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When We Wake

(When We Wake #1)

Karen Healey (Goodreads Author)

3.66 · Rating details · 5,292 ratings · 753 reviews

Sixteen-year-old Tegan is just like every other girl living in 2027—she's happiest when playing the guitar, she's falling in love for the first time, and she's joining her friends to protest the wrongs of the world: environmental collapse, social discrimination, and political injustice.

But on what should have been the best day of Tegan's life, she dies—and wakes up a ...more

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Hardcover, 304 pages

Published March 5th 2013 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (first published January 1st 2013)

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Jun 15, 2016 Aj the Ravenous Reader rated it really liked it

Recommended to Aj the Ravenous Reader by: Jobelle Aqui

Shelves: sci-fi, dystopia, physically-owned-books

3.75 stars!

Just when I thought I’d never find another good dystopian read again, here comes an unexpected book, (courtesy of my friend, Jobelle) and I really enjoyed it. I’m only frowning at the conclusion because I don’t have the second book and I really want to continue with the story of Tegan Oglietti, also called “Teeg” and yep, her name alone has already bought me completely. It also helps a lot that she’s a total kick-ass and adorably sarcastic.

Who wouldn’t sympathize with a sixteen year ...more

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Mar 14, 2013 Ai Haibara rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Across the Universe fans-kind of

Recommended to Ai Haibara by: me judging the cover and blurb

Shelves: me-and-my-opinions-reviews, pretty-fave-covers, i-love-you-more-than-cup-noodles, kick-ass-cover, that-was-unexpected

DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE MEDIOCRE AVERAGE RATING THIS BOOK HAS BECAUSE IT IS REALLY REALLY GOOD

description

Honestly I did not have high hopes for this book because of it's deja vu Across the Universe storyline but this was actually really good!

So, in the year of 2027, Teegan was living the best day of her life. However, that ends abruptly when she gets shot and finds herself 100 years into the future when she wakes up from being cryonically frozen.

The world building of When we wake was explored quite ...more

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Apr 03, 2012 Giselle rated it liked it

Shelves: own, arc

What happens after death? Well for Tegan, it's another life. 100 years from now. A fascinating premise indeed! Who's not intrigued by the future? Curious about the state of our planet, the technology, even the fashion? I was really excited to get into this book and for the most part it I really enjoyed it. My problems mostly lay with the way the book came off as a big environmental/social speech.

Tegan is in love and it's all pretty and roses, then she abruptly wakes up… 100 years from now. That What happens after death? Well for Tegan, it's another life. 100 years from now. A fascinating premise indeed! Who's not intrigued by the future? Curious about the state of our planet, the technology, even the fashion? I was really excited to get into this book and for the most part it I really enjoyed it. My problems mostly lay with the way the book came off as a big environmental/social speech.

Tegan is in love and it's all pretty and roses, then she abruptly wakes up… 100 years from now. That would be a shocker on pretty much anybody. I liked how this was done, she was on the defensive, not believing anybody and fighting to get her way. She was a great protagonist for this story and I found her very likeable. Same with the secondary characters she comes to meet and call friends. They were all a little quirky with their own traits and personalities. I liked that they weren't just fluffy plot fillers, they were fun characters and also very loyal to Tegan. Even though she leaves her love behind in the past, she does meet a new guy in the future (of course! ;) and the romance is, although I wouldn't call it chemistry filled, very sweet and well paced.

The plot itself is intriguing, too, we have the usual secrets and conspiracies that come about during the story. We know that what we're told are most likely lies. It's also told through Tegan's voice, her telling us a story that's already happened to her, so she adds short commentaries at spots to make us understand that we should be wary of everything she's being told at this point. I thought this was very well done, it added a great touch of suspense into the novel. The world building itself, though, I will say I expected more. We're suddenly 100 years in the future and not a whole lot is said about society itself. Cars, building, every day life, we don't get any of those details and it came off as very anticlimactic for what you'd expect in a setting such as this. We do get into some details in regards to computers and the environment--the planet as a whole--but it still leaves too many unexplained areas that I'd think anyone talking about the future would immediately want to know.

The environment, however, nope, that one was not forgotten! Our people's damaging ways and prejudices against several minorities were brought up so much in this book that it felt like a big speech on what our corrupt ways will bring if we don't change. The planet dying, extremists who are trying to take things into their own hands, gay marriage being universally accepted, topics like this kept being brought up and not in a way to strengthen world building either--though it did work for that in some ways--but forcefully so that it felt like the book was yelling at me. Yelling at our generation for being the eventual end-all of our world. Shame on us! The first thing I did upon finishing this book was ask a friend "Did you feel this book was very preachy? Like a big speech on how our world is corrupt?"

A fantastic concept, compelling writing, and great characters, When We Wake does have a lot to offer. I wouldn't say it's an especially memorable read, I can already tell I will forget most of this book in a few months, but even with my issues it's still fun and suspenseful while it lasts.

--
An advance copy was provided by the publisher for review.

For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads

...more

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Aug 09, 2018 Emer (A Little Haze) rated it did not like it

Recommended to Emer (A Little Haze) by: Mirjam

Shelves: challenge-sum2018, read2018, 1star, reviewed

Read as part of the ABN Summer Reading Challenge recommended by Mirjam

Tedious. Clunky prose. Utterly lacking in subtlety. Laden with agenda. Poorly structured. Lacking in dynamic characters.
Generally dismal. Ironic how it's called when we wake when all it did was made me fall asleep from boredom.

Sorry Mirjam. I guess you and I are utterly diametrically opposed to each other when it comes to rating books. I'm sure someday we will find a book we both love with equal measure but sadly this one ...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Amanda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: review-on-the-blog, for-review, ya-lit, aussie, allen-and-unwin, sci-fi, dystopian, january-2013-release, nz-ya, aww-2013

When We Wake by Karen Healey is set in Melbourne, firstly in the year 2027 and later in the year 2127. In the beginning Tegan Oglietti is sixteen and on her way to a climate change protest, along with her best friend, Alex, and her new boyfriend, Dalmar. But her day doesn't go to plan and she wakes up 100 years later to find out she is the first person to successfully be awakened from a cryogenic state. She’s told she’s part of a special project to bring soldiers back to life, but she soon finds When We Wake by Karen Healey is set in Melbourne, firstly in the year 2027 and later in the year 2127. In the beginning Tegan Oglietti is sixteen and on her way to a climate change protest, along with her best friend, Alex, and her new boyfriend, Dalmar. But her day doesn't go to plan and she wakes up 100 years later to find out she is the first person to successfully be awakened from a cryogenic state. She’s told she’s part of a special project to bring soldiers back to life, but she soon finds out that’s not the truth.

When We Wake was such a thought-provoking book. In Tegan’s original life, the world is already suffering from extreme weather conditions. It’s only spring in Melbourne yet most people avoid going outdoors during the middle of the day because it’s just too hot. When she wakes up in 2127, the world is even worse; houses are now built with a level sunken into the ground, to try and keep them cooler. There are no more flushing toilets, almost everyone is vegetarian because it’s impossible to raise, feed, and water livestock and it’s extremely hot all the time. There are wars between countries who were formally allies, Australia has a no-migrant policy, and people from third-world countries are looked down on and referred to as thirdies. Basically, it sounds awful but completely believable. Although, there were some good aspects; for one, everyone being vego (it’s not surprising I think that, right?), and that in mainstream society peoples’ sexuality is more accepted than it is now. Also, most people have small, pliable, portable computers that can do almost anything and everything for you.

I liked Tegan from the beginning, she’s smart, energetic (she enjoys free-running), and is a big fan of The Beatles – particularly Ringo. She also handles the news really well, I think most people would have flipped out or become depressed, but Tegan makes a good go of her second chance at life, despite having to mourn the loss of her mother, brother, Alex and Dalmar who all went on to live their lives and pass away years before she was awakened. I really liked Dr Marie, the women in charge of the project, and her new friends Bethari, Joph and Abdi. I appreciated that the slow romantic build up was not the focus of Tegan’s story, she had bigger issues to deal with.

The story had me hooked from the beginning as it starts with Tegan explaining a little about her family and letting the reader know she will be telling us her story. It’s clear that things in her new life have gotten messy and I was keen to know what had happened and what the secret behind the cryo-project was.

I also have to mention all the Beatles references and lyrics scattered throughout the book as well as the fact that each chapter starts with the title of a Beatles song – I loved this addition to the book.

When We Wake is a unique look at a futuristic world, featuring a solid cast of characters, and an intriguing and action-packed plot. It’s ahead of the pack when it comes to dystopian YA ...more

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Jun 30, 2013 Sam Cristol rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: Middle schoolers

Rating: 1.5

First things first, let's talk about what this book did well. For example, the idea behind the book was really cool. The cover design was also really great. Also, the first chapter or so was a really great start to an interesting story.

Other than that though? Just put the book down. Stop- yes stop right there. If you're expecting it to be amazing (like I was), then you need to either lower your expectations, or prepare for a rough ride.

First of all, let's talk about the main Rating: 1.5

First things first, let's talk about what this book did well. For example, the idea behind the book was really cool. The cover design was also really great. Also, the first chapter or so was a really great start to an interesting story.

Other than that though? Just put the book down. Stop- yes stop right there. If you're expecting it to be amazing (like I was), then you need to either lower your expectations, or prepare for a rough ride.

First of all, let's talk about the main character. First of all, SHE IS ANNOYING. I'm not even kidding. All the main character talks (or should I say whines) about (other than herself) is the Beatles. Approximately every other line of this book is about the Beatles. Yes, I get that the main character is obsessed with the Beatles- but I got it after the first 12 references or so. From there, it just got annoying, distracting, and took away from the lack-luster story.

Next, the love interest? Abdi was a boring, two-dimensional character who played the classic role of "loved and hated by the public, but adored by me". Yes, I understand that the story was from the main characters point of view, so of course she found him "perfect", but the whole relationship was a bit rushed, and seemed thrown together haphazardly just to add some quick and easy middle-school style romance appeal.

Let's move on to the story. It was well, boring. Like I said, good idea, but poor execution. The beginning, with the waking up and panicking part, great. Part of the problem, though, is that by the end, when you find out the reason behind this narrated story, it makes the rest of the book seem even MORE pointless than it had before. There were so many details included that
a. wouldn't have been in there if the character WAS telling it to an audience in what should've been a rushed atmosphere
b. NO ONE CARED ABOUT
c. Had almost no reference to the story
A prime example of this would be her included love for Abdi and her constantly being hung up on her 100-year-ago friend Dalmar. In the situation this story was presented in, this stuff shouldn't have been said, and ALSO shouldn't have mattered.

As you can probably tell, this story was not really great for me. That said, it'd probably good for younger children, specifically anyone in between grades 5 and 7 (or let's say ages 11 to 14). ...more

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Sep 28, 2017 Erin rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: library-borrowed, series

The Beatles sang all you need is love. It would be nice if that were true. But, like everyone, they wanted a lot more than love alone; they wanted wealth and glory and freedom and peace. They wanted to travel; they wanted to investigate their spirtuality; they wanted their children to be happy and safe. Love is a good start, but we need more than that to get through.

Now this is one futuristic novel that I may never have been exposed to if it hadn't been for a grade nine student that told me it ...more

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Apr 18, 2013 Lisbeth Avery {Domus Libri} rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed, five-stars, favourite, made-me-smile, i-love-you, wishlist, fantastic-characters, hand-me-the-tissues, exceeds-expectations

The only reason I read this book was because of Renae's review. I couldn't have been any less interested in the book, to be honest. It sounded like another boring dystopian with a hint of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE.

I'm so happy to say that WHEN WE WAKE was different from everything I'd ever read in the genre. Dystopian and science fiction are my favorite genres, and have been ever since I was a kid. I don't often get lucky with them however and I tend to find most of my favorite books in the fantasy ...more

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Feb 15, 2013 Rosa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: wide-reading-logs-school-2013

I picked this book up off the shelf because, well, it was shiny. And the cover is so very, very pretty. Creepy, but the colours do look amazing together.
At first, I just couldn't get into this book. The premise just seemed too sad. To put it in perspective, I had recently read five dystopian books in a row, and without knowing it, in doing so I had filled my mind with all sorts of "We are all going to die! We are going to be taken over by a totalitarian government with horrible laws!" and of I picked this book up off the shelf because, well, it was shiny. And the cover is so very, very pretty. Creepy, but the colours do look amazing together.
At first, I just couldn't get into this book. The premise just seemed too sad. To put it in perspective, I had recently read five dystopian books in a row, and without knowing it, in doing so I had filled my mind with all sorts of "We are all going to die! We are going to be taken over by a totalitarian government with horrible laws!" and of course, "Global warming is going to kill us all" scenarios. Basically, I had assured myself we were all going to have a horrible future ahead of us. So, hopefully you can kind of understand why I didn’t particularly feel like reading a story about a teenage girl who accidentally gets shot, is cryogenically frozen and then wakes up in a future that seems great but is actually full of underlying terrible truths - minus all of her family and friends and anyone she loves. I read the first couple of pages and just felt sad, so I promptly stopped.
Well, that turned out to be a big mistake. Because a few weeks later as I was searching through the pile of books that is higher than my bed (and probably consists of more than a few overdues!) I saw the shiny, new cover with the beautiful colours and the creepy girl. I started to read again, and I read, and I read. I couldn’t stop reading - I just had to discover the dark secrets of the seemingly perfect world that Tegan had woken into.
The category this book completes is “a book set in another place and time.” This book is set one hundred, or thereabouts, years in the future, in Australia. Being from New Zealand and having Australia just over the ditch, this book felt pretty close to home for me. I found it easy to imagine that the situation happening in New Zealand would be similar to what would be happening in Australia.
The world in the future, according to Karen Healey, is not a good one. People are suffering from some sort of global environmental crisis, sea levels are rising and despite the effort made in Australia to go clean and green, global warming is still occurring. All around there are Third World countries suffering the effects because they cannot afford to go green. Australia has introduced a rigorously enforced anti-immigrant policy. Tegan is the first person to be woken up successfully after being frozen and this has unforeseen consequences. It was extremely interesting to see how much progress the world had made in one hundred years, and as far as I can see from this book, not much. In my opinion, if we want any sort of green, healthy future we’d better start now.
In a quiet, not too over the top way I think Tegan is a wonderful heroine and she was my favourite character. With a quietly powerful and strong voice, she seemed innocent but would then say the occasional fantastic quote that reminded you the world was not perfect.
“It was time to give them a lesson in just how surprising Tegan Ogletti could be.“ I love this quote because it sums up the essence of the book. Tegan surprised everybody. She managed to remain strong when she was totally alone, isolated from anyone she used to love, and that strength is a very admirable quality. She went from a confused girl to a motivated one who used her brains to figure out what was really going on, and then she told the world. She was focused on changing the world for the better.
I loved how Tegan had a great appreciation for music, and although I don’t share that passion I feel it really personalises a character and a story when one underlying quality in a person comes through, such as an obsession or passion. I enjoyed how the romance was a subplot in this book, and most of the story was focused on Tegan and her struggle for the truth. The mystery was the main point of the book, and it was great how it was kept that way.
This brings me to a part of the book I really enjoyed. I loved how the book seemed to come full circle, that we were reading Tegan’s story that she was telling to audiences on her tubecast. This connected the parts of the story together right from the beginning.
Reading this book I learnt not to believe everything you see. Tegan steps into a future that seems a lot better than the place she left, but a dark secret is lurking. It taught me to be aware of what is going on and to persevere to discover the truth. I also discovered an interesting and believable perception of the future where technology has advanced and new laws have come into place. Yes, the world has begun to face environmental and political crisis but at what and who’s cost? It is believable, but not so extreme that it seems unreal. Attention to detail made this whole story seem like a link to our future, and that link was fascinating.
I couldn’t get into this book at first, but when I did it was well worth reading. 4/5 stars ...more

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Jan 30, 2013 All Things Urban Fantasy rated it it was ok

Shelves: reviewed-by-abigail

Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy

WHEN WE WAKE is a very political book, and, to a lesser degree, a very religious book. Those aren’t necessarily bad things. But when the politics and religion are preachy, it becomes much harder to enjoy the story hiding underneath.

And the story underneath is intriguing, or at least the premise is. A girl who is brought back to life a hundred years after she dies must learn to adapt to a hostile and unfamiliar world. Everything from technology to Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy

WHEN WE WAKE is a very political book, and, to a lesser degree, a very religious book. Those aren’t necessarily bad things. But when the politics and religion are preachy, it becomes much harder to enjoy the story hiding underneath.

And the story underneath is intriguing, or at least the premise is. A girl who is brought back to life a hundred years after she dies must learn to adapt to a hostile and unfamiliar world. Everything from technology to language has changed to the point that it’s almost unrecognizable. Initially, Teegan was likeable enough with her Beatles obsession and free running hobby, but she ended up making a few too many temper driven choices that just struck me as stupid–though not as stupid as almost every adult in this book.

The problem arises when WHEN WE WAKE attempts to tackle almost every single potentially polarizing issue dividing people today: hyper environmentalism, vegetarianism, racism, homosexuality, sex change operations, Islam, Christianity, Roman Catholicism, cults, drugs, immigration, totalitarianism, and so many more. The author’s position on all this issues comes across loud and clear. The characters who hold opposing viewpoints are complete villains. The problem isn’t always the issues themselves, which I think most of us would agree the way they are portrayed, it’s just so heavy handed and relentless. The story, such as it was, felt like it was just a series of events strung together in order for the author to get on her soapbox.

I had a hard time finishing this one. Instead of raising issues and letting readers think for themselves, only one position is presented as acceptable in WHEN WE WAKE, not because it is morally or intellectually more tenable (even when it is) but because the opposing view is a caricature/straw man version of itself. Regardless of your political and religious ideologies, it struck me as deeply disrespectful to lampoon and deride opposing viewpoints as thoroughly and overwhelmingly as this book does. There is clearly a sequel planned based on the unresolved ending, WHEN WE RUN, but I won’t be reading it.

Sexual Content:
Kissing ...more

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Jan 07, 2017 Colleen Scidmore rated it liked it

Shelves: drama, dystopia, books-read-in-2017, fiction, romance, cultural, mystery, fantasy, young-adult, part-of-a-mini-series

This is probably about a 3.5 star read.

Tegan Oglietti is known as the Living Dead Girl. She is given that name because Tegan died in the year 2027, actually she was murdered. But through technology and her prior authorization to donate her body to science, her body was saved through cryogenics and woken up a century later. She is told they have woken her to gain data for a government project to rescue and revive dead soldiers. She is only to happy to help because her father was a mortally This is probably about a 3.5 star read.

Tegan Oglietti is known as the Living Dead Girl. She is given that name because Tegan died in the year 2027, actually she was murdered. But through technology and her prior authorization to donate her body to science, her body was saved through cryogenics and woken up a century later. She is told they have woken her to gain data for a government project to rescue and revive dead soldiers. She is only to happy to help because her father was a mortally wounded soldier and she would like to save others even if he couldn't be saved.

Even with the importance of this project Tegan is of course having a bit of a time adjusting, her emotions are still at the place where it was just yesterday, she had started dating Dalmar, her older brothers best friend and her secret love for forever. And her best friend is still Alex. But really those people are no longer in her life and she has to come to terms with that. On top of that the world has changed quite a bit in the 22nd century. Toilets are not the same (in fact it's pretty gross what they do with human waste, good for the planet but gross), temperatures are warmer, computers are different, the majority of people don't eat meat, even the slang is different. Then there is the fact that Tegan is basically the property of the Australian Government. And to top it all off she has the media hounding her every move and a crazy cult called the Inheritors of the Earth following her around and telling her to commit suicide because she is an abomination to God. Her soul has already left her body, she is an empty shell.
Now tell me that's not a lot for a sixteen year old to handle! But surprisingly she's doing a pretty good job, except for the occasional outburst to the media, her fights with Colonel Dawson to gain more freedom, which I fully support, and her problems with her every move being reported by certain fellow classmates.
Tegan is trying to live her second life, she's has a guardian who she cares about, a close new friend and maybe even a love interest when things get a bit funny. She begins to question why her? Why did the government bring backer specifically? Surely there are other candidates that were put in a frozen sleep that have more knowledge of this century and able to deal better than her with the current culture. Then there's the creepy guy from The Inheritors of the Earth that directs the same question at her, why her and what secret project is the government working on.
Tegan now has to decide keep her head down and trying to live a semi normal second life or throw it all out the window and try to make her world a better place.

I liked When We Wake a decent amount but was not exactly in love with it. It read well, was an easy read and it definitely gave me a lot to contemplate. There are issues in this book that happen in their future that can quite possibly become a reality to us and that kind of freaked me out. I really should not turn a blind eye to the earths resources and turmoil, not that I don't ever think about it. It's just so easy to get caught up in your every day life and not consider what is going on outside your own person bubble of yourself and your loved ones. I even liked Tegan and her group of friends. I thought they were all very noble, eco conscious teenagers and shocked about their values considering their age. But I didn't get that emotional attachment with the characters that I do with I book I love, and I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the subject matter, maybe I was thinking more about the comparison of the fictional world to ours too much, or maybe it was the way it was written but I just didn't get that feel of investment that I do at times.
I was pretty shocked how it ended, and it definitely gives me a reason to pick up the sequel. Which I will most definitely. Maybe something additional will click for me with While We Run.

...more

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Apr 03, 2012 Jennifer rated it it was amazing

Tegan Oglietti's life in 2027 was great before she died. It was her first official date with her long time friend Dalmar when she was shot and killed. Then she woke up in 2128 and couldn't believe she had been frozen. She had checked the box on her driver's license to donate her body to science but she had meant donate organs to help people, not be frozen! After a bit of a freak out she decides it is better to be alive than dead so she will try to make the most of it.

At first the future looks ...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Melani rated it did not like it

Shelves: fairytale-retellings

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book is just so clunky and obvious, I almost didn't finish it. I kept putting the book down to roll my eyes at the two-by-four Healey was swinging around to get her messages across. Because, make no mistake, this is a MESSAGE novel. And not just one message, oh no, Healey squashes as many as she can into the book. And none of it is done with any sort of grace or ease. Everything stops to make sure that we, the reader, grasp the IMPORTANT MESSAGE Healey wishes to impart upon us.

For example, This book is just so clunky and obvious, I almost didn't finish it. I kept putting the book down to roll my eyes at the two-by-four Healey was swinging around to get her messages across. Because, make no mistake, this is a MESSAGE novel. And not just one message, oh no, Healey squashes as many as she can into the book. And none of it is done with any sort of grace or ease. Everything stops to make sure that we, the reader, grasp the IMPORTANT MESSAGE Healey wishes to impart upon us.

For example, one of the characters is revealed to be a trans person. And it has nothing to do with the plot, just a bit of info. I actually like this, I think it's great to have characters who are not white hetero whatever and not have the novel focus on that particular point about the character. What I have a problem with is the way it's revealed. The entire novel stops in order to make sure we know that piece of info and then moves on. And it's not even revealed in a believable way. See this character is an established drug user (or at least someone who plays at it to disguise what she's really doing) so the fact that she's taking pills shouldn't be noticeable to the narrator. And yet it is, and then we stop what we're doing to establish what the pills are and that the narrator is a-ok with it, and then move on. AND THIS WAS DURING A RATHER INTENSE SCENE. It completely ruined the flow of the novel. And the fix is SO easy, you have narrator look at character A in annoyance when she pops some pills. She explains what they are and narrator accepts that, apologizes for her annoyance and then you MOVE ON.

In another instance the narrator mistakes a boy from the future for her past love. As in, she sees this future boy and flashes back to her now dead boyfriend. She calls him by the wrong name and insists that future boy looks just like past boy. Except she's a white girl and both of those boys were black. Well, she is humiliated. And to make sure that we got the message, Healey makes sure to state outright what was wrong. This was my first real jarring moment. It could have been handled much more subtly with the narrator rushing out of the room in shame (as she does) and the other kids calling her a white racist (as they do- or at least a slang term meaning white racist) and then left at that. There wasn't a need to come right out and say why the narrator was in the wrong, the text said it already. That's just clunky writing and talking down to the reader.

But where it gets hilarious is that a couple of chapters later, when narrator is starting a friendship with future boy she apologizes for the mistake and he says that he forgives her. He goes on to explain that it was explained to him who past boy was and since past boy was nationality from place A and he is same nationality from place B, he could see how she might mistake them for each other. Do you see? Right after the text comes right out to say that it's wrong to say people from one race all look like each other, it subtly goes back and says but really they all do. It's like Healey heard the lesson about why that particular form of racism is bad but didn't really learn it.

There were plenty of other things that bothered me about the novel. Like why, in the format that it's in, does the narrator talk about her romance? It doesn't make sense, it's supposed to be an interview type thing, and the narrator is established as a private person. Or why it's necessary to have two, count em TWO, different bad guy groups. The addition of the religious fanatics didn't add anything to the novel and you could have easily revealed the information they provided in other ways, Healey could even have used the army to do it. Or perhaps her female hacker character.

At this point I think I'm done with Healey's novels. I really, really liked Guardian of the Dead. But none of her novels since that one have come close in content. And this one was just plain bad. ...more

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Feb 05, 2013 ~Tina~ rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, arc, netgalley-edelweiss, sci-fi, read-2013

3.5 stars

It's the year 2027 in Australia - Melbourne and sixteen year old Tegan Oglietti is having a typical happy day. She's off to a political rally with her best friend Alex and new boyfriend Dalmar. The day was looking up and things couldn't be more perfect.
Till it all faded to black and Tegan woke up in the year 2128, a hundred years into the future.
A sniper was after the Prime Minister that faithful day, but he was sloppy and hit Tegan instead. She died on the way to the hospital but she 3.5 stars

It's the year 2027 in Australia - Melbourne and sixteen year old Tegan Oglietti is having a typical happy day. She's off to a political rally with her best friend Alex and new boyfriend Dalmar. The day was looking up and things couldn't be more perfect.
Till it all faded to black and Tegan woke up in the year 2128, a hundred years into the future.
A sniper was after the Prime Minister that faithful day, but he was sloppy and hit Tegan instead. She died on the way to the hospital but she signed up for a donation program, donating her body to science, only this is a very different kind of science.
Tegan is the first candidate to successfully survive cryonics, a frozen coma. But the future has it's problems and it's secrets and Tegan must choose what kind of role she wants to play in this new life.

When We Wake is a though-provoking, cruel and unique look into one girls journey in life, after death.
In this book Tegan is talking straight to the reader as she tells us her story. What it was like in her old life and what's happening now. I really enjoyed the way this was delivered. It felt more personal and emotional. It was very sad to hear about Alex and her mom and Dalmar since it felt like she could have had such a wonderful life before her her untimely death. Specially with Dalmar, the boy she's always loved and was only with him for one day before this all happened. I've always been a sucker for friends-turned-romance so this was even more bittersweet.

I really enjoy Karen Healey's writing, I've read one of her other books before, Guardian of the Dead and even then I found her work refreshing. But I'd be lying if I said I understood the entire world that Healey tried to convey in the book. It has a very heavy morality and religious approach as well as political and government scandals. Then we have the futuristic conditions and cultural shock and how strange this new reality is to both Tegan and the readers. There was quite a bit of information to process and a lot to take in which made this book a little hard to connect with, but I still found the the general concept pretty incredible.

Tegan is a very easy character to lose yourself with. Her story is terrible and sad but at the same time it's absolutely fascinating. I love the fact that she has her own mind and her own will. She doesn't just roll over and play nice, she does things her way and is determined to have a life according to her rules. I also thought her love for the Beatles was great and I loved that the name of the songs were chapter titles.
Abdi was hard to connect with when we first met him, but eventually he started to grow on me more throughout the book. The romance is light, but it would have felt off if it was anything more then what we got.
I also enjoyed what Marie brought into the story and was glad that she stayed good people since I wasn't sure who I could trust once we get deeper into the story line.

All in all, this turned out to be a decent read. It has it's flaws but it also has it's moments where I was glued to the pages. The characters are intriguing, the writing and the concept fascinating and this really is one of those story that makes you really ponder the possibility of what the future holds. Very scary stuff my friends. I may not have loved this the way I wanted to, but I think fans of this genre will want to experience this spine-tingling dystopia sci-fi thriller escape that is like no other!

This review and more can be seen at WinterHaven Books

...more

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Jan 10, 2013 Braiden rated it really liked it

At first sight When We Wake will call out for you, its bright, sharp, and almost white cover standing out on the shelf amongst the other covers, too dark in comparison. What the cover of When We Wake achieves is a sense of questioning already in the reader, and once the words ‘cryogenically frozen’ in the synopsis are read and connected to the cover, there would be no going back, no putting Karen Healey’s new science fiction offering back on the bookshop shelf. When We Wake provides a quite At first sight When We Wake will call out for you, its bright, sharp, and almost white cover standing out on the shelf amongst the other covers, too dark in comparison. What the cover of When We Wake achieves is a sense of questioning already in the reader, and once the words ‘cryogenically frozen’ in the synopsis are read and connected to the cover, there would be no going back, no putting Karen Healey’s new science fiction offering back on the bookshop shelf. When We Wake provides a quite different future from today’s world, from today’s Australia, packed with political, global, and humanitarian themes involving activism, social justice, distribution of propaganda, corruption, and deceit. Whatever it is that you enjoy, either the science fiction or speculative fiction elements, When We Wake will fascinate you to no end.

It was the year 2027 when sixteen-year-old Tegan Oglietti joined a rally about climate change on the steps of Melbourne’s parliament house with her boyfriend Dalmar and was killed by a sniper. Thanks to her humanitarian beliefs of signing up to be an organ donor, Tegan wakes up 100 years later, the first to wake up after being cryogenically frozen. Tegan had become a major part of a government program to bring soldiers and casualties of war back to life due to the progress of science, but Tegan seeks out the truth in this changed world, much different to the one she knew. Because of the cryogenic freezing Tegan has become the newest celebrity, bringing fame but then also hate from religious and extremist groups who want to see her dead. Among all this, staying true to herself becomes her greatest test.

Tegan is quite a likeable and relatable character. Dealing with change, almost instantly in her case, isn’t easy, but Tegan deals with it with maturity and modesty, thankful that she gets to live a second life, but dejected it won’t be with her parents, brother, her friend Alex, and boyfriend Dalmar. Her predicament proves her fighting to strength to adapt and make change with her longing for the past and the desolation that resides inside her. She never stops questioning, never forgets who she was before she was shot, always determined to protect the memories of her old life and the friends she makes in her new life.

How the future in 2127 is described will make you tremble at the terror of how our very own future may look like (e.g., Australia’s no-migrant policy and denigration of third-world countries) or cry in delight at things like marriage equality, diversity, and if you are vegetarian or vegan, the way the future may lean to your advantage. The setting on a global scale was well detailed. I’m looking forward to exploring Karen Healey’s futuristic world in the next books. As a bonus, if there is a possible space setting in them, then Healey will hit the nail on the head in terms of setting execution.

There was much to enjoy about When We Wake. I found there to be a sort of The Hunger Games in there with Tegan attracting fame and attention and therefore must act like a token figure the government wants her to be. She’d get dressed up, outfit, make up and all, and have to participate in media interviews. Very The Hunger Games-esque, but Healey adds her own ingredients to make it distinctly different. I also loved that it was set in Melbourne, and since this is my home city, it instilled some pessimism in me, a trait which I never want to possess. If someone can do that then you’ve got a winner on your hands. When We Wake did have its moments where I lost interest, but that’s nothing in comparison to all the positives.

Karen Healey has written a strikingly fresh new future through the eyes of Tegan Oglietti. While We Run: come at me! ...more

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Nov 12, 2013 Wealhtheow rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, pocmaincharacters, queer-characters, sci-fi

Tegan lives in future Australia. Her main concerns are her music, activism, and her new boyfriend--until she's killed at an environmentalist rally. She wakes up a hundred years even further into the future, the first successful cryogenic revival of an army project. Some things are better: composting, recycling, and water saving are commonplace, while racism, homophobia, and transphobia are mostly gone. Plus, computers are teensy! Some things are worse: climate change has escalated, and resource Tegan lives in future Australia. Her main concerns are her music, activism, and her new boyfriend--until she's killed at an environmentalist rally. She wakes up a hundred years even further into the future, the first successful cryogenic revival of an army project. Some things are better: composting, recycling, and water saving are commonplace, while racism, homophobia, and transphobia are mostly gone. Plus, computers are teensy! Some things are worse: climate change has escalated, and resource disparities are increasing. And many things remain the same: developing nations still lack patented medicines, anti-immigration sentiment has risen, and the public is still only fleetingly interested in injustice.

After Tegan discovers a terrible scheme, she and her new friends have to somehow make it public, all while dodging religious extremists and the Australian army. I thought I would like this more than I did. There were too many plot contrivances--(view spoiler) ...more

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Apr 20, 2013 Sarah rated it it was ok

Shelves: dystopian

I enjoyed the thriller-style plot of this book but as a SF novel and as literature I felt it really fell short. The future world felt either unrealistic (they refer to portable devices as 'computers', a word which even my high school students don't use any more) or an unimaginative exaggeration of our present world. The refugee and bio-ethical issues explored are obviously relevant to present-day Australia (which is of course not an issue, as SF always reflects contemporary themes) but there's ...more

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Mar 04, 2012 shady boots | #WatchPOSE rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2013-faves

An enjoyable read overall, yet far from action-packed. But I thought it was great that it took more of the character-based type of story, and it's very clear that the action is saved for the books that are to come in the series. And I also really loved how the future looked in this book because the author didn't glamorize it or add any ridiculous and over-the-top things.

A small scene that touched me is when one of the characters in the book, a Muslim girl, talked about her ex-girlfriend so ...more

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Oct 06, 2014 Ben Babcock rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, 2014-read, from-library, utopia-dystopia, young-adult

One of the pleasures of reading often and reading widely is the capacity for books to surprise me. A book I think I’ll enjoy turns out to be rubbish, while other books exceed expectations. This book delighted and invigorated me. I didn’t expect much from When We Wake. It’s not because it’s YA. It’s because it’s set in Australia.

I’m totally kidding. It’s totally because it’s YA. Specifically, dystopian YA. I’ve been burned enough times by it before. There’s something about the allegory of ...more

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Apr 04, 2012 Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: fans of The Beatles

Shelves: finishedreviewcopy

Just yesterday, series information was added to Goodreads for When We Wake. I'm so glad that happened before I wrote up this review, because, honestly, the open-ended ending might have left me rather unsatisfied if I didn't know there was going to be more. Plus, I'm just excited there will be more, because When We Wake was a delight all the way through, populated with lovable characters, science-fictiony goodness, and references to The Beatles.

Before I get into the serious plot stuff, I have to Just yesterday, series information was added to Goodreads for When We Wake. I'm so glad that happened before I wrote up this review, because, honestly, the open-ended ending might have left me rather unsatisfied if I didn't know there was going to be more. Plus, I'm just excited there will be more, because When We Wake was a delight all the way through, populated with lovable characters, science-fictiony goodness, and references to The Beatles.

Before I get into the serious plot stuff, I have to talk about all of The Beatles love in this book. My parents raised me on music from the 60s and 70s, so, though I'm not a child of that age, I sure do know most of the music, and The Beatles have always been amongst my favorites, even if my favorite album changes through the years. Every chapter title is a Beatles song, but the references go much deeper than that, and you better believe I adore every single one. The songs do even serve a plot point, providing a link to her old life and a way to connect with the people of 2128 through music.

Tegan makes a wonderful heroine. Awakened over a hundred years after her last memory and informed of her death and revival, she is, understandably, freaked. However, after some time to mourn over her old life, she makes the best out of her new situation. She is helpful, hopeful, loving, determined, and sarcastic. Her voice thoughout When We Wake is a delight, and I connected to her immediately, not just because of her love of The Beatles.

Reviving Tegan a century later enables Healey to impart information to the reader in a logical way. Tegan really does not know anything about the world she's in and can ask questions and receive answers without it feeling like an infodump. Healey uses the device to the fullest and spaces out Tegan's education well. Healey does not feel the need to drop everything on the reader all at once, taking breaks for character development or to talk about less serious things like slang or toilets (in this future, people poo into compost buckets).

What makes this novel stand out from many others is that the society in which Tegan awakes really does seem to verge on utopian for quite a while. Sure, it's not completely perfect, but it seems largely better than the past. The world has warmed due to the depletion of the ozone layer, but mankind is now living in such a way as to diminish the negative effects on the environment. Homosexual love is now valued just as highly as heterosexual love, something our society really needs to learn to accept. The more Tegan learns, the more negatives appear in this future world, including continued racial tensions.

When We Wake, though not focused on romance, does have a couple of very sweet relationships. Tegan develops a crush on a Abdi, a musically-gifted, clever boy from Djibouti. Watching them slowly overcome the difficulties their situations (he's a thirdie - from the third world - and she's the Living Dead Girl) place on a relationship is adorable. I also really love Joph and Bethari, and I hope those girls can work out their issues and get back together.

The only thing missing from the novel for me were high enough stakes. There's some action and they are in danger, but, for whatever reason, they never felt especially imperilled. Perhaps this is due to the lack of death toll in the novel, or the narrative device whereby the entirety of the book is a broadcast being issued live by Tegan, since that means she survives to the end. In the sequel, I hope to see more from the dystopian government, so that I can really feel scared for Tegan and her friends.

Karen Healey was unknown to me prior to When We Wake, but I will definitely be reading more of her books, including the sequel to this novel. When We Wake is a must-read for Beatles fans and for those who enjoy dystopian stories that don't focus entirely on romance. ...more

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Jun 18, 2013 Chiara rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: cover-love, young-adult, physical-review-copies, not-mc-lgbtqia, series-ive-finished

A copy of this novel was provided by Allen and Unwin in exchange for an honest review.

To be entirely honest, I take some comfort in reading about horrible futures and dystopian societies in other countries. Not because I am a sadist and relish in their downfall. No, it’s just like: aw, yeah, Australia is just chilling down in the ocean and everything’s fine. We’re fine. We’re fine.

When We Wake is set in an Australia of the future. *cue screaming* We’re one of the superpowers, one of the only ...more

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Oct 29, 2015 K. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015, library, audience-young-adult, loveozya, dystopian, setting-australia

Tegan Oglietti was born in Melbourne in 2010. At the age of 16, she's shot and killed. Then she wakes up in 2128, having been the product of a military cryogenics experiment. She struggles to adapt to life in the future, especially when she learns that the experiment may not be as good a thing as she first thinks.

Look, this book paints a very bleak view of the future. It's a world in which climate change plays a huge role, a world where Australia is both more diverse and more bigoted than it is ...more

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Jan 03, 2015 Journey rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: lesbian-character

meh.

- i'm all for liberal/issues books but i agree with the people who said this was kind of heavy handed.

- Healey created a muslim (bi?) lesbian character and a trans lesbian character whose fates were to be injured and left behind so the confirmed-straight mc and her love interest could escape. YAWN. (the sneak peek of the next book reveals at least one of them made it out, but there's no mention of the other.)

- speaking of the love interest... Teegan had a black (Dalmar, who is Somalian) ...more

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Aug 29, 2015 NJ rated it liked it

Fantastic world building and thoughtful concept. This novel gives the reader an insight into what Australia may be like in 100 years time through the eyes of 16 year old Tegan who was frozen and revived. The story is reflective on the current political, religious, and environmental landscape, and how it could impact the future. It's a novel that calls for action and sends a strong message to young readers to start caring about how today's actions/inactions could make or break the future. The ...more

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Feb 14, 2013 Chally added it · review of another edition

This book would have been a million times better if Karen had LISTENED TO ME and changed the end to my wedding to Bethari. Also, the best bit is the acknowledgements, and I recommend that you read them first.

(But seriously this book is great and I was very chuffed to be an early reader of it.)

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Jun 07, 2012 Jenni Arndt rated it liked it

Shelves: arc-own

When we wake was a book I knew I had to get my hands on. From the moment I saw the stunning white cover I was so curious about what was inside. I don’t know how many times I have said this but I am going to say it once again, white covers are the best! On a shelf they POP amongst all the blacks & reds. I used to be a sucker for a cover that had red on it but now that is everywhere so it doesn’t get me as excited. I suppose one day this will happen with white covers... hmmm... Anyway, the When we wake was a book I knew I had to get my hands on. From the moment I saw the stunning white cover I was so curious about what was inside. I don’t know how many times I have said this but I am going to say it once again, white covers are the best! On a shelf they POP amongst all the blacks & reds. I used to be a sucker for a cover that had red on it but now that is everywhere so it doesn’t get me as excited. I suppose one day this will happen with white covers... hmmm... Anyway, the book, I hadn’t read the blurb so I went into When We Wake blind and what fascinating things I came upon.

Tegan is a girl who lived in the year 2027, she had a loving family, a great best friend and a brand new boyfriend. Upon going to a rally where the Australian Prime Minister is set to speak to protesters she is struck dead in a failed attempt to assassinate the PM. Jump ahead 100 years and Tegan is revived in the year 2028 to find that since she had donated her body to science she had been cryogenically frozen and is the first successful revival ever. I haven’t read a book that touched upon this possibility ever before so it was a welcome surprise to see where this story was headed. As Tegan wakes up she is somewhat of a celebrity, known as The Living Dead Girl. A tangled political web is weaved as a religious group, known as The Inheritors of the Earth want Tegan to kill herself in God’s name, supporters of a No Migrant policy in Australia want her deported because they see her as an immigrant from another time and the government wants her to be a spokesperson for the amazing things that science can do.

I really enjoyed all the different aspects of this story. The world building was great and seeing just how much our current way of life had effected where the world was in 2028 was shocking. Admittedly, I don’t really pay attention to issues such a global warming (I probably should, I know) but this book really opened my eyes to what our children’s futures could look like. Not being fluent in the issue I don’t know how much of what the world looks like in Karen Healey’s future is actually plausible but nevertheless she painted a wonderful picture of a very bleak and frightening future.

When Tegan first woke up after her 100 year coma, she seemed pretty sprite for someone who had been asleep for that long. Immediately she escapes from the lab and is jumping across buildings and running as if she had been working out for those 100 years. This seemed a little weird to me, one would think that she would be pretty incapacitated after staying still for so long. Her escaping wasn’t the only thing that she jumped into head-on, she was a bit of a hot head and was always a getting ahead of herself and doing things without thinking. I liked her though, she questioned everything around her and didn’t just sit back and accept what she was told by the people who brought her back. Her inquisitive personality led her to some shocking findings about the people who woke her up and I enjoyed her amateur methods of finding stuff out. She makes new friends and they have some secrets of their own as well. I really liked Bethari, she was just as quick to jump into tricky situations as Tegan was and they struck up a pretty good friendship. Another really solid relationship in When We Wake is the romance. Tegan and Abdi don’t exactly hit it off right away and their relationship grows nice and slow. I definitely appreciated how their relationship took time to grow and didn’t feel completely random. Their love of music and the situations that they got themselves into brought them together.

The story is told from Tegan as she is doing a podcast as a sort of memoir and telling the world what she has found out since waking up. One thing that did bother me about the execution of the story is how she referred to things as being part of the future. She would say things like “The clothes of the future...” or “The music of the future...” but she is supposed to be doing the podcast for the people living in her time so it didn’t really make sense. She talked as if she was talking to the people of the past at times and it left me feeling disjointed as to the time line of the story.

When We Wake was incredibly unique and full of really great world building. When we find out what is really going on at the heart of all the religious/political drama it definitely gets you curious as to where this story will go in the next instalments. While I did have a few issues with how the story played out this is definitely a series that I will be continuing on with and I think you should give it a shot too!

--

An Advance Reading Copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

You can read all of my reviews at Alluring Reads. ...more

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May 03, 2013 Nicole rated it really liked it

Shelves: tough-topics, fiction, ya, favorites, favorite-characters, strong-females, all-of-the-feelings, dysto-party, survival-of-the-fittest, far-off-places

Guys! It’s more Australian dystopic fiction! (I mean, technically it is Australian dystopic fiction. Karen Healey is from New Zealand, but W3 takes place in Melbourne.)

Australian! Dystopic! Fiction! With a pretty cover! And oh, so many Beatles references!

Ahem.

In 2027, seventeen-year-old Tegan Oglietti is having a great day: The boy she has long loved from afar has just professed his love for her; she has a happy home life with her mom and older brother; and she, her boyfriend, and her best ...more

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Dec 14, 2012 Angie rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, giveaway-wins, read-2013

When We Wake was not what I was expecting, but I still mostly enjoyed it. It’s the story of Tegan, a sixteen year old girl who was accidentally shot and killed, then brought back to life 100 years later. She had been cryonically frozen and was the first successful revival, making her the face of this controversial project. However, the military also has other plans for Tegan that she doesn’t discover until it’s too late.

Just a quick a note about the writing style, since I know some people aren’t When We Wake was not what I was expecting, but I still mostly enjoyed it. It’s the story of Tegan, a sixteen year old girl who was accidentally shot and killed, then brought back to life 100 years later. She had been cryonically frozen and was the first successful revival, making her the face of this controversial project. However, the military also has other plans for Tegan that she doesn’t discover until it’s too late.

Just a quick a note about the writing style, since I know some people aren’t a fan of this kind. There is breaking of the fourth wall in When We Wake. It’s told in a way that the whole story has already happened and Tegan is telling us about it. She mostly stays in the past, but occasionally she’ll bring up events and feelings from the present. I actually like this, since it felt very conversational. It also kept me engaged since I wanted to know how she got to where she is and why she feels the need to tell us the entire story.

At times When We Wake felt like a political agenda disguised as a Dystopian novel. It was a little off putting. I know that the political situation often plays an important part in the world building of a Dystopian, but in this case it was very overwhelming. I felt like the author was essentially writing a call to action rather than a piece of fiction. The world is ours 100 years later and almost every single one of today’s issues has gotten worse. For the most part the focus is on climate change, immigration, and military spending. I did like the climate change aspect, since I did get my degree in environmental science. I also agreed with the views presented on the subject, but as for the other two? I felt bombarded with information and opinions and I didn’t like it. The theme of standing up for what’s right and trying to make change is great, but it took over this book.

Another thing that I didn’t like was all of the Beatles references. This is going to be an unpopular opinion, but I don’t like them and I think that they’re overrated. Somehow Tegan is able to twist almost every conversation into something about the Beatles and it got really annoying. The chapter titles are cute, but everything else was a little much.

I did enjoy the plot. It’s fast paced and action packed. Tegan refuses to just blindly follow what the military tells her to do. She stands up for herself and others which is quite admirable. When she realizes that she wasn’t brought back to life for the reasons she thought, she begins an investigation which leads her and her new friends into lots of trouble. The second half of the story picks up a strong religious angle, since a fanatical group is quite opposed to Tegan’s resurrection, but it wasn’t quite as forceful as the politics.

In the end, I did enjoy When We Wake. The plot and characters are great, and the overall message is one I can get behind. However, the heavy use of politics (and to some extent, religion) just kept me from rating it higher. It just didn’t feel like fiction to me, but more like the author was pushing her own opinions. Of course, I don’t know how the author feels on these issues, but that’s how I felt she presented them.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews. ...more

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Mar 28, 2014 Alex Shrugged rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, reviewed-books

"When We Wake" by Karen Healey is book 1 of the series. The next book "While We Run" will be released in May 2014. It is young adult scifi and reasonably well done.

The story: Tegan is a young high school student who is going to a rally in present-day Australia with her boyfriend when a shot rings out. She awakens in the twenty-second century, revived from a cryogenic sleep and the world has not become better. Just different.

Any problems with this story? Well... it depends. The book takes a "When We Wake" by Karen Healey is book 1 of the series. The next book "While We Run" will be released in May 2014. It is young adult scifi and reasonably well done.

The story: Tegan is a young high school student who is going to a rally in present-day Australia with her boyfriend when a shot rings out. She awakens in the twenty-second century, revived from a cryogenic sleep and the world has not become better. Just different.

Any problems with this story? Well... it depends. The book takes a middle road between Global Warming predictions and religious hysteria. Tegan is a religious girl... Catholic. The author doesn't just say she is Catholic but the author develops the character as a moderately religious person who visits the Church on the major holidays and knows what she's doing when she gets there. There is a scene in a Church where she demonstrates this ability and her comfort in a church. She believes in G-d. She believes in the eternity of her soul and that becomes part of the discussion in this book.

If you are revived from cryogenic sleep after dying, does your soul awaken too or did it go to G-d?

The author does not go too deeply into this subject because we are talking about a young high school girl. Not too many young people could answer such a question. Nevertheless, the author does tackle this issue briefly and does not throw it away. There is no absolute answer to this question offered in the book. "Go ask your priest" is about the best she ends up with which is fine.

Global Warming is assumed to have happened but it's not portrayed as a horror. There are good and bad aspect of it and that is also fine. The author does not use the book as a platform to beat kids over the head. I am grateful. I've seen Ben Bova novels not do as well as Karen Healy has done here regarding this subject.

The main source of conflict in the book seems to be immigration reform. Australia seems to be doing pretty well in the future as most people would expect. However, they have cracked down on refugees who come from countries that don't treat the Earth well... people who use fossil fuels, for example, or eat animals. The author tries to be balanced but clearly she thinks that calling immigrants names simply because they want to live in a good place is not a good idea.

Keep in mind that they people doing these terrible things must be Progressives and the author uses the word "Progressive" to describe good people. On the other hand, these same "good people" are the ones who are using bad names and acting like horses behinds! So... to me this constitutes balance. All people (bad and good people) have a mixture of both traits. No one is entirely good and no one is entirely bad. No one is treated as insane. Even the military gets a break though they are doing wrong things as well.

Over all, I'm giving this book a pass on politics.

Is it for kids? Probably not. It talks about sex in a glancing way. Some kissing. No sex. No cursing. The audience is teens.

The book ends well but clearly we are only half way through the story at least. The next book "While We Run" is coming out in May 2014. I'll read it.

...more

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Apr 07, 2018 Roberta R. (Offbeat YA) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ethics, mc-female-lead, young-adult, dystopian, sci-fi, afterlife-and-such, glbtq-plus, music, high-school, pov-1st-person

Rated 4.5 really.

Excerpt from my review - originally published at Offbeat YA.

Pros: Strong characters with distinctive voices. Lots of (intersectional) diversity. On-point social/environmental commentary perfectly integrated into the story. Fast pace.
Cons: A few familiar tropes/premises.
WARNING! One brutal death. Mass murder of children.
Will appeal to: Readers who care about the state our world is in. Readers who like a thrilling yet romantic adventure. Beatles fans.

I'm ordinarily all for books Rated 4.5 really.

Excerpt from my review - originally published at Offbeat YA.

Pros: Strong characters with distinctive voices. Lots of (intersectional) diversity. On-point social/environmental commentary perfectly integrated into the story. Fast pace.
Cons: A few familiar tropes/premises.
WARNING! One brutal death. Mass murder of children.
Will appeal to: Readers who care about the state our world is in. Readers who like a thrilling yet romantic adventure. Beatles fans.

I'm ordinarily all for books without tropes, or employing as little of them as it's humanly possible - but sometimes an author can breath new life into an old concept, or make up for a familiar scenario with a great execution. Both things happen in When We Wake - hence my rating. (Also, for your information, this one is set in Australia, which is a nice change from your usual all-American scenario).

THE GOOD FIGHT

I was originally drawn to WWW because of its premise - a girl dying (well, almost), getting frozen and waking up a century later. Though I'm sure it's not a new concept, I've never seen it used in YA, and I was curious how it would pan out. But this book has a lot more to offer than a sci-fi/afterlife (or relife) crossover story. I was prepared for the huge SJW vibe, but got pleasantly surprised by the amount of diversity. The highest point of it is Bethari, a bisexual, hijabi teen hacker/aspiring journalist who befriends the main character Tegan. Oddly, while in 2128 Australia both Muslim and queer people seem to be perfectly integrated (and the government has gone to great lengths to minimise environmental problems, though a bit late), there's a cruel no-immigrant policy in place that struck too close to home, what with the current situation in Europe and the U.S. I loved how Tegan is not perfect - in her first life, she wasn't a true activist, but more like a follower of her friend Alex and her crush Dalmar - but she's inquisitive, and her heart is in the right place. She begins to question the real reason why she's been revived and its impact on society, while refusing to think of herself as an abomination, the way a certain religious cult does. She mourns her past life (that, for her, is only a day away), but embraces the perils that her new one hides under its facade if she doesn't stay down, and bravely fights for the right cause. [...]

Whole review here. ...more

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Play Book Tag: When We Wake / Karen Healey. 3.75 stars	1	8	Mar 17, 2019 01:27PM
SQHS Sci-Fi/Fanta...: Future, adventure and love	2	4	Jun 04, 2017 10:28AM
When We Wake By: Karen Healey	1	4	Apr 29, 2017 01:50PM
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About Karen Healey

Karen Healey

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Karen Healey writes books about tough girls with brains and interesting boys with secrets. She likes nail art, superheroes, and musical soundtracks. She technically lives in New Zealand, but really lives on the Internet.