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Unison Spark

by Andy Marino (Goodreads Author)

3.09 of 5 stars 3.09 · rating details · 95 ratings · 20 reviews

Everyone is obsessed with Unison, the social network that knows you better than you know yourself. Everyone who can afford it, that is. Living beneath the vast ceiling that separates Eastern Seaboard City into rich topside and poor sub-canopy zones, fifteen-year-old Mistletoe can only dream of logging in and has to make do with technological hand-me-downs.

Worlds collide

...more

Hardcover, 240 pages

Published November 8th 2011 by Henry Holt

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May 25, 2012 Hudson rated it 2 of 5 stars

I give this book two stars based on the Goodreads scale: "it was OK." This, I believe, sums up "Unison Spark;" while not an excellent book, it was worth reading. It must be taken into consideration that Andy Marino is a new author, this being his first book; this fact is apparent in "Unison Spark's" dialogue and setup. However, the book itself was indeed interesting--Mistletoe, the lead character, experiences some interesting and original plot twists that kept me reading. Ambrose Truax, the othe...more

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Apr 27, 2012 Ravenous Biblioworm rated it 3 of 5 stars

Rating: 2.5/5

And I thought the social networking craze of today was crazy. Mistletoe’s (aka Anna) world is even more insane. Marino creates a very interesting world with characters that propel forward into the midst of the ultimate social networking place. As I read through the novel, there are moments were I can relate to the book because of its references to the social networking world. But near the end the story jumbles and losing its grip on a firm reality. The web becomes real and reality b...more Rating: 2.5/5

And I thought the social networking craze of today was crazy. Mistletoe’s (aka Anna) world is even more insane. Marino creates a very interesting world with characters that propel forward into the midst of the ultimate social networking place. As I read through the novel, there are moments were I can relate to the book because of its references to the social networking world. But near the end the story jumbles and losing its grip on a firm reality. The web becomes real and reality becomes the interweb and soon I suddenly realize: I am lost.

The characters had a lot of potential. I understood them as a reader, but I didn’t quite feel them. There are very close moments (i.e. where Ambrose wanted to live in the memory of him chasing his brother after he threw a marble off the building) where I thought, “Wow, that was kind of a rich emotional experience.” I felt the longing and solitude at that moment and also felt the weight of Ambrose’s trouble with that simple memory. But for the most part the novel skims over the deep emotional aspect. Don’t misunderstand. I knew when they were happy, scared, and even when their feelings were being manipulated. It was told very well. There’s just wasn't enough of an emotional punch for a reader to fall in love with the characters or like the characters (or think them to be friends). Mistletoe could have been a great strong hero but she wasn’t pushed hard enough to be that badass chick. Even though she was the lead her connection to me fell below of that of Ambrose. I knew nothing of her. Besides that fact that Jiri may have been a father figure to her. Aside that I knew nothing of her personality aside the facts that she trying to survive in a tough world.

The tough world was hard to picture. This is where majority of the points is lost. While the idea comes across well the execution was a little shabby. I kept trying to imagine picture their world and I couldn’t. There wasn’t enough to go on and I felt like the gaps in my head were too bothersome. They live in skyscrapers. Large massive skyscrapers with holodecks (my borrowed word from Star Trek, Marino doesn’t use this word)? People live on different sectioned levels. At first I imagines something like the beginnings of The Fifth Element (the movie)… where there are hover cars and tall buildings. But then there are walk ways…. and then there are pastures on/in building. At one point I had to stop reading and digest what I just read and had a mini debate on what Marino was trying to tell me. Then there’s the bottom… you know the earth, very bottom…and beyond. Nothing describes what happened here. There was one scene where Mistletoe questions (with sarcasm) the fact that Ambrose has never been to THE bottom. Yes, he’s been to the bottom floor of his high society but the actual bottom of the building they live in. Supposedly these building reach past the clouds. They surpass the skyscrapers of todays world. They must be massive. One whole city turned into a giant skyscraper (this thought just occurred to me as I typed this review)… and if it was so then it would make much more sense, but this idea (of a city being built into one gigantic skyscraper) was never said in the novel.

The plot. It was the driving force of the story. Unfortunately, near the end it become so confusing and mixed I didn’t quite understand what I was going through anymore. I had to sit back and think about the most logical point and go from there. By the end, if you’re like me, you’ll wonder what part was reality and what parts were Unison’s (the social network world) world, or whether the real world has yet to be introduced at all. I’m betting those who enjoyed the book immensely enjoyed Ambrose and Mistletoe’s general storyline. They have to save the world(s). That point came across easily enough. But then throw in a virtual world and then some other world and then the possibility of dreams and then the real world and then the maybe real world?… and then the world outside of the dream of the dream world… mix all that together and what do we get? You get my point? It get’s confusing. O.o…. > . < …. ?(o.O)? X.X …. yes that was a simplistic emotes to describe what I thought the plot (the story under the general storyline of “save the world(s)”) was like.

Overall, this was an ambitious novel. The general idea and storyline was easy to understand, but the intimate story – what makes this book uniquely this book – came off confusing and scattered.

Verdict: Library check out.

Visit my book review blog at ravenousbiblioworm.wordpress.com/(less)

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Mar 18, 2012 Karen Yingling rated it 2 of 5 stars

I have developed Dystopia Overload.
From the Publisher: " Fifteen-year-old Mistletoe lives in the sub-canopy zone amid poverty and outdated technology, but when she meets Ambrose Truax, the privileged sixteen-year-old heir to the Unison empire and they discover they share a sinister link, they begin a frightening journey into the uncharted territory of the Unison 3.0 upgrade."

This one started out well, and I think that it is interesting that more and more of the dystopian books (like Cinder) are...more

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Jan 17, 2012 Rene Kirkpatrick rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really liked this book.

It was fun, futuristic, science-y, filled with villains you can't tell apart from family.

Unison is a social network that knows you better than you do and everyone who can afford it uses it. Our heroine, Mistletoe, lives in a world under the canopy, it reminds me of descriptions of the slums in Brazil, only bigger, building one on top of the other, hidden under the city of the wealthy. The poor live under a ceiling that the wealthy have built on top of, no electricity,...more

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Dec 18, 2011 Hylary Locsin rated it 1 of 5 stars

Originally posted on my blog: http://libraryladyhylary.blogspot.com ! Check it out for more reviews!

In the futuristic town of Eastern Seaboard City, society is divided into the canopy and sub-canopy zones, separated by a steel barrier that keeps the rich and poor from intermingling. Fifteen-year-old Mistletoe lives in the sub-canopy with her guardian, Jiri, dreaming of what life must be like topside for those who can afford to be a part of Unison. Described as the great-great-grandchild of Faceb...more Originally posted on my blog: http://libraryladyhylary.blogspot.com ! Check it out for more reviews!

In the futuristic town of Eastern Seaboard City, society is divided into the canopy and sub-canopy zones, separated by a steel barrier that keeps the rich and poor from intermingling. Fifteen-year-old Mistletoe lives in the sub-canopy with her guardian, Jiri, dreaming of what life must be like topside for those who can afford to be a part of Unison. Described as the great-great-grandchild of Facebook or Myspace, Unison is a virtual reality social network that most people living above the canopy spend their lives logged into, their “fleshbound” existence no longer important. Ambrose Truax, the fifteen-year-old son and heir of Unison’s creator, Martin Truax, spends his life helping his father and brother, Len, manage Unison. Mistletoe and Ambrose are about to cross paths, however, when a mysterious message transferred to Ambrose against his will warns him that his life is a lie and that his father cannot be trusted. Longing for the truth, Ambrose leaves his privileged life topside and ventures down into the sub-canopy city of Little Saigon. After saving him from a run-in with police intent on returning him to his father, Mistletoe and Ambrose discover that they have something startling in common: a shared nightmare of a stark lab and grisly wires. What is the connection between Mistletoe and Ambrose, and how will the truths they eventually uncover affect the future of Unison?

This debut novel from author Andy Marino weaves an interesting but often overly complicated tale that, unfortunately, makes for a confusing read. The overall concept and setting of the novel is, by far, Marino’s biggest achievement. The topic of extreme social-networking is something that has been featured more and more in popular culture in recent years, particularly through movies like Gamer and Surrogates. Readers who are familiar with these films will undoubtedly see plot similarities: the idea of people ceasing to exist in their physical lives and instead being only digital projections, the ability to form a new identity online that is completely different from reality. Marino adds new elements to these concepts by including things like status updates, friend requests, event invites, and other Facebook-ish terms that readers, especially teens, will be able to identify with. The society in which Unison exists is also interesting, with the topside/sub-canopy distinction, holo-fashion and atmoscrapers. Where the novel falls flat, however, is in character development. Mistletoe and Ambrose are the two most flushed out personalities in the story, but are still difficult to side with because the reader knows so little about them. Other, more promising characters are introduced but given no opportunity for development. The result is a plot that is full of twists, turns, and complexities but is unable to engage the reader, leaving them, instead, confused. It is clear that author Andy Marino has many interesting ideas, however, and hopefully, in upcoming novels, improvements will lead to more enjoyable and engaging stories.

I really love the concept of the all-consuming social network and so I really wanted to love this novel. Unfortunately, I found it to be too confusing and the characters too under-developed for me to really enjoy it. There were definitely some highpoints in the story (I thought the topside/sub-canopy idea to be interesting and the descriptions of holo-fashion and life in Unison), but I just could not get into the book. One of my biggest problems was that I didn’t like Mistletoe at all, but there was no one else in the story for me to really latch onto as my preferred character. That being said, however, I do think that Andy Marino has some really great ideas that I would love to see flushed out more in future novels. I would definitely be interested in picking up his next book to see what it’s like!(less)

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Apr 03, 2012 Snickerdoodle rated it 3 of 5 stars

Okay. Spoilers ahead.

There were a few problems I had with this book. (3 stars mean I enjoyed it, though! No worries!)

One: Her name is freaking Mistletoe. Mistletoe?! Okay, sure, she picks it out for herself and la la la. But really? Mistletoe?

Two: Her. Hair. Is. Blue. How does this not hint to her that she's not quite human?

Three: It was a little slow in the beginning.

Four: By the end I was trying to connect events within my poor little brain.

Pluses:

The world-building. You get a sense that Uniso...more

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May 04, 2012 Michelle Rocha rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: adventure, current-issue, dystopia, science-fiction

The idea of this book is great and I had pretty high hopes before I started but it just didn't hook me the way I expected it too. Terms like process flow and thought stream were too confusing to figure out and I wasn't invested enough in the plot or characters to spend the mental energy to work it all out in my brain. It was an overall frustrating book to read and it took me over two weeks to get through it. I would imagine many students feeling the same frustration. It could have been a great b...more

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Jul 08, 2012 Kirsty (overflowing library) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Unison 3.0 is a fast paced and interesting sci-fi which I enjoyed and left me with lots of think about.

The reason why I think this book will appeal to Young Adults is because it is really fast paced and plays around with a lot of ideas about social network and the place it will evolve to in the future which in all honesty is quite a scary idea. It follows the story of two characters, Ambrose and Mistletoe two teenagers. Ambrose comes from the upper-level and has spent his life and career involv...more

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Mar 28, 2012 Cassandra (The Book & Movie Dimension blogger) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: received-for-review, sciencefiction, to-review, favorites

--Full, non-spoiler review courtesy at Book & Movie Dimension a Blog--

Unison Spark 2.0 is a new update from Facebook and the old Twitter that has never before been seen. A program that makes you feel like your actually physically part of a huge digital world. Once your plugged in your in it as if your in real life. People there have popularity stats in a way to allow ranking. Ambrose Truax is the heir to the empire of Unison Spark and son of Martin Truax, so his ranking is the highest and mo...more

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Dec 19, 2011 Katie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Unison Spark is a very unique story and a great debut novel from Andy Marino. I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading his future books.

The world of ESC and Unison is unlike any I have read about. Unison is basically the king of social networks and it is scary to think that someday we might come to that point. I really think the world that Andy Marino created is his strongest point. I loved reading about it and how it got to where it was.

The characters, on the other hand, were th...more

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Apr 06, 2012 Jeremiah rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: done-4

Entry 1-
Ambrose and Mistletoe aka.Anna are the main characters and protagonists.Aunt Dita and anyone else for their cause is bad. Martin Truaxand his gang are very bad and are antagonists.

Entry 2-
The setting is on Nelson and in Unison.The point of view switches bet Ambose and Mistletoe.

Entry 3-
These people created Ambrose and Mistletoe from a tube and since they are getting too old the police and Martin Truax, the most prominent person are after them, but Ambrose and Mistletoe defeat Martin.

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Sep 16, 2012 Erin Sterling rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: character, eaglereads, middle-school, read-in-2012, story, teen-fiction, teen-sci-fi

Unison Spark - the social network that knows you better than you know yourself, if you're wealthy enough that is. Solid science fiction about a social network virtual reality world, a girl who lives in the sub-canopy of this futuristic world who has never used Unison Spark, and her encounter with the heir of the social network throne who is discovering secrets he didn't want to know. Fast-paced, exciting, but not my favorite dystopian/sci fi for teens.

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Nov 27, 2011 slayra rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-reads, in-english, ya-sci-fi-ish

RATING: 2.5 stars.

I'm not sure about this book. I think it would have been great if the author had developed the story a lot more. As it was it was little more than a short story and I felt we didn't get to know Ambrose and Mistletoe much.

It was very "Uglies" in a way and also a mesh between 'The Matrix' and 'The Social Network'.

Full review to come.

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Apr 04, 2012 Clare rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: reject

I just couldn't get into this somewhat clunkily written young adult book. The premise seemed to fall somewhere between the Matrix (people in machines) and Avatar (Long blue hair - optic fibres etc.)

Don't get me wrong, it wasn't awful as such - I'd just rather spend my time reading something I don't have to mentally scoff at.

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Sep 02, 2012 Jaime Kennett rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book was very confusing and kept losing me. I kept finding myself saying, "Wait, what?" and having to reread to see if I missed something. Nope. It was just completely disjointed. I really tried to like like this book, however it ended up being me just trying to get through the book in hopes that it would all come together. Sadly, it did not.

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Jun 03, 2012 Aererion // Javi rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Decepcionante, se mete en mil cosas que, debido entre otras cosas a su corta duración, sólo consiguen liar un mediocre argumento principal. Puede que con 5 años menos se hubiera merecido 3 o incluso 4 estrellas, pero ahora se quedaría en unas 2.5

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Mar 24, 2012 Beth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young_adult

Meet a character with blue pigtails named Mistletoe. She's going to learn that nothing is what she thought it would be. If you like The Gardener than this book is right up your alley.

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Jun 21, 2011 Sam Musher rated it 3 of 5 stars

A fun mind-bending bit of sci-fi. I can see it appealing to the kids who loved Uglies more for the action and the world creation than for the fantasy-fulfillment of being Pretty. (Full review at http://www.parenthetical.net/2011/06/...)

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Apr 18, 2012 Saralibrary rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

I greatly enjoyed the first two-thirds of Unison Spark, but got a bit confused towards the end. Some of the details of the final reveal were a bit muddled and frantic. I liked the basic idea of the book, though and it's a great read for teens and tweens who enjoy science fiction.

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Apr 30, 2012 Eliza rated it 4 of 5 stars

Fresh, new and different story that definitely had a creepier side to it.

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May 18, 2013 Katie Garretson marked it as to-read

May 17, 2013 Micimaus is currently reading it · review of another edition

May 15, 2013 Maddy marked it as meine-ungelesene-bücher · review of another edition

Shelves: will-ich-lesen, w-i-l-my-books, meine-bücher

May 10, 2013 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars

May 06, 2013 Kayce added it · review of another edition

May 01, 2013 Carol marked it as to-read

Apr 29, 2013 AV marked it as to-read

Apr 18, 2013 Shadowelfqueen marked it as to-read

Apr 17, 2013 Hayley marked it as to-read

Apr 16, 2013 Fred21 marked it as to-read

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About Andy Marino

Andy Marino was born and raised in upstate New York. He spent his childhood orchestrating Lego pirate battles, drawing detailed maps of imaginary video games, and cheating death in Choose Your Own Adventure books. Profoundly influenced by the work of J.R.R. Tolkien and the movie Bloodsport, he started writing his first novel at the age of eleven. Tragically, THE RUNES OF ILLIARM was never complete...more

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