

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to NLA Digital Liaison Platform LLC, and Netgalley.)
18-year-old Skye Brown goes to college in New York, and beta tests new video games for an all-female games company. She thinks that her worst problem at the moment is the strange nightmares that she’s been having where she is chased through underground tunnels by strange men who want to capture her and inject her with weird green fluid, she’s wrong.

Things...more (Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to NLA Digital Liaison Platform LLC, and Netgalley.)
18-year-old Skye Brown goes to college in New York, and beta tests new video games for an all-female games company. She thinks that her worst problem at the moment is the strange nightmares that she’s been having where she is chased through underground tunnels by strange men who want to capture her and inject her with weird green fluid, she’s wrong.

Things are about to get a whole lot stranger for Skye as she finds herself in a strange underground place, and she’s pretty sure she’s not dreaming now. The only thing she knows is to find Dawn, and stay away from Duske, something that her personal trainer told her, and she has no idea how to do either of those things. Add to that the fact that people here seem to think that her name is Mariah, that she’s a traitor, and that she’s addicted to ‘moongazing’ drugs (which they seem to think her asthma inhaler contains), and she’s in a whole heap of trouble!
Who is she really? Is she Skye, or is she Mariah? Did she really end up on earth and brainwashed by Duske, or is it just a case of mistaken identity? Are the drugs in her asthma inhaler really these ‘moongazing’ drugs? And why do people keep telling her to ‘not look into the moon’?

This was an interesting story, with a whole other world (Terra) built on the edge of our reality. I felt about as confused as Skye at times, and could totally understand how she’d have a hard time being suddenly thrust into this whole other world and hailed as some kind of hero/traitor. I think she actually did pretty well to cope as well as she did, but she was also pretty clueless most of the time, and totally not the kick-ass heroine I was expecting.

I was in two minds over the people Skye met in Terra, and who she should and shouldn’t trust. I thought that Dawn was a little unfair on her when she had absolutely no memory of her life as ‘Mariah’, whilst Duske just seemed to use her lack of knowledge to his advantage and continued to try and use her.

I liked the technology that they had in Terra with flying motorbikes, and I liked the way there was both a reason and consequence for living underground. I also liked how they called the escape routes ‘rabbit holes’, and Skye’s metaphor of ‘feeling like Alice in Wonderland’.

I’m afraid I thought the twist at the end a bit far-fetched, and unbelievable, it kind-of cheapened the whole story, and I didn’t like it. It really wasn’t the twist that I would have picked, and it really spoilt the ending for me.
Overall; an interesting idea but it lacked excitement, and I didn’t like the ending.
6 out of 10.

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Nov 20, 2012 Naoms rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebooks, dystopia, netgalley-edelweis, nook, read-in-2012, review-copy, science-fiction, ya-fiction

Originally posted on Confessions of an Opinionated Book Geek

2.5 Stars

The synopsis of this book is interesting. It pulled me right in. I always think my life has to be a dream, well, a nightmare. The idea of Skye waking up and told her world was all fake, fascinated me. However, this book did not. “Alternity” has a really great plot and just a so-so execution.

Terra is a unique idea on the part of Mari Mancusi, the author. It is easy to imagine a world underground with its tunnels and upstairs, d...more

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Nov 17, 2012 Janice (the_red1) rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, netgalley, received-for-review, sci-fi-aliens

Click here to see this and other reviews at The Demon Librarian blog

Meh.

That's my overall feeling after reading Alternity. Just....meh.

In a nutshell, the story is about a girl who wakes up in an alternate world (where everyone thinks she is someone else) and finds herself in the middle of a bitter conflict between two opposing factions. As stories go, it seems promising enough, and to a certain point, the book delivers. The writing flows well, and each scene is clearly painted. I had no troub...more

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Dec 05, 2012 J.A. Huss rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Alternity was a fun, fast read that held my interest throughout the entire book. In this book we’ve got a mystery – who is Skye, really? Is she this Mariah? I admit, I had one opinion for almost the entire book but was surprised in the end. I loved the surprise! It was a good way to tie it all together and it made Skye more real, in my opinion.

At first I went back and forth on whether or not I was buying Skye’s oblivious nature to the going-ons around her. I kept thinking (view spoiler)...more

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Nov 26, 2012 Reading and Rising With the Sun rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was so amazing. It takes place on Terra - a world much like our own. We meet Skye Brown, our main character, as a girl who is from Earth. As the story progresses, Skye begins questioning everything about herself and her life, including where she came from, and where she ultimately belongs.

The story had many twists and turns that kept me guessing, and it was a very unique and gripping story line I liked seeing Skye slowly get to know who she is, as opposed to fighting it and herself. S...more

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Oct 27, 2012 Angela rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: dystopian-utopian-apocalyptic, ebooks, first-reads, netgalley, read-2012, science-fiction, ya-children-s

Glad I stuck this one out as it eventually became rather good. For me it took far too long for the main action of the story to come together and there was far too much second-guessing about what was actually going on and the message the author was trying to convey.

I was not particularly fond of the main protagonist for about two-thirds of this story; she seemed rather whiney and quite frankly, stupid. She was selfish and made far too many generalisations about her predicament but didn't show an...more

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Oct 22, 2012 Abby rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

KEY WORDS: Romance, Rebellion, Different words, Apocalypse,

IN SHORT: A great mystery with great action and great unexpected twists.

Ginny's (The pug's) Review:
This is a ARC review thanks to NETGALLERY.

This is my first time reading Mari Mancusi work and I will defiantly be begging for more books from her, Alternity is a rollercoster of a read that takes us on a fast paced journey of identity, rebellion and corrupt governments that will keep you up late into the night reading.

In this installment Ma...more

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Oct 25, 2012 Kris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Look at that cover! Isn't it gorgeous?! Yes, I'm a cover-whore, and I would have totally grabbed the book if it wasn't already offered to me.

Its been awhile since I've read dystopian, so this was a good change of pace for me. The last dystopian book I read I was so disappointed in. This was a quick read that had me enamored from the first few pages. It didn't feel like a dystopian book since it kept going back and forth from reality to reality. Was it sci-fi, fantasy, dystopian? You didn't real...more

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Dec 25, 2012 Alex rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: yes I would!

Shelves: post-apocalypse

Matrix + Alice in wonderland = Alternity

To be short and quick this book is about a girl named Skye who's a college student in New York and is seemingly transported between two reality, one reality on earth and the other on Terra (which is just like earth, if there had been a third world war that destroyed the surface of the planet). On Terra Skye is believed to be a girl named Mariah Quinn, who's the leader of a group called the Eclipsers who work against the evil government to get equality for...more

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Apr 16, 2013 Sam Wilkes rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved the idea of this book. It was almost like a young adult version of The Matrix. The story is about a normal college girl named Skye who has really weird nightmares that she's in another world. Then she ends up in that other world where people are telling her that she used to be a revolutionary leader named Mariah. Skye doesn't know what's the real world and what's the dream, but either way she just wants to go back to normal life. I kind of like this about the book, that she wants to go b...more

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Mar 06, 2013 ARe Cafe rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: bbb-picks, are-top-picks

Alternity is the ARe Cafe top pick in speculative romance for February.

Skye Brown was a normal college student. She played video games, had a boyfriend, and a job. All of a sudden, though, her dreams start taking weird turns to a post apocalyptic world, rebel leaders and handsome soldiers. She’s fighting between a dream world and reality, but which version is the dream?

The world building was very good and everything you want in a good sci-fi book. Mancusi has shown her talent as a writer and I’l...more

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Nov 19, 2012 L.j. Duett rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Alright folks, lets all settle in to discuss the book cover for Alternity. Anyone else feeling a bit queasy? No? Okay maybe not queasy but how about dizzy? No? Well, needless to say it but I get dizzy looking at the optical illusion of this cover. I guess I'm just strange like that. Other than the weird feeling of having jumped off a merry-go-round, I like the cover. The katana welding female looks bad but in a good intimidating way. I think of Michael Jackson's song when I see it, well actually...more

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Jan 16, 2013 Lauren rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: 17+ sciFy readers

Shelves: unsure-expectations, annoying-heroine, fell-flat

I'm not too sure how I feel about this book. I feel bad giving it a 2 (I would stretch to say my rating is a 2.5) but I didn't really enjoy the first half of the book.

The whole concept of the book was what intrigued me to read it. After reading the description I was reminded of the anime .hack//sign and how similar the plots were. That should have been my first clue that I was in for a confusing and odd book because that anime still puzzles me to this very day and I've seen every episode twice.

T...more I'm not too sure how I feel about this book. I feel bad giving it a 2 (I would stretch to say my rating is a 2.5) but I didn't really enjoy the first half of the book.

The whole concept of the book was what intrigued me to read it. After reading the description I was reminded of the anime .hack//sign and how similar the plots were. That should have been my first clue that I was in for a confusing and odd book because that anime still puzzles me to this very day and I've seen every episode twice.

The book jumps right into the action with no work-up to the main plot. Normally, I would be fine with this (I hate reading long and tedious events before the true plot of the story emerges) but with this it just confused me. I can appreciate a little bit of mystery to keep the reader interested but with this it felt like I should already know what was being discussed. The whole concept presented is very interesting and I can respect where Mari Mancusi was going with this.

Usually, I can predict how a book will end before the halfway point but with this, I really had no idea what was going on--let alone how it would end. It wasn't until I was 1/3 of the way through that pieces started to fall into place but I still didn't predict what was really going on until it was revealed (so thumbs up for an orginal twist).

Skye annoyed me to no end at the beginning. She was so wish-washy in her thoughts and convictions that it started to get on my nerves. After learning more about her character later in the book, I could somewhat understand why her character was presented that way but there were still a few things that I felt she should have reacted differently.

Do I regret reading this book? No, it definitely got better near the end but the ending seemed too abrupt for me to truly appreciate the story. I'm just glad it's not the start to a series that I would now feel compelled to read. There are better reads out there but if you want to take a chance on a different type of story, (and have the time to do so) then it might be worth the couple of hours it will take you to read this.

(Find more book series reviews and book recaps on my blog: http://seriesousbookreviews.wordpress...)(less)

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Jan 05, 2013 Kayla rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs, reviewed

See the original review on darkfaerietales.com/reviews

Skye Brown is an ordinary human from an ordinary college with an ordinary boyfriend. So when her ordinary life is interrupted by a not-so-ordinary nightmare, she is more than a little shaken up. But just a few puffs of her inhaler and everything's back to normal. Then those dreams become reality... that's when she starts freaking out.

Skye Brown is transferred to Terra--a post-apocalyptic underground city that hides from the surface due to nu...more See the original review on darkfaerietales.com/reviews

Skye Brown is an ordinary human from an ordinary college with an ordinary boyfriend. So when her ordinary life is interrupted by a not-so-ordinary nightmare, she is more than a little shaken up. But just a few puffs of her inhaler and everything's back to normal. Then those dreams become reality... that's when she starts freaking out.

Skye Brown is transferred to Terra--a post-apocalyptic underground city that hides from the surface due to nuclear wars. There are three types of people in Terra--the Indys, the rich and oblivious; the Dark Siders, the workforce and rebellious and the nTs, the enhanced robotic humans that will someday replace the Dark Siders as the workforce. When Skye wakes up inside a room in Moongazer Palace (the "teleport" to Earth and back,) she's lost and confused, but remembers what her yoga instructor told her before she left Earth. Call Dawn. But Dawn sees her as someone else; in fact everyone thinks she's Mariah Quinn, rebel leader extraordinare. But Skye knows, she's from Earth--even Duske, one of the leaders of Terra (also the guy her yoga teacher told her NOT to trust,) calls her by her real name, Skye. But then her reality is flipped. She doesn't know who to believe or even who she is anymore. Is her inhaler really for asthma or is it a drug from Moongazing that she's addicted to? But she must help the Dark Sider's cause. It'll only take a day, right?

Talk about complex. Fans of Inception will love this action-packed thriller with worlds within worlds and a heroine who faults become her strengths. The plot was filled with twists and turns, action scenes and a few steamy romance scenes. Everything was fast-paced--although the romance was a bit on the too fast side.

Dawn was Mariah Quinn's loyal boyfriend--before he thought she betrayed the entire rebellion and sold him out to the government. He thought he was through with her and her Moongazer ways. But then Skye calls him from Moongazer Palace. And all those feelings come rushing back. At first Dawn in wary--Skye may look and act like Mariah, but she isn't the woman he fell in love with. But then Skye proves she's loyal to the cause. All of a sudden BAM they love each other. This was the only problem I had with the book. They know each other for about a day, she leaves, comes back, and now all of a sudden Dawn gets over his feelings for Mariah and Skye forgets her boyfriend on Earth. So much for loyalty.

But other than that lightning fast romance, this book has an amazing plot. It's so intricate and complex that I had no idea where the ending was going to be or how it would play out. Some of the smaller obstacles seemed to be easily side-stepped, but hey there were bigger and better obstacles to overcome later. Props to Mancusi for creating so much suspense in one book.

And let's talk about this one book deal. IT ENDS IN A CLIFFHANGER. It's not a major one. In fact it's the average dystopian cliffhanger with rebellions brewing but the hero and heroine are together. But there is no talk of a sequel in the future! There's so much potential for a whole series from this one idea! There are so many strings still hanging by the end of the book, it's hard not to imagine a sequel. So please, Mancusi, if you are reading this, PLEASE make another one!
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title link	preview: Moongazer
avg rating	preview: Moongazer Goodreads rating: 3.69 (89 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10132654-moongazer?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1305059368l/10132654.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10132654-moongazer?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Moongazer by Mari Mancusi[/url]

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