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Born #1
Born
Emma ran when her daddy told her to. She hid like he said she should. He was the first person she turned her back on. The first one she let die.
Ten years has gone by and she still lives by the simple rules he taught her when she was nine years old.
"Don't help anyone. Don't go where other people are unless you have to. Trust no one. Always pull the trigger."
Until one night she hears the worst sound in the world, a knock. A simple, timid knock, on the door to her cabin.
Only the voice of the brave little girl, ready to die for her brother, persuades Emma to open the door.
As her fingers turn the lock, she has a terrible feeling she will regret her decision.
But even as regret fills her world, so do love and companionship. Things she never imagined she would ever have again.
Everything comes at a cost, you decide what you'll pay.
Ten years has gone by and she still lives by the simple rules he taught her when she was nine years old.
"Don't help anyone. Don't go where other people are unless you have to. Trust no one. Always pull the trigger."
Until one night she hears the worst sound in the world, a knock. A simple, timid knock, on the door to her cabin.
Only the voice of the brave little girl, ready to die for her brother, persuades Emma to open the door.
As her fingers turn the lock, she has a terrible feeling she will regret her decision.
But even as regret fills her world, so do love and companionship. Things she never imagined she would ever have again.
Everything comes at a cost, you decide what you'll pay.
278 pages, ebook
First published September 2, 2012
722 people are currently reading
4987 people want to read
About the author
Tara Brown
116 books2,378 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Pen names for Tara Brown
- Tara Brown for science fiction and fantasy (primary author name)
- Sophie Starr for darker books
- Amy March for romantic comedies
- A.E. Watson
- T.L. Brown
- Erin Leigh
- Meg Browne
Caution: Author uses multiple pen names on the same book (different releases/editions). GR policy dictates that the name on the first release remain primary on all subsequent releases. The secondary name would be whatever name is on the cover, if different.
Pen names for Tara Brown
- Tara Brown for science fiction and fantasy (primary author name)
- Sophie Starr for darker books
- Amy March for romantic comedies
- A.E. Watson
- T.L. Brown
- Erin Leigh
- Meg Browne
Caution: Author uses multiple pen names on the same book (different releases/editions). GR policy dictates that the name on the first release remain primary on all subsequent releases. The secondary name would be whatever name is on the cover, if different.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 575 reviews
October 12, 2013
Welcome to the unofficial Hunger Games - complete with a somewhat-stoic heroine, a love triangle from hell, striking socio-economic differences, blood, guts, more blood, and plenty of fire imagery.
In case anyone thinks I'm exaggerating, let me do a checklist of Born components versus Hunger Games components:
- A dystopian Earth? Check
- A girl whose objective is to survive? Check
- Her father is dead? Check
- Girl is very handy with a bow and arrow? Check
- Girl falls for two guys? Check
- Girl falls for one guy whilst nursing him back to health? (*cough* Cave scene *cough*) Check
- Girl incessantly ponders over whom she loves more? Check
- Girl seems to be the only person able to save anybody? Check
- Main girl befriends a younger girl under dangerous circumstances? Check
- One guy is dark and brooding? Check
- One guy is friendly and charming? Check
- The brooding guy is better at tracking and using weapons? Check
- The people choose the girl to lead their rebellion? Check
- Girl has no qualms over leading both guys on for a prolonged period of time? Check
- People in white coats = bad? Check
- There is a city where people live in comfort and can access luxuries? Check
- Girl is self-destructive? Check
- The phrases "rise out of the ashes", "Phoenix", and "wings" are used? Check
The only things missing were a Mockingjay costume, light-up screens, a loaf of bread and a drunk mentor.
Also, she had terrible taste in men. Yep - fall in love with the guy who manhandles you, hurts you, belittles you, and then tells you he loves you. Because that, ladies, is the very height of romance*!
*(heavy sarcasm)
As well as her inability to tell an asshole from a gentleman, the main heroine is also oddly happy withpunching shooting kicking slicing dicing scarring hitting clawing whacking hurting people. It's like she gets a thrill out of it or something.
But when karma comes along and bites at her heels, she gets all scared and introverted. Yeah, one of the guys she likes is a jerk. But it's not like she treats him that well either. She punches him. Yells at him. Oh, and likes his brother.
Did I mention that this book includes highly dysfunctional relationships?
By now you're probably all like:
But I promise, there are some good aspects of this novel. Some of its concepts are unique and well-developed, and you have to admit that both guys are extremely good-looking and swoon worthy.
Well. I'm off to read the next book in this series. Fingers crossed it doesn't include a guy in a fishnet, sugar cubes, fake pregnancies, sham engagements, rum and an arena shaped like a clock ;)
In case anyone thinks I'm exaggerating, let me do a checklist of Born components versus Hunger Games components:
- A dystopian Earth? Check
- A girl whose objective is to survive? Check
- Her father is dead? Check
- Girl is very handy with a bow and arrow? Check
- Girl falls for two guys? Check
- Girl falls for one guy whilst nursing him back to health? (*cough* Cave scene *cough*) Check
- Girl incessantly ponders over whom she loves more? Check
- Girl seems to be the only person able to save anybody? Check
- Main girl befriends a younger girl under dangerous circumstances? Check
- One guy is dark and brooding? Check
- One guy is friendly and charming? Check
- The brooding guy is better at tracking and using weapons? Check
- The people choose the girl to lead their rebellion? Check
- Girl has no qualms over leading both guys on for a prolonged period of time? Check
- People in white coats = bad? Check
- There is a city where people live in comfort and can access luxuries? Check
- Girl is self-destructive? Check
- The phrases "rise out of the ashes", "Phoenix", and "wings" are used? Check
The only things missing were a Mockingjay costume, light-up screens, a loaf of bread and a drunk mentor.
Also, she had terrible taste in men. Yep - fall in love with the guy who manhandles you, hurts you, belittles you, and then tells you he loves you. Because that, ladies, is the very height of romance*!
*(heavy sarcasm)
As well as her inability to tell an asshole from a gentleman, the main heroine is also oddly happy with
But when karma comes along and bites at her heels, she gets all scared and introverted. Yeah, one of the guys she likes is a jerk. But it's not like she treats him that well either. She punches him. Yells at him. Oh, and likes his brother.
Did I mention that this book includes highly dysfunctional relationships?
By now you're probably all like:
But I promise, there are some good aspects of this novel. Some of its concepts are unique and well-developed, and you have to admit that both guys are extremely good-looking and swoon worthy.
Well. I'm off to read the next book in this series. Fingers crossed it doesn't include a guy in a fishnet, sugar cubes, fake pregnancies, sham engagements, rum and an arena shaped like a clock ;)
August 11, 2016
★/★★★★★
This review can also be found here at my blog as well as many other reviews!
Currently on Goodreads, Born has a 4.11 average rating. . . 4.11 . . . how?
Born is about a girl named Emma who has lived since she was 9 by herself in a world with the infected, gangs, and her timber wolf. She meets a bunch of boring people and they all instantly become best friends. No joke. They then continue on to do a bunch of other stuff like free a breeding camp and whatnot.
~Warning, before reading, this review is going to be more of a rant. Also, I might give away some of the plot if you still plan on reading it.~
Usually, books always have some sort of redeeming quality like a lovable character, or an intriguing plot-line, but I can honestly say I didn’t find any in this book. I had to give myself a pep-talk in order to finish this book and only so that I could chew the book apart in this review. It didn’t flow, or fit together, and basically all of the characters were annoying and had unrealistic personalities. The characterization was non-existent, and I really didn’t like the choppy writing style.
Let’s start with the characters, shall we? Reading the book in Emma’s point of view was like reading the book in the POV of a rock. I honestly don’t even really know what her personality is or even what she looks like other than what’s on the cover, but she apparently has the ability to attract every person she encounters in some sort of romantic way like a boring insta-love magnet. I mean, is she just the most attractive girl in the world or what? Even a sort-of married woman put the moves on her. Emma fell in love with Will and Jake faster than I could even say insta-love. For someone who’s grown up telling herself not to trust anyone, she sure did trust everyone she met. Besides Emma, for being able to break the record for “having-a-girl-fall-in-love-with-you-the-fastest” Will and Jake sure are underdeveloped characters. So from what I read, Jake is funny and Will is serious and. . . that’s it. That’s all the personality they had. I honestly don’t see how so many people gave this book such high ratings on Goodreads!
Next, I want to talk about the writing style. Did no one else notice that this book was written for a 3rd grader? The sentences were choppy and short.
Now I may be paraphrasing and/or exaggerating here:
I look out the field. I don’t see anything in the field. I stand up and climb down the tree. I start walking through the field. I make it across the field . . .
Am explaining this well enough?
I’m assuming the author did this to make the scenes seem intense but it really didn’t come across that way for me. The action sequences were confusing and there really was no description of the world they’re living in or even what the infected looked like. What I’m saying is that the imagery, or lack thereof, was very bland.
The last thing I want to talk about is the plot-line. I could go on for days about all the things I didn’t like about this book but I’m not going to do that. I honestly don’t like giving low ratings on books and tearing them apart with all the things I didn’t like about them. I swear. The plot of this book had WAAAYYY too many “conveniences”. Oh hey, look, I’m in need of another pair of boots, it just so happens I have like 6 extra pairs right here in the barn!. . . or. . . Oh hey, I need a way to ruin the government run facilities in order to free all the women being used as and eggo-preggo machine. Oh hey look, every building has a self destruct button in the basement. How CONVENIENT! Not only are there conveniences, but it seems that the characters are able to read each-others minds. The characters never seemed to talk about what to do next but they were always on the same page. The author left out so much communication that I felt like there was a very large gap in the story. In fact, it seemed that the things that happened in a matter of days should have been spread out over a period of months. Example 1: People have magical healing powers. No not literally, but if one character is shot or stabbed or cut, they’ll be fine the next day to run or jump as if they had never been injured. Example 2: As soon as Emma met Anna and Jake, she talked about how much she cared about them. And then when they were in the second house, Emma talks about how much she loves Jake . . . Well . . . that escalated quickly. That kind of relationship should have been spread out over a period of months. AmIRite? And seriously, are there really two more of these books? . . .
I have more to say. . . stop ranting Sheradyn! . . . but I have more to say! . . . NO! Stop ranting! . . . but..but..Okay . . .
I honestly don’t recommend this book. I seem to be a minority in my feelings toward it considering most people gave it 4 or 5 stars on GR. So I guess if you think you might enjoy it more than me then what the hay, go for it. Either way, Keep Calm and . . .
READ ON!
-Sheradyn
This review can also be found here at my blog as well as many other reviews!
Currently on Goodreads, Born has a 4.11 average rating. . . 4.11 . . . how?
Born is about a girl named Emma who has lived since she was 9 by herself in a world with the infected, gangs, and her timber wolf. She meets a bunch of boring people and they all instantly become best friends. No joke. They then continue on to do a bunch of other stuff like free a breeding camp and whatnot.
~Warning, before reading, this review is going to be more of a rant. Also, I might give away some of the plot if you still plan on reading it.~
Usually, books always have some sort of redeeming quality like a lovable character, or an intriguing plot-line, but I can honestly say I didn’t find any in this book. I had to give myself a pep-talk in order to finish this book and only so that I could chew the book apart in this review. It didn’t flow, or fit together, and basically all of the characters were annoying and had unrealistic personalities. The characterization was non-existent, and I really didn’t like the choppy writing style.
Let’s start with the characters, shall we? Reading the book in Emma’s point of view was like reading the book in the POV of a rock. I honestly don’t even really know what her personality is or even what she looks like other than what’s on the cover, but she apparently has the ability to attract every person she encounters in some sort of romantic way like a boring insta-love magnet. I mean, is she just the most attractive girl in the world or what? Even a sort-of married woman put the moves on her. Emma fell in love with Will and Jake faster than I could even say insta-love. For someone who’s grown up telling herself not to trust anyone, she sure did trust everyone she met. Besides Emma, for being able to break the record for “having-a-girl-fall-in-love-with-you-the-fastest” Will and Jake sure are underdeveloped characters. So from what I read, Jake is funny and Will is serious and. . . that’s it. That’s all the personality they had. I honestly don’t see how so many people gave this book such high ratings on Goodreads!
Next, I want to talk about the writing style. Did no one else notice that this book was written for a 3rd grader? The sentences were choppy and short.
Now I may be paraphrasing and/or exaggerating here:
I look out the field. I don’t see anything in the field. I stand up and climb down the tree. I start walking through the field. I make it across the field . . .
Am explaining this well enough?
I’m assuming the author did this to make the scenes seem intense but it really didn’t come across that way for me. The action sequences were confusing and there really was no description of the world they’re living in or even what the infected looked like. What I’m saying is that the imagery, or lack thereof, was very bland.
The last thing I want to talk about is the plot-line. I could go on for days about all the things I didn’t like about this book but I’m not going to do that. I honestly don’t like giving low ratings on books and tearing them apart with all the things I didn’t like about them. I swear. The plot of this book had WAAAYYY too many “conveniences”. Oh hey, look, I’m in need of another pair of boots, it just so happens I have like 6 extra pairs right here in the barn!. . . or. . . Oh hey, I need a way to ruin the government run facilities in order to free all the women being used as and eggo-preggo machine. Oh hey look, every building has a self destruct button in the basement. How CONVENIENT! Not only are there conveniences, but it seems that the characters are able to read each-others minds. The characters never seemed to talk about what to do next but they were always on the same page. The author left out so much communication that I felt like there was a very large gap in the story. In fact, it seemed that the things that happened in a matter of days should have been spread out over a period of months. Example 1: People have magical healing powers. No not literally, but if one character is shot or stabbed or cut, they’ll be fine the next day to run or jump as if they had never been injured. Example 2: As soon as Emma met Anna and Jake, she talked about how much she cared about them. And then when they were in the second house, Emma talks about how much she loves Jake . . . Well . . . that escalated quickly. That kind of relationship should have been spread out over a period of months. AmIRite? And seriously, are there really two more of these books? . . .
I have more to say. . . stop ranting Sheradyn! . . . but I have more to say! . . . NO! Stop ranting! . . . but..but..Okay . . .
I honestly don’t recommend this book. I seem to be a minority in my feelings toward it considering most people gave it 4 or 5 stars on GR. So I guess if you think you might enjoy it more than me then what the hay, go for it. Either way, Keep Calm and . . .
READ ON!
-Sheradyn
June 25, 2021
2.5 Stars
CW:
Well Tara certainly has a brutal vision of our imaginary post apocalyptic future!
This was quite a mixed reading experience for me. The storyline itself was good and Anna was a suitably bad-arse heroine warring with her survival instincts and her growing feelings towards her 'found family'. The problem was that this point was quite laboured throughout the story so it grew a bit tiresome. You know you are going to rescue them, Anna, so stop having a page worth of inner turmoil and get on with the bad-arsery. Also, I loathe love triangles even more than usual when there is zero chemistry between any party. Zero. In terms of whether I would get a copy for the library I am torn. It is actually quite a disturbing but interesting exploration of how authorities might react in the face of a dying population. That will be good in terms of students having a lot to talk about but it is most definitely senior fiction as it made for quite uncomfortable reading. The writing itself wasn't great and the characters were really flat and often unlikeable. I think I will pass on this one and explore some other options in this genre. Given the direction the NZ curriculum is heading it's probably wise to save up for some quality NZ fiction.
CW:
Well Tara certainly has a brutal vision of our imaginary post apocalyptic future!
This was quite a mixed reading experience for me. The storyline itself was good and Anna was a suitably bad-arse heroine warring with her survival instincts and her growing feelings towards her 'found family'. The problem was that this point was quite laboured throughout the story so it grew a bit tiresome. You know you are going to rescue them, Anna, so stop having a page worth of inner turmoil and get on with the bad-arsery. Also, I loathe love triangles even more than usual when there is zero chemistry between any party. Zero. In terms of whether I would get a copy for the library I am torn. It is actually quite a disturbing but interesting exploration of how authorities might react in the face of a dying population. That will be good in terms of students having a lot to talk about but it is most definitely senior fiction as it made for quite uncomfortable reading. The writing itself wasn't great and the characters were really flat and often unlikeable. I think I will pass on this one and explore some other options in this genre. Given the direction the NZ curriculum is heading it's probably wise to save up for some quality NZ fiction.
May 21, 2015
I don't really think this is your typical zombie story...there isn't much of that in the book at all.
I would categorize this more of a dystopian with an annoying heroine.
Em can be annoying one minute and then a kick ass fighter, who constantly has my head spinning.
I enjoyed the story once I got past the short sentences and the rough reading flow.
Definitely a trilogy I want to know more about. Off to the next one!
I would categorize this more of a dystopian with an annoying heroine.
Em can be annoying one minute and then a kick ass fighter, who constantly has my head spinning.
I enjoyed the story once I got past the short sentences and the rough reading flow.
Definitely a trilogy I want to know more about. Off to the next one!
October 13, 2012
This book has a lot of things going for it, like the characters, the premise, the action, and just the awesomeness of Emma. The downside: the romance...
Emma is an incredibly strong character, she does what needs to be done, she survives at all costs, she is fierce and she is loyal, but unfortunately when it comes to relationships, it just isn't gonna happen.
She has been alone for the majority of her life so it stands to reason that the girl is a bit of an antisocial, which is fine, my problems were her love interests. I can see why she would like both of them, but my god, she came about the loving part wayyy too fast, and she was going back and forth like with her decisions like every 5mins and Will is such an ASS!
I really didn't like him. He is overbearing, always manhandling her and a player. And Jack was the complete opposite to the point of being useless. The kid was just there to lighten the mood basically. So even though I really don't like Will I also knew that there was no way in hell she was picking Jack either.
Besides all that, Emma totally kicks ass, she is damn independent and can think for herself and follows her instincts. I think my favorite character would have to be Leo though. He is just awesome!
The reason behind the messed up world is something I can actually see happening and I can't wait to see how this will develop.
Emma is an incredibly strong character, she does what needs to be done, she survives at all costs, she is fierce and she is loyal, but unfortunately when it comes to relationships, it just isn't gonna happen.
She has been alone for the majority of her life so it stands to reason that the girl is a bit of an antisocial, which is fine, my problems were her love interests. I can see why she would like both of them, but my god, she came about the loving part wayyy too fast, and she was going back and forth like with her decisions like every 5mins and Will is such an ASS!
I really didn't like him. He is overbearing, always manhandling her and a player. And Jack was the complete opposite to the point of being useless. The kid was just there to lighten the mood basically. So even though I really don't like Will I also knew that there was no way in hell she was picking Jack either.
Besides all that, Emma totally kicks ass, she is damn independent and can think for herself and follows her instincts. I think my favorite character would have to be Leo though. He is just awesome!
The reason behind the messed up world is something I can actually see happening and I can't wait to see how this will develop.
January 29, 2013
I have to admit that I got the book because it was free and really didn't think it would be good but I love dystopian books. I LOVED it!!! And I cannot wait for part 2. The Characters are all great. Poor Emma has no really social because she was a lone for so many years, it’s us and them. When you throw in Anna (who is sweet and strong), Jake (no survival skills but is funny and caring) and Will (who is not sure how to treat Emma but knows he want to protect her) you have an interesting and funny mix. Oh don't forget the love triangle between Will and Jake. I find myself rooting for Will but I am not counting Jake out just yet.
The cliffhanger at the end was a surprise but yet it wasn't! I recommend this book to anyone who loves Dystopia books, this is any excellent idea!
The cliffhanger at the end was a surprise but yet it wasn't! I recommend this book to anyone who loves Dystopia books, this is any excellent idea!
December 24, 2016
I got this one for free and it's way better than I thought it would be. Nothing spectacular or original but plenty of moments of entertainment. You have to be in the mood for adventure, mystery and the dreadful love triangle. I hate love triangles, but in a way it wasn't that bad. I'm continuining with the series and I'm reading more of this author.
May 14, 2015
I can't believe I read this whole thing. I should have declared it a DNF. I was looking forward to a book with a tough heroine fighting her way through the apocalypse. While Em was a badass (although to the point of being unrealistic), the plot was ridiculous (and skipped around with huge gaps), the characters are repulsive, and the writing style was lacking. Throw in a love triangle amongst brothers, insta-love (twice), and a cliffhanger ending and this is what you get. A total clusterfuck. Not to mention, one of Em's love interest, Will, was such an unredeemable asshole. He got with another women. Was physically abusive. I mean come on. Needless to say I won't be continuing this series or recommending this book.
The high ratings for this book make no sense. The only part of this brutal read that I liked, was her pet wolf.
The high ratings for this book make no sense. The only part of this brutal read that I liked, was her pet wolf.
February 26, 2013
Okay,.. so I was on a total reading binge this weekend and hooked up with my girl Tara Brown and her kick-ass story telling. (Shoot me, i had a husband free weekend and an entire weekend by myself and enjoyed every second of it)
Born,.. what can I say about this book to adequately say all that needs to be said about the beginning of this series. I don't know if i can and give it the review it deserves.
What i can say is that Ms. Brown created a world (a bit like the walking dead series and a smidge of hunger games-ish) through her story telling that was beyond real. I loved the the lead character (Emma) who is strong and independent yet incredibly sweet and giving despite all her years alone with nothing and no-one but her trusty companion wolf friend. If shit like this were to really go down, i'd totally want Emma on my team. No doubt.
The people she encounters along the way vary, but none stick out like Jake, Anna and then later Will (all siblngs mind you). Anna was a hoot and a girl anyone would quickly want to be friends with, a sweet little thing with a whole lotta sass and kick-butt qualities. Jake- what a sweetie, potential boy-toy material for our girl Emma (But i don't know, he seems more brotherly to me. A great catch and all but he doesn't have the sizzle... i know, i know,.. there are probably some that may disagree with me.) Yes- he's sweet. Yes- he's got it bad for Emma, and Yes- he' sounds hot,.. But kinda pansy-ish to me-
Now Will on the other hand. Hello,.. Playa...But damn, i think i love that boy. He's got just enough gumption and fight to hold his own against our hard-headed and stubborn girl and takes no prisoners. He's balls to the wall and ready to go at any time and regardless of the situations fights with OR against Emma for what is right. He definitely doesn't take her shit. which in my humble opinion is exactly what she needs. (yes it's my opinion, Don't kill me)But he's who i would choose, if i were in Emma's shoes. He's all man! True we'd have to chat about his playa ways, but hell it's the zombie-apocolypse for christ sakes, can you blame the guy. gotta get it while you can!
Any way enough of my crazy rambling. If you want an intriguing read that'll keep you at the edge of your seat, biting your nails,... jump in and enjoy the ride. you wont be disappointed
Born,.. what can I say about this book to adequately say all that needs to be said about the beginning of this series. I don't know if i can and give it the review it deserves.
What i can say is that Ms. Brown created a world (a bit like the walking dead series and a smidge of hunger games-ish) through her story telling that was beyond real. I loved the the lead character (Emma) who is strong and independent yet incredibly sweet and giving despite all her years alone with nothing and no-one but her trusty companion wolf friend. If shit like this were to really go down, i'd totally want Emma on my team. No doubt.
The people she encounters along the way vary, but none stick out like Jake, Anna and then later Will (all siblngs mind you). Anna was a hoot and a girl anyone would quickly want to be friends with, a sweet little thing with a whole lotta sass and kick-butt qualities. Jake- what a sweetie, potential boy-toy material for our girl Emma (But i don't know, he seems more brotherly to me. A great catch and all but he doesn't have the sizzle... i know, i know,.. there are probably some that may disagree with me.) Yes- he's sweet. Yes- he's got it bad for Emma, and Yes- he' sounds hot,.. But kinda pansy-ish to me-
Now Will on the other hand. Hello,.. Playa...But damn, i think i love that boy. He's got just enough gumption and fight to hold his own against our hard-headed and stubborn girl and takes no prisoners. He's balls to the wall and ready to go at any time and regardless of the situations fights with OR against Emma for what is right. He definitely doesn't take her shit. which in my humble opinion is exactly what she needs. (yes it's my opinion, Don't kill me)But he's who i would choose, if i were in Emma's shoes. He's all man! True we'd have to chat about his playa ways, but hell it's the zombie-apocolypse for christ sakes, can you blame the guy. gotta get it while you can!
Any way enough of my crazy rambling. If you want an intriguing read that'll keep you at the edge of your seat, biting your nails,... jump in and enjoy the ride. you wont be disappointed
June 4, 2013
This book started great and had such promise the world building was interesting Em and Leo where kick arse and the whole farm house set up was great then we meet jake and Anna and i like them, the story is still coasting along as it should. Then about half way in stupid shit started happening. These are a few of the things I had a problem with;
The love triangle..actually square. It is not ok to tag guys along. girls don't like it so why would a guy? And their brothers no less. Em had no real reason for liking either of them and yet kisses both as well as some chick with a kid... What the f people? If you like two people and cant yet pick between them respect them enough too stay away until u choose! This one factor was like a stab in the eye anytime the same issues cropped up in the book. One minute she hates Will and more or less implies that hes the type of guy that would beat his wife to death just coz she makes him angry...and yet she still loves him but doesnt want to b hurt by him blah blah blah. What kind of freaking message does that send to the young girls who pick up this book? "Oh he hurt and humiliated me but its ok coz I'm a total sucker for blue eyes and a toned body."
This also leads me to my next problem with this book;
Man hating. Almost every man in this book was seen as a sexual predator. It was like all the dads, brothers and sons in the world turned on women and thought it was ok to just rape and pillage at will from the get go. Em thinks a lot about all the ripping of clothes(done by sex crazed rapists) and ripping of flesh (done by zombies) and how traumatic it is. Yeah it would have been if it was even believable at all. This just pissed me right off. why would a guy waste his time dragging a chick into the forest when the worlds been turned on its head and zombies are mauling ppl left, right and center? It takes the saying "a man always thinks with his...junk" to a whole new unbelievable level. I get people screwing each other over to survive I get that not every person in the world is a saint but this book pretty much implied that if something like this ever happened than all my brothers, father, uncles and cuzins, hell even my own son will through all morals and reasonable thought out the window and go on a good old Viking rampage. Yep, hmm somethings wrong here maybe the fact that a man is just as likely to help or stuff u over as a women. What ever happened to equality? Sheesh!
My next problem was how seemingly random events, like seirge following and trying to kill emma, was a complete waste of my reading time. He attacks, she kills him, all is said and done no more thoughts on seige or what ever his name was at all. Now tell me what he was in the book again?
Then u got the random killing of nurses doctors and guards, yes their the bad guys but are all of them that bad? Or just forced to do the bidding of a cruel over lord?? A nurse and doctor helped Em escape at different points in the novel coz they obviously didn't wanna do what they were being forced to and yet she shoots a heap of them with no probz at all. Doesn't even bat an eye lid.
And last but probably not least we have Ems never ending list of injuries that seem to heal in record time and still she traipses around the country side like three days without food couldn't possibly kill her.
Totally whack. I had to force myself to finish it coz I just couldn't take all the pointless kissing and man hating. It was like a slap in the face to every male out there. And I wish I had more to say then good start but ya lost me a little less then half way through.
The love triangle..actually square. It is not ok to tag guys along. girls don't like it so why would a guy? And their brothers no less. Em had no real reason for liking either of them and yet kisses both as well as some chick with a kid... What the f people? If you like two people and cant yet pick between them respect them enough too stay away until u choose! This one factor was like a stab in the eye anytime the same issues cropped up in the book. One minute she hates Will and more or less implies that hes the type of guy that would beat his wife to death just coz she makes him angry...and yet she still loves him but doesnt want to b hurt by him blah blah blah. What kind of freaking message does that send to the young girls who pick up this book? "Oh he hurt and humiliated me but its ok coz I'm a total sucker for blue eyes and a toned body."
This also leads me to my next problem with this book;
Man hating. Almost every man in this book was seen as a sexual predator. It was like all the dads, brothers and sons in the world turned on women and thought it was ok to just rape and pillage at will from the get go. Em thinks a lot about all the ripping of clothes(done by sex crazed rapists) and ripping of flesh (done by zombies) and how traumatic it is. Yeah it would have been if it was even believable at all. This just pissed me right off. why would a guy waste his time dragging a chick into the forest when the worlds been turned on its head and zombies are mauling ppl left, right and center? It takes the saying "a man always thinks with his...junk" to a whole new unbelievable level. I get people screwing each other over to survive I get that not every person in the world is a saint but this book pretty much implied that if something like this ever happened than all my brothers, father, uncles and cuzins, hell even my own son will through all morals and reasonable thought out the window and go on a good old Viking rampage. Yep, hmm somethings wrong here maybe the fact that a man is just as likely to help or stuff u over as a women. What ever happened to equality? Sheesh!
My next problem was how seemingly random events, like seirge following and trying to kill emma, was a complete waste of my reading time. He attacks, she kills him, all is said and done no more thoughts on seige or what ever his name was at all. Now tell me what he was in the book again?
Then u got the random killing of nurses doctors and guards, yes their the bad guys but are all of them that bad? Or just forced to do the bidding of a cruel over lord?? A nurse and doctor helped Em escape at different points in the novel coz they obviously didn't wanna do what they were being forced to and yet she shoots a heap of them with no probz at all. Doesn't even bat an eye lid.
And last but probably not least we have Ems never ending list of injuries that seem to heal in record time and still she traipses around the country side like three days without food couldn't possibly kill her.
Totally whack. I had to force myself to finish it coz I just couldn't take all the pointless kissing and man hating. It was like a slap in the face to every male out there. And I wish I had more to say then good start but ya lost me a little less then half way through.
March 15, 2013
I really, REALLY wanted to love this book, but I made it a third of the way through (my minimum for rating a book) and had to give up. My main reason for slogging through that much of it was the protagonist, Emma, who is bad. ass. I love her. She might get scared, but she's tough as nails and keeps going. I also loved the world building: Emma's post-apocalyptic world is gritty, tense, and creepy.
So why did I abandon it? Easy: not enough proofreading. The book reads like a second, maybe third, draft. Almost done, but not there. Ms. Brown has a serious prejudice against commas, and way too often, questions had periods at the end of them instead of question marks. It got to the point where I had to reread statements several times to make sense of what was being said.
Considering how highly it's being rated, I'm surprised more reviewers aren't mentioning the obvious grammatical problems. I have the feeling I would love this book it were more polished, but as it is, I plan on returning it to Amazon for a refund.
So why did I abandon it? Easy: not enough proofreading. The book reads like a second, maybe third, draft. Almost done, but not there. Ms. Brown has a serious prejudice against commas, and way too often, questions had periods at the end of them instead of question marks. It got to the point where I had to reread statements several times to make sense of what was being said.
Considering how highly it's being rated, I'm surprised more reviewers aren't mentioning the obvious grammatical problems. I have the feeling I would love this book it were more polished, but as it is, I plan on returning it to Amazon for a refund.
February 4, 2013
If some crazy stuff happens and we arrive at "the end of the world as we know it," I hope I meet someone like Emma.
Strong, capable, smart, with a hint of empathy and heart, she goes from being not much more than a loner (with a freaking amazing animal friend) in a world with little hope to a savior, leader, and hero. And the best part is that she does it for only one reason, unlike so many female leads in stories in this genre: because it's the right thing to do.
That's not to say there isn't a love interest...or two. And those two are definitely worth a bit of lust and/or confusion. But it's not the driving factor of the story, and that makes a big difference to the legitimacy of the plot.
Post-apocalyptic, with gross, scary zombies and humans that may be worse than any monster we can imagine, friendships and bonds, fickle human emotions, action like crazy, and an underlying purpose, Born is a fantastic start to a series, and I can't wait to read the next one.
Strong, capable, smart, with a hint of empathy and heart, she goes from being not much more than a loner (with a freaking amazing animal friend) in a world with little hope to a savior, leader, and hero. And the best part is that she does it for only one reason, unlike so many female leads in stories in this genre: because it's the right thing to do.
That's not to say there isn't a love interest...or two. And those two are definitely worth a bit of lust and/or confusion. But it's not the driving factor of the story, and that makes a big difference to the legitimacy of the plot.
Post-apocalyptic, with gross, scary zombies and humans that may be worse than any monster we can imagine, friendships and bonds, fickle human emotions, action like crazy, and an underlying purpose, Born is a fantastic start to a series, and I can't wait to read the next one.
September 24, 2017
1.5 stars. Oh, sweet Jesus have mercy.
This book has been recommended on my Kindle quite a bit so I decided why not.
I'm actually sad I wasted precious reading money on this.
The plot kind of moved fast. First it was surviving by herself; then learning to be with people and think of others; then she risked her life to help them, gets separated and runs into their thought-to-be dead brother. Then she catches feelings for both of the boys despite one being 7 years older than her!!! I give up!
Along with the confusing plot, the characters have as much personality as a rock. The only one who actually has a personality is Jake, and that includes being incredibly dumb about survival and basic human knowledge.
The main character, Anna , has live alone since she was nine and now at 19 she has no people skills, but at the shame time everyone seems to like her. The first few pages of the book talk about of selfish and how much of a coward she is but, than she pretty much risks her life as much as possible to try to convince us otherwise.
And then there is Will. Jakes big brother. I don't even know what to say. They know each other for a few days and then is in love with her but she doesn't want to love him back because she kind of likes his brother but not really. He is sometimes super nice and others a dick for no reason whatsoever. He says she wants to be more than friends with her and then goes and embarrasses her in front of everyone. I don't get it. And near the end she is pretty she she likes him back(why? Idk) but probably forgetting that he is freaking 26! She is 19! That is a big age difference.
Don't even get me started on the ending. Or the Romance. Or the sort of loosing her virginity. Or the random strangers she lets into her life on multiple occasions.
The idea of the story was actually really cool, but the way the author set up the book taking away the the actual dangers and focusing it on the romance that wasn't there.
"Gunshot, porcupine, and a jackass."
Yep that pretty much sums it all up.
This book has been recommended on my Kindle quite a bit so I decided why not.
I'm actually sad I wasted precious reading money on this.
The plot kind of moved fast. First it was surviving by herself; then learning to be with people and think of others; then she risked her life to help them, gets separated and runs into their thought-to-be dead brother. Then she catches feelings for both of the boys despite one being 7 years older than her!!! I give up!
Along with the confusing plot, the characters have as much personality as a rock. The only one who actually has a personality is Jake, and that includes being incredibly dumb about survival and basic human knowledge.
The main character, Anna , has live alone since she was nine and now at 19 she has no people skills, but at the shame time everyone seems to like her. The first few pages of the book talk about of selfish and how much of a coward she is but, than she pretty much risks her life as much as possible to try to convince us otherwise.
And then there is Will. Jakes big brother. I don't even know what to say. They know each other for a few days and then is in love with her but she doesn't want to love him back because she kind of likes his brother but not really. He is sometimes super nice and others a dick for no reason whatsoever. He says she wants to be more than friends with her and then goes and embarrasses her in front of everyone. I don't get it. And near the end she is pretty she she likes him back(why? Idk) but probably forgetting that he is freaking 26! She is 19! That is a big age difference.
Don't even get me started on the ending. Or the Romance. Or the sort of loosing her virginity. Or the random strangers she lets into her life on multiple occasions.
The idea of the story was actually really cool, but the way the author set up the book taking away the the actual dangers and focusing it on the romance that wasn't there.
"Gunshot, porcupine, and a jackass."
Yep that pretty much sums it all up.
October 13, 2014
(Source: Downloaded for free from amazon.co.uk.)
This was a really good zombie/post-apocalyptic story, and there was plenty of action!
I liked the characters in this, but boy did they get into trouble a lot! Considering that Emma had survived on her own for 10 years, she suddenly got herself into situation after situation, and got plenty of scrapes and gunshot wounds too.
The storyline in this was good, and there was plenty of action. The characters just went from one bad situation to the next, barely making it out alive in places.
There was some romance in the form of one heck of a love triangle! Emma really did know how to get those boys interested, even though she had never had a boyfriend or anything, and seemed totally incapable of making a decision either.
The ending to this was a cliff-hanger, and quite a big one. I really want to read the rest of the series to find out what happens though!
8 out of 10.
This was a really good zombie/post-apocalyptic story, and there was plenty of action!
I liked the characters in this, but boy did they get into trouble a lot! Considering that Emma had survived on her own for 10 years, she suddenly got herself into situation after situation, and got plenty of scrapes and gunshot wounds too.
The storyline in this was good, and there was plenty of action. The characters just went from one bad situation to the next, barely making it out alive in places.
There was some romance in the form of one heck of a love triangle! Emma really did know how to get those boys interested, even though she had never had a boyfriend or anything, and seemed totally incapable of making a decision either.
The ending to this was a cliff-hanger, and quite a big one. I really want to read the rest of the series to find out what happens though!
8 out of 10.
August 26, 2017
This is probably the shittiest dystopia I ever read.
While main character Emma initially seems to be a complex, developed character, she's quickly reduced to her conflict between two brothers. Will and Jack fall neatly into the bad boy vs. good boy love triangle. They're both fairly shitty, to be honest, but Will is an actively abusive asshole. He's truly one of my least favorite romantic interests.
The worldbuilding is also incredibly vague. I'm not sure anyone went beyond "ZOMBIES!!!" when thinking about how to plot this. The actual plot is lackluster and full of conveniences.
I don't have much else to say. This book is just vaguely terrible drama with no proofreading.
While main character Emma initially seems to be a complex, developed character, she's quickly reduced to her conflict between two brothers. Will and Jack fall neatly into the bad boy vs. good boy love triangle. They're both fairly shitty, to be honest, but Will is an actively abusive asshole. He's truly one of my least favorite romantic interests.
The worldbuilding is also incredibly vague. I'm not sure anyone went beyond "ZOMBIES!!!" when thinking about how to plot this. The actual plot is lackluster and full of conveniences.
I don't have much else to say. This book is just vaguely terrible drama with no proofreading.
October 13, 2014
This was a really good read!
I liked Emma, but her indecisiveness about which boy she wanted to be with could be a bit annoying. I liked most of the other characters too.
There was loads of action in this, so i didn't feel bored once. Emma was a magnet for trouble, and she went from one bad situation to another!
Overall, A great apocalyptic read.
Looking forward to see what happens next!
I liked Emma, but her indecisiveness about which boy she wanted to be with could be a bit annoying. I liked most of the other characters too.
There was loads of action in this, so i didn't feel bored once. Emma was a magnet for trouble, and she went from one bad situation to another!
Overall, A great apocalyptic read.
Looking forward to see what happens next!
May 2, 2018
Mother Earth probably just wants us gone-us and our evil.
I don’t think there’s any good left in us anyway.
Every decision I make out here pushes me one step further away from good. Sometimes I don’t recognize myself out here. I get lost in surviving and forget to just be a girl. A girl Granny and my dad could be proud of.
***
One of my most favorite types of reads are the zombie/apocalyptic. Having already read and loved Brown’s Seventh Day series, I gave BORN a go and I am absolutely gaga over it. So much so, I went and got the second one and immediately started it. Now I am half way through and figured I better write this review before I get to merging the 2 stories.
Since the start of the end 10 yrs ago Emma has been alone. Her rules keep her safe. Her rules have kept her alive. Until someone knocks on her cabin door seeking help. That one simple knock has her rules scattered on the wind and doing things she never would have thought possible just days before.
As with the Seventh Day series, BORN was unique in its own way. The infected in the story are like zombies, but not zombies. It’s the ones that are alive, the Others, that you really have to watch out for.
All in all I really like Emma. She is highly independent and can fend for herself. But there were times I would have liked to have seen her be a little more less rigid when it came to her new family and friends. She was a little too abrasive at times. But I will say, after being alone for so long I can see how her reactions were warranted. She definitely isn’t your normal book chick. Emma has the whole Katniss thing going for her and can be a total badarse.
I am not sure how others feel, as I haven’t read any other reviews, but I adore Will. And it has nothing to do with the fact he shares my husbands name. Ha! No, there is just something about him that had me rootin’ for him throughout the book. He is rough and all his edges are completely raw. But I believe there is more to him than what we are actually seeing.
Fantastic read, BORN was a complete hit with me. Already halfway through the 2nd book, and equally hooked, I can't get enough of this series. 5 Stars!
I don’t think there’s any good left in us anyway.
Every decision I make out here pushes me one step further away from good. Sometimes I don’t recognize myself out here. I get lost in surviving and forget to just be a girl. A girl Granny and my dad could be proud of.
***
One of my most favorite types of reads are the zombie/apocalyptic. Having already read and loved Brown’s Seventh Day series, I gave BORN a go and I am absolutely gaga over it. So much so, I went and got the second one and immediately started it. Now I am half way through and figured I better write this review before I get to merging the 2 stories.
Since the start of the end 10 yrs ago Emma has been alone. Her rules keep her safe. Her rules have kept her alive. Until someone knocks on her cabin door seeking help. That one simple knock has her rules scattered on the wind and doing things she never would have thought possible just days before.
As with the Seventh Day series, BORN was unique in its own way. The infected in the story are like zombies, but not zombies. It’s the ones that are alive, the Others, that you really have to watch out for.
All in all I really like Emma. She is highly independent and can fend for herself. But there were times I would have liked to have seen her be a little more less rigid when it came to her new family and friends. She was a little too abrasive at times. But I will say, after being alone for so long I can see how her reactions were warranted. She definitely isn’t your normal book chick. Emma has the whole Katniss thing going for her and can be a total badarse.
I am not sure how others feel, as I haven’t read any other reviews, but I adore Will. And it has nothing to do with the fact he shares my husbands name. Ha! No, there is just something about him that had me rootin’ for him throughout the book. He is rough and all his edges are completely raw. But I believe there is more to him than what we are actually seeing.
Fantastic read, BORN was a complete hit with me. Already halfway through the 2nd book, and equally hooked, I can't get enough of this series. 5 Stars!
February 16, 2020
I’d give this four stars if one of the characters wasn’t such a controlling, manipulative and physically abusive arse.
Other than that, I love Emma’s awkwardness and how Anna, Jake, Meg, Sarah and Leo show her how to live. This world is pretty full on and I’m eager to see what happens next.
Other than that, I love Emma’s awkwardness and how Anna, Jake, Meg, Sarah and Leo show her how to live. This world is pretty full on and I’m eager to see what happens next.
August 2, 2013
(Disclaimer. read my p.s 2 before reading my rant.
Pissed off cause I have decide a while back not to read a book of a series that is not done. I am very forgetful so when book 3 comes out and it has been a year or more, it means I have to re read book 1 and 2.
I checked and on amazon I noticed book 1 and 2 were out and book 3 would be out on July 15. So I thought yes I can safely give this series a try.
To discover that coming book is one of those stupid shorties. Another trend of late. The YA adults write a few books which becomes part of a series, but then have to also write a little book, about 60 pages so the publisher and author can earn more.
Okay End of Rant!
This was what I wrote while reading
I'm 53% done with Born: What a surprise. I assume this is not YA? I love it. talking about rape and much more sexual and more mean than I am used to due to most books in this category are written for teens. Of course this book has flaws but I am enjoying it. — Jul 11, 2013 01:04pm
What I think are flaws is that yet again there is a love triangle in a book. Why? Why do so many authors feel the need to have a love triangle while people are surviving in a new world? If your world is interesting enough there is no need for that. please.
Other flaws: She tells us she managed to survive as a child of 9 for 10 years because she never does something without a care. She always plans and has a lot of patience.
Well what happened? We meet her and this girl is anything but patience or careful!! It annoyed me that it was not consistent meaning I think someone can't change in 1 day into a total different person with totally different habits just because she meets 2 people she likes.
There are many good things though: Very interesting new world. Interesting character and although she annoys the hell out of me when she communicates (if you can call it that) with Will, she is also smart and brave and sometimes a bit stupid which makes me laugh.
I love that this is not for teens and I hope she will sleep with Will in book 2. ;)
Not sure what rating to give it.
P.S If you know of a good YA or Adult kind of dystopia/utopian book which is not part of a series, I would love to hear.
Or any recommendations for series that are finished or just any old good book.
P.s 2 (July 29): Just found out that apparently someone made a mistake. The book that would come out in July which according to amazon would have only 60 pages or so, is not a shorty but it is book 3!! So apologizing to Mrs Tara Brown. You Rock!! Reading book 2 now and I like it.
Pissed off cause I have decide a while back not to read a book of a series that is not done. I am very forgetful so when book 3 comes out and it has been a year or more, it means I have to re read book 1 and 2.
I checked and on amazon I noticed book 1 and 2 were out and book 3 would be out on July 15. So I thought yes I can safely give this series a try.
To discover that coming book is one of those stupid shorties. Another trend of late. The YA adults write a few books which becomes part of a series, but then have to also write a little book, about 60 pages so the publisher and author can earn more.
Okay End of Rant!
This was what I wrote while reading
I'm 53% done with Born: What a surprise. I assume this is not YA? I love it. talking about rape and much more sexual and more mean than I am used to due to most books in this category are written for teens. Of course this book has flaws but I am enjoying it. — Jul 11, 2013 01:04pm
What I think are flaws is that yet again there is a love triangle in a book. Why? Why do so many authors feel the need to have a love triangle while people are surviving in a new world? If your world is interesting enough there is no need for that. please.
Other flaws: She tells us she managed to survive as a child of 9 for 10 years because she never does something without a care. She always plans and has a lot of patience.
Well what happened? We meet her and this girl is anything but patience or careful!! It annoyed me that it was not consistent meaning I think someone can't change in 1 day into a total different person with totally different habits just because she meets 2 people she likes.
There are many good things though: Very interesting new world. Interesting character and although she annoys the hell out of me when she communicates (if you can call it that) with Will, she is also smart and brave and sometimes a bit stupid which makes me laugh.
I love that this is not for teens and I hope she will sleep with Will in book 2. ;)
Not sure what rating to give it.
P.S If you know of a good YA or Adult kind of dystopia/utopian book which is not part of a series, I would love to hear.
Or any recommendations for series that are finished or just any old good book.
P.s 2 (July 29): Just found out that apparently someone made a mistake. The book that would come out in July which according to amazon would have only 60 pages or so, is not a shorty but it is book 3!! So apologizing to Mrs Tara Brown. You Rock!! Reading book 2 now and I like it.
July 6, 2013
Wow! Post zombie apocalypse survivalist adventure is not typically my genre of choice, but WOW! Of course, it doesn't start out like this. The initial premise is an odd young woman living alone in a bunker, and over time you're fed the disturbing details, and before I knew it....completely couldn't put it down!
After reading Born I logged into the Kindle storefront and ordered EVERYTHING ELSE Tara Brown has written. She kept surprising me and just like the main character, Emma, I couldn't stop looking at the disturbing world being discovered.
And just like Emma, you realize that if you start caring about something, you're going to start caring about everything....and before you know it, nothing becomes more important than finding out what's on the next page.
After reading Born I logged into the Kindle storefront and ordered EVERYTHING ELSE Tara Brown has written. She kept surprising me and just like the main character, Emma, I couldn't stop looking at the disturbing world being discovered.
And just like Emma, you realize that if you start caring about something, you're going to start caring about everything....and before you know it, nothing becomes more important than finding out what's on the next page.
March 9, 2015
Highly recommend...a bargain at a buck. Lots of action/definite page turner. Minor quibbles over the instalove with brother #2 (and later explanation for that) and some editing issues (minor & only a handful). I did really like the main character though--quirky, tough and flawed.
March 9, 2021
Creo que más que una reseña, esto es un rant, un desahogo de lo que fue mal en este libro en mi opinión.
La historia empezó interesante, con una protagonista cuya personalidad me agradaba porque concordaba con lo que sabíamos de ella—que había estado sola la mitad de su vida, justo desde los nueve años, una edad bastante impresionable. La mitad del libro fue buena, con una trama que envolvía y personajes con personalidades peculiares, Anna con su seriedad y Jake siendo un lindo bufón que no sabe filtrar ni porque le paguen. Mi problema empieza cuando aparece Will.
Yo nunca he sabido qué encuentran de interesante las personas en triángulos amorosos que nunca van a lidiar con poliamor. Tampoco entiendo porque hay autores que creen que desarrollar una subtrama amorosa es imperativo en una historia. No siempre lo es, no todos los personajes pueden lidiar con ello y no todos estan hechos para ello, así como hay personas a las que no les interesa una relación romántica y no porque estén traumatizados. Ese, en mi opinión, es el problema de esta historia, la necesidad de forzar un romance donde no se necesita.
Emma es autosuficiente y aunque es verdad que está necesitada de contacto y amor es obvio que lo que ella menos necesita es un interés romántico y menos uno con el que no se siente 100% cómoda y que sólo la está forzando todo el tiempo a admitir que le gusta, presionándola por una reacción de su parte. Will me molesta por ese motivo, porque es obvio que Emma está luchando con sus sentimientos hacia él y en vez de darle espacio, la persigue constantemente, y ella en su afán de huir de él parece una loca desequilibrada—la pobre no tiene la culpa, yo entiendo lo que es ser acosada por hombres que no entienden que uno no los quiere alrededor.
Eso es lo que me molesta con la historia. No la trama, no los protagonistas, ni siquiera la personalidad completa de Will me molesta porque él puede ser centrado cuando se necesita. Mi problema está con gente que cree que un romance es 100% necesario en una historia, incluso a cuesta de la credibilidad del protagonista.
Más reseñas en mi blog.
La historia empezó interesante, con una protagonista cuya personalidad me agradaba porque concordaba con lo que sabíamos de ella—que había estado sola la mitad de su vida, justo desde los nueve años, una edad bastante impresionable. La mitad del libro fue buena, con una trama que envolvía y personajes con personalidades peculiares, Anna con su seriedad y Jake siendo un lindo bufón que no sabe filtrar ni porque le paguen. Mi problema empieza cuando aparece Will.
Yo nunca he sabido qué encuentran de interesante las personas en triángulos amorosos que nunca van a lidiar con poliamor. Tampoco entiendo porque hay autores que creen que desarrollar una subtrama amorosa es imperativo en una historia. No siempre lo es, no todos los personajes pueden lidiar con ello y no todos estan hechos para ello, así como hay personas a las que no les interesa una relación romántica y no porque estén traumatizados. Ese, en mi opinión, es el problema de esta historia, la necesidad de forzar un romance donde no se necesita.
Emma es autosuficiente y aunque es verdad que está necesitada de contacto y amor es obvio que lo que ella menos necesita es un interés romántico y menos uno con el que no se siente 100% cómoda y que sólo la está forzando todo el tiempo a admitir que le gusta, presionándola por una reacción de su parte. Will me molesta por ese motivo, porque es obvio que Emma está luchando con sus sentimientos hacia él y en vez de darle espacio, la persigue constantemente, y ella en su afán de huir de él parece una loca desequilibrada—la pobre no tiene la culpa, yo entiendo lo que es ser acosada por hombres que no entienden que uno no los quiere alrededor.
Eso es lo que me molesta con la historia. No la trama, no los protagonistas, ni siquiera la personalidad completa de Will me molesta porque él puede ser centrado cuando se necesita. Mi problema está con gente que cree que un romance es 100% necesario en una historia, incluso a cuesta de la credibilidad del protagonista.
Más reseñas en mi blog.
April 27, 2013
This isn’t my first brush with indie-YA/NA dystopia. But it is my first Tara Brown book. I didn’t know quite what to expect, but for $1 on amazon, I figured I’d give it a try.
First, the story is told in third person narrative, but focuses primarily on Emma. I don’t want to rehash the summary, but I liked the way the story was told. The survival element was spot-on, and the level of suspense exceeded my expectations. And I was fairly pleased with the ‘dystopian’ elements, and world building.
However, there were obvious issues with editing, grammar, punctuation, etc. And I had MAJOR issues with the ‘romance’ aspect of the novel. It was just really awkward, weird, too fast-paced, so stupidly clichéd, and ultimately UNBELIEVABLE. The whole love triangle angle between brothers – was just distasteful. That’s just one element of a larger string of elements that didn’t work for me...
Overall, there were too many things happening at once. The love triangle, the breeding farms, the zombies, the survival aspect, the camps, etc. My favorite character was Leo, the wolf. Then, it was Anna. I need to be able to like, or at least respect the protagonist of the story in order to really give this book a 3+ star rating. And most of the things that happen in the story were just TOO unbelievable. Emma’s declaration of LOVE for both brothers was just sickening; I found myself skimming through chunks of useless descriptions, and A LOT of awkward moments. Basically, I wanted to hurl – OFTEN – so that’s never a good sign. Then it ends with a cliffhanger.... I might give the sequel a try, but my expectations are pretty low at this point.
First, the story is told in third person narrative, but focuses primarily on Emma. I don’t want to rehash the summary, but I liked the way the story was told. The survival element was spot-on, and the level of suspense exceeded my expectations. And I was fairly pleased with the ‘dystopian’ elements, and world building.
However, there were obvious issues with editing, grammar, punctuation, etc. And I had MAJOR issues with the ‘romance’ aspect of the novel. It was just really awkward, weird, too fast-paced, so stupidly clichéd, and ultimately UNBELIEVABLE. The whole love triangle angle between brothers – was just distasteful. That’s just one element of a larger string of elements that didn’t work for me...
Overall, there were too many things happening at once. The love triangle, the breeding farms, the zombies, the survival aspect, the camps, etc. My favorite character was Leo, the wolf. Then, it was Anna. I need to be able to like, or at least respect the protagonist of the story in order to really give this book a 3+ star rating. And most of the things that happen in the story were just TOO unbelievable. Emma’s declaration of LOVE for both brothers was just sickening; I found myself skimming through chunks of useless descriptions, and A LOT of awkward moments. Basically, I wanted to hurl – OFTEN – so that’s never a good sign. Then it ends with a cliffhanger.... I might give the sequel a try, but my expectations are pretty low at this point.
January 4, 2015
So I have been avoiding this book for some time because I have a serious love/hate relationship with Tara Brown. Her writing is phenomenal and she is truly one of my favorite authors; however, she always guts me, shocks me, and breaks me down before giving me an ending. I finally took the plunge and the only negative I found was a love triangle. Not really a fan of the who will she end up with game because knowing there are 3 books and an alternative ending means I am going to need to read them all in a day or two because it will drive me crazy otherwise.
In other news, Emma is a bad *ss who lacks social skills but makes up for it in being blunt, honest, and an excellent shot. She is truly one of a kind. You also meet all kinds of characters and people you fall in love with. Emma has a pet wolf named Leo and he guards Emma and helps her survive. There is also the military who collects people for hard labor and the breeding farms. In addition there are the others who are messed up survivors, aka kidnapping or raping. Then finally there are the infected, the people who didn't die off when the end of the current world started. They resemble humans but really they just want to hunt people down and kill them. It was an amazing story!
The ending, oh my Lord, I immediately went and bought book 2 because how can you not when the cliff-hanger is that epic. All in all, the book lived up to the hype and I am already half-way through book 2 so I can't wait to find out what happens next!
In other news, Emma is a bad *ss who lacks social skills but makes up for it in being blunt, honest, and an excellent shot. She is truly one of a kind. You also meet all kinds of characters and people you fall in love with. Emma has a pet wolf named Leo and he guards Emma and helps her survive. There is also the military who collects people for hard labor and the breeding farms. In addition there are the others who are messed up survivors, aka kidnapping or raping. Then finally there are the infected, the people who didn't die off when the end of the current world started. They resemble humans but really they just want to hunt people down and kill them. It was an amazing story!
The ending, oh my Lord, I immediately went and bought book 2 because how can you not when the cliff-hanger is that epic. All in all, the book lived up to the hype and I am already half-way through book 2 so I can't wait to find out what happens next!
February 6, 2017
Spoilers in this review!
It was very close to being a five star for me. Very close.
I can't fault the writing, it was really great writing that gripped me from the off. The story itself gripped me from the off too; a girl of 19 living on her own for 10 years in a post apocalyptic world–what's not to like.
It was great, a girl struggling to come to terms with the world as well as trying to grow up. She was told by her father to run and that is exactly what's she done. No human interaction at all.
She then has a girl turn up at her door asking for help and she reluctantly does help. It's against everything she has been told by her father but she does it.
From then on, she begins to help and help and begins to meet more people and she actually gets used to it and loves helping people. She also loves the family element.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars(and it's just personal opinion) is because of the potential love triangle building. Now I don't mind abit of romance in books but I just felt that this could have done without it. I'm not saying it's a bad thing but perhaps it wouldn't be missed if it wasn't there. But hey ho that's just me.
Overall, a fantastic book and I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to get into the next two books :)
It was very close to being a five star for me. Very close.
I can't fault the writing, it was really great writing that gripped me from the off. The story itself gripped me from the off too; a girl of 19 living on her own for 10 years in a post apocalyptic world–what's not to like.
It was great, a girl struggling to come to terms with the world as well as trying to grow up. She was told by her father to run and that is exactly what's she done. No human interaction at all.
She then has a girl turn up at her door asking for help and she reluctantly does help. It's against everything she has been told by her father but she does it.
From then on, she begins to help and help and begins to meet more people and she actually gets used to it and loves helping people. She also loves the family element.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars(and it's just personal opinion) is because of the potential love triangle building. Now I don't mind abit of romance in books but I just felt that this could have done without it. I'm not saying it's a bad thing but perhaps it wouldn't be missed if it wasn't there. But hey ho that's just me.
Overall, a fantastic book and I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to get into the next two books :)
May 19, 2024
I don’t usually write reviews, especially not bad ones, but I need to vent.
I do not understand how this book has a 4+ star rating.
Let me save you reading it by telling you literally everything important that happens:
10 years into a zombie apocalypse and you follow the story of 19 year old Emma who has been living alone (with the exception of her pet wolf, Leo who in my opinion is the only character worth caring about.. except maybe Sarah who comes into it later) in a hidden-away cabin since the age of 9. Her father was conveniently a survivalist/doomsday prepper who trained her to survive in apocalyptic conditions since birth basically, but who himself died on like day one of the apocalypse…
Emma has survived this long by not getting involved. In anything. Or anyone. That is basically her mantra in life. Don’t get involved! Until one day she does. She helps out a brother/sister team and overnight they become best buddies. Random minor suspenseful things happen that Emma conveniently manages to problem solve her way of that lead to the trio getting split up and Emma makes it her life mission to find her new friends. Along the way she and a sassy 15 year old named Meg get ?kidnapped by what you assume are a group of thugs who take them to their camp where they are actually welcomed with open arms and kisses on the lips by perfect strangers who do not care about the safety of their children given how they allow them to freely climb over a fully grown wolf without batting an eyelid despite the wolf’s owner and the wolf making it very clear he doesn’t like it…
Amazingly the leader, Will, is the older brother of Emma’s sibling friends (Anna and Jake). He comes along with Emma on her quest to find them, taking her to another of his conveniently located camps with seemingly no walls or borders, though which he guarantees are 100% safe with zero risk of noise being heard by the zombies or the camps being infiltrated by bad guys..?
Will is accosted by a blonde in short-shorts who passionately kisses him, making Emma enraged despite having only met Will less than 24 hours prior and having admitted to having feelings for his brother, Jake, a couple of chapters earlier.
Also, guess who is at this gloriously safe camp? Little brother, Jakey-boy.
Happy reunion between the brothers who haven’t seen each other for like 5 years. Turns out that Anna was taken to a breeder farm which are government-run facilities where they take young girls and women of healthy, white stock (because racist, sexist, bigoted men run the world and decided to eliminate diversity) and artificially impregnate them multiple times with the promise that one day they will be allowed to retire to a house in the city that is protected and has electricity and running water (spoiler alert - they actually kill them when their sentence is up). So Emma, Jake and Will concoct this not-so-thought-out plan where Emma will act as bait to be taken to a breeder farm where she plans to break Anna out with absolutely zero plan on how to do so. Success, she’s in. She breaks her one and only rule of not making friends for the thousandth time and befriends a scared little 10 year old named Sarah. Science-y intake stuff happens and she’s admitted into the breeder farm without a hitch, and gets to keep her little buddy, Sarah, despite the rule about kids and adults being segregated. Oh and conveniently (again) an old friend of her Dads is one of the labourers who brings new girls in to the farm and he promises to help her get out. He turns out to be perve but dies pretty much immediately after this revelation later in the book. After two weeks of hot showers, decedent food and comfy beds they pretty much decide they don’t want to leave until a nurse warns them that they’ll be killed after they pop out their third kid, and she gives them a map and a plan and distracts all the other girls. They (Emma, Anna and Sarah) escape in a garbage truck without a hitch and head back to camp. From here on out Will becomes super needy and possessive of Emma and acts like he owns her and that he’s desperately in love despite only knowing her for a day before she entered the breeder farm. We finally get to see some zombies in action. They make more not-so-elaborate plans to break the other women out of the breeder farm. Things don’t go as planned at absolutely no fault of Emma’s, yet she is blamed by the group so sneaks off to liberate the women herself with her trusty sidekick Leo. She and her wolf enter the facility with zero complication (apparently in a high-tech government facility the back door is always unlocked and doesn’t need a swipe key or a guard of any kind). The first person she encounters is a friend of the rebellion and gives her all the info she needs to take the place down, and a swipe card. She blows up the building using a built-in fail-safe, amazingly killing the majority of the staff and very few of the captives. Yadah-yadah-yadah. Emma is a hero. Will is borderline rapey. She and the gang become vigilantes who break into multiple breeder farms freeing women until the book ends on a cliffhanger with one of the good guys possibly betraying her as she is about to take down another facility.
Ok, now for my review:
This book had so much potential. It started out quite well. Admittedly I was drawn in very quickly and was excited about where this book would go. About halfway through I started to lose interest and by the end I had to force myself to finish and was so thoroughly disappointed.
I feel as though the first and second halves of this book were written by different people.
I’ll start with the good things:
1. First and foremost, this is a zombie novel that, refreshingly, does not revolve around or focus on the zombies too much. That’s so great. 10 years into an apocalypse I think people would be pretty much used to them by now. Emma does seem absurdly afraid of them though for someone who has survived 10 years, but hey. I do wish they had a little more description or back story but I actually don’t mind that the focus was not on the zombies at all.
2. The premise is great. This story was great. It was just so poorly executed.
Ok, now the bad:
1. Why was everything so damned convenient? There was almost no build up to events that should have been huge. There was no planning. Nothing was thought out, and yet everything just seemed to work out. Also, the “big” events in the book were over in less than a chapter. There should have been build up.
2. It seemed as though these chapters were written out of order and then pieced together to make the final story, and that there wasn’t as much editing as there should have been to fix the mistakes that were left behind. For example, in one chapter early on, Jake and Anna tell Emma the story about how they lost their brother, then in the next chapter she’s asking about him as if she’s never heard of him, and they’re retelling the story.
3. The sentences, particularly in the 2nd part of the book were so choppy and short. The story didn’t flow. I was hyper aware of the writing style which really took me out of the story.
Example (not actual lines but hopefully you get the drift): Emma sat down. Leo nudged her with his nose. She pet Leo on the nose. She stood up and walked to Will. Will turned to face her.
4. WTF is with Will? Does the author think this is what a woman wants? Is this what her relationship is like? So many things to take issue with:
- he is abusive. He literally manhandles her constantly. The amount of times he grabbed her arm and forced her to turn around and face him. He left bruises on her!!!
- He does not take no for an answer. She needs to get changed and asks him to leave and he refuses. She needs rest after a huge day and she asks him to leave and he refuses. She is injured and has been instructed to sleep and Will will not let her until she has had a discussion with him about their relationship despite her making it clear about 500 times that there is no relationship. HE GETS INTO BED WITH HER, WRAPS AN ARM AROUND HER AND KISSES HER CHEEK WITHOUT HER PERMISSION!
- He is so controlling and it is meant to come across as endearing and protective. She lived alone for 10 years. She learnt to hunt. She trained a wolf. She learned to strategise, and gather food, and get herself out of sticky situations, and yet Will thinks he can ban her from doing anything at all that may put her in danger. Like it’s week one of the apocalypse and she is his daughter and he wants to protect her. It’s so creepy.
5. It doesn’t matter what the circumstances are, Tara Brown, aka AE Watson. I don’t care if it is 10 years post-apocalypse. I don’t care if Emma didn’t learn social-skills. I don’t care that you’re a woman and that this was said by a woman. You cannot say “dressed like that she’s asking for it”. Emma, on multiple occasions, says this about a character named Star. Not only does she say this but she also accuses Star of being effed up because she doesn’t act like any other rape victim she’s ever met. I.e Star is a happy and bubbly and likes to dress in short shorts and tank tops and kiss boys. This was pretty f** up. Everyone is different and everyone copes in their own way. This part should not have made past editing.
6. I know that people are supposed to have a character arc in stories. But Emma didn’t so much arc as spiral. She was described as being completely solitary, quiet, serious etc. she never, not once went out of her way to help people as it meant she would put herself in danger and her father taught her against that. But as soon as she meets Anna and Jake it’s like her whole personality changes. People with 10 years of fear-conditioning do not just change their entire way of thinking and acting overnight. The character development needed to be slower.
I could literally go on and on about all the flaws. Like how she lived in complete solitary confinement in the middle of nowhere for 10 years and was never ever discovered, yet she had 3 or more other properties within walking distance that were all conveniently untouched for 10 years as well. Or how the whole story of 15 year old Meg and her 30 year old boyfriend just didn’t need to happen as it added absolutely nothing to the story other than to show the uncharacteristic lengths that Emma was willing to go to protect this perfect stranger she barely knew. Or how she blew up the entire facility killing 90% of the staff but managed to get 90% of the women and children out alive and unharmed. Or how they decided to take this literal horde of women to their safe camp with absolutely zero discussion about how to cover their tracks or hide the trail so they aren’t tracked (which they conveniently aren’t).
I just can’t with this book. I’m so angry that it turned out this way because it started out so well.
I do not understand how this book has a 4+ star rating.
Let me save you reading it by telling you literally everything important that happens:
10 years into a zombie apocalypse and you follow the story of 19 year old Emma who has been living alone (with the exception of her pet wolf, Leo who in my opinion is the only character worth caring about.. except maybe Sarah who comes into it later) in a hidden-away cabin since the age of 9. Her father was conveniently a survivalist/doomsday prepper who trained her to survive in apocalyptic conditions since birth basically, but who himself died on like day one of the apocalypse…
Emma has survived this long by not getting involved. In anything. Or anyone. That is basically her mantra in life. Don’t get involved! Until one day she does. She helps out a brother/sister team and overnight they become best buddies. Random minor suspenseful things happen that Emma conveniently manages to problem solve her way of that lead to the trio getting split up and Emma makes it her life mission to find her new friends. Along the way she and a sassy 15 year old named Meg get ?kidnapped by what you assume are a group of thugs who take them to their camp where they are actually welcomed with open arms and kisses on the lips by perfect strangers who do not care about the safety of their children given how they allow them to freely climb over a fully grown wolf without batting an eyelid despite the wolf’s owner and the wolf making it very clear he doesn’t like it…
Amazingly the leader, Will, is the older brother of Emma’s sibling friends (Anna and Jake). He comes along with Emma on her quest to find them, taking her to another of his conveniently located camps with seemingly no walls or borders, though which he guarantees are 100% safe with zero risk of noise being heard by the zombies or the camps being infiltrated by bad guys..?
Will is accosted by a blonde in short-shorts who passionately kisses him, making Emma enraged despite having only met Will less than 24 hours prior and having admitted to having feelings for his brother, Jake, a couple of chapters earlier.
Also, guess who is at this gloriously safe camp? Little brother, Jakey-boy.
Happy reunion between the brothers who haven’t seen each other for like 5 years. Turns out that Anna was taken to a breeder farm which are government-run facilities where they take young girls and women of healthy, white stock (because racist, sexist, bigoted men run the world and decided to eliminate diversity) and artificially impregnate them multiple times with the promise that one day they will be allowed to retire to a house in the city that is protected and has electricity and running water (spoiler alert - they actually kill them when their sentence is up). So Emma, Jake and Will concoct this not-so-thought-out plan where Emma will act as bait to be taken to a breeder farm where she plans to break Anna out with absolutely zero plan on how to do so. Success, she’s in. She breaks her one and only rule of not making friends for the thousandth time and befriends a scared little 10 year old named Sarah. Science-y intake stuff happens and she’s admitted into the breeder farm without a hitch, and gets to keep her little buddy, Sarah, despite the rule about kids and adults being segregated. Oh and conveniently (again) an old friend of her Dads is one of the labourers who brings new girls in to the farm and he promises to help her get out. He turns out to be perve but dies pretty much immediately after this revelation later in the book. After two weeks of hot showers, decedent food and comfy beds they pretty much decide they don’t want to leave until a nurse warns them that they’ll be killed after they pop out their third kid, and she gives them a map and a plan and distracts all the other girls. They (Emma, Anna and Sarah) escape in a garbage truck without a hitch and head back to camp. From here on out Will becomes super needy and possessive of Emma and acts like he owns her and that he’s desperately in love despite only knowing her for a day before she entered the breeder farm. We finally get to see some zombies in action. They make more not-so-elaborate plans to break the other women out of the breeder farm. Things don’t go as planned at absolutely no fault of Emma’s, yet she is blamed by the group so sneaks off to liberate the women herself with her trusty sidekick Leo. She and her wolf enter the facility with zero complication (apparently in a high-tech government facility the back door is always unlocked and doesn’t need a swipe key or a guard of any kind). The first person she encounters is a friend of the rebellion and gives her all the info she needs to take the place down, and a swipe card. She blows up the building using a built-in fail-safe, amazingly killing the majority of the staff and very few of the captives. Yadah-yadah-yadah. Emma is a hero. Will is borderline rapey. She and the gang become vigilantes who break into multiple breeder farms freeing women until the book ends on a cliffhanger with one of the good guys possibly betraying her as she is about to take down another facility.
Ok, now for my review:
This book had so much potential. It started out quite well. Admittedly I was drawn in very quickly and was excited about where this book would go. About halfway through I started to lose interest and by the end I had to force myself to finish and was so thoroughly disappointed.
I feel as though the first and second halves of this book were written by different people.
I’ll start with the good things:
1. First and foremost, this is a zombie novel that, refreshingly, does not revolve around or focus on the zombies too much. That’s so great. 10 years into an apocalypse I think people would be pretty much used to them by now. Emma does seem absurdly afraid of them though for someone who has survived 10 years, but hey. I do wish they had a little more description or back story but I actually don’t mind that the focus was not on the zombies at all.
2. The premise is great. This story was great. It was just so poorly executed.
Ok, now the bad:
1. Why was everything so damned convenient? There was almost no build up to events that should have been huge. There was no planning. Nothing was thought out, and yet everything just seemed to work out. Also, the “big” events in the book were over in less than a chapter. There should have been build up.
2. It seemed as though these chapters were written out of order and then pieced together to make the final story, and that there wasn’t as much editing as there should have been to fix the mistakes that were left behind. For example, in one chapter early on, Jake and Anna tell Emma the story about how they lost their brother, then in the next chapter she’s asking about him as if she’s never heard of him, and they’re retelling the story.
3. The sentences, particularly in the 2nd part of the book were so choppy and short. The story didn’t flow. I was hyper aware of the writing style which really took me out of the story.
Example (not actual lines but hopefully you get the drift): Emma sat down. Leo nudged her with his nose. She pet Leo on the nose. She stood up and walked to Will. Will turned to face her.
4. WTF is with Will? Does the author think this is what a woman wants? Is this what her relationship is like? So many things to take issue with:
- he is abusive. He literally manhandles her constantly. The amount of times he grabbed her arm and forced her to turn around and face him. He left bruises on her!!!
- He does not take no for an answer. She needs to get changed and asks him to leave and he refuses. She needs rest after a huge day and she asks him to leave and he refuses. She is injured and has been instructed to sleep and Will will not let her until she has had a discussion with him about their relationship despite her making it clear about 500 times that there is no relationship. HE GETS INTO BED WITH HER, WRAPS AN ARM AROUND HER AND KISSES HER CHEEK WITHOUT HER PERMISSION!
- He is so controlling and it is meant to come across as endearing and protective. She lived alone for 10 years. She learnt to hunt. She trained a wolf. She learned to strategise, and gather food, and get herself out of sticky situations, and yet Will thinks he can ban her from doing anything at all that may put her in danger. Like it’s week one of the apocalypse and she is his daughter and he wants to protect her. It’s so creepy.
5. It doesn’t matter what the circumstances are, Tara Brown, aka AE Watson. I don’t care if it is 10 years post-apocalypse. I don’t care if Emma didn’t learn social-skills. I don’t care that you’re a woman and that this was said by a woman. You cannot say “dressed like that she’s asking for it”. Emma, on multiple occasions, says this about a character named Star. Not only does she say this but she also accuses Star of being effed up because she doesn’t act like any other rape victim she’s ever met. I.e Star is a happy and bubbly and likes to dress in short shorts and tank tops and kiss boys. This was pretty f** up. Everyone is different and everyone copes in their own way. This part should not have made past editing.
6. I know that people are supposed to have a character arc in stories. But Emma didn’t so much arc as spiral. She was described as being completely solitary, quiet, serious etc. she never, not once went out of her way to help people as it meant she would put herself in danger and her father taught her against that. But as soon as she meets Anna and Jake it’s like her whole personality changes. People with 10 years of fear-conditioning do not just change their entire way of thinking and acting overnight. The character development needed to be slower.
I could literally go on and on about all the flaws. Like how she lived in complete solitary confinement in the middle of nowhere for 10 years and was never ever discovered, yet she had 3 or more other properties within walking distance that were all conveniently untouched for 10 years as well. Or how the whole story of 15 year old Meg and her 30 year old boyfriend just didn’t need to happen as it added absolutely nothing to the story other than to show the uncharacteristic lengths that Emma was willing to go to protect this perfect stranger she barely knew. Or how she blew up the entire facility killing 90% of the staff but managed to get 90% of the women and children out alive and unharmed. Or how they decided to take this literal horde of women to their safe camp with absolutely zero discussion about how to cover their tracks or hide the trail so they aren’t tracked (which they conveniently aren’t).
I just can’t with this book. I’m so angry that it turned out this way because it started out so well.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2013
This and other reviews can be found on my blog: http://shehasaknackforit.blogspot.com/
Well, this is clearly a self-published book. Nothing wrong with that, but it could do with some polishing up, more drafts, some editing, etc...
This book definitely felt a little rough to me, especially in the beginning on of the book. The first few paragraphs didn't suck me in right away and I was a little confused about what the story was about. I should have some inkling within the first chapter, not everything, but a pretty good idea at least. I actually had to stop and go back and read the very long description of the book provided by the author. She could use a little help in that department too.
Anyways, below all of the roughness, I definitely see a good story here with lots of potential. The further I got into the book, especially past the half-way mark, the easier it was for me to gloss over any weird writing and get into the story. Now what is the story about?
When Em was growing up she always thought her father was a little weird with all of the prepping he always did. He was worried about a world-wide disaster that would set the world back years. He made sure his daughter was prepare with survival training, they practiced running to make sure everyone was fit, etc...
When Em was nine her father's fears came to light when a bio-engineered virus was released on the world. Millions of people died everywhere or were infected with a zombie-like disease. While escaping from the city Em's father died. She has survived the past ten years by following her father's rules, and remembering what he said, "It's us and them, Em. There are no regular people anymore. Don't help anyone. Don't go where other people are unless you have to. Trust no one. Always pull the trigger."
That comes to an end ten years after the world ended when Em hears a timid knock on her cabin door and a girl a little younger than herself, pleading for her help her brother. Em reluctantly agrees and our adventure and breaking of her father's rules go from there.
We have Em who is a survivalist bad-ass who is super good with a bow and arrow like some other big YA heroine we all know and love (ehem Katniss/Hunger Games). She also has a Timber Wolf companion, named Leo who helps her out (I liked Leo). And of course, two men who vie for her affections, two hottie brothers, no less.
So in all post-apocalyptic worlds we know not everyone is nice. In this world you have people who do bad things to girls and/or try to round them up for the breeding camps or to work as slaves on farms. You see the bad people who released the virus on world managed to survive it's destruction and are working on rebuilding it to their desires. Think Hitler and whole Aryan race he tried to create. They are working on breeding healthy people to make a better world.
Outside of the creepy people's place is everyone else trying to survive, whether you are a rebel, a loner, or someone trying to make it in a rundown crappy town.
Through the brother, Jake, and sister, Anna, she ends up meeting with the rebels and deciding that she needs to take down the breeder camps, as they are not what they seem.
A lot going on huh? The zombies seem to take more of backseat in this story. They are there, our characters come across them, but it's more about the rebels and a common man (or woman), against the big bad that ended the world.
An interesting concept. I would really like to see this book polished up. I can't imagine how good it would be if a really good editor got her hands on it.
So, FOUR stars for the story idea plus TWO to TWO and HALF stars for the execution, gets us to...THREE Stars.
Well, this is clearly a self-published book. Nothing wrong with that, but it could do with some polishing up, more drafts, some editing, etc...
This book definitely felt a little rough to me, especially in the beginning on of the book. The first few paragraphs didn't suck me in right away and I was a little confused about what the story was about. I should have some inkling within the first chapter, not everything, but a pretty good idea at least. I actually had to stop and go back and read the very long description of the book provided by the author. She could use a little help in that department too.
Anyways, below all of the roughness, I definitely see a good story here with lots of potential. The further I got into the book, especially past the half-way mark, the easier it was for me to gloss over any weird writing and get into the story. Now what is the story about?
When Em was growing up she always thought her father was a little weird with all of the prepping he always did. He was worried about a world-wide disaster that would set the world back years. He made sure his daughter was prepare with survival training, they practiced running to make sure everyone was fit, etc...
When Em was nine her father's fears came to light when a bio-engineered virus was released on the world. Millions of people died everywhere or were infected with a zombie-like disease. While escaping from the city Em's father died. She has survived the past ten years by following her father's rules, and remembering what he said, "It's us and them, Em. There are no regular people anymore. Don't help anyone. Don't go where other people are unless you have to. Trust no one. Always pull the trigger."
That comes to an end ten years after the world ended when Em hears a timid knock on her cabin door and a girl a little younger than herself, pleading for her help her brother. Em reluctantly agrees and our adventure and breaking of her father's rules go from there.
We have Em who is a survivalist bad-ass who is super good with a bow and arrow like some other big YA heroine we all know and love (ehem Katniss/Hunger Games). She also has a Timber Wolf companion, named Leo who helps her out (I liked Leo). And of course, two men who vie for her affections, two hottie brothers, no less.
So in all post-apocalyptic worlds we know not everyone is nice. In this world you have people who do bad things to girls and/or try to round them up for the breeding camps or to work as slaves on farms. You see the bad people who released the virus on world managed to survive it's destruction and are working on rebuilding it to their desires. Think Hitler and whole Aryan race he tried to create. They are working on breeding healthy people to make a better world.
Outside of the creepy people's place is everyone else trying to survive, whether you are a rebel, a loner, or someone trying to make it in a rundown crappy town.
Through the brother, Jake, and sister, Anna, she ends up meeting with the rebels and deciding that she needs to take down the breeder camps, as they are not what they seem.
A lot going on huh? The zombies seem to take more of backseat in this story. They are there, our characters come across them, but it's more about the rebels and a common man (or woman), against the big bad that ended the world.
An interesting concept. I would really like to see this book polished up. I can't imagine how good it would be if a really good editor got her hands on it.
So, FOUR stars for the story idea plus TWO to TWO and HALF stars for the execution, gets us to...THREE Stars.
January 9, 2015
Since I enjoy dystopian fiction, this "YA" title landed on some to-read lists. Are there elements of this book that are young adult? Yes - especially Emma's naivete and reactions to encountering the first young men of her life. Plus, most of the main characters are in the 15-25 age range and there is an animal sidekick. Emma is 19. However, there are decidedly adult themes, including sexual assaults - in a variety of forms for a variety of characters - that should give pause to some readers/parents believing this is as sexually tame as the Hunger Games trilogy.
That said, Tara Brown crafts a good story around a unique heroine. Emma has been alone in survival mode since the age of nine when the world changed. Prompted by her survivalist father, she escaped to the edge of civilization. Very early in the book she encounters 15-year-old Anna and her older brother Jake. Emma feels a kinship with Anna, which is one of the strongest and most interesting relationships developed by Brown. Clearly Em does not understand how to deal with Jake and her emerging attraction. I thought more could have been done with Em's reaction to her re-entry to society. Em's anger about having the two around is shown, but she probably would have been edgier about the company, especially once she arrived at the rebel camp. At one point Jake and Will describe Emma as a female Terminator, and that one word went a long way to describing the lack of surface, visible emotion that we see from Em. Is makes sense, too. She is a deadly shot with her arrow, silent and lethal in the woods, plus ten years of solitude would not encourage emotional displays of any kind. Without the long-term nuances of interactions with other people, she also tends to see things in black and white. For Em, actions speak louder than words.
Zombies make an appearance too, but as the plot develops, they are not the scariest population in the story. That honor goes to the racists running the breeder farms. There is a lot of violent action in Born, due mainly to the fragments of society left scrambling for supremecy.
Overall, this was an interesting entry into the dystopian trope. If you like a story about a loner turned hero, you might also try Hunter-After the Fall by John Phillip Backus.
That said, Tara Brown crafts a good story around a unique heroine. Emma has been alone in survival mode since the age of nine when the world changed. Prompted by her survivalist father, she escaped to the edge of civilization. Very early in the book she encounters 15-year-old Anna and her older brother Jake. Emma feels a kinship with Anna, which is one of the strongest and most interesting relationships developed by Brown. Clearly Em does not understand how to deal with Jake and her emerging attraction. I thought more could have been done with Em's reaction to her re-entry to society. Em's anger about having the two around is shown, but she probably would have been edgier about the company, especially once she arrived at the rebel camp. At one point Jake and Will describe Emma as a female Terminator, and that one word went a long way to describing the lack of surface, visible emotion that we see from Em. Is makes sense, too. She is a deadly shot with her arrow, silent and lethal in the woods, plus ten years of solitude would not encourage emotional displays of any kind. Without the long-term nuances of interactions with other people, she also tends to see things in black and white. For Em, actions speak louder than words.
Zombies make an appearance too, but as the plot develops, they are not the scariest population in the story. That honor goes to the racists running the breeder farms. There is a lot of violent action in Born, due mainly to the fragments of society left scrambling for supremecy.
Overall, this was an interesting entry into the dystopian trope. If you like a story about a loner turned hero, you might also try Hunter-After the Fall by John Phillip Backus.
December 19, 2013
So as I was browsing through Amazon I came across a different book by Tara Brown and it hit me, "Why does she sound so familiar?" So I immediately jump to Goodreads trying to figure it out. I don't remember authors names unless they influence me in some way. In other terms, unless their book(s) are GOOD! I knew, as soon as I saw the cover for this book, that I hit a gold mine. Why oh why have I not read the remaining books in the series? Well, simple, because I wasn't as much of a bookworm back when I read this one. And now, well, I pack in 3 books a week. :P
I'm not going to post a full review on this book because I'm planning on adding this review to my blog. I got into dystopian books a little over a year ago. Granted, I'm NOT a sci-fi girl and hadnt this book been a group read- I probably would've passed it up... But oh so glad I didn't!
I pretty much fell in some sort of a distorted addiction sorta deal with the main character, Emma. This book is an "end of the world as we know it" sort of book. You're probably thinking... Hmmm... Weird. Not at all. Tara Brown sucks you in, keeps you hanging on longing for more, and doesn't disappoint. Now I've just went on an Amazon spree via Tara's books and I can't even wait til I'm done reading my scheduled blog tour books for this month so I can read the rest of this series and then some more of her others! Now, typically, I am a romance book junkie but reasons like THIS book are why myself and my partner have another blog page- made for ALL different types of books and when I finish the rest of the series, I will post my full reviews for all of them.
So, it's coming. I swear it. But I never post my reviews before I do it on the blog. So glad I found this hidden gem! Well, it was hidden for me- but that's just because I'm an idiot sometimes and forgot- oh, and I didn't do reviews back when I read this book. Ahhhh yes now I'm excited!
I'm not going to post a full review on this book because I'm planning on adding this review to my blog. I got into dystopian books a little over a year ago. Granted, I'm NOT a sci-fi girl and hadnt this book been a group read- I probably would've passed it up... But oh so glad I didn't!
I pretty much fell in some sort of a distorted addiction sorta deal with the main character, Emma. This book is an "end of the world as we know it" sort of book. You're probably thinking... Hmmm... Weird. Not at all. Tara Brown sucks you in, keeps you hanging on longing for more, and doesn't disappoint. Now I've just went on an Amazon spree via Tara's books and I can't even wait til I'm done reading my scheduled blog tour books for this month so I can read the rest of this series and then some more of her others! Now, typically, I am a romance book junkie but reasons like THIS book are why myself and my partner have another blog page- made for ALL different types of books and when I finish the rest of the series, I will post my full reviews for all of them.
So, it's coming. I swear it. But I never post my reviews before I do it on the blog. So glad I found this hidden gem! Well, it was hidden for me- but that's just because I'm an idiot sometimes and forgot- oh, and I didn't do reviews back when I read this book. Ahhhh yes now I'm excited!
July 30, 2016
I've read the original Born, and the newly re-edited Born (May 14, 2014), and I love the additions and minor changes included. I felt it added a lot to an already great story. Tara Brown does a fantastic job describing this new world, and all the dangers in it. Makes you wonder -- which is worse, humanity or the infected?
When I find a book I want to read, there are some things I scan reviews to find out. I’ve outlined what I often like to know up-front in hopes that it can be helpful for you as well.
1. This is book 1 in a trilogy (there is Born to Fight and Reborn)
2. As with many trilogies, there is a cliffhanger at the end of this book (but the trilogy is complete, so you can finish the series)
3. I would classify this as Mature YA, as there are zombie-like creatures and rape is mentioned in several parts throughout the story, though not vividly described. It is slightly toned down in the edited version, but I would still say the reader should be more on the mature side.
4. This series is dystopian, not horror, so while there are "the infected" (zombies), there's a lot more to the story than that, and more that you learn with each book.
Throughout Born, Emma finds newfound strength and courage and turns into a great heroine. This is an amazing dystopian series that has a good blend of sci-fi, fighting, romance, and humor.
...and it's FREE right now on Amazon (cover is black with blue teardrop)
When I find a book I want to read, there are some things I scan reviews to find out. I’ve outlined what I often like to know up-front in hopes that it can be helpful for you as well.
1. This is book 1 in a trilogy (there is Born to Fight and Reborn)
2. As with many trilogies, there is a cliffhanger at the end of this book (but the trilogy is complete, so you can finish the series)
3. I would classify this as Mature YA, as there are zombie-like creatures and rape is mentioned in several parts throughout the story, though not vividly described. It is slightly toned down in the edited version, but I would still say the reader should be more on the mature side.
4. This series is dystopian, not horror, so while there are "the infected" (zombies), there's a lot more to the story than that, and more that you learn with each book.
Throughout Born, Emma finds newfound strength and courage and turns into a great heroine. This is an amazing dystopian series that has a good blend of sci-fi, fighting, romance, and humor.
...and it's FREE right now on Amazon (cover is black with blue teardrop)
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