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The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza
Alternate cover edition - ISBN 1484058577, ISBN13 9781484058572.
The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza is about the first generation of adults, now in their twenties, who grew up on humanity’s first space colony. Adeena Frias is the 19 year-old “Earth Girl” who meets and befriends a group of them, and then the characters act out the answer to this question: how would the residents of a space colony react to the sudden death of their Mother Earth? Fundamentalist religions gain power; there is panic and denial amidst strangely ordinary days, and the characters form loyal, desperate bonds.
This is also a story with moments of lightness and humor. Soon a gentle alien queen offers to share her planet with the human refugees, a decision that causes adventure, mayhem, and disaster. In the end, Adeena gains great insight into her life and her place in the natural world.
The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza is an odd but entertaining combination of science fiction, dystopia, women’s literature, new adult, and comedy.
The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza is about the first generation of adults, now in their twenties, who grew up on humanity’s first space colony. Adeena Frias is the 19 year-old “Earth Girl” who meets and befriends a group of them, and then the characters act out the answer to this question: how would the residents of a space colony react to the sudden death of their Mother Earth? Fundamentalist religions gain power; there is panic and denial amidst strangely ordinary days, and the characters form loyal, desperate bonds.
This is also a story with moments of lightness and humor. Soon a gentle alien queen offers to share her planet with the human refugees, a decision that causes adventure, mayhem, and disaster. In the end, Adeena gains great insight into her life and her place in the natural world.
The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza is an odd but entertaining combination of science fiction, dystopia, women’s literature, new adult, and comedy.
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First published November 4, 2012
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About the author
C.C. Alma
13 books40 followersHello to anyone in the universe who might be reading my bio! I was born in San Francisco, California, an American city on a small blue planet on the edge of the Milky Way. My people came to the United States from the Philippines, who came to the Philippines from China and Spain — before that, it's a complicated mystery with too many ancestors involved.
Like most people, I must work to eat. I am an assistant at a foundation. I write fiction in my spare time because my life dream is to tell stories that entertain and inspire others. I see lots of weird, wacky, and wonderful things going on in all our lives — and I want to do what I can, with whatever talent I have, to explore these in story form.
I am the author of the novel The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza and several short stories that are collected in the anthology Stories in the Okay Future.
I grew up in Virginia, but I now live in Northern California.
Like most people, I must work to eat. I am an assistant at a foundation. I write fiction in my spare time because my life dream is to tell stories that entertain and inspire others. I see lots of weird, wacky, and wonderful things going on in all our lives — and I want to do what I can, with whatever talent I have, to explore these in story form.
I am the author of the novel The Earth Girl and Queen Eliza and several short stories that are collected in the anthology Stories in the Okay Future.
I grew up in Virginia, but I now live in Northern California.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 16, 2013
*I won this book through Goodreads First Reads giveaway. In no way has this influenced my rating or opinion of this book.*
I really wasn't sure what to think of this novel when I received it. I think I've read maybe one or two books that were sci-fi/alien related. It's not usually my genre of interest. But it looked different and caught my interest.
And I really enjoyed this book. It takes a look at what would become of human religions and belief systems if we lost our planet. And as I read it, I saw the whole does-the-past-repeat-itself symbol present when the remaining humans are on another planet. One that was better and . . . well . . . clean from humanity.
Because, as humans, we mess everything up and are stupid enough to repeat our mistakes.
I mean, seriously??
And what happens is very realistic, I think. But, I swear, when it started to all go down (no spoilers), I was like
I mean, honestly, humans . . . LETS THINK ABOUT THESE DECISIONS.
This review is also available on my blog, along with many others: http://obsessivereads.wordpress.com/
I really wasn't sure what to think of this novel when I received it. I think I've read maybe one or two books that were sci-fi/alien related. It's not usually my genre of interest. But it looked different and caught my interest.
And I really enjoyed this book. It takes a look at what would become of human religions and belief systems if we lost our planet. And as I read it, I saw the whole does-the-past-repeat-itself symbol present when the remaining humans are on another planet. One that was better and . . . well . . . clean from humanity.
Because, as humans, we mess everything up and are stupid enough to repeat our mistakes.
I mean, seriously??
And what happens is very realistic, I think. But, I swear, when it started to all go down (no spoilers), I was like
I mean, honestly, humans . . . LETS THINK ABOUT THESE DECISIONS.
This review is also available on my blog, along with many others: http://obsessivereads.wordpress.com/
January 15, 2014
Amazing story with amazing characters. At the beginning you meet this smart young, cute, and lovable. Feeling kind out of place she moves to satellite one where she encounters new obstacles down the way. Later we meet the lovable alien that changes her life. As soon as I began to read, I was lost in a trance of futuristic lives and tragedy. I just couldn't put it down! Mrs. C.C. Alma, do you have more? I think I just became your number one fan among many other fans! lol
All in all, I recommend this Sci-Fi book to anyone who is a science fictional fan.
*BOOM*! My mind was blown...and so will yours. ;)
December 28, 2015
I received a free copy of this book through a goodreads giveaway (YAY!).
This is something that I do not normally read about - "spacey" stuff. It has just never really interested me. However, I have recently been into a lot of futuristic YA stuff, so I finally picked this book up!
Even at the end - I wanted (needed?) more!
This is something that I do not normally read about - "spacey" stuff. It has just never really interested me. However, I have recently been into a lot of futuristic YA stuff, so I finally picked this book up!
Even at the end - I wanted (needed?) more!
October 25, 2013
I won this book from goodreads. I signed up for it because the premise sounded really interesting. After reading it, I feel like that was the only redeeming quality of the story. There are a few semi-spoilers here.
First of all, it began as a fictional memoir about Adeena Frias. However, a few chapters of the story are told from the perspective of the alien, Queen Eliza. I found this change in perspective fairly interruptive considering it was supposed to be from Adeena's perspective. The reader did need information about the alien race, but this method wasn't effective It was also supposed to be told by a 60 year old Adeena. It takes place while Adeena is in her 20s, and that's what the story sounds like: a story told by a 20 year old. The voice did not match the age of the main character.
There are a lot of knowledge and time gaps, as well. The time gaps were particularly disturbing. There were no key words or notifications to say that months had gone by. The characters just suddenly had conversations that indicated time had passed, but that did not indicate how much time had passed. I know it is sometimes authorial subtlety, but again, this method was ineffective for the story. It made everything very abrupt.
The relationship development was fairly week, as well. I think some relationships developed while time was passing, but not much information. Adeena's love interest relationship was very abrupt. You could tell something was there, but nothing happened for a long time, and then they were in love.
Finally, I feel like the title was misleading. From the sound of it, you would think the Adeena and the Queen had some interaction or a relationship of some sort, and that was not the case at all. In fact, they only met one time.
Again, I think the premise was great, but the story ended up having too many problems for me to actually enjoy it.
First of all, it began as a fictional memoir about Adeena Frias. However, a few chapters of the story are told from the perspective of the alien, Queen Eliza. I found this change in perspective fairly interruptive considering it was supposed to be from Adeena's perspective. The reader did need information about the alien race, but this method wasn't effective It was also supposed to be told by a 60 year old Adeena. It takes place while Adeena is in her 20s, and that's what the story sounds like: a story told by a 20 year old. The voice did not match the age of the main character.
There are a lot of knowledge and time gaps, as well. The time gaps were particularly disturbing. There were no key words or notifications to say that months had gone by. The characters just suddenly had conversations that indicated time had passed, but that did not indicate how much time had passed. I know it is sometimes authorial subtlety, but again, this method was ineffective for the story. It made everything very abrupt.
The relationship development was fairly week, as well. I think some relationships developed while time was passing, but not much information. Adeena's love interest relationship was very abrupt. You could tell something was there, but nothing happened for a long time, and then they were in love.
Finally, I feel like the title was misleading. From the sound of it, you would think the Adeena and the Queen had some interaction or a relationship of some sort, and that was not the case at all. In fact, they only met one time.
Again, I think the premise was great, but the story ended up having too many problems for me to actually enjoy it.
April 21, 2014
Received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
I have been thinking about how to rate this book for the past day, since finishing, and to be honest, I am still not sure if I want to give it a 2 or 3 star rating.
There were things that I liked about the book but really I felt that there was not enough. I was kept wanting more, and not necessarily in a good way. I felt that there were bits that were rushed through, parts that could've been explored deeper; things, incidents, and questions that could've been fleshed out more. I felt that this book had potential.
I really liked that we have a future that is not one race. We have characters that are not all mainstream and yet the book is not pro-one particular race. And I liked that it is not a main focal point, it just merely is. I also really liked the concept, the last Earthling. Imaginative and intriguing. The author also managed to make it not as much science fiction as a compelling insight into humanity and how even despite advancement, we are flawed creatures. There are some great questions about human beliefs and actions. And it reminds me of a quote from Men In Black (just recently on TV) when K says that a person is smart but people are panicky-not sure of exact quote. While a person could see the dangers of what humans are capable of when they think themselves superior to any particular group and in other matters of gravity, collectively they become harder to control and more volatile.
What brought down the story was the way that the story was written; the writing itself was fine. It's just that I am not sure if this was meant to be a personal memoir or a political one. There were parts that were written as if for the public and in general explanation of what had happened, and yet most of it was personal experiences mixed in with some philosophical thoughts thrown in. It began as if it was to be a public memoir of what happened to bring the humans to where they are today, and while I understand that personal parts will be in there, I felt that there was a change in tone of the speaker between the parts that left me disconnected from the speaker. Additionally I wasn't sure where Queen Eliza's POV came in to play. Where are we getting her POV from? Was it from public record of Rooninans, which based on the society I doubt. Based on the title, I expected that we were getting Eliza's POV from Adeena, that she had somehow befriended the queen and got her story. And yet the only contact that Eliza and Adeena have is that they meet once. I would have preferred them to have some degree of relationship because of the title.
The title kept getting to me, and still does because of the above. Based on the title, I expected them to meet and have some type of relationship so that Adeena was actually seen as the Earth Girl. No where in the story is she called the Earth Girl and there was so much focus on the other characters and how they still felt the loss of Earth that she really wasn't anyone special-except when she sixty and writing the memoir, but you would expect her to be known somewhere in the novel as the Earth Girl. Also, Queen Eliza would need to be seen as the Queen, not just from her POV.
I thought that there was some very well done science fiction aspects, and the aliens that were presented were well done. I liked the Yadans and the Rooninians and liked the questions that they presented to Adeena about who really was more advanced and what is the correct measurement of advancement given that although humans are considered advanced, we still manage to make the same incorrect decisions over and over regardless of where we might be.
There seemed to be so much that was rushed through and that if it was a professional memoir, there would have been more focus and exploration about the group experience. There could have been more focus on the psychological impact of the loss of Earth, the aliens, the new environment, etc. While there was some, I felt that more than just numbness would and should occur and that it should have been explored.
One a smaller note, the romance I found hard to really believe in. I didn't feel that there was a real lead-up to the resolution of feelings. The ending also seemed rushed. What happened on the new planet between landing and her turning sixty?
I have been thinking about how to rate this book for the past day, since finishing, and to be honest, I am still not sure if I want to give it a 2 or 3 star rating.
There were things that I liked about the book but really I felt that there was not enough. I was kept wanting more, and not necessarily in a good way. I felt that there were bits that were rushed through, parts that could've been explored deeper; things, incidents, and questions that could've been fleshed out more. I felt that this book had potential.
I really liked that we have a future that is not one race. We have characters that are not all mainstream and yet the book is not pro-one particular race. And I liked that it is not a main focal point, it just merely is. I also really liked the concept, the last Earthling. Imaginative and intriguing. The author also managed to make it not as much science fiction as a compelling insight into humanity and how even despite advancement, we are flawed creatures. There are some great questions about human beliefs and actions. And it reminds me of a quote from Men In Black (just recently on TV) when K says that a person is smart but people are panicky-not sure of exact quote. While a person could see the dangers of what humans are capable of when they think themselves superior to any particular group and in other matters of gravity, collectively they become harder to control and more volatile.
What brought down the story was the way that the story was written; the writing itself was fine. It's just that I am not sure if this was meant to be a personal memoir or a political one. There were parts that were written as if for the public and in general explanation of what had happened, and yet most of it was personal experiences mixed in with some philosophical thoughts thrown in. It began as if it was to be a public memoir of what happened to bring the humans to where they are today, and while I understand that personal parts will be in there, I felt that there was a change in tone of the speaker between the parts that left me disconnected from the speaker. Additionally I wasn't sure where Queen Eliza's POV came in to play. Where are we getting her POV from? Was it from public record of Rooninans, which based on the society I doubt. Based on the title, I expected that we were getting Eliza's POV from Adeena, that she had somehow befriended the queen and got her story. And yet the only contact that Eliza and Adeena have is that they meet once. I would have preferred them to have some degree of relationship because of the title.
The title kept getting to me, and still does because of the above. Based on the title, I expected them to meet and have some type of relationship so that Adeena was actually seen as the Earth Girl. No where in the story is she called the Earth Girl and there was so much focus on the other characters and how they still felt the loss of Earth that she really wasn't anyone special-except when she sixty and writing the memoir, but you would expect her to be known somewhere in the novel as the Earth Girl. Also, Queen Eliza would need to be seen as the Queen, not just from her POV.
I thought that there was some very well done science fiction aspects, and the aliens that were presented were well done. I liked the Yadans and the Rooninians and liked the questions that they presented to Adeena about who really was more advanced and what is the correct measurement of advancement given that although humans are considered advanced, we still manage to make the same incorrect decisions over and over regardless of where we might be.
There seemed to be so much that was rushed through and that if it was a professional memoir, there would have been more focus and exploration about the group experience. There could have been more focus on the psychological impact of the loss of Earth, the aliens, the new environment, etc. While there was some, I felt that more than just numbness would and should occur and that it should have been explored.
One a smaller note, the romance I found hard to really believe in. I didn't feel that there was a real lead-up to the resolution of feelings. The ending also seemed rushed. What happened on the new planet between landing and her turning sixty?
August 28, 2016
This book was given to me for an honest review.
Ok, so I gave this book 3 stars because I loved the concept of this book. The way the author described the planets and satellite were great. I found I kept wanting to learn more, and thought it a fascinating idea. Especially since our own planet is trying to colonize on a different planet.
However, there were a few things that bothered me about the book. Her first description on planet earth starts in 2114. As Im reading, her description gave me a feeling more of that I was going back to 1950, instead of a future of 2114. Everything seemed very old fashioned, and while maybe to the characters time it could be it felt old fashioned to her, I couldn't imagine life being like that in that year, which is supposed to be so advanced that things would defiantly not be like the 1950's.
The other thing I had a problem with was the title. Queen Eliza really isn't relative to the story. She could've skipped the chapters describing the life of that species all together, and had the Alien come to the satellite and take them, explaining everything, and it would be fine. Being as that part in the book was very short lived.
With all the things that are going on in this novel it could've been broken up into three different books and given a bit more depth in the novels instead. Like one reviewer said, there is no hero in this book. I did enjoy the characters, but there was nothing extraordinary about any of them, they just went from place to place, with nothing really happening. The whole cause with the PA's, where they were causing friction with humans could've turned more into a story, with a hero, but it's like you had this group fighting and killing people and no consequences. Really??
Like I mentioned tho, the author did an amazing job of describing life on the satellite and life with the Roonians. I would've liked to have more of a description of Earth. It felt like Earth changed to protect cities, but put bubbles around these cities to do that. I wanted to know more why. The book could've been described half from Earth and half on the planet. The author has an amazing imagination, and has a way of taking her readers to where they need to go, but she just needs something a bit more. I always felt like I was waiting for something big to happen.
Being that this is the authors first book, I felt she did a good job, and I would try reading another one of her novels. Thank you for sharing your book with me. I would love to read more of the planet they're now living on!
Ok, so I gave this book 3 stars because I loved the concept of this book. The way the author described the planets and satellite were great. I found I kept wanting to learn more, and thought it a fascinating idea. Especially since our own planet is trying to colonize on a different planet.
However, there were a few things that bothered me about the book. Her first description on planet earth starts in 2114. As Im reading, her description gave me a feeling more of that I was going back to 1950, instead of a future of 2114. Everything seemed very old fashioned, and while maybe to the characters time it could be it felt old fashioned to her, I couldn't imagine life being like that in that year, which is supposed to be so advanced that things would defiantly not be like the 1950's.
The other thing I had a problem with was the title. Queen Eliza really isn't relative to the story. She could've skipped the chapters describing the life of that species all together, and had the Alien come to the satellite and take them, explaining everything, and it would be fine. Being as that part in the book was very short lived.
With all the things that are going on in this novel it could've been broken up into three different books and given a bit more depth in the novels instead. Like one reviewer said, there is no hero in this book. I did enjoy the characters, but there was nothing extraordinary about any of them, they just went from place to place, with nothing really happening. The whole cause with the PA's, where they were causing friction with humans could've turned more into a story, with a hero, but it's like you had this group fighting and killing people and no consequences. Really??
Like I mentioned tho, the author did an amazing job of describing life on the satellite and life with the Roonians. I would've liked to have more of a description of Earth. It felt like Earth changed to protect cities, but put bubbles around these cities to do that. I wanted to know more why. The book could've been described half from Earth and half on the planet. The author has an amazing imagination, and has a way of taking her readers to where they need to go, but she just needs something a bit more. I always felt like I was waiting for something big to happen.
Being that this is the authors first book, I felt she did a good job, and I would try reading another one of her novels. Thank you for sharing your book with me. I would love to read more of the planet they're now living on!
February 2, 2014
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I liked the book. It was very different. I'm not sure exactly what age group it is geared towards, it's hard to tell. The story seems somewhat childlike, as if a child came up with the ideas for the story, then had an adult write it for them. For me, the book was missing someone. A strong determined hero maybe? Despite that, I did enjoy the book and read it quite quickly. Considering this is the authors first book, it was good. I look forward to reading more of her work and seeing how much her writing changes.
I liked the book. It was very different. I'm not sure exactly what age group it is geared towards, it's hard to tell. The story seems somewhat childlike, as if a child came up with the ideas for the story, then had an adult write it for them. For me, the book was missing someone. A strong determined hero maybe? Despite that, I did enjoy the book and read it quite quickly. Considering this is the authors first book, it was good. I look forward to reading more of her work and seeing how much her writing changes.
October 26, 2013
Since I am the author of this story, it's hard to be objective! I will leave that to my reviewers. I can say that I worked hard on this novel: three graduate-level creative writing classes, three years of steady work, and about about a thousand hours of my time, probably more. Character notes alone took me months. I have been hesitating about giving myself stars; but I was a lazy, unfocused kid--I changed so that I could pursue this dream, and I am giving myself a high-five for that.
February 7, 2017
I received this book from the author for review. With apologies to her and respect for her work, I have to say -
DNF - just couldn't do it. I'm not one to keep going if a story doesn't grab me within the first 50 pages. It reads like a newspaper article reporting an event. Not for me.
DNF - just couldn't do it. I'm not one to keep going if a story doesn't grab me within the first 50 pages. It reads like a newspaper article reporting an event. Not for me.
November 13, 2013
It Was Amazing to read that book .. i really enjoy reading this book :D
December 29, 2014
The idea behind this story is very intriguing, and definitely kept me interested. However, the writing seemed to me like a NaNoWriMo draft in need of editing.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews