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The Lantern Project #1
Archipelago
14-year old Lilly Douglas is a girl who has been sheltered from the world since the moment she was born. Gifted with avian like wings and strands of lilac hair, she never realizes how different she is. After a terrifying attack on her home, she is forced to run from everything she knew, and find shelter at a place called Charity Academy. Here students have little to worry about beyond homework and classes, and they spend most of their time learning to control their powers, embracing their identities as 'Strands': students with extraordinary abilities, united by the lilac hairs they have. But they are not alone in the world.
56 miles south-east, into the Bitterroot Wilderness, is a dark place known as Firestone Institution. Here a 16-year old boy named Cory Trask has made his home with a personality as icy as his powers. Survival driven, Cory works for a man named Dr. Kibbsty and is the leader in the pursuit of Lilly. He thinks of little beyond the orders he is given, and life is nothing more than a game: one where only the strongest survive. As their paths cross, they bring an uncertain future in their wake that will cause all these teens to question what it really means to be Strands.
http://wwww.archipelagobook.net
56 miles south-east, into the Bitterroot Wilderness, is a dark place known as Firestone Institution. Here a 16-year old boy named Cory Trask has made his home with a personality as icy as his powers. Survival driven, Cory works for a man named Dr. Kibbsty and is the leader in the pursuit of Lilly. He thinks of little beyond the orders he is given, and life is nothing more than a game: one where only the strongest survive. As their paths cross, they bring an uncertain future in their wake that will cause all these teens to question what it really means to be Strands.
http://wwww.archipelagobook.net
- GenresFantasyYoung Adult
353 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2014
3 people are currently reading
1226 people want to read
About the author
Mati Raine
1 book28 followersMy Book Blog: http://steampunksparrow.blogspot.com/
Mati Raine has been writing for about as long as she’s been drawing: both have been lifelong obsessions. While it’s somewhat challenging from time to time to split herself between hobbies, the push and pull relationship creates a harmony in her life. When she’s not working on her next novel she can be found busy with one craft project or another, and her weekends are often spent traveling for her art business.
Mati’s favorite events are renaissance faires and fandom conventions, but pretty much anywhere she can let out her inner nerd works just fine.
Mati Raine has been writing for about as long as she’s been drawing: both have been lifelong obsessions. While it’s somewhat challenging from time to time to split herself between hobbies, the push and pull relationship creates a harmony in her life. When she’s not working on her next novel she can be found busy with one craft project or another, and her weekends are often spent traveling for her art business.
Mati’s favorite events are renaissance faires and fandom conventions, but pretty much anywhere she can let out her inner nerd works just fine.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
June 27, 2014
Firstly, just to get it out the way, there is no avoiding making comparisons between this book and the X-Men series of comics/cartoons/movies. Archipelago is about a number of mutant teenagers, in this book called "Strands", who end up divided between two schools, one caring and nurturing (Charity), the other harsh and caring only about power and survival (Firestone). Professor X and Magneto don't make an appearance but there are a number of other mutants who possess powers similar to the X-Men, though there are enough different to ensure it doesn't feel ripped off. Nonetheless, if the obvious comparisons would prevent you from enjoying this novel, then you may be better off avoiding this book. However, if you have an open mind and can approach the book without making constant comparisons, then Archipelago is definitely worth your time.
The first half of the novel follows one young, winged mutant called Lilly, who is discovered by the evil scientist who runs Firestone school. This scientist prefers conscripts to volunteers and Lilly is forced to flee. Following a pursuit, she ends up in Charity where she learns to be accepted, understand her powers, and get to know the lay of the land in this new world of mutants where she is no longer alone. This section of the book is excellently written, closely following Lilly's troubled emotions at losing her family and struggling to adapt to the massive changes in her life.
However, the second half of the book attempts to become more expansive and, in doing so, loses some of the focus that made the first part so successful. Raine expands the story to include the viewpoints of not only the other students at Charity but also at Firestone. While this does give a broader spectrum of the mutants and their lives, to me it felt like trying to do too much at once. There were so many characters, briefly introduced by only name and power (some of whom constantly were referred to by nicknames, making it even more confusing) that it was difficult to follow who everyone was and, most importantly, what their motives were. Raine, admirably, tries to show that the students at Firestone are not all evil, many forced into their positions, but too often these are contradictory, characters being described as emotionless in one paragraph, then full of emotion in the next. It became difficult to determine why some characters were helping others, and even some of Lilly's motivations became clouded.
Nonetheless, that aside, Archipelago is an enjoyable read; it is very well-written and does a good job of capturing the voices of the teenagers, especially Lilly in the first part. There are a couple of love triangles/interests, something I felt was unnecessary to the story but may add depth for others. The action scenes are exciting and the pace of the story is consistently quick, rarely dwelling on a moment for too long.
I enjoyed Archipelago quite a lot, thus the high rating, however as a literary critic I do believe the story could have benefited from being expanded into more than one novel. It has already been set up as the first in a series but I felt that Archipelago, which is divided into three parts, could have been divided into three novels, which would have given more time for character development.
I'd recommend this book to most readers who are interested in an action-packed adventure, but especially YA readers. Much like the movies that also involve mutants, it is better to not try and analyse everything too much - instead just enjoy the ride, something that Archipelago is without a doubt.
The first half of the novel follows one young, winged mutant called Lilly, who is discovered by the evil scientist who runs Firestone school. This scientist prefers conscripts to volunteers and Lilly is forced to flee. Following a pursuit, she ends up in Charity where she learns to be accepted, understand her powers, and get to know the lay of the land in this new world of mutants where she is no longer alone. This section of the book is excellently written, closely following Lilly's troubled emotions at losing her family and struggling to adapt to the massive changes in her life.
However, the second half of the book attempts to become more expansive and, in doing so, loses some of the focus that made the first part so successful. Raine expands the story to include the viewpoints of not only the other students at Charity but also at Firestone. While this does give a broader spectrum of the mutants and their lives, to me it felt like trying to do too much at once. There were so many characters, briefly introduced by only name and power (some of whom constantly were referred to by nicknames, making it even more confusing) that it was difficult to follow who everyone was and, most importantly, what their motives were. Raine, admirably, tries to show that the students at Firestone are not all evil, many forced into their positions, but too often these are contradictory, characters being described as emotionless in one paragraph, then full of emotion in the next. It became difficult to determine why some characters were helping others, and even some of Lilly's motivations became clouded.
Nonetheless, that aside, Archipelago is an enjoyable read; it is very well-written and does a good job of capturing the voices of the teenagers, especially Lilly in the first part. There are a couple of love triangles/interests, something I felt was unnecessary to the story but may add depth for others. The action scenes are exciting and the pace of the story is consistently quick, rarely dwelling on a moment for too long.
I enjoyed Archipelago quite a lot, thus the high rating, however as a literary critic I do believe the story could have benefited from being expanded into more than one novel. It has already been set up as the first in a series but I felt that Archipelago, which is divided into three parts, could have been divided into three novels, which would have given more time for character development.
I'd recommend this book to most readers who are interested in an action-packed adventure, but especially YA readers. Much like the movies that also involve mutants, it is better to not try and analyse everything too much - instead just enjoy the ride, something that Archipelago is without a doubt.
July 26, 2016
I haven’t been young in quite a while but I have read several Y.A. fantasies lately – partly because I’m interested in the genre as an author, and partly because some of them appeal to me.
This artfully written tale appeals to me, especially the very intriguing beginning. Then it settles into more familiar territory – a hidden school for teens with special powers. Before you say “heard that before,” however, let me point out that this book has two such schools – one ‘good’ and one ‘evil.’ As the story progresses, the heroine discovers there is less difference between good and bad characters than she thought. I like that. Presenting characters in shades of gray rather than all black or white is more realistic, even in a fantasy.
There are a couple of ‘flash-forward’ scenes – the opposite of flash-backs. One is the prologue and the other comes later when the heroine is shown in a predicament before the events leading up to that situation occurred. I don’t give spoolers, so I won’t give any more details. I would have written those scenes into their places in the story’s timeline rather than have flash-forwards. In the prologue, I don’t think you necessarily have to frighten the reader on the first page to keep his/her attention. Sometimes letting things build a bit first can work, in my opinion. The second occasion gave away a little of the surprise that came later, I thought.
However, both of those are just my personal preferences and not criticisms. Certainly no one has to do things my way to be good – and as I said above, the opening (including the prologue) is quite good.
The story does have some violence and would probably get a PG-13 rating if it was a movie. However, I think it would on the milder side of PG-13 compared to most movies today. Nothing in it will surprise or upset a modern teenager.
The writing style is smooth with few typos. Overall, this is an entertaining book which hopefully will do well with its target audience.
Note: I did receive a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair review, a fact which in no way affected my opinion.
This artfully written tale appeals to me, especially the very intriguing beginning. Then it settles into more familiar territory – a hidden school for teens with special powers. Before you say “heard that before,” however, let me point out that this book has two such schools – one ‘good’ and one ‘evil.’ As the story progresses, the heroine discovers there is less difference between good and bad characters than she thought. I like that. Presenting characters in shades of gray rather than all black or white is more realistic, even in a fantasy.
There are a couple of ‘flash-forward’ scenes – the opposite of flash-backs. One is the prologue and the other comes later when the heroine is shown in a predicament before the events leading up to that situation occurred. I don’t give spoolers, so I won’t give any more details. I would have written those scenes into their places in the story’s timeline rather than have flash-forwards. In the prologue, I don’t think you necessarily have to frighten the reader on the first page to keep his/her attention. Sometimes letting things build a bit first can work, in my opinion. The second occasion gave away a little of the surprise that came later, I thought.
However, both of those are just my personal preferences and not criticisms. Certainly no one has to do things my way to be good – and as I said above, the opening (including the prologue) is quite good.
The story does have some violence and would probably get a PG-13 rating if it was a movie. However, I think it would on the milder side of PG-13 compared to most movies today. Nothing in it will surprise or upset a modern teenager.
The writing style is smooth with few typos. Overall, this is an entertaining book which hopefully will do well with its target audience.
Note: I did receive a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair review, a fact which in no way affected my opinion.
April 9, 2014
This and other reviews can be found at Ramblings of a Reader.
My initial reaction to this book was YA meets X-Men, heck yes! I wasn't disappointed in that aspect, but there was a lot more than just an X-Men style novel in my hands. The story follows Lilly, a girl who sprouted wings as a child and was hidden from society for the majority of her life. While her parents try to keep her away from prying eyes, she does get out of the house every so often, wearing large jackets to cover up her wings {I can't even imagine trying to hide giant, white angel-type wings}. On one such outing a man notices her, and knows what she is - a Strand. All the mutants in this book are called such because of the small cluster of lilac hair they have, one group of about 15 strands for each mutation or gift they possess.
Lilly is thrust into this world of gifts, talents and mutations almost overnight. She went from being sheltered and only having her parents as friends to having a building full of kids who were different like her, kids she didn't have to hide from. Its kind of easy to see how she would want to either shrink back from everyone or do whatever she can to win their approval {both happen, and the latter really sets the tone for the last half of the book}.
While there are a lot of elements that read like an X-Men storyline, this does hold its own. The people with abilities in this book are mostly children, whereas the X-Men are vastly adults {now I'm talking the actual X-Men, not the kids at X's school for gifted youngsters}. Not entirely sure why {the author touches on it briefly, but we don't really get the whole story - maybe they're better at hiding their abilities and acting normal?}, but there is one adult with abilities who has a nice little part in the book. While the children at Charity Academy are what I mentally associated with Professor X's school, the Firestone kids are not exactly Magneto's group of mutants {they are WAY too cruel, and Dr Kibbsty is nothing like Magneto}. The woman who built up the Charity Academy is not really a Professor X, either. Too maternal, and too standoffish with the kids at the school. Plus, neither of these adults leading these groups of kids have any kind of mutation - they're the ones experimenting on the kids {okay, so that's only Dr Kibbsty who's actually experimenting}.
There were some things that seemed a little off/unrealistic, but I honestly don't want to write them out in here because I feel it might ruin the story line. Suffice it to say it in no way ruined the story for me; I just kind of grazed over that and kept reading. Although it was difficult at first to follow part of the story, because it went in chronological order, then just kind of jumped around a bit. Once you realize what's going on, though, you just fall back in line with the story.
Fans of X-Men or the Shatter Me series would really love this book... hopefully series? Not sure if the author is planning on writing more, but with how this one ended she definitely left room to!
My initial reaction to this book was YA meets X-Men, heck yes! I wasn't disappointed in that aspect, but there was a lot more than just an X-Men style novel in my hands. The story follows Lilly, a girl who sprouted wings as a child and was hidden from society for the majority of her life. While her parents try to keep her away from prying eyes, she does get out of the house every so often, wearing large jackets to cover up her wings {I can't even imagine trying to hide giant, white angel-type wings}. On one such outing a man notices her, and knows what she is - a Strand. All the mutants in this book are called such because of the small cluster of lilac hair they have, one group of about 15 strands for each mutation or gift they possess.
Lilly is thrust into this world of gifts, talents and mutations almost overnight. She went from being sheltered and only having her parents as friends to having a building full of kids who were different like her, kids she didn't have to hide from. Its kind of easy to see how she would want to either shrink back from everyone or do whatever she can to win their approval {both happen, and the latter really sets the tone for the last half of the book}.
While there are a lot of elements that read like an X-Men storyline, this does hold its own. The people with abilities in this book are mostly children, whereas the X-Men are vastly adults {now I'm talking the actual X-Men, not the kids at X's school for gifted youngsters}. Not entirely sure why {the author touches on it briefly, but we don't really get the whole story - maybe they're better at hiding their abilities and acting normal?}, but there is one adult with abilities who has a nice little part in the book. While the children at Charity Academy are what I mentally associated with Professor X's school, the Firestone kids are not exactly Magneto's group of mutants {they are WAY too cruel, and Dr Kibbsty is nothing like Magneto}. The woman who built up the Charity Academy is not really a Professor X, either. Too maternal, and too standoffish with the kids at the school. Plus, neither of these adults leading these groups of kids have any kind of mutation - they're the ones experimenting on the kids {okay, so that's only Dr Kibbsty who's actually experimenting}.
There were some things that seemed a little off/unrealistic, but I honestly don't want to write them out in here because I feel it might ruin the story line. Suffice it to say it in no way ruined the story for me; I just kind of grazed over that and kept reading. Although it was difficult at first to follow part of the story, because it went in chronological order, then just kind of jumped around a bit. Once you realize what's going on, though, you just fall back in line with the story.
Fans of X-Men or the Shatter Me series would really love this book... hopefully series? Not sure if the author is planning on writing more, but with how this one ended she definitely left room to!
March 19, 2014
I was lucky enough to read Archipelago by Mati Raine as a beta reader and I have to say that I absolutely loved it! This book is definitely a 5 star book and I would recommended it to every age group. The cover is beautiful and intriguing which is always a great start.
It starts with a female protagonist - Lily who develops wings and because of that she has lived an extremely sheltered life. Lily seemed to be a bit of a weak character in the sense that she was scared of everything but you have to remind yourself with an up bringing such as the one she has had, wouldn't you be? Throughout the book Lily transforms into a great strong character who you really love and are rooting for. My favourite character though would have to be one of the twins - Wyvr (love the spelling too). He and his twin are Australian and being an Aussie myself well, its always great to find that in a book. The love life of Lily is as difficult and confusing as any teenage girl's. I won't spoil is but when Lily gets her heart broken it's devastating but very relatable. I won't lie this book brought me to tears a few times. To me when a book can have that kind of effect on me it means that it's so well written and draws me in so much that I care enough about the well being of the characters enough to be moved emotionally.
With all the action in this book I think it is definitely one of those books that a reader would benefit more from if they read it more than once. It's something that I plan on doing before the second book is released. I'm desperately hoping that I don't have to wait too long to get my hands on the second book. I was left badly wanting to find out which boy Lily ends up getting with and needing to know what happens next. I can hardly fault this book and I think it is the kind of book that should go far.
This is currently my favourite book and I assume it will only be surpassed by the next book (no pressure of anything Mati haha).
I will be buying a print version (wish it was hardback as it's such a lovely looking book) so I can always have a copy on my book shelf. It's cheap enough that you really can't go wrong with it.
Congratulations Mati on such a wonderful piece of writing and thank you for letting me be your beta reader, I was honoured.
Find this review and more on my blog - www.charlottebull88.wordpress.com/ or twitter charlottebull88
It starts with a female protagonist - Lily who develops wings and because of that she has lived an extremely sheltered life. Lily seemed to be a bit of a weak character in the sense that she was scared of everything but you have to remind yourself with an up bringing such as the one she has had, wouldn't you be? Throughout the book Lily transforms into a great strong character who you really love and are rooting for. My favourite character though would have to be one of the twins - Wyvr (love the spelling too). He and his twin are Australian and being an Aussie myself well, its always great to find that in a book. The love life of Lily is as difficult and confusing as any teenage girl's. I won't spoil is but when Lily gets her heart broken it's devastating but very relatable. I won't lie this book brought me to tears a few times. To me when a book can have that kind of effect on me it means that it's so well written and draws me in so much that I care enough about the well being of the characters enough to be moved emotionally.
With all the action in this book I think it is definitely one of those books that a reader would benefit more from if they read it more than once. It's something that I plan on doing before the second book is released. I'm desperately hoping that I don't have to wait too long to get my hands on the second book. I was left badly wanting to find out which boy Lily ends up getting with and needing to know what happens next. I can hardly fault this book and I think it is the kind of book that should go far.
This is currently my favourite book and I assume it will only be surpassed by the next book (no pressure of anything Mati haha).
I will be buying a print version (wish it was hardback as it's such a lovely looking book) so I can always have a copy on my book shelf. It's cheap enough that you really can't go wrong with it.
Congratulations Mati on such a wonderful piece of writing and thank you for letting me be your beta reader, I was honoured.
Find this review and more on my blog - www.charlottebull88.wordpress.com/ or twitter charlottebull88
March 9, 2014
Thanks to Goodreads First Reads programme for a complimentary prize copy of this book.
After a bit of a wobbly start, the story lifts off and soars into a thoughtful, twisty tale.
Lilly has wings. Through home-schooling and the protective environment her parents have created, the secret has been carefully hidden. It's a simple thing betrays them: she buys a particular shade of hair colouring to disguise the lilac strands in her hair. And so she is discovered by the violent researcher Kibbsty who runs Firestone Institution through a combination of fear and terror.
The students at Firestone Institution are all 'Strands' - genetically different teens who have talents ranging from the amazing to the downright peculiar.
Not far away is Charity Academy - also for 'Strands' - as light and loving in its teaching style as Firestone is dark and violent. At any moment, the callous teachers and students at Firestone are apt to unleash brutality or even torture on each other.
Usually Strands have only one talent: teleportation, telepathy, turning water to ice, fire-starting, detachable poisonous porcupine quills, the ability to animate tattoos - or, my favourite, the capability of turning into pillows or cushions to listen in to private conversations.
Individuals with two lilac strands and therefore two talents are rare. Individuals with three lilac strands and therefore three talents are... well, Lilly is unique in that regard.
Kibbsty wants to conduct research on Lilly, even before she's discovered to be so special. So to ensure her cooperation and make sure she's got nowhere to go, he kills her parents. Lilly is desperate to escape...
After a series of adventures and misadventures, she discovers that many of the students at Firestone have occasional hearts-of-gold beneath their cruel, heartless exteriors. And that, while they've completely lost hope for themselves, they are rooting for her... because she's become their embodiment of hope.
After a bit of a wobbly start, the story lifts off and soars into a thoughtful, twisty tale.
Lilly has wings. Through home-schooling and the protective environment her parents have created, the secret has been carefully hidden. It's a simple thing betrays them: she buys a particular shade of hair colouring to disguise the lilac strands in her hair. And so she is discovered by the violent researcher Kibbsty who runs Firestone Institution through a combination of fear and terror.
The students at Firestone Institution are all 'Strands' - genetically different teens who have talents ranging from the amazing to the downright peculiar.
Not far away is Charity Academy - also for 'Strands' - as light and loving in its teaching style as Firestone is dark and violent. At any moment, the callous teachers and students at Firestone are apt to unleash brutality or even torture on each other.
Usually Strands have only one talent: teleportation, telepathy, turning water to ice, fire-starting, detachable poisonous porcupine quills, the ability to animate tattoos - or, my favourite, the capability of turning into pillows or cushions to listen in to private conversations.
Individuals with two lilac strands and therefore two talents are rare. Individuals with three lilac strands and therefore three talents are... well, Lilly is unique in that regard.
Kibbsty wants to conduct research on Lilly, even before she's discovered to be so special. So to ensure her cooperation and make sure she's got nowhere to go, he kills her parents. Lilly is desperate to escape...
After a series of adventures and misadventures, she discovers that many of the students at Firestone have occasional hearts-of-gold beneath their cruel, heartless exteriors. And that, while they've completely lost hope for themselves, they are rooting for her... because she's become their embodiment of hope.
March 8, 2014
Archipelago by Mati Raine is an entertaining sci-fi novel centered on the exploits of Lilly Douglas, who finds her world turned upside down after a mysterious stranger enters her life and transports her to a ghost town unlike any other. She finds herself in the company of Strands, a term coined by the students and faculty at Charity Academy. Lilly is a mutant with avian characteristics whose parents have unsuccessfully tried to hide her from people like Charity founder Dr. Allina, and her evil counterpart at the Firestone Academy, Dr. Kibbsty. Amongst others of her kind, each with their own superhuman powers, she is drawn into Kibbsty’s sphere of influence and finds she is being targeted for secrets locked into her unique DNA.
The overarching theme of phenotypes resonates throughout the novel, providing the audience with a number of interesting perspectives. The protagonists’ mutant qualities reflect their personalities, as Lilly seems to spiritually transcend her dire predicament with bird-like elusiveness. Alternately, we find Cory (aka Frost) to be cold and distant, consistent with his ability to manipulate the temperature of his surroundings. Yet the qualities of homo superior fail to quash their human instinct as they begin to rebel against Kibbsty’s course of World Domination. This anticipates the climactic confrontation in Raine’s story as the mutants are distracted by Kibbsty’s plan to extract Lilly’s DNA with little or no regard for her life. We find that the mutants hold life in a higher regard than Kibbsty’s ‘manifest destiny’.
This is an interesting take on the genre fiction, with the ‘human’ element influencing the storyline far more than the superhero effects or the high-tech jargon we see in so many other novels. Archipelago by Mati Raine seems to suggest a sequel in the works, and this one indicates it will be worth the wait.
The overarching theme of phenotypes resonates throughout the novel, providing the audience with a number of interesting perspectives. The protagonists’ mutant qualities reflect their personalities, as Lilly seems to spiritually transcend her dire predicament with bird-like elusiveness. Alternately, we find Cory (aka Frost) to be cold and distant, consistent with his ability to manipulate the temperature of his surroundings. Yet the qualities of homo superior fail to quash their human instinct as they begin to rebel against Kibbsty’s course of World Domination. This anticipates the climactic confrontation in Raine’s story as the mutants are distracted by Kibbsty’s plan to extract Lilly’s DNA with little or no regard for her life. We find that the mutants hold life in a higher regard than Kibbsty’s ‘manifest destiny’.
This is an interesting take on the genre fiction, with the ‘human’ element influencing the storyline far more than the superhero effects or the high-tech jargon we see in so many other novels. Archipelago by Mati Raine seems to suggest a sequel in the works, and this one indicates it will be worth the wait.
May 8, 2014
After witnessing her parents deaths, a girl with wings and special powers finds shelter at a school for people like her, where acceptance and a sense of belonging is the norm. She soon finds that there is competing school with a much darker, violent side.
The story has 2 flash forward scenes, which I felt slowed the story a bit. The second flash-forward seemed awkwardly placed, and seemed to not be necessary. Once the story “picked up” speed, the characters became more to life, more interesting as both the human and mutant side of each became more defined. Lilly, even though there was a lot of violence toward her, grew more mature as she learns to deal with what it means to be part of a community and to have friends.
A good read once it picked up.
***This book was received, free of charge, as a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway****
The story has 2 flash forward scenes, which I felt slowed the story a bit. The second flash-forward seemed awkwardly placed, and seemed to not be necessary. Once the story “picked up” speed, the characters became more to life, more interesting as both the human and mutant side of each became more defined. Lilly, even though there was a lot of violence toward her, grew more mature as she learns to deal with what it means to be part of a community and to have friends.
A good read once it picked up.
***This book was received, free of charge, as a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway****
July 26, 2014
I was excited about reading this book, but unfortunately it feels like an unpolished rough draft rather than a more professional piece of work. The plot and character setups were confusing and hard to follow, and pretty much every sentence was a compound sentence saturated in unnecessary thought. There were many things that suffered from lack of research- a good way to upset readers is to write about something without the knowledge to do so.
I'm sure Archipelago could be ten times better than it is now with some more critical editing.
I'm sure Archipelago could be ten times better than it is now with some more critical editing.
April 15, 2014
3.5
review coming
review coming
August 12, 2014
Wordy, unpredictable, and heart-wrenching, Archipelago is the story of the Strands, a large and diverse group of teenagers born with genetic mutations that show in their strands of lilac hair and unique gifts. Lilly Douglas is unaware that she is not alone in her differences and lives a sheltered life with her loving parents who hide her angelic wings from the world. So when the heartless and cruel scientist, Dr Kibbsty, recognises her for what she is, he rips Lilly irrevocably from the life she knows. Although Lilly evades him and finds solace at Charity Academy, the only place even close to safe for Strands, the danger isn’t kept at bay for long, and Lilly’s innocence is quickly being driven into distant memory. Fighting emotionally, mentally, and physically, Lilly learns painfully about the world her parents protected her from through hard lessons that force her to grow up and become her own person.
In the story, Lilly is 14 years old, but I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone under the age of 15 due to the high level of extremely well detailed violence inflicted on Lilly throughout the book, as well as amongst the teens of Firestone Institution, and imposed upon all these teens from their cold-hearted teachers and Dr Kibbsty. It is not until towards the end of the book that Lilly learns how to fight back physically, and deal with the blows emotionally, and only then when Lilly can stand her ground does the violence seem slightly more bearable. The violence in this book appears as torture, bullying, ‘survival’ training, murder and death.
Beneath Lilly’s struggles, Archipelago explores good vs. evil and why we feel the need to assign only one of these labels to a person when most people are many different shades of bright and dark at once. Through Raine’s examination of the teenagers at Charity and Firestone Lilly comes to realise that they are really not all that different – just a bunch of teens with gifts they didn’t ask for, in situations they never dreamed of, trying to find their way.
The writing style of Archipelago is fresh to contemporary YA fiction. Raine harnesses carefully constructed flash backs and flash forwards giving Archipelago unexpected and appreciated dimension. Using third-person point-of-view Raine constantly zooms in and out on the lives of Lilly and Cory (an icy student at Firestone Institution) by shifting character perspective all the way through the book. At first I thought the two symbolic illustrations, one of which always appeared at the beginning of each chapter, matched up with each side that was voiced in the chapter – Charity students or Firestone students. But as the book progressed the lines I’d drawn between the separate school’s students blurred bringing us back to the underlying truth that nothing is black and white, and how much easier things would be if they were.
Archipelago ends strongly with the suggestion of a sequel to come, where hopefully the Strands’ powers and their origins will be explored more deeply. I advise readers to seek out the paperback edition of this book which is well designed with the author’s own beautiful cover art on the front.
Review by Zara Adcock
http://www.zara-adcock.com/book-revie...
Book Details:
ARCHIPELAGO, by MATI RAINE, Cover art by MATI RAINE, Fantastic Journeys Publishing, 2014, paperback, ISBN-10: 0985576677, ISBN-13: 978-0985576677, RRP: $15.00 USD from Amazon, 343 pages.
http://www.archipelagobook.net
In the story, Lilly is 14 years old, but I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone under the age of 15 due to the high level of extremely well detailed violence inflicted on Lilly throughout the book, as well as amongst the teens of Firestone Institution, and imposed upon all these teens from their cold-hearted teachers and Dr Kibbsty. It is not until towards the end of the book that Lilly learns how to fight back physically, and deal with the blows emotionally, and only then when Lilly can stand her ground does the violence seem slightly more bearable. The violence in this book appears as torture, bullying, ‘survival’ training, murder and death.
Beneath Lilly’s struggles, Archipelago explores good vs. evil and why we feel the need to assign only one of these labels to a person when most people are many different shades of bright and dark at once. Through Raine’s examination of the teenagers at Charity and Firestone Lilly comes to realise that they are really not all that different – just a bunch of teens with gifts they didn’t ask for, in situations they never dreamed of, trying to find their way.
The writing style of Archipelago is fresh to contemporary YA fiction. Raine harnesses carefully constructed flash backs and flash forwards giving Archipelago unexpected and appreciated dimension. Using third-person point-of-view Raine constantly zooms in and out on the lives of Lilly and Cory (an icy student at Firestone Institution) by shifting character perspective all the way through the book. At first I thought the two symbolic illustrations, one of which always appeared at the beginning of each chapter, matched up with each side that was voiced in the chapter – Charity students or Firestone students. But as the book progressed the lines I’d drawn between the separate school’s students blurred bringing us back to the underlying truth that nothing is black and white, and how much easier things would be if they were.
Archipelago ends strongly with the suggestion of a sequel to come, where hopefully the Strands’ powers and their origins will be explored more deeply. I advise readers to seek out the paperback edition of this book which is well designed with the author’s own beautiful cover art on the front.
Review by Zara Adcock
http://www.zara-adcock.com/book-revie...
Book Details:
ARCHIPELAGO, by MATI RAINE, Cover art by MATI RAINE, Fantastic Journeys Publishing, 2014, paperback, ISBN-10: 0985576677, ISBN-13: 978-0985576677, RRP: $15.00 USD from Amazon, 343 pages.
http://www.archipelagobook.net
September 4, 2014
I received a free copy in exchange for a review.
First off, I really liked this book.
When entering Lilly’s world one thinks they are walking in to a soft, poetic fairy-tale of a timid girl adorned with beautiful angel wings. That notion is quickly debunked as we learn Lilly has a lilac strand in her hair and that strand signifies she is one of the few in the world gifted with special powers, known as Strands. But her strand also acts as a homing beacon for the evil Dr. Kibbsty who has dedicated his life to capturing and studying Stands in order to see if their powers can be duplicated and given to the general populous. Right from the beginning his sights are set on Lilly and her serene world is shattered when her parents deny him access to her. Lilly flees, leaving her parents at the mercy of Kibbsty, and is found by a school of Strands called Charity. It is at Charity where Lilly’s journey begins as she learns of the others like her and how to shed her timid ways and become the strong person she is by the end.
I’m just gonna come out and say it; this is X-Men. But please don’t think I’m being mean when I say that. I love X-Men and I found it thoroughly enjoyable to have a novel feature a cast with such amazing abilities. It kept my interest going to discover what everyone could do and how that was going to play out in the story. Bravo Raine for your bold move. I also enjoyed how Raine had multiple love interests for Lilly instead of her just ending up with the obvious one from the beginning. It really kept me guessing and on my toes. Just when you think you have it figured out someone new comes along and throws a wrench in your system of thought.
Now for the nitpicking. Raine is a good writer, there’s no doubt about it. She has beautiful sentences and knows how to write great action scenes. The problem I had, remember this is just my opinion, was I questioned her writing style choice for the book. Like I stated before, Raine has beautiful, lyrical sentences that could easily be seen in a literary novel, but it felt awkward for her SciFi Action/Adventure story. The writing almost felt forced at times, like Raine was trying to prove she knows how to write great sentences, thus causing a choppy pace at certain points. I also got frustrated in regards to the POV. Raine jumps around in multiple people’s heads, which is great and adds nice tension, but I wanted more individuality. No matter whose POV we’re in they all sound the same and you can’t distinguish who were following unless told. There were even times Raine jumps from one person to another within the same paragraph. But like I said, I’m just nitpicking here.
Overall Archipelago is a great book that I highly recommend. Raine has orchestrated an amazing novel filled with great action and an awesome cast. It definitely deserves your time. Due to some writing flaws I have to give it 4/5, but please check it out and support this great author. I’m highly anticipating a sequel.
First off, I really liked this book.
When entering Lilly’s world one thinks they are walking in to a soft, poetic fairy-tale of a timid girl adorned with beautiful angel wings. That notion is quickly debunked as we learn Lilly has a lilac strand in her hair and that strand signifies she is one of the few in the world gifted with special powers, known as Strands. But her strand also acts as a homing beacon for the evil Dr. Kibbsty who has dedicated his life to capturing and studying Stands in order to see if their powers can be duplicated and given to the general populous. Right from the beginning his sights are set on Lilly and her serene world is shattered when her parents deny him access to her. Lilly flees, leaving her parents at the mercy of Kibbsty, and is found by a school of Strands called Charity. It is at Charity where Lilly’s journey begins as she learns of the others like her and how to shed her timid ways and become the strong person she is by the end.
I’m just gonna come out and say it; this is X-Men. But please don’t think I’m being mean when I say that. I love X-Men and I found it thoroughly enjoyable to have a novel feature a cast with such amazing abilities. It kept my interest going to discover what everyone could do and how that was going to play out in the story. Bravo Raine for your bold move. I also enjoyed how Raine had multiple love interests for Lilly instead of her just ending up with the obvious one from the beginning. It really kept me guessing and on my toes. Just when you think you have it figured out someone new comes along and throws a wrench in your system of thought.
Now for the nitpicking. Raine is a good writer, there’s no doubt about it. She has beautiful sentences and knows how to write great action scenes. The problem I had, remember this is just my opinion, was I questioned her writing style choice for the book. Like I stated before, Raine has beautiful, lyrical sentences that could easily be seen in a literary novel, but it felt awkward for her SciFi Action/Adventure story. The writing almost felt forced at times, like Raine was trying to prove she knows how to write great sentences, thus causing a choppy pace at certain points. I also got frustrated in regards to the POV. Raine jumps around in multiple people’s heads, which is great and adds nice tension, but I wanted more individuality. No matter whose POV we’re in they all sound the same and you can’t distinguish who were following unless told. There were even times Raine jumps from one person to another within the same paragraph. But like I said, I’m just nitpicking here.
Overall Archipelago is a great book that I highly recommend. Raine has orchestrated an amazing novel filled with great action and an awesome cast. It definitely deserves your time. Due to some writing flaws I have to give it 4/5, but please check it out and support this great author. I’m highly anticipating a sequel.
March 14, 2015
I received a copy of the book from the author and the Making Connections YA Edition ARR: fantasy group in exchange for a review.
This book is so sad, sweet, violence, action, fantasy and bit of adventure.
Are female Protagonist, delicate, sweet, innocent Lily who has been shelter for all her life because she a strand. Her sheltered life collapsed when she runs into a man at the store, Dr. Kibbsty.
He attacks Lily’s family, she flees for safety, ending up at an abandoned town where she is attacked by Firestone students, she is saved by Jake who takes her to Charity Academy.
Our Male Protagonist is Cory; a boy with a frozen heart and ice cold feelings. Cory goes to Dr. Kibbsty School; Firestone where everything is about survival.
Just a little information about the Academy:
Charity Academy was built and created by Dr. Allina where the gifted/strands can be free from the stress of hiding their powers and learn how to use them.
Firestone Academy was built by Dr. Kibbsty, following the idea of Dr. Allina, only to gather the gifted strands for collecting information about them. His Academy is about fight for survival.
The violence is quite full on in this book, it is well described. The violence is mostly towards one character ,you really feel sorry for this character and you start to hope the character will make it through with their withering will power.
The characters are great, there may be a lot. It’s interesting to learn the different powers and characteristics. With so many characters, you start to have favorites, mine are; Lily, Cory, Trish and the twin Wyvr and Dryk.
As the story goes on the characters start to change, some for the better and others not so much.
Dr. Kibbsty; is a man who only interested in getting information and experimenting on strands, he doesn’t care who gets hurt in the process .
The book switches its point of views throughout ; you get to learn more about the schools and the characters. The only problem is; parts of the writing are written like this: Settin’, Wasn’, Wit’, Talkin’. I only wish the whole word was written, it was just irritating.
The second part of the book could have been made into the start of a sequel, it was so long.
Overall it was sad, sweet and interesting, a book I enjoyed reading.
I wonder what Mati (Author) going to come up next for the group of stands
This book is so sad, sweet, violence, action, fantasy and bit of adventure.
Are female Protagonist, delicate, sweet, innocent Lily who has been shelter for all her life because she a strand. Her sheltered life collapsed when she runs into a man at the store, Dr. Kibbsty.
He attacks Lily’s family, she flees for safety, ending up at an abandoned town where she is attacked by Firestone students, she is saved by Jake who takes her to Charity Academy.
Our Male Protagonist is Cory; a boy with a frozen heart and ice cold feelings. Cory goes to Dr. Kibbsty School; Firestone where everything is about survival.
Just a little information about the Academy:
Charity Academy was built and created by Dr. Allina where the gifted/strands can be free from the stress of hiding their powers and learn how to use them.
Firestone Academy was built by Dr. Kibbsty, following the idea of Dr. Allina, only to gather the gifted strands for collecting information about them. His Academy is about fight for survival.
The violence is quite full on in this book, it is well described. The violence is mostly towards one character ,you really feel sorry for this character and you start to hope the character will make it through with their withering will power.
The characters are great, there may be a lot. It’s interesting to learn the different powers and characteristics. With so many characters, you start to have favorites, mine are; Lily, Cory, Trish and the twin Wyvr and Dryk.
As the story goes on the characters start to change, some for the better and others not so much.
Dr. Kibbsty; is a man who only interested in getting information and experimenting on strands, he doesn’t care who gets hurt in the process .
The book switches its point of views throughout ; you get to learn more about the schools and the characters. The only problem is; parts of the writing are written like this: Settin’, Wasn’, Wit’, Talkin’. I only wish the whole word was written, it was just irritating.
The second part of the book could have been made into the start of a sequel, it was so long.
Overall it was sad, sweet and interesting, a book I enjoyed reading.
I wonder what Mati (Author) going to come up next for the group of stands
April 30, 2014
Lilly had been growing a pair of wings since being a child. to hide her differences, her parents kept her sheltered and homeschooled. one day, while searching for a lilac hair dye, she came across a man too interested in her choice of color. not before long, she found the man on their doorstep, asking for her and questioning about her abilities. determined to keep Lilly safe, her parents moved them to another location. but again, the man found them and this time, he brought an army of people and had her parents killed. before they were able to capture her, Lilly escaped and flew away. she was later rescued and managed to find shelter at the Charity Academy. before she was able to feel safe or settling down, she was finally captured by the man and was brought to the Firestone Institution.
i received a free e-book from the author in exchanged for a review. the book started out promising, especially the simplicity of Lilly's life with her parents. however, once the characters started getting involved in one way or another, i became tired of all the names and abilities that i had to memorize. eventually, all the names tend to glaze over for me, appearing insignificant from another. when i managed to capture some interest in Jake, a possible guy to have a romantic relationship with Lilly, he apparently didn't feel the same way. then moving on to the twins, before stopping at Cory. it was quite a hectic read that i found myself absorbed at times, dragging at times, with the hope of finally reaching the climatic moment. Dr. Kibbsty wasn't quite what was expected, especially being a genius and the mastermind villain, he seemed too easy to fool by a bunch of kids. fortunately, Lilly was a very interesting and lovable main character, which was solely the reason i managed to go through the book pages by pages.
my review: here
i received a free e-book from the author in exchanged for a review. the book started out promising, especially the simplicity of Lilly's life with her parents. however, once the characters started getting involved in one way or another, i became tired of all the names and abilities that i had to memorize. eventually, all the names tend to glaze over for me, appearing insignificant from another. when i managed to capture some interest in Jake, a possible guy to have a romantic relationship with Lilly, he apparently didn't feel the same way. then moving on to the twins, before stopping at Cory. it was quite a hectic read that i found myself absorbed at times, dragging at times, with the hope of finally reaching the climatic moment. Dr. Kibbsty wasn't quite what was expected, especially being a genius and the mastermind villain, he seemed too easy to fool by a bunch of kids. fortunately, Lilly was a very interesting and lovable main character, which was solely the reason i managed to go through the book pages by pages.
my review: here
July 15, 2014
Goodreads Synopsis: 14-year old Lilly Douglas is a girl who has been sheltered from the world since the moment she was born. Gifted with avian like wings and strands of lilac hair, she never realizes how different she is. After a terrifying attack on her home, she is forced to run from everything she knew, and find shelter at a place called Charity Academy. Here students have little to worry about beyond homework and classes, and they spend most of their time learning to control their powers, embracing their identities as 'Strands': students with extraordinary abilities, united by the lilac hairs they have. But they are not alone in the world.
56 miles south-east, into the Bitterroot Wilderness, is a dark place known as Firestone Institution. Here a 16-year old boy named Cory Trask has made his home with a personality as icy as his powers. Survival driven, Cory works for a man named Dr. Kibbsty and is the leader in the pursuit of Lilly. He thinks of little beyond the orders he is given, and life is nothing more than a game: one where only the strongest survive. As their paths cross, they bring an uncertain future in their wake that will cause all these teens to question what it really means to be Strands.
http://wwww.archipelagobook.net
My Review: This was an awesome book for me to read. Although I was a little confused reading about the whole strands thing.. Was her hair light purple or was it just a couple chunks? From far away was it bright or did it look like grey hair? Other than that, which I quickly got over, It was a fun read. I liked learning about the young characters, though I did feel a little old reading it, haha. It definitely reminded me of the whole x-men society thing, but that's just fine because I love x-men! The chapters bounced around a lot, following different people, time passing, it was a little hard to get used to. Definitely check it out if you get the chance. Thanks for reading!
(Radioactivebookreviews.wordpress.com)
56 miles south-east, into the Bitterroot Wilderness, is a dark place known as Firestone Institution. Here a 16-year old boy named Cory Trask has made his home with a personality as icy as his powers. Survival driven, Cory works for a man named Dr. Kibbsty and is the leader in the pursuit of Lilly. He thinks of little beyond the orders he is given, and life is nothing more than a game: one where only the strongest survive. As their paths cross, they bring an uncertain future in their wake that will cause all these teens to question what it really means to be Strands.
http://wwww.archipelagobook.net
My Review: This was an awesome book for me to read. Although I was a little confused reading about the whole strands thing.. Was her hair light purple or was it just a couple chunks? From far away was it bright or did it look like grey hair? Other than that, which I quickly got over, It was a fun read. I liked learning about the young characters, though I did feel a little old reading it, haha. It definitely reminded me of the whole x-men society thing, but that's just fine because I love x-men! The chapters bounced around a lot, following different people, time passing, it was a little hard to get used to. Definitely check it out if you get the chance. Thanks for reading!
(Radioactivebookreviews.wordpress.com)
August 12, 2016
I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review, may contain spoilers.
I really loved this book. It struck me as incredibly original, in sense of characters and plot and that was refreshing.
14 year old Lilly has avian like wings and strands of lilac hair. Her parents have kept her hidden since she was practically born for fear of her being discovered and experimented on. Though one fateful day when she and her mother go to the store to buy her hair dye to cover her lilac strands, only a certain shade will do for Lilly and that is how she is discovered by the violent doctor Kibbsty who runs Firestone Institution with an iron fist and seems to feed on fear and terror.
The students at Firestone Institution are all "Strands" - genetically different teens who have powers that range by how many strands of lilac hair they have, some powers are awe-inducing, others are pretty odd. This school seems to house the more violent "Strands".
There is also another school for such gifted teenagers called the Charity Academy - It teaches basically the complete opposite of Firestone. It is the "light" to the "dark".
The more strands of lilac a "Strand" has the more powers they possess. Lilly seems to have three. That puts her life in even more danger as she is relentlessly pursued by Dr. Kibbsty's students to captured in order for him to do testing on her.
I don't like to give everything away in my reviews so I'll stop here.
But I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It did remind me of X-Men only in the regard of the schools and some of the powers but it was also incredibly original in all other facets.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in children/young-adult novels with a great fantasy aspect.
*crosses fingers for a sequel*
Happy reading!
I really loved this book. It struck me as incredibly original, in sense of characters and plot and that was refreshing.
14 year old Lilly has avian like wings and strands of lilac hair. Her parents have kept her hidden since she was practically born for fear of her being discovered and experimented on. Though one fateful day when she and her mother go to the store to buy her hair dye to cover her lilac strands, only a certain shade will do for Lilly and that is how she is discovered by the violent doctor Kibbsty who runs Firestone Institution with an iron fist and seems to feed on fear and terror.
The students at Firestone Institution are all "Strands" - genetically different teens who have powers that range by how many strands of lilac hair they have, some powers are awe-inducing, others are pretty odd. This school seems to house the more violent "Strands".
There is also another school for such gifted teenagers called the Charity Academy - It teaches basically the complete opposite of Firestone. It is the "light" to the "dark".
The more strands of lilac a "Strand" has the more powers they possess. Lilly seems to have three. That puts her life in even more danger as she is relentlessly pursued by Dr. Kibbsty's students to captured in order for him to do testing on her.
I don't like to give everything away in my reviews so I'll stop here.
But I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It did remind me of X-Men only in the regard of the schools and some of the powers but it was also incredibly original in all other facets.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in children/young-adult novels with a great fantasy aspect.
*crosses fingers for a sequel*
Happy reading!
July 27, 2016
Lilly was sheltered from everything in her young life, so when her world flipside down she’s left with nothing to grasp onto. Encountering super-powered teens, Lilly realizes there is so many more just like her.
I really like this book. I got 30% through it and was raving to quite a few people about some of scenes that I read. There was some flat out amazing writing going on right here. The author has a way of twisting your heart around her finger as you go through so many emotions with Lilly. I genuinely cared for Lilly and what happed with her. This shy, timid, sweet girl encounters SO many things! I also really liked her friend Meg, she just seems like a very likable character.
Probably the only issues I had with this book was not focusing in on certain characters more. There were a lot of names thrown around toward the last part of the story, where I felt a bit confused on who was who and what was happening. I kinda felt as if Jake dropped off, which was a bit odd and a couple new characters that I’d like to got to know a bit better earlier in the story. I also had a rough time with some of the plot. I might have missed a key point somewhere, but how was the main bad guy controlling this group of super-natural teens? I wasn’t sure and like I said, I might have missed something somewhere. I felt as if they could just turn on him and get the heck out of there.
Overall I really enjoyed this book, and I would still recommend to a people. If you like X-men, superheroes, and a very intense emotional ride, you’ll like this book. I hope to see this author go far with her work!
I really like this book. I got 30% through it and was raving to quite a few people about some of scenes that I read. There was some flat out amazing writing going on right here. The author has a way of twisting your heart around her finger as you go through so many emotions with Lilly. I genuinely cared for Lilly and what happed with her. This shy, timid, sweet girl encounters SO many things! I also really liked her friend Meg, she just seems like a very likable character.
Probably the only issues I had with this book was not focusing in on certain characters more. There were a lot of names thrown around toward the last part of the story, where I felt a bit confused on who was who and what was happening. I kinda felt as if Jake dropped off, which was a bit odd and a couple new characters that I’d like to got to know a bit better earlier in the story. I also had a rough time with some of the plot. I might have missed a key point somewhere, but how was the main bad guy controlling this group of super-natural teens? I wasn’t sure and like I said, I might have missed something somewhere. I felt as if they could just turn on him and get the heck out of there.
Overall I really enjoyed this book, and I would still recommend to a people. If you like X-men, superheroes, and a very intense emotional ride, you’ll like this book. I hope to see this author go far with her work!
November 29, 2014
I recieve a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The beginning of the book was a little slow, confusing at times, but once I got through 1/3 of the book, I cannot stop by try to finish it.
It was a story filled with superpowered kids, just like x-men. They were brought up in 2 different academy, the good and the bad. But in the good, there is bad while in the bad, there is good. I like the way the story was told, never knowing who is friend and who is the enemy. I hope Raine will continue the good work in her next book.
The beginning of the book was a little slow, confusing at times, but once I got through 1/3 of the book, I cannot stop by try to finish it.
It was a story filled with superpowered kids, just like x-men. They were brought up in 2 different academy, the good and the bad. But in the good, there is bad while in the bad, there is good. I like the way the story was told, never knowing who is friend and who is the enemy. I hope Raine will continue the good work in her next book.
December 8, 2017
Its ok, cant say I loved it but I managed to read it to the end. Im not much of a fan of Lilly, the main character, she ended up getting on my nerves. She just seemed to spend the entire story crying and generally being a bit weak.
June 19, 2014
It was an enjoyable read with a good story line. I won this book through goodreads first reads.
June 9, 2014
Was unsure about it to start but soon got in to it. Great story line. Turned out to be a good book.
September 5, 2016
I can't wait for book two!!!!!!!!!!!!
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