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Eve & Adam #1
Eve & Adam
And girl created boy…
In the beginning, there was an apple—
And then there was a car crash, a horrible injury, and a hospital. But before Evening Spiker’s head clears a strange boy named Solo is rushing her to her mother’s research facility. There, under the best care available, Eve is left alone to heal.
Just when Eve thinks she will die—not from her injuries, but from boredom—her mother gives her a special project: Create the perfect boy.
Using an amazingly detailed simulation, Eve starts building a boy from the ground up. Eve is creating Adam. And he will be just perfect... won’t he?
In the beginning, there was an apple—
And then there was a car crash, a horrible injury, and a hospital. But before Evening Spiker’s head clears a strange boy named Solo is rushing her to her mother’s research facility. There, under the best care available, Eve is left alone to heal.
Just when Eve thinks she will die—not from her injuries, but from boredom—her mother gives her a special project: Create the perfect boy.
Using an amazingly detailed simulation, Eve starts building a boy from the ground up. Eve is creating Adam. And he will be just perfect... won’t he?
291 pages, Hardcover
First published October 2, 2012
About the author
Michael Grant
96 books11.1k followersCo-author with Katherine Applegate of Ocean City, Making Out, Summer, Animorphs, Everworld, Remnants, Eve and Adam.
Pseudonymous coauthor with KA of Christy (the TV spin-off books), Sweet Valley Twins, Girl Talk and various Disney spin-offs.
Pseudonymous author of Barf-O-Rama.
Author of Gone, BZRK, The Magnificent 12, Messenger of Fear, Front Lines, Monster and A Sudden Death in Cyprus.
AKA Michael Robinson (restaurant reviews and newspaper features).
AKA Michael Reynolds (legal name) political media producer. (Team Blue).
Pseudonymous coauthor with KA of Christy (the TV spin-off books), Sweet Valley Twins, Girl Talk and various Disney spin-offs.
Pseudonymous author of Barf-O-Rama.
Author of Gone, BZRK, The Magnificent 12, Messenger of Fear, Front Lines, Monster and A Sudden Death in Cyprus.
AKA Michael Robinson (restaurant reviews and newspaper features).
AKA Michael Reynolds (legal name) political media producer. (Team Blue).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,933 reviews
September 12, 2012
Actual rating: 1.5 stars
Before there was Harry Potter there was Animorphs. I was in love with that series as a child. It was pretty serious. Half my closest was dedicated with Animorph books and I had a special shelf full of them right next to my bed. And honestly, looking back I'm surprised I didn't have an Animorph shrine a la Helga G. Pataki.
Obsessed? I like to think of it as an extreme hobby.
So when I saw Eve and Adam go up on NetGalley, I'll admit this freely, I squealed. I waited with bated breath for Macmillan to approve me for this title and dove in not long after receiving it. Unfortunately, it's not at all what I was expecting. When I think back about Eve and Adam I just have an overall feeling of "meh." In fact, there isn't much I like at all about it. Not the plot, not the characters and not the ending. Okay, wait. I like the cover. There. *happy sigh* Now that I have that out the way, I won't feel too bad for giving two of my favorite authors a negative review.
I had a feeling that Eve and Adam and I wouldn't get along right from the beginning. Readers are immediately introduced to Eve via a car accident where she loses a leg. Then her mother, Terra Spiker of Spiker Biotech, whisks her away to her facilities to be looked after. There she heals faster than humanly possible, meets a boy named Solo and begins working on a project to create her perfect boy, Adam. And all that happens in the first 15% of the novel. It felt like a lot of events was happening in a very short amount of time and I was still attempting to process that the girl had lost a leg. Then you add it the random sexually promiscuous best friend who's in love with a loser drug dealer sub-plot, the insta-love and the perfect boy, Adam, who literally stops traffic with his good looks and you've pretty much lost me as a reader.
A part of me isn't sure where to begin with what didn't work for me with Eve and Adam. Was it the characters? The plot? The slut-shaming? The insta-love? I think I've come to the conclusion that it's actually two things that stood out the most:
1. Show, don't tell.
Right from the beginning we are told about Evening's accident and how horrible it is. And as the novel goes on, it is referenced a few times, but with the same old, "It was so horrible. I lost a leg." Even after finishing the book, I never felt I had a good understanding of what actually happened during the accident. It wasn't necessarily terribly important, but it did bother me.
This is also done with Solo's dislike for Eve's mother, Terra Spiker. As a boy he lost both of his parents in a car accident and Terra Spiker (his parents' employer) ended up looking after him. He constantly says how evil she is, how he hates her, etc. But we never actually see proof of that evil beyond what he tells the reader. Sure, she wasn't the friendliest character in the book, but it didn't equate to the evil that he accuses her of.
Then of course we have Le Hottie McHottiekins, A.K.A. Adam, the perfect boy Eve has been tasked to create while she recovers from her accident. We are told over and over how incredibly gosh-darn howt he is. And when he goes out in the world looking for Eve, everyone - male and female - stops what they are doing for a moment of silence for the baby angles that obviously died for his magical existence. So I guess you're supposed to feel your ovaries exploding at that point.
But the descriptions used to describe his howtness? He has blue eyes, black hair and he's just perfect in every sense of the word. Riiiight...
2. The characters
The other major thing that bothered me were the characters. First off, the novel flips back and forth from Eve to Solo's PoV and later Adam's. But the thing is, they all read like the same person. And I was told that the novel was supposed to funny, but I think I may have chuckled a grand total of one time. Their personalities along with their interactions resembled robots or cardboard characters. They we unrealistic like so:
Eve - The girl loses a leg in the very beginning of the novel and she gives exactly two shits that it was at one point attached to her body. The day after she is admitted in her mother's facility she doesn't even show concern over her injuries. She doesn't even find it weird that she is healing so fast nor does she even look at her leg. Her explanation is that the doctors and nurses told her not to look at so it wouldn't upset her. She also thinks her lack of pain is due to the strong meds they have her on. I'm sorry, but I don't buy any of that. She doesn't ask any questions about her recovery? She's not the least bit concerned? Those were simply convenient allowances to move the plot along.
Solo - I never liked this kid. From the moment he entered into the story thinking Eve was hot as they wheeled her and her detached leg from the hospital to when he thinks she is checking him out while she screamed in pain from her injuries, I thought he was a douche.
I know she's checking me out. Fair enough, because I'm checking her out.
"Ah ahhh ahhhh!"
Eve cries out suddenly. She's in pain. Bad pain. So it's possible she's not really checking me out.
I mean, who actually does that? I'm not sure how I was supposed to react to that. Was it meant to be funny?
Also, I could never understand his intense hatred for Terra Spiker. So she's mean... okaaayyyy. But she's taken care of him, given him a job, etc. Yet here he is determined to bring her and her company down. Oh, and did I mention the insta-love? After only a handful of interactions, Solo feels conflicted about taking his evidence of Terra's illegal activity to the Feds because he is in love with Eve. HUH? I wasn't even aware that they were friends. There was absolutely no time for them to develop any type of relationship. Note to self: Staring+two conversations=love.
Adam - "I'm so howt, but why is everyone staring at me? Someone hold me." *eyeroll* For his name to be in the title, he had the smallest role in the book.
Terra Spiker - "I'm evil bitch incarnate and I know it." <=== The only character personality given to readers. She also loves to slut-shame Eve's best friend, calling her a "drunken slut" any chance she gets.
Aislin - Eve's best friend who has only one purpose in the novel: To make Eve look good. By coming off as the self-destructive, drunken BFF who happens to also enjoy sexy times (honestly, why is this portrayed as a bad thing?), you have a character who Eve can spend her free time worrying over and protecting. This makes Eve look caring, kind, thoughtful and selfless. It also provides a clever way for the main character to admit they wish they could be like the BFF while never actually engaging in the more risqué behaviors. Instant innocence. Take out Aislin's character and Eve has no real depth to her. She'd also be boring considering she'd have no reason to put her Under Dog cape on and save anyone in her spare time.
Oh, and I can't forget the other scientists featured near the end who make perverted statements toward Eve.
"You haven't tapped that little piece yet? She's no great beauty, but she's cute enough, and she's got a nice little body."
"I'd do her, " Dr. Chen says.
Did I mention these men are probably old enough to be her father and grandfather? I get that they were supposed to be evil, but the layer of sexism wasn't necessary to drive that point home. All it did was turn me completely off to the book.
While Eve and Adam didn't do much for me, it is readable. But I was, unfortunately, left disappointed, confused and underwhelmed. *sigh* The only other possible positive is that the novel is a very quick read. You could probably read it in only a few short hours. However, I sadly can't recommend anyone wasting those precious hours reading Eve and Adam.
ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. Thank you!
More reviews and other fantastical things at Cuddlebuggery Book Blog.
September 4, 2012
I don't know if it's the cover, or the latest craze of dystopians, but I was sure I was getting into a futuristic sci-fi novel when I started Eve and Adam. After only a few chapters though - confused about the lack of world building - did I suddenly realize that this is actually set in current day. This is not a bad thing at all, but my expectations did a complete 360 to which I ended up pleasantly surprised to have stumbled upon an intriguing sci-fi novel touching on genetics, and full of horrifying secrets.
While Goodreads says 300 pages, this novel felt even shorter as the chapters are small and plentiful. The downfall of this is nothing is very profound or examined deeply; the characters and plot are not incredibly developed. However, you can breeze through it in the blink of an eye which makes it a quick ride where you simply sit back and enjoy. It's a guilty pleasure read.
The fast pace keeps it entertaining and the twists holds your rapt attention. If you're wary of the sci-fi aspect, don't be. It's in no way confusing or overwhelming. Evening (Eve) is put on a simulation project to create the perfect human. Even though we don't get into it in great depths, it's still fascinating with vivid imagery; the eyes, the hands, the face - floating in mid-air - it's all being created and perfected by our protagonist. It's also incredible how you never really think of every little details that goes into individuality; every element counteracts another. Do you make him so smart he won't easily fit in a social crowd, or do you make him average but then he'll need to try harder academically? Do you make him muscled? If so 1) you can't give him too big an appetite or he'll simply get fat (nor too small or he'll get scrawny), and 2) you also need to make him enjoy working out to keep said muscles. This is just an example of specifics you have you consider. It's all very interesting and thought provoking. Plus, can any human really be perfect? Endless details go into to create a human to our liking. With our current scientific advancements, picking and choosing characteristics in our future babies is not implausible; the believability of this whole plot makes it even more engrossing.
Solo is the main male character we get to know in this book. He's got quite the brisk personality and I kind of liked his and Evening's snippy exchanges. Since he's been living inside the Biotech facility for years, he has thus acquired a lot of its secrets and inside knowledge. He's now discovering secrets; frighteningly disturbing secrets. The plot twists are fun even though they aren't exactly surprising. There's also a hint of romance in the book, but it's not abundant by any means. Aislin is another character we see a lot of - Evening's best friend. She's a fun addition, but I felt her storyline - drug dealing boyfriend constantly getting in trouble - felt irrelevant. It doesn't really add anything to the story. With the book being so short, we don't get into this side story with any kind of depth, making it seem mostly random without any emotional attachment towards their situation.
Original and intriguing, Adam and Eve is a fantastically quick read that I think would suit those looking for a light and breezy sci fi novel. I haven't found many true sci-fi (without being a dystopian) in YA, but I find them especially engaging and thought provoking, Eve and Adam is no exception.
--
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
While Goodreads says 300 pages, this novel felt even shorter as the chapters are small and plentiful. The downfall of this is nothing is very profound or examined deeply; the characters and plot are not incredibly developed. However, you can breeze through it in the blink of an eye which makes it a quick ride where you simply sit back and enjoy. It's a guilty pleasure read.
The fast pace keeps it entertaining and the twists holds your rapt attention. If you're wary of the sci-fi aspect, don't be. It's in no way confusing or overwhelming. Evening (Eve) is put on a simulation project to create the perfect human. Even though we don't get into it in great depths, it's still fascinating with vivid imagery; the eyes, the hands, the face - floating in mid-air - it's all being created and perfected by our protagonist. It's also incredible how you never really think of every little details that goes into individuality; every element counteracts another. Do you make him so smart he won't easily fit in a social crowd, or do you make him average but then he'll need to try harder academically? Do you make him muscled? If so 1) you can't give him too big an appetite or he'll simply get fat (nor too small or he'll get scrawny), and 2) you also need to make him enjoy working out to keep said muscles. This is just an example of specifics you have you consider. It's all very interesting and thought provoking. Plus, can any human really be perfect? Endless details go into to create a human to our liking. With our current scientific advancements, picking and choosing characteristics in our future babies is not implausible; the believability of this whole plot makes it even more engrossing.
Solo is the main male character we get to know in this book. He's got quite the brisk personality and I kind of liked his and Evening's snippy exchanges. Since he's been living inside the Biotech facility for years, he has thus acquired a lot of its secrets and inside knowledge. He's now discovering secrets; frighteningly disturbing secrets. The plot twists are fun even though they aren't exactly surprising. There's also a hint of romance in the book, but it's not abundant by any means. Aislin is another character we see a lot of - Evening's best friend. She's a fun addition, but I felt her storyline - drug dealing boyfriend constantly getting in trouble - felt irrelevant. It doesn't really add anything to the story. With the book being so short, we don't get into this side story with any kind of depth, making it seem mostly random without any emotional attachment towards their situation.
Original and intriguing, Adam and Eve is a fantastically quick read that I think would suit those looking for a light and breezy sci fi novel. I haven't found many true sci-fi (without being a dystopian) in YA, but I find them especially engaging and thought provoking, Eve and Adam is no exception.
--
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads
September 15, 2012
"I want you, Evening, to design the perfect boy."
3.5 stars. Yes I do believe this is going to have some degree of awesome.
"What if she won't come with me?"
"Oh, she'll come. It's the fate of all creators. They fall in love with their creations."
What if you had the chance to design the perfect partner? Would you do it? At the very least, would you be curious enough to think about doing it?
Anyone else remember the 80's movie Weird Science? I loved that movie as a kid. When I first read the description for this book, I was struck with an immediate HAVE TO HAVE moment because it reminded me of that movie. In case you haven't seen it, two nerdy high school boys create the perfect woman and get themselves into a bunch of ridiculous escapades because of it. Pure classic gold, that movie was (please hold one sec while I try to tame my inner Yoda in yet another review).
So this book is a little bit different from the movie, but the bones of what I loved about Weird Science were present in Eve & Adam. Which means it was a given that I was going to be swept away by this story.
What made this book extra special to me is that I was able to find myself absorbed into this world within a matter of pages. The techie side of the sci-fi equation might have been off for all I know. I'm sure someone's going to break down the science and technology parts and come up with holes somewhere. Unless this author team really does happen to be just that good when it comes to multiple forms of medicine, science and gadgetry. If this is the case, then I'm impressed! If it's not, I don't care! Because I'm definitely more of an artistic type of person than a technical type of person.
This book was fun! I liked the characters! Solo is one of my new favorite guys! I must be happy because I'm about to hit four sentences in a row with exclamation points! Let's go for a record now! And here's six! Now number seven!
Okay, I'm done with the extreme emoting. Adam may be the "perfect" man, but my heart belonged to Solo. He was this incredible mix of shy and confident at the same time. How this is possible, I have no idea, but Solo is probably one of my new favorite characters of all time. For this week, anyway.
I have good shoulders, might as well reveal them. I know she's checking me out. Fair enough, because I'm checking her out.
Eve cries out suddenly. She's in pain. So it's possible that she's not really checking me out.
~
Eve. There's a problem with that name, Eve. You say Eve and you think Garden of Eden, and then you think of Eve and Adam, naked but tastefully concealed by strategic shrubbery.
Except at this particular moment, my brain is not generating shrubbery.
So, basically, that's despicable. She just got out of surgery. So I add shrubbery.
And yet the shrubbery doesn't stay put.
So this book had great characters, a little bit of action, some techie stuff, a sweet romance budding, and even some humor. All in all, this could be a great starter book for the sci-fi wary.
"They made a baby boy. We named him Golem. He died because of a slight flaw in his genetic makeup."
"His sphincter was on his forehead."
This book was provided from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
September 1, 2012
2.5 stars
In a sentence, Eve and Adam by the husband-and-wife writing team Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant is a smartly plotted and solidly written book that, unfortunately, lacks both depth and substance. I could be wrong in assuming that it is a packaged book, but even if I am, I’m pretty confident it was written with no real passion for the story. Although I certainly can’t object to the quality of writing itself, the superficiality with which the idea was developed is disappointing to say the least.
Evening Spiker, daughter of the mighty and powerful geneticist Terra Spiker, gets hit by a car and barely survives. She is immediately transferred to her mother’s company, where she starts recovering at an alarming rate. While in Spiker Biotech, Eve meets a young man named Solo Plissken, supposedly her mother’s ward, who tells her she’s been genetically modified when she was a child, just like he was. Solo then gives her proof of her mother’s cruel genetic experiments, and Eve is forced to make some big moral decisions. In order to keep Eve entertained while she’s recovering in Spiker Biotech, her mother tasks her with creating a simulation of the perfect boy, which she eventually does. His name is Adam and he is being brought to life unbeknownst to Eve. His point of view is introduced in the second half of the book, and it completely destroys the narrative dynamics, already ruined by the unbalance between Eve’s and Solo’s perspectives.
The beginning was my favorite part of Eve and Adam. Surprisingly funny and dynamic, it raised my expectations to an unreasonable level and made what came later all the more disappointing. There was a certain spark in Eve that vanished without a trace as the story progressed, and the humor that made me laugh out loud a number of times during the opening scenes simply wasn’t there later on.
To make matters worse, the (disruptive) subplot involving Eve’s best friend Aislin and her drug-dealing boyfriend Maddox contributed absolutely nothing to the main plot and gave me the impression that Applegate and Grant included it with the sole purpose of increasing the number of pages. Even without Maddox, Aislin was clearly supposed to be the cool and unruly best friend, but I found her too be too irresponsible and tiresome for my taste. Instead of making Eve’s character more likable, she made her look like a pushover over and over again, until I stopped caring about either of them and focused entirely on Solo.
In short, Eve and Adam is a rather ambitious project, but one that lacks heart. My time would have been better spent reading something else, and although I plan to give Michael Grant’s solo projects a chance, I have no intention of reading any of the other books he co-authored with his wife.
In a sentence, Eve and Adam by the husband-and-wife writing team Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant is a smartly plotted and solidly written book that, unfortunately, lacks both depth and substance. I could be wrong in assuming that it is a packaged book, but even if I am, I’m pretty confident it was written with no real passion for the story. Although I certainly can’t object to the quality of writing itself, the superficiality with which the idea was developed is disappointing to say the least.
Evening Spiker, daughter of the mighty and powerful geneticist Terra Spiker, gets hit by a car and barely survives. She is immediately transferred to her mother’s company, where she starts recovering at an alarming rate. While in Spiker Biotech, Eve meets a young man named Solo Plissken, supposedly her mother’s ward, who tells her she’s been genetically modified when she was a child, just like he was. Solo then gives her proof of her mother’s cruel genetic experiments, and Eve is forced to make some big moral decisions. In order to keep Eve entertained while she’s recovering in Spiker Biotech, her mother tasks her with creating a simulation of the perfect boy, which she eventually does. His name is Adam and he is being brought to life unbeknownst to Eve. His point of view is introduced in the second half of the book, and it completely destroys the narrative dynamics, already ruined by the unbalance between Eve’s and Solo’s perspectives.
The beginning was my favorite part of Eve and Adam. Surprisingly funny and dynamic, it raised my expectations to an unreasonable level and made what came later all the more disappointing. There was a certain spark in Eve that vanished without a trace as the story progressed, and the humor that made me laugh out loud a number of times during the opening scenes simply wasn’t there later on.
To make matters worse, the (disruptive) subplot involving Eve’s best friend Aislin and her drug-dealing boyfriend Maddox contributed absolutely nothing to the main plot and gave me the impression that Applegate and Grant included it with the sole purpose of increasing the number of pages. Even without Maddox, Aislin was clearly supposed to be the cool and unruly best friend, but I found her too be too irresponsible and tiresome for my taste. Instead of making Eve’s character more likable, she made her look like a pushover over and over again, until I stopped caring about either of them and focused entirely on Solo.
In short, Eve and Adam is a rather ambitious project, but one that lacks heart. My time would have been better spent reading something else, and although I plan to give Michael Grant’s solo projects a chance, I have no intention of reading any of the other books he co-authored with his wife.
October 30, 2012
The Short Story? - One of the best books I've read this year, Eve and Adam is definitely an extraordinary sci-fi with an original premise and beautiful characterisation. Interesting, edgy and fast paced, I completely devoured this novel in one sitting. I have nothing but good things to say about this novel, written by two of YA's greatest authors, what could simply go wrong? Eve and Adam is a must read!
The Long Story? - One of ritual things to do before writing a review is to read the reviews on the book on Goodreads before hand. I noticed that there are lots of lukewarm reviews of Eve and Adam, many readers are on the fence about it but personally I thought it was brilliant. In terms of sci-fi, it's probably on the lighter side of the scale however for me that was the perfect amount. It's a refreshing read from your regular sci-fi novel, it's definitely lighter and fluffier. The novel almost has a fairytale effect to it, people might interpret this as to mean it's written for a younger audience but I think it's intentional. It's a very feel good novel, fast-paced and easily a one-sitting read. The premise of the novel is unique and I absolutely adored the writing style. Very comfortable and natural even with the dual perspectives. I LOVED this novel and I think it's one for all to read!
The characterisation was beautifully done. Eve, Evening Spiker was a character that really held onto you from the very first page. She's such a wonderful and down to earth character, I felt an immediate connection to her which made reading the novel a much happier and more enjoyable experience. Another character I really liked was Solo. In terms of love interests, the authors have put a very small emphasis on his looks so the love I developed for this character was purely based on personality ( okay maybe a teeny weenie bit on looks!). Adam didn't really play that big of a role in the novel but I liked what I saw of him although he seems like a really deep guy which is not really my type. I like my guys more like Solo... Overall, fantastic characterisation! If you like characters that are down to earth and easy to connect with then this is the book for you!
All in all, Eve and Adam was a spectacular sic-fi that definitely deserves more attention then what it's getting! If you like exploring new genres, Eve and Adam is a refreshingly original sci-fi that would appeal to readers of all ages. Beautifully written, edgy and sophisticated plot and fantastic characterisation, Eve and Adam is not to be missed!
The Long Story? - One of ritual things to do before writing a review is to read the reviews on the book on Goodreads before hand. I noticed that there are lots of lukewarm reviews of Eve and Adam, many readers are on the fence about it but personally I thought it was brilliant. In terms of sci-fi, it's probably on the lighter side of the scale however for me that was the perfect amount. It's a refreshing read from your regular sci-fi novel, it's definitely lighter and fluffier. The novel almost has a fairytale effect to it, people might interpret this as to mean it's written for a younger audience but I think it's intentional. It's a very feel good novel, fast-paced and easily a one-sitting read. The premise of the novel is unique and I absolutely adored the writing style. Very comfortable and natural even with the dual perspectives. I LOVED this novel and I think it's one for all to read!
The characterisation was beautifully done. Eve, Evening Spiker was a character that really held onto you from the very first page. She's such a wonderful and down to earth character, I felt an immediate connection to her which made reading the novel a much happier and more enjoyable experience. Another character I really liked was Solo. In terms of love interests, the authors have put a very small emphasis on his looks so the love I developed for this character was purely based on personality ( okay maybe a teeny weenie bit on looks!). Adam didn't really play that big of a role in the novel but I liked what I saw of him although he seems like a really deep guy which is not really my type. I like my guys more like Solo... Overall, fantastic characterisation! If you like characters that are down to earth and easy to connect with then this is the book for you!
All in all, Eve and Adam was a spectacular sic-fi that definitely deserves more attention then what it's getting! If you like exploring new genres, Eve and Adam is a refreshingly original sci-fi that would appeal to readers of all ages. Beautifully written, edgy and sophisticated plot and fantastic characterisation, Eve and Adam is not to be missed!
August 30, 2012
Eve and Adam is...well, it wasn't what I was expecting. I went into this novel confident that it would be yet another sci-fi novel that would fail to surprise me and after the first few chapters, I thought I had the romance and plot figured out. Well...I hate to admit this, but I was wrong and I am so glad I was! Eve and Adam, contrary to my expectations, did manage to be an exciting, intriguing, and unique novel - all aspects that make it stand out in its over-populated genre. Yet, despite its redeeming qualities, I am sorry to say that in the end, I still felt as if Eve and Adam was simply...missing something.
Eve and Adam starts out with its main protagonist, Evening, getting into a bad car accident and consequently, barely surviving in a critical condition. When her mother, the owner of a well-known genetic research lab whisks her away from the hospital and to her own facilities, Evening doesn't question her. Instead, she heals at an alarmingly quick rate and resorts to working on one of her mother's latest gadgets - designing the perfect human. While there, Evening meets Solo, the handsome son of her mother's now-deceased business partners and an unlikely friendship is struck between the two. Yet, dangerous - and possibly illegal - things are happening at the research facility her mother owns and while the truth lays before her, Evening has to make the choice whether to accept it or not.
I've said it before, but it demands to be repeated: Eve and Adam was very unexpected. For one, I did not expect this novel to be told in dual narration, switching from the perspectives of both Evening and Solo and later on, Adam, the human Evening unknowingly helps create. Unfortunately though, this dual narration falls short simply because Evening's perspective is dominating. Solo has very few chapters dedicated to his narration which I believe is one of the more egregious flaws in this novel, simply because Solo's narration is far more interesting, compelling, and intriguing.
Yet, even beyond the issue of the narration, I was surprised to see that the first-half of this novel was practically entirely dedicated towards character-development. I am all for character-development, but nothing truly happened during the first-half of this story and everything that did happen revolved around Evening's best friend, Aislin. Aislin's boyfriend, Maddox, is involved with drugs and this issue is then used as an excuse for Solo and Evening to bond together while also developing the friendship between Evening and Aislin. I truly appreciated the friendship between Evening and Aislin - especially as the novel progressed - and I even liked how the relationship between Solo and Evening was developed quite well too, but I think this could have been done in a manner that contributed to the plot opposed to one that veered off from it rather randomly.
Thus, comparatively, the second-half of this story had a tight, concise, and fascinating plot that the first-half rather lacked. It was fast-paced and interesting, but it also showed the inner dilemma Evening faced between the truth of her mother's genetic facility and her own confused feelings towards a mother who obviously loved her, but never spent enough time and affection on her. I especially loved this conflict as well as the issues that stemmed between Aislin and Evening as well as between Solo and Evening. I think more than just the plot of the second-half, the relationships took an interesting turn that I definitely wasn't expecting and I loved that. What else wasn't I expecting? Well, let's just say that there's a major jaw-dropping moment nearing the end of this novel that completely made my day. It took me completely by surprise and although I think I should have seen it coming, the fact that I didn't went in favor of this story.
Still, despite the fact that I enjoyed reading this novel immensely, I have to reiterate that it lacked something; something was simply missing to take this incredible idea from a great concept to great execution. I doubt that many others will have this same feeling, but for a reader who plans on becoming a Biology Major with a specialization in Genetics, I just wanted more. I loved the setting and idea for this novel, but I wished we could have gotten more details, particularly about the genetic lab. We are told that horrible things occur in this facility, from green pigs to dogs with human ears, which is obviously disgusting and terrible, but I never quite felt the horror we were meant to experience. Furthermore, I wanted Eve and Adam to focus on the motivations behind these scientists, on the corporate politics clearly taking place in this situation, on what other functions the lab served for, etc. It simply could have given us so many more details and the lack of world-building made this story feel flat to me, so I wasn't exactly invested in this.
Overall, Eve and Adam is a remarkable story that is unique, intriguing, and definitely has its fair share of plot twists. Yet, in the end, it is also a novel that seems to lack just a little something more to take it from good to great. While I wasn't overly impressed with this book, I am still curious enough to want to pick up the sequel, especially due to all the unanswered questions the reader is left with at the end of this novel. It is a short story and one that I wish could have had a little more in it as it had the potential to be a lovely stand-alone, but I'm interested to see in which direction its plot goes. It also helps that there isn't a love triangle at all in this one and that the characters and lively, headstrong, vivacious, and actually intelligent. Eve and Adam has a lot going for it and I am confident that even newcomers to the science-fiction genre will fall in love with this one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.
Eve and Adam starts out with its main protagonist, Evening, getting into a bad car accident and consequently, barely surviving in a critical condition. When her mother, the owner of a well-known genetic research lab whisks her away from the hospital and to her own facilities, Evening doesn't question her. Instead, she heals at an alarmingly quick rate and resorts to working on one of her mother's latest gadgets - designing the perfect human. While there, Evening meets Solo, the handsome son of her mother's now-deceased business partners and an unlikely friendship is struck between the two. Yet, dangerous - and possibly illegal - things are happening at the research facility her mother owns and while the truth lays before her, Evening has to make the choice whether to accept it or not.
I've said it before, but it demands to be repeated: Eve and Adam was very unexpected. For one, I did not expect this novel to be told in dual narration, switching from the perspectives of both Evening and Solo and later on, Adam, the human Evening unknowingly helps create. Unfortunately though, this dual narration falls short simply because Evening's perspective is dominating. Solo has very few chapters dedicated to his narration which I believe is one of the more egregious flaws in this novel, simply because Solo's narration is far more interesting, compelling, and intriguing.
Yet, even beyond the issue of the narration, I was surprised to see that the first-half of this novel was practically entirely dedicated towards character-development. I am all for character-development, but nothing truly happened during the first-half of this story and everything that did happen revolved around Evening's best friend, Aislin. Aislin's boyfriend, Maddox, is involved with drugs and this issue is then used as an excuse for Solo and Evening to bond together while also developing the friendship between Evening and Aislin. I truly appreciated the friendship between Evening and Aislin - especially as the novel progressed - and I even liked how the relationship between Solo and Evening was developed quite well too, but I think this could have been done in a manner that contributed to the plot opposed to one that veered off from it rather randomly.
Thus, comparatively, the second-half of this story had a tight, concise, and fascinating plot that the first-half rather lacked. It was fast-paced and interesting, but it also showed the inner dilemma Evening faced between the truth of her mother's genetic facility and her own confused feelings towards a mother who obviously loved her, but never spent enough time and affection on her. I especially loved this conflict as well as the issues that stemmed between Aislin and Evening as well as between Solo and Evening. I think more than just the plot of the second-half, the relationships took an interesting turn that I definitely wasn't expecting and I loved that. What else wasn't I expecting? Well, let's just say that there's a major jaw-dropping moment nearing the end of this novel that completely made my day. It took me completely by surprise and although I think I should have seen it coming, the fact that I didn't went in favor of this story.
Still, despite the fact that I enjoyed reading this novel immensely, I have to reiterate that it lacked something; something was simply missing to take this incredible idea from a great concept to great execution. I doubt that many others will have this same feeling, but for a reader who plans on becoming a Biology Major with a specialization in Genetics, I just wanted more. I loved the setting and idea for this novel, but I wished we could have gotten more details, particularly about the genetic lab. We are told that horrible things occur in this facility, from green pigs to dogs with human ears, which is obviously disgusting and terrible, but I never quite felt the horror we were meant to experience. Furthermore, I wanted Eve and Adam to focus on the motivations behind these scientists, on the corporate politics clearly taking place in this situation, on what other functions the lab served for, etc. It simply could have given us so many more details and the lack of world-building made this story feel flat to me, so I wasn't exactly invested in this.
Overall, Eve and Adam is a remarkable story that is unique, intriguing, and definitely has its fair share of plot twists. Yet, in the end, it is also a novel that seems to lack just a little something more to take it from good to great. While I wasn't overly impressed with this book, I am still curious enough to want to pick up the sequel, especially due to all the unanswered questions the reader is left with at the end of this novel. It is a short story and one that I wish could have had a little more in it as it had the potential to be a lovely stand-alone, but I'm interested to see in which direction its plot goes. It also helps that there isn't a love triangle at all in this one and that the characters and lively, headstrong, vivacious, and actually intelligent. Eve and Adam has a lot going for it and I am confident that even newcomers to the science-fiction genre will fall in love with this one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.
March 26, 2017
2 stars. I can't believe Michael Grant was a contributor to this cliche mess.
Basically, this book was just a walking cliche without any depth of characterization. The romance is full of insta-love with zero chemistry whatsoever. There's even a love triangle. What's ironic is that the book is trying to break cliches with its love story; the perfect boyfriend might not necessarily be Eve's choice. But it doesn't work because her choice of boyfriend comes after nothing but instalove.
This could all be excused if Eve and Adam was fast-paced and interesting, but it's not. The premise takes forever to get going, and the plot is paper-thin.
Nothing else is appealing about the book. The writing is mediocre and so is everything else. Not recommended.
Basically, this book was just a walking cliche without any depth of characterization. The romance is full of insta-love with zero chemistry whatsoever. There's even a love triangle. What's ironic is that the book is trying to break cliches with its love story; the perfect boyfriend might not necessarily be Eve's choice. But it doesn't work because her choice of boyfriend comes after nothing but instalove.
This could all be excused if Eve and Adam was fast-paced and interesting, but it's not. The premise takes forever to get going, and the plot is paper-thin.
Nothing else is appealing about the book. The writing is mediocre and so is everything else. Not recommended.
January 10, 2013
This is one of those lukewarm "it's not you, it's me" cases, I think.
I read until around 100 pages and skimmed a bit further, but this one just didn't grab me. I didn't feel a connection with the characters and it felt as though a few things were too obviously set up--very fast--in the beginning of the book.
I've since read a couple of reviews that seem to indicate that the second half of the book is better, with more action and development, and that the story isn't as predictable as I thought it would be. Still, at this point I think I should be much more excited about the story and characters than I am.
There are other readers who will likely like this one more than I did, however, so I'm going to be giving away my copy soon. :)
I read until around 100 pages and skimmed a bit further, but this one just didn't grab me. I didn't feel a connection with the characters and it felt as though a few things were too obviously set up--very fast--in the beginning of the book.
I've since read a couple of reviews that seem to indicate that the second half of the book is better, with more action and development, and that the story isn't as predictable as I thought it would be. Still, at this point I think I should be much more excited about the story and characters than I am.
There are other readers who will likely like this one more than I did, however, so I'm going to be giving away my copy soon. :)
March 5, 2013
I know she's checking me out. Fair enough, because I'm checking her out.
"Ah ahhh ahhhh!"
Eve cries out suddenly. She's in pain. Bad pain. So it's possible she's not really checking me out.
I really do hope that sums up why the hell I decided to give this one star. I have no patience at the moment, so maybe it would have received higher on a different day.
Full review to come
"Ah ahhh ahhhh!"
Eve cries out suddenly. She's in pain. Bad pain. So it's possible she's not really checking me out.
I really do hope that sums up why the hell I decided to give this one star. I have no patience at the moment, so maybe it would have received higher on a different day.
Full review to come
October 11, 2020
This has been on my tbr for ages and I think I just waited too long to finally read it. I think this is the sort of book I would’ve loved in jr. high, but it seemed so bland and lackluster. Very uncoordinated in the beginning and unfortunately there was never a positive turning point for me.
August 15, 2017
Eve & Adam is een vlot lezend jeugdboek over genetische modificatie. Een tof onderwerp, maar helaas niet bijster origineel uitgewerkt. Meerdere keren gedurende het lezen kreeg ik het gevoel dat ik dit verhaal al eerder had gelezen. De personages komen erg jong over, waardoor ik denk dat dit boek prima geschikt is voor de leeftijdscategorie 12 tot 14 jaar. Voor mij persoonlijk miste er net iets van diepgang en een climax. Een prima boek voor de zondagmiddag, maar helaas ook niet meer dan dat.
Mijn complete recensie lees je op Oog op de Toekomst.
Mijn complete recensie lees je op Oog op de Toekomst.
January 16, 2013
So this is supposed to be, according to the blurb, all about Eve and the perfect boy she creates, right? WRONG. It's told in alternating chapters from the viewpoints of Eve and Solo. What? Who's Solo? Yeah, he's the guy that .
More spoilers:
More spoilers:
April 12, 2020
2 Stars
Review:
Well, this one wasn't for me.
Eve was way too chill about her speedy healing. She was clearly healing at a rate that was no where near normal, but she just kept shrugging it off like, "Must be the pain meds!" Your leg was literally severed from your body and took a 14-hour operation to reattach, your arm was crushed, you had stitches and bruises on your face, and you think it's normal to be bruise-free, stitch-free, pain-free, and entirely clear-headed three days later??? They kind of tried to explain this away *SPOILER* *END SPOILER*, but I didn't buy it. You'd still notice something that extreme.
She was also way too chill about having injuries in the first place. She was a runner and an artist, and yet she didn't even seem to care about the fact that her leg and arm might never be the same.
Eve was way too chill about everything, actually. Her life went from relatively normal to suddenly being full of some seriously messed up and heavy shit (including shady science experiments, gang violence, and murder), but you wouldn't know it from her reactions and inner monologue. At the end, *SPOILER* *END SPOILER* I don't know if the authors thought their intended audience wouldn't be able to handle heaviness because of their age or something, but then, maybe don't include it at all? Just glossing over the consequences of things is a weird solution.
The characters felt younger than they were, although I couldn't figure out if that was more to do with the writing or the audiobook narration (Eve's narrator sounded young). I feel like this was more of a middle grade book, written with that age in mind, even though the characters were 17.
A lot of things seemed so random and unnecessary. There was all this stuff about Eve's friend's boyfriend getting in trouble with a gang, and I still don't understand why it was included, especially since Eve seemed so emotionally unaffected by it, and I don't think it was ever resolved. To be honest, even the whole "creating the perfect boy" thing seemed somewhat pointless, except that it related to the shady experiments, and I guess maybe it taught Eve something about how people don't need to be perfect?
In the end, there was a lot left unexplained and unresolved. The conclusion to this was just so rushed and unsatisfying, and it was like no one was really affected by anything except they now had romantic partners to smooch. This is listed as the first in a series on Goodreads, but the book was published nearly eight years ago, it ended in a way that seemed like it was meant to be a standalone, and I saw one person say it's marked as a series because there's a short prequel, so I don't think there are any more answers coming.
The audiobook narrators (Jenna Lamia, Holter Graham) did a fine job though. I don't think it's their fault I didn't like this one.
Overall, I clearly had some plot issues, and I never really got invested in these characters or their story. If you can suspend your disbelief though and deal with some unresolved plot threads, maybe you'll enjoy it more than I did.
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes YA on the younger side and sci-fi and who doesn't mind stretching their suspension of disbelief quite a bit.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Review:
Well, this one wasn't for me.
Eve was way too chill about her speedy healing. She was clearly healing at a rate that was no where near normal, but she just kept shrugging it off like, "Must be the pain meds!" Your leg was literally severed from your body and took a 14-hour operation to reattach, your arm was crushed, you had stitches and bruises on your face, and you think it's normal to be bruise-free, stitch-free, pain-free, and entirely clear-headed three days later??? They kind of tried to explain this away *SPOILER* *END SPOILER*, but I didn't buy it. You'd still notice something that extreme.
She was also way too chill about having injuries in the first place. She was a runner and an artist, and yet she didn't even seem to care about the fact that her leg and arm might never be the same.
Eve was way too chill about everything, actually. Her life went from relatively normal to suddenly being full of some seriously messed up and heavy shit (including shady science experiments, gang violence, and murder), but you wouldn't know it from her reactions and inner monologue. At the end, *SPOILER* *END SPOILER* I don't know if the authors thought their intended audience wouldn't be able to handle heaviness because of their age or something, but then, maybe don't include it at all? Just glossing over the consequences of things is a weird solution.
The characters felt younger than they were, although I couldn't figure out if that was more to do with the writing or the audiobook narration (Eve's narrator sounded young). I feel like this was more of a middle grade book, written with that age in mind, even though the characters were 17.
A lot of things seemed so random and unnecessary. There was all this stuff about Eve's friend's boyfriend getting in trouble with a gang, and I still don't understand why it was included, especially since Eve seemed so emotionally unaffected by it, and I don't think it was ever resolved. To be honest, even the whole "creating the perfect boy" thing seemed somewhat pointless, except that it related to the shady experiments, and I guess maybe it taught Eve something about how people don't need to be perfect?
In the end, there was a lot left unexplained and unresolved. The conclusion to this was just so rushed and unsatisfying, and it was like no one was really affected by anything except they now had romantic partners to smooch. This is listed as the first in a series on Goodreads, but the book was published nearly eight years ago, it ended in a way that seemed like it was meant to be a standalone, and I saw one person say it's marked as a series because there's a short prequel, so I don't think there are any more answers coming.
The audiobook narrators (Jenna Lamia, Holter Graham) did a fine job though. I don't think it's their fault I didn't like this one.
Overall, I clearly had some plot issues, and I never really got invested in these characters or their story. If you can suspend your disbelief though and deal with some unresolved plot threads, maybe you'll enjoy it more than I did.
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes YA on the younger side and sci-fi and who doesn't mind stretching their suspension of disbelief quite a bit.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
October 18, 2012
Call me Snake SOLO...
Romance, science, genetic tinkering, and hot boys. The synopsis had me after one line, but EVE & ADAM is a bit of a mystery to me. Maybe I went in with strange expectations, or maybe the blurb is misleading, but I expected something a bit different expectations than I should have. Expecting genetic experimentation, the future, and a girl creating her perfect boy, what I got was… Okay, fine, I pretty much got what I was anticipating, just in a different form. But maybe it was for the better.
EVE & ADAM is not the groundbreaking, must read, brand spanking new great American teen novel. The basic plot is pretty tried and true, it follows the usual tropes (love triangle, cold distant parents, slapstick best friend, etc). But at its core, EVE & ADAM is a rather twisting, intricate tale with depth and intrigue. Evening, the heroine of our tale, is smart, witty, and bold – my favorite type of heroine. Although some of her side plots – namely, her best friend Aislin and Aislin’s icky boyfriend – were annoying and unnecessary, I found Eve’s resiliency and pride to be admirable traits.
But Solo… Hrm. I just didn’t connect with him like I should have, even though all the Snake Plisskin references made me giggle. If you haven’t seen Escape From New York/Escape from LA, what are you waiting for? Go and do that before you read that and it’ll make the experience better. Solo is your typical YA hero – a brash bad boy with a rebellious streak and witty comebacks. There were times in EVE & ADAM where Solo and Eve sounded a bit too similar in their styles of narration, leaving me flipping back a few pages to see who was talking. Solo at times also acting rather… let’s just say bratty. Yes, bratty…
Let me just say one thing that I disliked. I mentioned this before, but it’s worth repeating. Aislin and her boyfriend. Aislin was extremely dislikable, and her friendship with Evening made me question Eve and her friendship. Was she that desperate for a friend that she picked the first drunken girl she found? Aislin’s relationship with a drug dealer made things so much more difficult. The storyline of a girl dating an abusive, stealing drug dealer is one that should be seen more in YA, but not as a secondary plot line to a story about genetic tinkering. It felt like overkill used to pad the storyline instead of contributing to the overarching plot. It was a distraction and really took away from the plot to me.
Oh, and Evening’s mother Terra? LOVED her. So awesome, but is she a good mother? Nope. Not in the slightest.
EVE & ADAM was fast paced and interesting. In fact, once I sat down and had a good chunk of time to read, I finished the last 250 pages in one sitting. Although it wasn’t the futuristic story I’d hoped for, what it did have was enough science to keep me hooked. But this one won’t be for anyone. In fact, my enjoyment wavers looking back. Choosing between 3 and 4 stars is difficult. This one is one of those that will anger some, entrance others, and be completely meh to a few. There were areas that needed improvement, but you know what? I enjoyed it for what it was. It wasn’t masquerading as the Great American Novel. But it was fun and enjoyable for a few hours of distraction. Don’t go in with high expectations, but don’t discount this one either.
VERDICT: Although the synopsis is misleading, EVE & ADAM is an enjoyable, fast paced novel that will appeal to fans of light sci-fi and action. But it’s not much more than action fluff, mind you.
Romance, science, genetic tinkering, and hot boys. The synopsis had me after one line, but EVE & ADAM is a bit of a mystery to me. Maybe I went in with strange expectations, or maybe the blurb is misleading, but I expected something a bit different expectations than I should have. Expecting genetic experimentation, the future, and a girl creating her perfect boy, what I got was… Okay, fine, I pretty much got what I was anticipating, just in a different form. But maybe it was for the better.
EVE & ADAM is not the groundbreaking, must read, brand spanking new great American teen novel. The basic plot is pretty tried and true, it follows the usual tropes (love triangle, cold distant parents, slapstick best friend, etc). But at its core, EVE & ADAM is a rather twisting, intricate tale with depth and intrigue. Evening, the heroine of our tale, is smart, witty, and bold – my favorite type of heroine. Although some of her side plots – namely, her best friend Aislin and Aislin’s icky boyfriend – were annoying and unnecessary, I found Eve’s resiliency and pride to be admirable traits.
But Solo… Hrm. I just didn’t connect with him like I should have, even though all the Snake Plisskin references made me giggle. If you haven’t seen Escape From New York/Escape from LA, what are you waiting for? Go and do that before you read that and it’ll make the experience better. Solo is your typical YA hero – a brash bad boy with a rebellious streak and witty comebacks. There were times in EVE & ADAM where Solo and Eve sounded a bit too similar in their styles of narration, leaving me flipping back a few pages to see who was talking. Solo at times also acting rather… let’s just say bratty. Yes, bratty…
Let me just say one thing that I disliked. I mentioned this before, but it’s worth repeating. Aislin and her boyfriend. Aislin was extremely dislikable, and her friendship with Evening made me question Eve and her friendship. Was she that desperate for a friend that she picked the first drunken girl she found? Aislin’s relationship with a drug dealer made things so much more difficult. The storyline of a girl dating an abusive, stealing drug dealer is one that should be seen more in YA, but not as a secondary plot line to a story about genetic tinkering. It felt like overkill used to pad the storyline instead of contributing to the overarching plot. It was a distraction and really took away from the plot to me.
Oh, and Evening’s mother Terra? LOVED her. So awesome, but is she a good mother? Nope. Not in the slightest.
EVE & ADAM was fast paced and interesting. In fact, once I sat down and had a good chunk of time to read, I finished the last 250 pages in one sitting. Although it wasn’t the futuristic story I’d hoped for, what it did have was enough science to keep me hooked. But this one won’t be for anyone. In fact, my enjoyment wavers looking back. Choosing between 3 and 4 stars is difficult. This one is one of those that will anger some, entrance others, and be completely meh to a few. There were areas that needed improvement, but you know what? I enjoyed it for what it was. It wasn’t masquerading as the Great American Novel. But it was fun and enjoyable for a few hours of distraction. Don’t go in with high expectations, but don’t discount this one either.
VERDICT: Although the synopsis is misleading, EVE & ADAM is an enjoyable, fast paced novel that will appeal to fans of light sci-fi and action. But it’s not much more than action fluff, mind you.
December 18, 2012
Miracles don't exist...or do they?
Evening Spiker has always loved biology, as well as the arts - her mother, Terra Spiker, one of the lead names in the scientific fields, although her methods are often less than savoury and her work is shrouded in mystery. After a freak car accident, Evening undergoes an operation at her mother's research facility. Her leg, cut off, is now healing...at a level that is far too good to be true.
Soul mates don't exist...or do they?
Evening's mother gives her something to pass the time - a kind of simulation where, through virtual DNA and technological commands, you can create a 3-D, virtual and yet startling realistic human being. And Evening's mother's task? To create the perfect guy. But...what is perfect? And that is a question Evening must answer for herself as she creates 'Adam'.
Freedom doesn't exist...or does it?
Solo has been stuck as Terra Spiker's ward/assistant for as long as he can remember - ever since the freak car accident that killed both his parents. When Evening is brought in to the facility, Solo is stuck. His growing feelings for Evening may be the undoing of the plans he has laid out to take Terra Spiker - and her facility - down. Solo unveils secrets to Evening that she never knew, opening her eyes. And in turn, Evening gifts Solo with an understanding of what it means to have friends and how having something to save can be more important than bringing about ruin.
No one can play God...or can they?
But someone is one step ahead of Solo and Evening. Someone has the technology to make your biggest dreams a reality, to create something that rivals any masterpiece every created by mere human hands. But playing God has a price - for both the creation and the creator.
'Eve and Adam' is a dystopian novel to rival the best. So take a bite of the apple and read it today!
Evening Spiker has always loved biology, as well as the arts - her mother, Terra Spiker, one of the lead names in the scientific fields, although her methods are often less than savoury and her work is shrouded in mystery. After a freak car accident, Evening undergoes an operation at her mother's research facility. Her leg, cut off, is now healing...at a level that is far too good to be true.
Soul mates don't exist...or do they?
Evening's mother gives her something to pass the time - a kind of simulation where, through virtual DNA and technological commands, you can create a 3-D, virtual and yet startling realistic human being. And Evening's mother's task? To create the perfect guy. But...what is perfect? And that is a question Evening must answer for herself as she creates 'Adam'.
Freedom doesn't exist...or does it?
Solo has been stuck as Terra Spiker's ward/assistant for as long as he can remember - ever since the freak car accident that killed both his parents. When Evening is brought in to the facility, Solo is stuck. His growing feelings for Evening may be the undoing of the plans he has laid out to take Terra Spiker - and her facility - down. Solo unveils secrets to Evening that she never knew, opening her eyes. And in turn, Evening gifts Solo with an understanding of what it means to have friends and how having something to save can be more important than bringing about ruin.
No one can play God...or can they?
But someone is one step ahead of Solo and Evening. Someone has the technology to make your biggest dreams a reality, to create something that rivals any masterpiece every created by mere human hands. But playing God has a price - for both the creation and the creator.
'Eve and Adam' is a dystopian novel to rival the best. So take a bite of the apple and read it today!
September 24, 2012
Fairly quick and straight-forward read. Something aimed at readers between Gone and BZRK – at least that’s what I think. I find it is a lighter BZRK just dealing with genetic manipulation rather than biots and nanobots etc.
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The first thing I did earlier this year when I found out about this book was squee like tomorrow was never coming. If you know me then you know that whatever book Michael Grant comes out with… I. Will. Read! But seeing that Eve and Adam was written by both Michael Grant and wife Katherine Applegate, Animorphs creator and The One and Only Ivan author, then you would suspect that the book will be nothing short of extraordinary. Why shouldn’t it? Eve and Adam was extraordinary to some degree, but that depends on how you view this book. If you read Eve and Adam expecting it to be exactly like the Gone series or BZRK or some literary wonder, then you’re not thinking straight – you’re glitched! Sure Eve and Adam is imperfect, but after all, this book explores imperfections; it’s about imperfections… and perfections. And you know what else? It’s freaking commercial!
Basically the synopsis is all you need to know about Eve and Adam. What it does not say though is that it is fast-paced and you will have it down before you have even started. Having read most of Michael Grant’s work, from the first page there is this aura that immediately makes me aware that it is his writing. I did not even notice changes in the writings between Eve’s chapters (written obviously by Katherine) and Solo’s/Adam’s (Michael’s); they transitioned seamlessly. I enjoyed Eve and Adam as I do all of Michael Grant’s work, but there was this sense that they intended to write a story much too sarcastic and outlandish for its own kind. The thought that this was a “toy” for this married duo rather than a ‘I’m-taking-this-seriously-book’ was in the forefront of my mind for most of the time. But these thoughts did not influence me in anyway. I enjoyed Eve and Adam for what it was.
Oh there was insta-luv, but an insta-luv I accepted. I didn’t find Eve and Adam to be heavily built upon the romance so it didn’t bother me. The romance in this book was a side dish to the main course of the science fiction elements, the genetic manipulation and engineering. Within 300 pages how else were you going to set up a relationship that was important in making the plot proceed? Solo’s character was very self-driven because of his haunting past. Once he befriends Eve and they form a relationship, he discovers more about himself and his parents as well as his role in the Spiker organisation. He feels like such a prisoner in that environment and wants to break out. To him, everything that Spiker is doing is wrong, so he attempts to save not only his own skin but the lives of others that may fall victim to the hands of the corporation – he especially wants to save Eve, who is just as lost in this new-found world and life of hers after her accident.
If you want something thoroughly entertaining where suspending your disbelief is required, then Eve and Adam is the “perfect” book. If you don’t suspend your disbelief then this book is going to have a hard time convincing you as to what may happen in a future ahead of our time. After all, quite a lot of it has already happened today. Eve and Adam is farcical and you should finish it having been entertained. Or at least leave wondering why no one is staring at you since you are the most perfect and hottest being on this planet… second to Adam.
Most recent thought: Eve and Adam felt like a one episode sitcom cross soap opera.
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‘What if she won’t come with me?”
‘Oh, she’ll come,’ Terra Spiker says. ‘It’s the fate of all creators; they fall in love with their creations.’
The first thing I did earlier this year when I found out about this book was squee like tomorrow was never coming. If you know me then you know that whatever book Michael Grant comes out with… I. Will. Read! But seeing that Eve and Adam was written by both Michael Grant and wife Katherine Applegate, Animorphs creator and The One and Only Ivan author, then you would suspect that the book will be nothing short of extraordinary. Why shouldn’t it? Eve and Adam was extraordinary to some degree, but that depends on how you view this book. If you read Eve and Adam expecting it to be exactly like the Gone series or BZRK or some literary wonder, then you’re not thinking straight – you’re glitched! Sure Eve and Adam is imperfect, but after all, this book explores imperfections; it’s about imperfections… and perfections. And you know what else? It’s freaking commercial!
Basically the synopsis is all you need to know about Eve and Adam. What it does not say though is that it is fast-paced and you will have it down before you have even started. Having read most of Michael Grant’s work, from the first page there is this aura that immediately makes me aware that it is his writing. I did not even notice changes in the writings between Eve’s chapters (written obviously by Katherine) and Solo’s/Adam’s (Michael’s); they transitioned seamlessly. I enjoyed Eve and Adam as I do all of Michael Grant’s work, but there was this sense that they intended to write a story much too sarcastic and outlandish for its own kind. The thought that this was a “toy” for this married duo rather than a ‘I’m-taking-this-seriously-book’ was in the forefront of my mind for most of the time. But these thoughts did not influence me in anyway. I enjoyed Eve and Adam for what it was.
Oh there was insta-luv, but an insta-luv I accepted. I didn’t find Eve and Adam to be heavily built upon the romance so it didn’t bother me. The romance in this book was a side dish to the main course of the science fiction elements, the genetic manipulation and engineering. Within 300 pages how else were you going to set up a relationship that was important in making the plot proceed? Solo’s character was very self-driven because of his haunting past. Once he befriends Eve and they form a relationship, he discovers more about himself and his parents as well as his role in the Spiker organisation. He feels like such a prisoner in that environment and wants to break out. To him, everything that Spiker is doing is wrong, so he attempts to save not only his own skin but the lives of others that may fall victim to the hands of the corporation – he especially wants to save Eve, who is just as lost in this new-found world and life of hers after her accident.
If you want something thoroughly entertaining where suspending your disbelief is required, then Eve and Adam is the “perfect” book. If you don’t suspend your disbelief then this book is going to have a hard time convincing you as to what may happen in a future ahead of our time. After all, quite a lot of it has already happened today. Eve and Adam is farcical and you should finish it having been entertained. Or at least leave wondering why no one is staring at you since you are the most perfect and hottest being on this planet… second to Adam.
Most recent thought: Eve and Adam felt like a one episode sitcom cross soap opera.
February 26, 2013
3.5 Stars
With the likes of Cinder, Unravelling, Obsidian—not to mention dystopian as a genre—it seems sci-fi’s been making a comeback of late. But while hi-tech, high-stakes and twisty plots are to sci-fi what teen angst and pointy teeth are to paranormal, sometimes, it’s just fun—and the Grant/Applegate dream-team deliver ‘fun’ in Eve and Adam by the bucket-load.
The Story:
Evening Spiker expects to wake up dead after she mangles an arm, loses a leg and a whole lot of blood in a brutal car accident. Turns out hospital’s the next best thing. But she’s not there for long. No sooner is she waking up from surgery than her control freak, biopharmaceutical billionaire mother is whisking her away to her state-of-the-art research facility. Well, having her hot, blond, teenage errand boy, Solo, do the whisking for her.
Five-star luxury recovery wards are nice and all, but Eve is going out of her mind from boredom. To keep her busy, mummy-dearest gives her a task: design the perfect boy. Using state-of-the-art software designed to teach genetics, Eve’s the Beta tester for an interface that makes The Sims look like Kindergarten cut-and-paste.
But things don’t seem quite normal at Spiker Biopharm. Eve’s healing quickly—too quickly—Mummy’s keeping secrets, and errand boy Solo may not be quite what he seems.
The 101:
Three letters, vastly underrated, sum up Eve and Adam in a nutshell: F-U-N. Husband and wife writing team, Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate set out to entertain and do just that.
Eve and Adam starts out at rocketing pace, with main character, Evening, losing a leg and having it sewn back on in a space during which you could hold your breath, and continues until the final page. Fast, funny, and irreverent, this a light read filled with exciting plot twists, nicely bridging the space between middle grade and young adult fiction. Grant and Applegate manage a masterful balance between pace, plot, entertaining characters and light romance, hitting all the right marks, while never getting weighed down in genre or category tropes.
Told through the split point of view of Evening Spiker and Solo Plissken, each character has a distinct—but equally exciteable and delightfully humorous—voice, and one gets the feeling that, between these two, there’s nothing they couldn’t accomplish—corporate espionage is merely their first stop. But Eve and Adam is very much a plot-driven tale, rather than a character driven-one. It’s a story about protoscience, gene ethics and high-stakes corporate conspiracies far more than a story about Eve, Solo, or indeed, its titular Adam.
There’s a space for Deep Thoughts and a time for existential angst. Grant and Applegate don’t maintain pretentions about either. Eve and Adam aims for fun and delivers.
The Verdict:
A fast-paced, plot-driven, sci-fi thriller, Eve and Adam is quick, electrifying and enormously fun fiction from a much loved authorly dream team. Readers looking for end of the world high stakes and ‘I can’t live without you’ romance may be disappointed, but those who are looking for fast, exciting entertainment will be thrilled. Pitch-perfect MG/YA cross over, Grant and Applegate deliver in this inventive, entertaining sci-fi romp.
---
First Throughts
An enormously fun, fast-paced, plot-driven read.
Love the characters, love the world, love the setup and premise, and that it's a good fun sci-fi thriller with no pretentions.
And did I mention it's FUN?
With the likes of Cinder, Unravelling, Obsidian—not to mention dystopian as a genre—it seems sci-fi’s been making a comeback of late. But while hi-tech, high-stakes and twisty plots are to sci-fi what teen angst and pointy teeth are to paranormal, sometimes, it’s just fun—and the Grant/Applegate dream-team deliver ‘fun’ in Eve and Adam by the bucket-load.
The Story:
Evening Spiker expects to wake up dead after she mangles an arm, loses a leg and a whole lot of blood in a brutal car accident. Turns out hospital’s the next best thing. But she’s not there for long. No sooner is she waking up from surgery than her control freak, biopharmaceutical billionaire mother is whisking her away to her state-of-the-art research facility. Well, having her hot, blond, teenage errand boy, Solo, do the whisking for her.
Five-star luxury recovery wards are nice and all, but Eve is going out of her mind from boredom. To keep her busy, mummy-dearest gives her a task: design the perfect boy. Using state-of-the-art software designed to teach genetics, Eve’s the Beta tester for an interface that makes The Sims look like Kindergarten cut-and-paste.
But things don’t seem quite normal at Spiker Biopharm. Eve’s healing quickly—too quickly—Mummy’s keeping secrets, and errand boy Solo may not be quite what he seems.
The 101:
Three letters, vastly underrated, sum up Eve and Adam in a nutshell: F-U-N. Husband and wife writing team, Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate set out to entertain and do just that.
Eve and Adam starts out at rocketing pace, with main character, Evening, losing a leg and having it sewn back on in a space during which you could hold your breath, and continues until the final page. Fast, funny, and irreverent, this a light read filled with exciting plot twists, nicely bridging the space between middle grade and young adult fiction. Grant and Applegate manage a masterful balance between pace, plot, entertaining characters and light romance, hitting all the right marks, while never getting weighed down in genre or category tropes.
Told through the split point of view of Evening Spiker and Solo Plissken, each character has a distinct—but equally exciteable and delightfully humorous—voice, and one gets the feeling that, between these two, there’s nothing they couldn’t accomplish—corporate espionage is merely their first stop. But Eve and Adam is very much a plot-driven tale, rather than a character driven-one. It’s a story about protoscience, gene ethics and high-stakes corporate conspiracies far more than a story about Eve, Solo, or indeed, its titular Adam.
There’s a space for Deep Thoughts and a time for existential angst. Grant and Applegate don’t maintain pretentions about either. Eve and Adam aims for fun and delivers.
The Verdict:
A fast-paced, plot-driven, sci-fi thriller, Eve and Adam is quick, electrifying and enormously fun fiction from a much loved authorly dream team. Readers looking for end of the world high stakes and ‘I can’t live without you’ romance may be disappointed, but those who are looking for fast, exciting entertainment will be thrilled. Pitch-perfect MG/YA cross over, Grant and Applegate deliver in this inventive, entertaining sci-fi romp.
---
First Throughts
An enormously fun, fast-paced, plot-driven read.
Love the characters, love the world, love the setup and premise, and that it's a good fun sci-fi thriller with no pretentions.
And did I mention it's FUN?
August 25, 2012
KA Applegate is my childhood hero but Eve and Adam almost gave me a scare. Sure, much of what I fondly remember about Animorphs and Everworld made it into this book, the cheeky humor, the obvious and not so obvious pop culture references, and especially the moral shades of gray that’s complicated but not preachy, but the first hundred pages or so just felt off. Luckily, the chapters go by quickly and I found a lot to like by the end of the book, although my overall impression is probably still slight disappointment.
My biggest gripe is that the first half of this book tracks the summary way too closely. Going past maybe chapter twenty or so, I really don’t feel like I got anything new out of the plot beyond what’s already been revealed by the summary, well except Eve’s mother’s name is now Terra instead of Emma Rose and a side plot involving Eve’s best friend Aislin’s boyfriend Maddox and some drug dealers that’s more distraction than good side plot. Even worse, the world changing secrets, I don’t think the plot, unlike the summary, even hints at those until somewhere in the second half. The entire time, I just felt like I was reading a longer version of the same thing I’ve already read, and I had a hard time with it because it wasn’t as interesting or as funny as I’d hoped it would be. Yeah, Eve has some pretty good lines now and then but for the most part the humor’s inconsistent - the first scene of her being run over by a streetcar for example is more weird than anything else. And many other scenes just expand on the summary without adding anything new.
But past all that setup, once the world changing secrets come out, once I got to the point of the story, I have to say the book picks up considerably and I enjoyed it much more. My favorite part of the Animorphs books has always been Applegate’s approach to morality, the characters get a tough choice, there are pros and cons to both sides, it’s not overly simplified this is the good option that is the bad option like in a lot of young adult books especially back in the nineties, and the choice leads to some pretty stark results. I’m glad Eve and Adam brings back all of that moral gray area goodness, the way Eve confront the morality of genetic engineering, classic, yeah there’s pretty disgusting human experimentation but the results also help a lot of people, it’s thought provoking without feeling long winded or biased.
There’re some pretty good twists along the way before an ending that feels oddly appropriate even after all this time. I enjoyed Eve’s story once it got going, and I want to say the second half with its much improved humor, enjoyable action sequences, and breezy pacing completely redeems the letdown of the first half, but that’s not entirely true. Solo, unfortunately, is a shadow of the male protagonists of past Applegate books - especially his feelings for Eve, way too cliched - and remains that way for the entire book while the villain is certainly no Visser Three, but the story as a whole and the writing style in particular, there’s a reason it worked then, and it still works now.
Sure, I’m a little disappointed, but the comparisons to a nineties classic boosted by a lot of nostalgia probably aren’t completely fair. I’m going to stick with this series because the stuff that I really care about, the engaging writing, the humor, is still here, if weak at first. Hopefully, without all the setup this one required, Adam and Eve will really shine. 3.5/5.
My biggest gripe is that the first half of this book tracks the summary way too closely. Going past maybe chapter twenty or so, I really don’t feel like I got anything new out of the plot beyond what’s already been revealed by the summary, well except Eve’s mother’s name is now Terra instead of Emma Rose and a side plot involving Eve’s best friend Aislin’s boyfriend Maddox and some drug dealers that’s more distraction than good side plot. Even worse, the world changing secrets, I don’t think the plot, unlike the summary, even hints at those until somewhere in the second half. The entire time, I just felt like I was reading a longer version of the same thing I’ve already read, and I had a hard time with it because it wasn’t as interesting or as funny as I’d hoped it would be. Yeah, Eve has some pretty good lines now and then but for the most part the humor’s inconsistent - the first scene of her being run over by a streetcar for example is more weird than anything else. And many other scenes just expand on the summary without adding anything new.
But past all that setup, once the world changing secrets come out, once I got to the point of the story, I have to say the book picks up considerably and I enjoyed it much more. My favorite part of the Animorphs books has always been Applegate’s approach to morality, the characters get a tough choice, there are pros and cons to both sides, it’s not overly simplified this is the good option that is the bad option like in a lot of young adult books especially back in the nineties, and the choice leads to some pretty stark results. I’m glad Eve and Adam brings back all of that moral gray area goodness, the way Eve confront the morality of genetic engineering, classic, yeah there’s pretty disgusting human experimentation but the results also help a lot of people, it’s thought provoking without feeling long winded or biased.
There’re some pretty good twists along the way before an ending that feels oddly appropriate even after all this time. I enjoyed Eve’s story once it got going, and I want to say the second half with its much improved humor, enjoyable action sequences, and breezy pacing completely redeems the letdown of the first half, but that’s not entirely true. Solo, unfortunately, is a shadow of the male protagonists of past Applegate books - especially his feelings for Eve, way too cliched - and remains that way for the entire book while the villain is certainly no Visser Three, but the story as a whole and the writing style in particular, there’s a reason it worked then, and it still works now.
Sure, I’m a little disappointed, but the comparisons to a nineties classic boosted by a lot of nostalgia probably aren’t completely fair. I’m going to stick with this series because the stuff that I really care about, the engaging writing, the humor, is still here, if weak at first. Hopefully, without all the setup this one required, Adam and Eve will really shine. 3.5/5.
November 30, 2017
Antes de la lectura
hace unos años cuando lei por primera vez " CINDER" de Marissa Meyer ( solo lei los dos primeros de la saga y lo consideraba una saga buena pero no espectacular como hoy la considera) también tenia muchisimas ganas de leer este libro . se me hacia de la onda Futurista y cool que. me imaginé que tal vez seria una clase de retelling del cuento de la creación tipo " adan y eva en el edén" ( un poco parecido a Cinder ) o algo asi.
habia leido la sinopsis varias veces o tal vez solo vi lo que queria ver y no me fijé que todo se podria voltear
Durante la lectura
pues han pasado como 4 años y recién me pude sentar a leerlo como solo era un libro me dije " es bueno para leerlo y acabarlo hoy mismo" . asi Fue.
El inicio estaba bien , y conforme iba viendo mi propia fantasia se iba destruyendo.
Evening o Eve ( como Eva) es la hija de una medica que tiene una compañia grandisima de génetica y crea vacunas ( hablamos como si fuera una corporación) . es la unica hija y no tiene padre porque falleció en un accidente.
todo inicia cuando Eve la atropella un carro y le destroza la pierna y parte del brazo ( ahi es donde crei que se pareceria a Cinder , que le iba a poner una pierna metalica) pero su madre se la lleva a su hospital super genial , la ponen en tratamiento y su pierna se salva ( milagro)
Eve conoce a Solon un chico super guapo que la ayuda unos dias mientras se recupera en el hospital ( esta dentro de la compañia ) . en un principio que Solon y Adam ( el prototipo de hombre ideal era el mismo ) pero no , Solon y Adam son dos cosas diferentes .
aunque habla de experimentos para crear el hombre perfecto ADAM atraves de los genes , mas se enfoca en cosas un poco estupidas como que EL NOVIO DE LA MEJOR AMIGA DE EVE ES UN NARCO Y LE DEBE PLATA A UNOS MATONES.
ah??? eso le aporta escenas de acción pero es la mitad del libro y el secreto secreto no se descubre hasta mas de la mitad.
al finalizar la lectura
algunos personajes me cayeron mal ,la madre de la protagonista era genial si hubiera publido un poco sus rasgos y actitud , mucho enredo con la trama. hubiera deseado ver mas cosas sobre los genes recesivos y Adn . no vi tanta creación para crear a Adam. hubo huecos en la trama como es que hicieron todos esos experimentos. el final fue raro.
nadie tenia claro sus propios sentimientos. fue ineccesario los puntos de vista de los protagonistas porque igual parecia narrado en tercera persona.
hace unos años cuando lei por primera vez " CINDER" de Marissa Meyer ( solo lei los dos primeros de la saga y lo consideraba una saga buena pero no espectacular como hoy la considera) también tenia muchisimas ganas de leer este libro . se me hacia de la onda Futurista y cool que. me imaginé que tal vez seria una clase de retelling del cuento de la creación tipo " adan y eva en el edén" ( un poco parecido a Cinder ) o algo asi.
habia leido la sinopsis varias veces o tal vez solo vi lo que queria ver y no me fijé que todo se podria voltear
Durante la lectura
pues han pasado como 4 años y recién me pude sentar a leerlo como solo era un libro me dije " es bueno para leerlo y acabarlo hoy mismo" . asi Fue.
El inicio estaba bien , y conforme iba viendo mi propia fantasia se iba destruyendo.
Evening o Eve ( como Eva) es la hija de una medica que tiene una compañia grandisima de génetica y crea vacunas ( hablamos como si fuera una corporación) . es la unica hija y no tiene padre porque falleció en un accidente.
todo inicia cuando Eve la atropella un carro y le destroza la pierna y parte del brazo ( ahi es donde crei que se pareceria a Cinder , que le iba a poner una pierna metalica) pero su madre se la lleva a su hospital super genial , la ponen en tratamiento y su pierna se salva ( milagro)
Eve conoce a Solon un chico super guapo que la ayuda unos dias mientras se recupera en el hospital ( esta dentro de la compañia ) . en un principio que Solon y Adam ( el prototipo de hombre ideal era el mismo ) pero no , Solon y Adam son dos cosas diferentes .
aunque habla de experimentos para crear el hombre perfecto ADAM atraves de los genes , mas se enfoca en cosas un poco estupidas como que EL NOVIO DE LA MEJOR AMIGA DE EVE ES UN NARCO Y LE DEBE PLATA A UNOS MATONES.
ah??? eso le aporta escenas de acción pero es la mitad del libro y el secreto secreto no se descubre hasta mas de la mitad.
al finalizar la lectura
algunos personajes me cayeron mal ,la madre de la protagonista era genial si hubiera publido un poco sus rasgos y actitud , mucho enredo con la trama. hubiera deseado ver mas cosas sobre los genes recesivos y Adn . no vi tanta creación para crear a Adam. hubo huecos en la trama como es que hicieron todos esos experimentos. el final fue raro.
nadie tenia claro sus propios sentimientos. fue ineccesario los puntos de vista de los protagonistas porque igual parecia narrado en tercera persona.
August 11, 2012
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From the get go, I knew I would like this book. The cover alone tipped me off to expect an exciting plot and a lot of action. Evening “E.V.” Spiker is the daughter of a Biopharmaceuticals mogul-scientist. After being in a horrible accident, E.V. goes to stay at the Spiker research facility while she heals. To keep E.V. occupied, Terra Spiker, E.V.’s mother, has E.V. test new software for the company. E.V. will be “playing God” and building a Sim person on the computer by manipulating genes. Solo has lived at the Spiker research facility since he was eleven and his parents died. A computer genius, Solo knows everything and everyone associated with Spiker technology. Solo wants to take down Terra Spiker, he believes she is the reason his parents died. The attraction to E.V. that Solo feels has nothing to do with E.V., but just with the fact she is the only other person his age at the research facility. That’s what Solo has been telling himself, at least.
Although E.V. is arguably the main character of this novel, my favorite character is Terra. “Terror” Terra Spiker is driven, tough, and knows what she is doing. Her morals may be questionable, but Terra Spiker is awesome! I love and admire her. E.V. is a lot like her mother. E.V. will find a way to get what she wants and protect the people she cares about. Solo is more of a wildcard who is driven by revenge, but unconsciously seems to want to be a better person. All the characters in this book are really interesting. Eve and Adam could be loved by a teen or young adult reader of either gender. The plot and characters have a universal appeal. Grant and Applegate did a fantastic job. Eve and Adam also promises to be a series; this news put a smile on my face.
5 Stars
*Reviewed by Kristin*
From the get go, I knew I would like this book. The cover alone tipped me off to expect an exciting plot and a lot of action. Evening “E.V.” Spiker is the daughter of a Biopharmaceuticals mogul-scientist. After being in a horrible accident, E.V. goes to stay at the Spiker research facility while she heals. To keep E.V. occupied, Terra Spiker, E.V.’s mother, has E.V. test new software for the company. E.V. will be “playing God” and building a Sim person on the computer by manipulating genes. Solo has lived at the Spiker research facility since he was eleven and his parents died. A computer genius, Solo knows everything and everyone associated with Spiker technology. Solo wants to take down Terra Spiker, he believes she is the reason his parents died. The attraction to E.V. that Solo feels has nothing to do with E.V., but just with the fact she is the only other person his age at the research facility. That’s what Solo has been telling himself, at least.
Although E.V. is arguably the main character of this novel, my favorite character is Terra. “Terror” Terra Spiker is driven, tough, and knows what she is doing. Her morals may be questionable, but Terra Spiker is awesome! I love and admire her. E.V. is a lot like her mother. E.V. will find a way to get what she wants and protect the people she cares about. Solo is more of a wildcard who is driven by revenge, but unconsciously seems to want to be a better person. All the characters in this book are really interesting. Eve and Adam could be loved by a teen or young adult reader of either gender. The plot and characters have a universal appeal. Grant and Applegate did a fantastic job. Eve and Adam also promises to be a series; this news put a smile on my face.
5 Stars
*Reviewed by Kristin*
January 5, 2016
“I know something must be very wrong, or just possibly very right?”
Book Title: Eve and Adam
Author: Katherine Applegate & Michael Grant
Narration: Jenna Lamia & Holter Graham
Series: Eve and Adam #1 (according to goodreads)
Genre: Younger YA, Science Fiction, Splash of Romance
Publisher: Macmillan Young Listeners
Source: Audiobook (Library)
Overall Rating: 3/5 Stars
✧Breakdown of Rating✧
Plot: 3/5 This story starts out feeling rather childish, and I know it is YA and I would classify it younger YA. It still was an OK read, though.
Characters: 4/5 The two MC's are likable, but something was missing for me…
The Feels: 3/5 Does annoyance count???
Theme: 4/5 Overall, it tries, and mostly succeeds to have a worthy message.
Flow: 5/5
Originality: 3/5
Book Cover: 5/5 I was lured in because of this amazing cover.
Sex Factor: None
Narration: 5/5
Ending: 3/5 The climax at the ending confused me, I think something was off with it. I was left thinking that something was skipped over. Cliffhanger: Not really, but it could have had a more defined closure.
Will I continue the series? I don't know that there is another one…Goodreads makes it seem like there is, but I don't see #2 out there yet; and this was published in 2012. So…go figure. I guess it’s no big loss really.
My Additional Thoughts :
This story could have been so much better; it has the elements to be so…it just fell somewhat flat for me.
Book Title: Eve and Adam
Author: Katherine Applegate & Michael Grant
Narration: Jenna Lamia & Holter Graham
Series: Eve and Adam #1 (according to goodreads)
Genre: Younger YA, Science Fiction, Splash of Romance
Publisher: Macmillan Young Listeners
Source: Audiobook (Library)
๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑
Why I picked that quote: It’s kind of how I feel about this book in general, except the only thing they got right is the cover, because it's amazingly cool.
๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑๑
Overall Rating: 3/5 Stars
✧Breakdown of Rating✧
Plot: 3/5 This story starts out feeling rather childish, and I know it is YA and I would classify it younger YA. It still was an OK read, though.
Characters: 4/5 The two MC's are likable, but something was missing for me…
The Feels: 3/5 Does annoyance count???
Theme: 4/5 Overall, it tries, and mostly succeeds to have a worthy message.
Flow: 5/5
Originality: 3/5
Book Cover: 5/5 I was lured in because of this amazing cover.
Sex Factor: None
Narration: 5/5
Ending: 3/5 The climax at the ending confused me, I think something was off with it. I was left thinking that something was skipped over. Cliffhanger: Not really, but it could have had a more defined closure.
Will I continue the series? I don't know that there is another one…Goodreads makes it seem like there is, but I don't see #2 out there yet; and this was published in 2012. So…go figure. I guess it’s no big loss really.
My Additional Thoughts :
This story could have been so much better; it has the elements to be so…it just fell somewhat flat for me.
October 11, 2012
"Oh instalove, how do I loathe thee? Let me count the ways."
This wasn't really bad. It was, though, a light fluff of a story that uses genetic engineering as an invisible skeleton to pack romance, familial issues, and a few insubstantial characters around. There's nothing...interesting, unique about this story. It recycles a bunch of what's already been done in the genre (plus romance), which bored me. Kind of skipped through the ending. Basically what's been said in other reviews.
Mostly, though, I think I didn't like this because I'm used to a different, meatier, type of science fiction, which this didn't satisfy. It might be great for other readers.
This wasn't really bad. It was, though, a light fluff of a story that uses genetic engineering as an invisible skeleton to pack romance, familial issues, and a few insubstantial characters around. There's nothing...interesting, unique about this story. It recycles a bunch of what's already been done in the genre (plus romance), which bored me. Kind of skipped through the ending. Basically what's been said in other reviews.
Mostly, though, I think I didn't like this because I'm used to a different, meatier, type of science fiction, which this didn't satisfy. It might be great for other readers.
November 6, 2012
Did a video review for this one, but basic thoughts are:
*2.5 - Really mixed.
*Very fast read. (Very fast. Like, maybe it should have been slower so that things could happen in ways that made sense.)
*Sometimes funny, but often flat.
*3 characters, 2 authors, and yet only one voice among them...
*Rapey scientist says what?
*The end.
Click to view the review, yo!
*2.5 - Really mixed.
*Very fast read. (Very fast. Like, maybe it should have been slower so that things could happen in ways that made sense.)
*Sometimes funny, but often flat.
*3 characters, 2 authors, and yet only one voice among them...
*Rapey scientist says what?
*The end.
Click to view the review, yo!
September 29, 2015
What an incredible book...
January 22, 2022
Een mooie opzet waarin een meisje een jongen mag creëren, een verhaal vol potentie van twee fantastische auteurs, maar de uitwerking is minder goed dan verwacht… lees hier mijn recensie: https://nerdygeekyfanboy.com/recensie...
July 25, 2012
Eve and Adam was supposed to be a book about how our protagonist, Evening, created a perfect man. Except that turned out to be a slow and unexciting plot line. It really started off with E.V. (as she likes to be called) getting in a car accident, and waking up in the hospital where a strange boy is checking her out. Checking her out in more ways the one (more on that later.) The boy, Solo, takes her back to Spiker Bio, E.V.'s mom's company. E.V. is confined there, and her mother tasks her with creating the perfect man/boy. Evening also can't help growing closer to Solo, who is harboring secrets of his own.
So this book, I thought it was pretty slow. I was expecting some science-filled genetics thriller-YA, and the most I got from that was Eve picking out character traits for Adam and designing his . . . parts. I didn't need full chapters of that. The POV alternates between Evening and Solo. And let me tell you, I am somewhat scarred by Solo's chapters.
In one of the first few chapters, I think it was around Solo's third, he's already perving out. I'll just set the scene for you about what he was doing; Nothing is really spoiler-y, I just wanted to shield you from it. Bottom line: It was too soon in the reader-Solo relationship to be hearing him think those things. That soured my whole view of him and it never regained throughout the whole book. I also didn't like Eve, she was supposed to be wholesome, the opposite of her cold-hearted mother. But she came off as fairly vain and ungrateful, so did Solo. Aislin was the only character I mildly liked. She spoke her own opinions, and still had dignity even through what turmoil was happening in her own life.
One of my biggest issues is the motivator. Or really, the lack of one. Why is Solo so bent on destruction? I never completely understood that. Why does Evening trust Solo, when he has not earned any? And why wouldn't Solo let Eve turn the radio off? Please, that is so controlling! If Eve doesn't want the radio on, it should to be off! *minor rant over*
Then once the whole plot picked up, it was near the last 100 pages. It was too near the end for it to be totally redeemed in my eyes. (Although it did go from one star to two.) I found the whole climax fairly average and expected. I wanted a plot twist, but there was never really one. This is going to be a series, but I highly doubt I will continue reading it.
So this book, I thought it was pretty slow. I was expecting some science-filled genetics thriller-YA, and the most I got from that was Eve picking out character traits for Adam and designing his . . . parts. I didn't need full chapters of that. The POV alternates between Evening and Solo. And let me tell you, I am somewhat scarred by Solo's chapters.
In one of the first few chapters, I think it was around Solo's third, he's already perving out. I'll just set the scene for you about what he was doing; Nothing is really spoiler-y, I just wanted to shield you from it. Bottom line: It was too soon in the reader-Solo relationship to be hearing him think those things. That soured my whole view of him and it never regained throughout the whole book. I also didn't like Eve, she was supposed to be wholesome, the opposite of her cold-hearted mother. But she came off as fairly vain and ungrateful, so did Solo. Aislin was the only character I mildly liked. She spoke her own opinions, and still had dignity even through what turmoil was happening in her own life.
One of my biggest issues is the motivator. Or really, the lack of one. Why is Solo so bent on destruction? I never completely understood that. Why does Evening trust Solo, when he has not earned any? And why wouldn't Solo let Eve turn the radio off? Please, that is so controlling! If Eve doesn't want the radio on, it should to be off! *minor rant over*
Then once the whole plot picked up, it was near the last 100 pages. It was too near the end for it to be totally redeemed in my eyes. (Although it did go from one star to two.) I found the whole climax fairly average and expected. I wanted a plot twist, but there was never really one. This is going to be a series, but I highly doubt I will continue reading it.
December 28, 2015
OMGGGGG.
I AM FANGIRLING SO HARD RIGHT NOW I CAN'T EVEN.
Funny story: I was writing and then I fell asleep and when I woke up, I just started writing like I didn't spent the past five hours drenched in irrelevant sweat and my laptop still playing I Want You To Know (and I don't know the truth but maybe my sister now has the lyrics memorized because it was just on repeat, for full five hours) and then changed the playlist into a random selection of Taylor Swift songs. I ended up just staring at Taylor Swift then picked up this book because it is literally just sitting beside me. Here I am about three hours later, fangirling. BCXSERTY&UIKAMBVFCFCTGYUFIKOWMSNBXCFYUISK
I'll write up a review once I get my sleep.
Do the math: I've only been awake for three hours or so but hey, a girl has got to sleep when it's 11:53 in the evening.
A little bit more useful review
Every single time I think of this book, all I can think of is that line. That one line. I mean, if I want to keep this spoiler free-
"But look at him!" Solo urges. "I'm totally straight but I'd do him."
"Thanks," Adam says.
"You want me over him?" Solo asks. "Are you nuts?"
"Apparently," I say.
OMG. SOLO.
I Can't.
I'll go straight to the point: It's science, my dear.
I love the science parts.
Evening is pretty... self-absorbed.
The story was quite short and fast and almost nothing happened half of the time.
It was advanced science.
Solo is hot. Adam is hot. And darn if Aislyn wasn't stupid before Adam came into the picture.
I told you Evening is mildly annoying because she is self-centred.
The mother, well, I like her. And I love the relationship development with her mother!
It was sometimes funny.
It was all honestly predictable and actually a cliché - down to the characters and everything.
BUT I LOVE IT.
I swear, I love this book. And you know what else? Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant wrote the Animorphs series!! AND I FREAKING LOVE THAT SERIESEVEN THOUGH I HAVEN'T FINISHED THE SERIES YET
The writing was good. Totally nailed the I know myself, you don't and you're lower than me, so, oh, wait, I kinda look stupid, but that's okay because I am not. personality.
And honey, it's all about Science.
I AM FANGIRLING SO HARD RIGHT NOW I CAN'T EVEN.
Funny story: I was writing and then I fell asleep and when I woke up, I just started writing like I didn't spent the past five hours drenched in irrelevant sweat and my laptop still playing I Want You To Know (and I don't know the truth but maybe my sister now has the lyrics memorized because it was just on repeat, for full five hours) and then changed the playlist into a random selection of Taylor Swift songs. I ended up just staring at Taylor Swift then picked up this book because it is literally just sitting beside me. Here I am about three hours later, fangirling. BCXSERTY&UIKAMBVFCFCTGYUFIKOWMSNBXCFYUISK
I'll write up a review once I get my sleep.
Do the math: I've only been awake for three hours or so but hey, a girl has got to sleep when it's 11:53 in the evening.
A little bit more useful review
Every single time I think of this book, all I can think of is that line. That one line. I mean, if I want to keep this spoiler free-
"But look at him!" Solo urges. "I'm totally straight but I'd do him."
"Thanks," Adam says.
"You want me over him?" Solo asks. "Are you nuts?"
"Apparently," I say.
OMG. SOLO.
I Can't.
I'll go straight to the point: It's science, my dear.
I love the science parts.
Evening is pretty... self-absorbed.
The story was quite short and fast and almost nothing happened half of the time.
It was advanced science.
Solo is hot. Adam is hot. And darn if Aislyn wasn't stupid before Adam came into the picture.
I told you Evening is mildly annoying because she is self-centred.
The mother, well, I like her. And I love the relationship development with her mother!
It was sometimes funny.
It was all honestly predictable and actually a cliché - down to the characters and everything.
BUT I LOVE IT.
I swear, I love this book. And you know what else? Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant wrote the Animorphs series!! AND I FREAKING LOVE THAT SERIES
The writing was good. Totally nailed the I know myself, you don't and you're lower than me, so, oh, wait, I kinda look stupid, but that's okay because I am not. personality.
And honey, it's all about Science.
April 13, 2015
I was really drawn to this book because of the super cool cover and I thought the synopsis sounded pretty cool. I didn't really have any expectations going into this book and I'm glad I didn't.
This book starts off a little rough and never completely recovered. I was taken aback at how suddenly this book starts off. It goes from 0 to 60 in half a page and I was very surprised by that.
The characters were alright. I wasn't in love with any of them but I didn't completely hate them. Eve was a pretty cool character but I was never really rooting for her. I can't put my finger on what exactly it was that put me off but there was just something, or lack of something, that just didn't do it for me.
Solo was a weird character. I was either "meh" with him or I was rolling my eyes at his dumb choices because he was a love sick puppy.
Aislin, Eve's best friend, was really over the top and annoying. She was full of cliches and I wasn't impressed with her roll in the plot.
I felt like the romance in this book was forced and unnecessary. I wish Solo would have been a female character because that would have been so much cooler. Eve, female Solo, and a better written Aislin on a mission to take down the bad guys. That would have been a much better concept, in my opinion.
There was, for some reason, two plot lines in Eve and Adam. 1) Eve is creating the perfect boy. 2) Solo is trying to take down Eve's mom's company.
I don't know why there was two plot lines but it would have been better to have just one. And either would have worked just fine.
And even though this book is marketed with the plot line of Eve creating the perfect boy, it wasn't actually that big of a part of the book. I wish that would have been a bigger part of the book.
Overall, this was a pretty okay book. I enjoyed reading it as long as a didn't become to critical and start to question everything.
Once I started noticing all the flaws, it started to fall apart. The last 80 pages had me in a permanent state of "what the heck?". If you're looking for a quick read that doesn't have too much of a big picture and has some cool sci fi elements, Eve & Adam is probably is good book for you.
September 6, 2013
More like 1.5
From the "Final Thoughts" portion of my review:
Eve and Adam just wasn’t for me apparently. It might have been a case of my expectations of the book versus what I got. I was expecting some really crazy science fiction story with deep meaning and exploration of mortality and playing God and I just didn’t really get that at all. It was less serious and more funny — which is fine but just not at all what I was hoping for with an AMAZING premise like that. I don’t know..by the time I got to the end I just felt very unsatisfied. Like eating a salad when you really just want steak and potatoes.
Read my full review of Eve & Adam here!
From the "Final Thoughts" portion of my review:
Eve and Adam just wasn’t for me apparently. It might have been a case of my expectations of the book versus what I got. I was expecting some really crazy science fiction story with deep meaning and exploration of mortality and playing God and I just didn’t really get that at all. It was less serious and more funny — which is fine but just not at all what I was hoping for with an AMAZING premise like that. I don’t know..by the time I got to the end I just felt very unsatisfied. Like eating a salad when you really just want steak and potatoes.
Read my full review of Eve & Adam here!
October 4, 2016
You know that sound when you give the wrong answer in a game show? That sound really fits this book...
The story just had me like "meeehh.." The characters were shallow, the whole story wasn't exciting enough. The ending was weak. The story isn't believable, the relationships between the characters are unreal and how they react to each other is just anoying.
This book had so much promise but there was a lack of depth, humour, romance, excitement, mystery and action for me... All ingredients that this book needed so bad!
The story just had me like "meeehh.." The characters were shallow, the whole story wasn't exciting enough. The ending was weak. The story isn't believable, the relationships between the characters are unreal and how they react to each other is just anoying.
This book had so much promise but there was a lack of depth, humour, romance, excitement, mystery and action for me... All ingredients that this book needed so bad!
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