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Andromeda #1
Andromeda
Ten years after a pandemic swept the globe, survivors were forced into factions and camps in order to survive.
Jade and Sera are two orphans who have found refuge in a government camp. It's there where Jade falls in love with a young soldier, Anyon. But Anyon has his own secrets, carefully guarding a past that involves Sera. Before Jade and Anyon admit their feelings to each other the camp is attacked and they're separated.
Jade knows to lead Sera to Albany, the last free camp in the east, but the road is dangerous.
Not only must they dodge pockets of infection, but they're threatened by drifters and gangs. When they arrive in Albany, they find it deserted.
Anyon and his friend Malachi are close on their heels, but not close enough. The Provisional Government is on a mission, and no one is quite prepared for what lies ahead.
Jade and Sera are two orphans who have found refuge in a government camp. It's there where Jade falls in love with a young soldier, Anyon. But Anyon has his own secrets, carefully guarding a past that involves Sera. Before Jade and Anyon admit their feelings to each other the camp is attacked and they're separated.
Jade knows to lead Sera to Albany, the last free camp in the east, but the road is dangerous.
Not only must they dodge pockets of infection, but they're threatened by drifters and gangs. When they arrive in Albany, they find it deserted.
Anyon and his friend Malachi are close on their heels, but not close enough. The Provisional Government is on a mission, and no one is quite prepared for what lies ahead.
250 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2014
86 people are currently reading
1507 people want to read
About the author
Amy Bartelloni
14 books120 followersAmy Bartelloni is a reader, writer, & coffee addict who lives with her 3 children, and various animals in the northeast US. When she's not playing mom-taxi, you can find her with her nose in a book or her head in the clouds. A people watcher and science fiction junkie, she still believes dreams can come true. Some of her favorite authors include Neil Gaiman, Jasper Fforde, and Grady Hendrix..
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
February 11, 2015
*****4 Cranky Stars*****
Ten years after a pandemic swept the globe, survivors were forced into factions and camps in order to survive...
Jade and Sera are two orphans who have found refuge in a government camp. It is there where Jade falls in love with a young soldier, Anyon. But Anyon has his own secrets, carefully guarding a past that involves Sera. But before Jade and Anyon admit their feelings to each other the camp is attacked and they're separated.
Jade knows to lead Sera to Albany, the last free camp in the east, but the road is dangerous.
Not only must they dodge pockets of infection, but they are threatened by drifters and gangs. When they arrive in Albany, they find it deserted.
Anyon and his friend Malachi are close on their heels, but not close enough. The Provisional Government is on a mission, and no one is quite prepared for what lies ahead...ANDROMEDA
**********
She liked to wander through the houses and wonder about the people who lived there. She had a wild imagination and would create stories about them, how they survived the infection, where they were now.
This story starts out with Jade and Seraphina on the run, heading to the last free camp in Albany. When the fighting started, they had to leave Anyon and Malachi behind at their old camp in order to ensure Seraphina’s safety. Sera is a free spirit and Jade is the skeptic. While fighting for their lives and avoiding pockets of infection, they find a strength in themselves that they didn't know they possessed.
This book raised the question, what would you do if the world were ending? Could you be as strong as Jade, Seraphina, Anyon, and Malachi? Would you fight for the survival of the human race as well as yourself?
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great read in the YA/Dystopian genre. I did find the pace slow in some parts, but it didn't take too much away from the book and it was an enjoyable read.
Ten years after a pandemic swept the globe, survivors were forced into factions and camps in order to survive...
Jade and Sera are two orphans who have found refuge in a government camp. It is there where Jade falls in love with a young soldier, Anyon. But Anyon has his own secrets, carefully guarding a past that involves Sera. But before Jade and Anyon admit their feelings to each other the camp is attacked and they're separated.
Jade knows to lead Sera to Albany, the last free camp in the east, but the road is dangerous.
Not only must they dodge pockets of infection, but they are threatened by drifters and gangs. When they arrive in Albany, they find it deserted.
Anyon and his friend Malachi are close on their heels, but not close enough. The Provisional Government is on a mission, and no one is quite prepared for what lies ahead...ANDROMEDA
**********
She liked to wander through the houses and wonder about the people who lived there. She had a wild imagination and would create stories about them, how they survived the infection, where they were now.
This story starts out with Jade and Seraphina on the run, heading to the last free camp in Albany. When the fighting started, they had to leave Anyon and Malachi behind at their old camp in order to ensure Seraphina’s safety. Sera is a free spirit and Jade is the skeptic. While fighting for their lives and avoiding pockets of infection, they find a strength in themselves that they didn't know they possessed.
This book raised the question, what would you do if the world were ending? Could you be as strong as Jade, Seraphina, Anyon, and Malachi? Would you fight for the survival of the human race as well as yourself?
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great read in the YA/Dystopian genre. I did find the pace slow in some parts, but it didn't take too much away from the book and it was an enjoyable read.
January 29, 2016
It wasn't good, but it wasn't bad. I think I am in a "dystopian funk". I have not been able to find a good book that blows my socks off. I have been feening for a really good book and have yet to find it.
Not much really happened. You first meet Jade and Sera and there was really no character development. That drives me crazy. I felt no attachment to any of the characters. If one would die, I wouldn't care. I feel like the story was rushed. We don't know how the infection came about. Where did it come from? Why did it happen? Does anybody know? No, we don't know. If we do know, I must have forgot which is not a good thing. I wanted more details, tell me more. I'm ok with details, I want to get a feel for what happened or what is going on. I didn't get that.
A part of me wants to continue to see if the 2nd book is amazing and I will get what i'm looking for. Maybe the first book was a fluke? I don't know..I'm kind of disappointed.
Not much really happened. You first meet Jade and Sera and there was really no character development. That drives me crazy. I felt no attachment to any of the characters. If one would die, I wouldn't care. I feel like the story was rushed. We don't know how the infection came about. Where did it come from? Why did it happen? Does anybody know? No, we don't know. If we do know, I must have forgot which is not a good thing. I wanted more details, tell me more. I'm ok with details, I want to get a feel for what happened or what is going on. I didn't get that.
A part of me wants to continue to see if the 2nd book is amazing and I will get what i'm looking for. Maybe the first book was a fluke? I don't know..I'm kind of disappointed.
December 26, 2014
Disappointing. Even given that it's a young adult book, it doesn't stand out from the crowd of post-Apocalypse, zombie books. (Except the zombies are, at best, incidental to the story. Belief must be suspended too often. Occasional word choice errors (such as "alibi" for "alias").
I suspect the climax played better in Bartlloni's head than it does on paper.
It was okay, but just.
I suspect the climax played better in Bartlloni's head than it does on paper.
It was okay, but just.
November 30, 2015
This ended up being just ok. I had gotten this ebook for free a while back and then recently I saw that the last one of the series was a free ebook on Amazon too, so I picked that up and figured I would give the series a shot since I had two out of three of the books. I don't think I will be continuing on after this one now though. I felt that the pacing was off. In the beginning it felt super slow, but by the end the plot felt rushed and it zoomed to the end. The writing was fine, but the pacing of the plot made me think of this as a mediocre book. Plus, I never really got attached to the characters. All in all, it doesn't seem worth it to continue on with this series.
June 23, 2015
Did you like Hunger Games, Divergent, Shatter Me, Article 5, and similar well-built and plotted dystopian romances? Yeah? Well, run as far from this book as possible then because this half-baked book isn't anything akin to those!!!
Awkward Story Layout: WorldBuilding Is Severely Lacking
I feel like I've started in the middle of a series vs this being the first book.
Dystopian readers know that most books in this genera start off in one of two ways 1) starts in the current world and work their way backwards and forward simultaneously as the current plot is built and the "what," "why,"and "how" of the current state is explained to readers over the course of the book or 2) a prologue is given to bring readers up to speed on "how" etc of the current world.
^thats not this book btw~
This book starts with a refugee camp already destroyed in a dystopian world and the MCs trekking separately to meet elsewhere.
The MCs are talking about each other and have this urgent need to find each other along this trek. But, the book starts with them apart and continues that way till 80%. Yes, the MCs aren't in the same place FOR 80% OF THE BOOK!!!
So, with no dialogue between them, no interaction, and very limited and mundane snippets of their history in inner monologue, HOW is the reader supposed to connect or give two shits about the romance & friendship portion of the plot?!? I didn't!
The MCs already have years worth of history building from dislike, to friendship, to an unspoken love for each other that the readers CANT take interest in because the author tells us of it's existence without showing it or giving it any details other than it merely exists.
The relationship between the two girls, Jade and Sera, is similar. There's some profound, tightly woven bond there that readers are told exists, but readers weren't privy to it developing so it's really hard to understand these relationships, much less feel invested in them without some detail explaining it. It's not enough just to say 'it formed' 'it progressed' and now here's the after story.
Things here are 10 years post infectious event and collapse of society. And, eight years and some change into said collapse some pseudo government and mad scientist president developed. The infection is still a threat 10 years later in present time (wtf?) The CDC was initially involved trying to find a cure and they trained some random street boys into soldiers to protect the people they experimented upon trying to find a cure. Random established refugee camps are established initially, but pseudo government destroys these camps now. That^ brief, broad stroke is all the history readers are given to understand the world as it came to be and exists in the book. NOT enough for avid readers of dystopian stories!
Weird Shit Can Be Accepted If Explained Well
But what needs to be explained here isn't & what doesn't need detail gets too much of it (more on that in a minute;)
Authors can't expect readers to accept the weird shit in dystopian & paranormal books if they don't put some kind of explanation or logic behind it.
This book is devoid of both logic and explanation. Yes, I get it's a series and specific explanations often come forth in sequels, but there MUST be a base explanation, questioning action, pause... Something to let readers know maybe this isn't normal but it'll be explained eventually. Again, that's not the case here. No, here shit is just illogical and moves onward to the end with no explanation for the random weird shit along the way.
Example: some random diseased woman sings in front of the male MCs about the girls they're looking for. It's given a 'hey, look reader... This is weird' attention by the author. Yet, NOTHING ever explains why this happens or its' significance.
Example: some weird huge ass wolf(ves) are stalking the guys and girls along the way. Again, the size of the paw prints, the howls, the odd size, the stalking both groups, etc is given 'hey, look at this' attention by the author. Yet, NOTHING ever happens with these wolves; once the groups reach the gov compound, not a damn thing else is mentioned about the wolves or what any if it meant.
Example: Albany camp has been abandoned for over A YEAR and a massacre took place at the main point of the camp leaving body remains as evidence. Yet, a year later these remains smell so bad that the characters have to cover their noses, are gagging, and can smell the stench of death "as soon as they entered the city." "Men, women, & even some children, their faces contorted, their bodies thrown about the steps carelessly." Okay!!? I'd say that deserves an f'ing explanation or at the very least some character mental pause to think this don't f'ing make sense that these bodies haven't decayed to skeletal remains and still stink OVER A YEAR AFTER THE PLACE IS RAIDED & DISASSEMBLED.
Example: Mental intuition is alluded to with one character & another character is said to have unusual eyesight. But, none of these abilities are perceived as abnormal or unusual to the characters around them in inner thought nor dialogue. It's presented like it's just part of life now. Nothing is ever explained as to why, how! Then, Mrs. McGovern comes along and seems to know shit (who knows what exactly) that she shouldn't know and the male MC team call her "fucking bonkers." The one that shows mental intuition can tell if a house is safe or not, but can't f'ing foresee her parents are dead and she's handing herself over as a lab rat? Oookay.
^ It's absurd world and character building that never comes to make any sense whatsoever!
TSTL Characters
Female MCs leave a painted sign on wood for the male MCs in the above carnage. Male MC finds destroyed board with just "DA" written on it and notes that it has claw marks on it and a piece missing. He immediately deducts from a board with "DA" painted on it and chewed and scratched to shit that 1) the message was for him 2) "someone or something wanted to prevent him from getting this message." Forget the fact NO ONE would f'ing connect those dots, much less a TSTL character like him. He doesn't give any more thought to it. Wtf? I dont know like maybe think why or who and where this entity might be or how he might want to alert the other dude with him so they could be prepared for this entity?!? Nada.. Just moves forward like the shit never happened.
Female MCs just go off with a complete stranger that they get a weird vibe from. They don't bother finding out where they need to go other than "North". Okay, you want your guy to find you and all you leave him is a message to go north? You don't trust the guy you're with but just follow him not knowing where you're going if something was to happen to him or he tries to do something to you? Uhhh TSTL?
BTW; As big as the U.S. is, these guys are supposed to find these girls by just heading north?!? Oooookay. Sure!
The male MCs take off cross f'ing country with gangs, zombies, & a rouge government as threats BUT all they have as a weapon is A HUNTING KNIFE. A massive deranged wolf comes at them 50% through the book and these TSTL dudes are looking around for weapons now. Nah, anyone didn't know to have a damn weapon in hand ready to go in a dystopian wasteland wouldn't have made it a week, much less 10 years.
Details In All The Wrong Places
My gawd 20% of this book is taken up by the females locked up in a room hostage as they eat, sleep, and watch tv -while- the male MCs hold up in another room plotting how to break the females out as they too eat and sleep. Why the hell would I want to spend an hour reading about someone doing mundane shit and going over a plan over and over that suddenly turns into a completely different plan when shit goes array, but is somehow still part of "the plan" even though all these unforeseen elements happen. Wtf ever! I honestly ceased to even try to comprehend the stupidity of the plot points by this point in the book.
Bottom Line
Unbelievable. Nothing is explained that actually matters. MCs that don't actually even see each other or talk for 80% of the book. TSTL characters that somehow manage to bring down an army and an evil mad scientist president. Not a single redeeming quality. Equals = 0 stars!
Awkward Story Layout: WorldBuilding Is Severely Lacking
I feel like I've started in the middle of a series vs this being the first book.
Dystopian readers know that most books in this genera start off in one of two ways 1) starts in the current world and work their way backwards and forward simultaneously as the current plot is built and the "what," "why,"and "how" of the current state is explained to readers over the course of the book or 2) a prologue is given to bring readers up to speed on "how" etc of the current world.
^thats not this book btw~
This book starts with a refugee camp already destroyed in a dystopian world and the MCs trekking separately to meet elsewhere.
The MCs are talking about each other and have this urgent need to find each other along this trek. But, the book starts with them apart and continues that way till 80%. Yes, the MCs aren't in the same place FOR 80% OF THE BOOK!!!
So, with no dialogue between them, no interaction, and very limited and mundane snippets of their history in inner monologue, HOW is the reader supposed to connect or give two shits about the romance & friendship portion of the plot?!? I didn't!
The MCs already have years worth of history building from dislike, to friendship, to an unspoken love for each other that the readers CANT take interest in because the author tells us of it's existence without showing it or giving it any details other than it merely exists.
The relationship between the two girls, Jade and Sera, is similar. There's some profound, tightly woven bond there that readers are told exists, but readers weren't privy to it developing so it's really hard to understand these relationships, much less feel invested in them without some detail explaining it. It's not enough just to say 'it formed' 'it progressed' and now here's the after story.
Things here are 10 years post infectious event and collapse of society. And, eight years and some change into said collapse some pseudo government and mad scientist president developed. The infection is still a threat 10 years later in present time (wtf?) The CDC was initially involved trying to find a cure and they trained some random street boys into soldiers to protect the people they experimented upon trying to find a cure. Random established refugee camps are established initially, but pseudo government destroys these camps now. That^ brief, broad stroke is all the history readers are given to understand the world as it came to be and exists in the book. NOT enough for avid readers of dystopian stories!
Weird Shit Can Be Accepted If Explained Well
But what needs to be explained here isn't & what doesn't need detail gets too much of it (more on that in a minute;)
Authors can't expect readers to accept the weird shit in dystopian & paranormal books if they don't put some kind of explanation or logic behind it.
This book is devoid of both logic and explanation. Yes, I get it's a series and specific explanations often come forth in sequels, but there MUST be a base explanation, questioning action, pause... Something to let readers know maybe this isn't normal but it'll be explained eventually. Again, that's not the case here. No, here shit is just illogical and moves onward to the end with no explanation for the random weird shit along the way.
Example: some random diseased woman sings in front of the male MCs about the girls they're looking for. It's given a 'hey, look reader... This is weird' attention by the author. Yet, NOTHING ever explains why this happens or its' significance.
Example: some weird huge ass wolf(ves) are stalking the guys and girls along the way. Again, the size of the paw prints, the howls, the odd size, the stalking both groups, etc is given 'hey, look at this' attention by the author. Yet, NOTHING ever happens with these wolves; once the groups reach the gov compound, not a damn thing else is mentioned about the wolves or what any if it meant.
Example: Albany camp has been abandoned for over A YEAR and a massacre took place at the main point of the camp leaving body remains as evidence. Yet, a year later these remains smell so bad that the characters have to cover their noses, are gagging, and can smell the stench of death "as soon as they entered the city." "Men, women, & even some children, their faces contorted, their bodies thrown about the steps carelessly." Okay!!? I'd say that deserves an f'ing explanation or at the very least some character mental pause to think this don't f'ing make sense that these bodies haven't decayed to skeletal remains and still stink OVER A YEAR AFTER THE PLACE IS RAIDED & DISASSEMBLED.
Example: Mental intuition is alluded to with one character & another character is said to have unusual eyesight. But, none of these abilities are perceived as abnormal or unusual to the characters around them in inner thought nor dialogue. It's presented like it's just part of life now. Nothing is ever explained as to why, how! Then, Mrs. McGovern comes along and seems to know shit (who knows what exactly) that she shouldn't know and the male MC team call her "fucking bonkers." The one that shows mental intuition can tell if a house is safe or not, but can't f'ing foresee her parents are dead and she's handing herself over as a lab rat? Oookay.
^ It's absurd world and character building that never comes to make any sense whatsoever!
TSTL Characters
Female MCs leave a painted sign on wood for the male MCs in the above carnage. Male MC finds destroyed board with just "DA" written on it and notes that it has claw marks on it and a piece missing. He immediately deducts from a board with "DA" painted on it and chewed and scratched to shit that 1) the message was for him 2) "someone or something wanted to prevent him from getting this message." Forget the fact NO ONE would f'ing connect those dots, much less a TSTL character like him. He doesn't give any more thought to it. Wtf? I dont know like maybe think why or who and where this entity might be or how he might want to alert the other dude with him so they could be prepared for this entity?!? Nada.. Just moves forward like the shit never happened.
Female MCs just go off with a complete stranger that they get a weird vibe from. They don't bother finding out where they need to go other than "North". Okay, you want your guy to find you and all you leave him is a message to go north? You don't trust the guy you're with but just follow him not knowing where you're going if something was to happen to him or he tries to do something to you? Uhhh TSTL?
BTW; As big as the U.S. is, these guys are supposed to find these girls by just heading north?!? Oooookay. Sure!
The male MCs take off cross f'ing country with gangs, zombies, & a rouge government as threats BUT all they have as a weapon is A HUNTING KNIFE. A massive deranged wolf comes at them 50% through the book and these TSTL dudes are looking around for weapons now. Nah, anyone didn't know to have a damn weapon in hand ready to go in a dystopian wasteland wouldn't have made it a week, much less 10 years.
Details In All The Wrong Places
My gawd 20% of this book is taken up by the females locked up in a room hostage as they eat, sleep, and watch tv -while- the male MCs hold up in another room plotting how to break the females out as they too eat and sleep. Why the hell would I want to spend an hour reading about someone doing mundane shit and going over a plan over and over that suddenly turns into a completely different plan when shit goes array, but is somehow still part of "the plan" even though all these unforeseen elements happen. Wtf ever! I honestly ceased to even try to comprehend the stupidity of the plot points by this point in the book.
Bottom Line
Unbelievable. Nothing is explained that actually matters. MCs that don't actually even see each other or talk for 80% of the book. TSTL characters that somehow manage to bring down an army and an evil mad scientist president. Not a single redeeming quality. Equals = 0 stars!
December 29, 2014
If you are a fan of the Divergent series, Hunger Games and The Immortal Rules, then Andromeda is for you.
What I liked:
The relationship between Jade and Sera. They may not be blood related, but they are as close as any sisters would be. They look out for each other in this frightening new world where others would turn on each other at the drop of a hat.
The bond between Jade and Anyon. They are the cutest couple that aren't a proper couple and the word cute doesn't belong in their world, but still, they are adorable.
The friendship between Anyon and Malachi. It's amazing how in this new world people can find and form friendships. These two have been through it together and come out the other side. Trusted to look out for Sera, Anyon is level-headed, strong-willed and perseverance should be his middle name. He is one of the few decent people left. Malachi closely resembles those same character traits and it's good to see that even after The Provisional Government took over, that kind, decent people can still be found.
What I disliked: It doesn't have to be said, but I'll say it all the same; I absolutely hated The Provisional Government and what they have done since they took control. Mostly, I hate President Vise. He's a despicable, deplorable human being - that's a loose term too cos he's not fit t be called a human being. He's cold, unemotional, sick and twisted and he seems to have a God-like complex.
This was one of the best YA stories that I have read recently. I've been on more of an NA Contemporary Romance binge. I've tried and failed to read several YA books that just haven't held my attention. But Andromeda sucked me in and held my attention captive until I was finished. I was up until after 2am two consecutive nights so that I could finish it off. I finally put the book down at 2:41am today, not realising how late it was because I had lost another chunk of time to reading this book.
The writing flowed well and for me, the story was without flaw. Amy Bartelloni weaves a totally believable story that I could see our world being like if it were ever to be overturned and run into the ground by those that demand authority. Amy writes strong characters that you can have a tangible relationship with. She builds up your empathy and compassion for those that this world would sooner see destroyed. I have always loved a story where the underdog saves the day, and this is one of those situations where I truly hope the underdog will come out on top.
If you are after something gritty to sink your teeth into and you enjoy a good YA Dystopian read, then please, pick up a copy of Andromeda.
What I liked:
The relationship between Jade and Sera. They may not be blood related, but they are as close as any sisters would be. They look out for each other in this frightening new world where others would turn on each other at the drop of a hat.
The bond between Jade and Anyon. They are the cutest couple that aren't a proper couple and the word cute doesn't belong in their world, but still, they are adorable.
The friendship between Anyon and Malachi. It's amazing how in this new world people can find and form friendships. These two have been through it together and come out the other side. Trusted to look out for Sera, Anyon is level-headed, strong-willed and perseverance should be his middle name. He is one of the few decent people left. Malachi closely resembles those same character traits and it's good to see that even after The Provisional Government took over, that kind, decent people can still be found.
What I disliked: It doesn't have to be said, but I'll say it all the same; I absolutely hated The Provisional Government and what they have done since they took control. Mostly, I hate President Vise. He's a despicable, deplorable human being - that's a loose term too cos he's not fit t be called a human being. He's cold, unemotional, sick and twisted and he seems to have a God-like complex.
This was one of the best YA stories that I have read recently. I've been on more of an NA Contemporary Romance binge. I've tried and failed to read several YA books that just haven't held my attention. But Andromeda sucked me in and held my attention captive until I was finished. I was up until after 2am two consecutive nights so that I could finish it off. I finally put the book down at 2:41am today, not realising how late it was because I had lost another chunk of time to reading this book.
The writing flowed well and for me, the story was without flaw. Amy Bartelloni weaves a totally believable story that I could see our world being like if it were ever to be overturned and run into the ground by those that demand authority. Amy writes strong characters that you can have a tangible relationship with. She builds up your empathy and compassion for those that this world would sooner see destroyed. I have always loved a story where the underdog saves the day, and this is one of those situations where I truly hope the underdog will come out on top.
If you are after something gritty to sink your teeth into and you enjoy a good YA Dystopian read, then please, pick up a copy of Andromeda.
July 29, 2015
Great start to a series. The characters were explored really well and their intertwining relationships with each other was really neat. I would love to get inside Sera's head and see the world as she does. I hope to learn more about the infection and its back story in the next book. There were a few moment here and there that I didn't quite follow, mostly with Sera and her intuition, but it didn't detract from the storyline enough to be a huge deal.
December 22, 2014
I like everything about this book except the cussing! It kept me on the edge of my chair the entire time. But the cussing was disappointing and unnecessary.
December 5, 2018
Andromeda follows four teens (two girls, two boys) who were "raised" in a government camp that was established following a viral outbreak that turned its victims into crazed zombies. The reader picks up the story at a point where the girls and boys have gotten separated, but they are trying to meet up at another camp in Albany, NY.
This book is definitely geared to the YA audience. I listened to the audiobook (more on that later), and as I went along, I was thinking to myself, "This is OK....I might pick up book 2". It wasn't great but it wasn't terrible. The dialogue between the characters wasn't so great, and the characters themselves weren't really fleshed out. It was difficult to tell which character was speaking most of the time. The story itself was decent, but it started to lose me when the villain proclaimed, "Nothing can stop me now!"
It is the first book in a series, so while the story kinda, sorta wraps up, it most certainly ends in such a way that you know there is more to come.
Now....as for the audiobook narrator. I hate to say it, but she was dreadful...just awful. She was fine in the first chapter. I don't know what happened after that, but she turned into a total robot. Siri has more personality in her voice than this narrator. There was virtually no emotion in her voice. Her emphasis was consistently placed in the wrong portion of each sentence. She pronounced the title of the book an-dro-MEE-da, rather than an-DROM-eda. One of the boys' name was Malachi (mal-UH-kai). She pronounced it mo-LOCK-y. It was absolutely bizarre. Is it possible the author never heard the narration? I wonder if I would've given the book another star had I just READ it.
I may give book 2 a try, but if there's an audiobook, I won;t go anywhere near it.
This book is definitely geared to the YA audience. I listened to the audiobook (more on that later), and as I went along, I was thinking to myself, "This is OK....I might pick up book 2". It wasn't great but it wasn't terrible. The dialogue between the characters wasn't so great, and the characters themselves weren't really fleshed out. It was difficult to tell which character was speaking most of the time. The story itself was decent, but it started to lose me when the villain proclaimed, "Nothing can stop me now!"
It is the first book in a series, so while the story kinda, sorta wraps up, it most certainly ends in such a way that you know there is more to come.
Now....as for the audiobook narrator. I hate to say it, but she was dreadful...just awful. She was fine in the first chapter. I don't know what happened after that, but she turned into a total robot. Siri has more personality in her voice than this narrator. There was virtually no emotion in her voice. Her emphasis was consistently placed in the wrong portion of each sentence. She pronounced the title of the book an-dro-MEE-da, rather than an-DROM-eda. One of the boys' name was Malachi (mal-UH-kai). She pronounced it mo-LOCK-y. It was absolutely bizarre. Is it possible the author never heard the narration? I wonder if I would've given the book another star had I just READ it.
I may give book 2 a try, but if there's an audiobook, I won;t go anywhere near it.
March 23, 2015
Made it 75% of the way through this book and had to quit. And I am not a quitter. From the very beginning of this book I felt like this should have been the second book in a series, not the first. The love interests in this book have already fallen for each other (hello? that's the best part!) and they have already been separated by some incident back at their camp. I knew there was some sort of infection that caused the near end of civilization, but beyond that I wad lost. What happened back at camp? What happens to people who are infected? I don't think they ever actually ran into anyone who was infected. Do people these main characters have special abilities or just good instincts? Why would the government want to stop a cure? I will say that since I did not finish the book, it is possible my questions would have been answered. I just didn't really care all that much.
April 12, 2015
The Stand meets The Walking Dead in a decent, indie young adult package. Could use some polishing.
June 23, 2018
Andromeda is a book which made me feel at home – I know that sounds weird but when I started blogging it was because of the impact a single book had on me and Andromeda gave me those same feels with an all consuming post apocalyptic world.
It is a fast paced book which covers so much within it’s pages, getting to the end and looking back at where we started was a bit of a “woah” moment I have to say. I loved how we were straight into the action, on the move without a chance to catch our breath. I find that too many books spend time setting the story or just give a massive infodump but with Andromeda this feels like a natural place to start and we are given enough detail to get by with. I loved the parallel timelines in the different POV’s as well, just willing the 2 groups to catch up with each other, but then where would the story be?
There are some really great characters shining through and the relationship dynamics work so well together, Sera’s blind faith against Jades’s utter cynicism is a stand out and President Vise is beyond creepy, he brings to mind images of President Snow from the Hunger Games, utterly ruthless and utterly deluded – a dangerous and as far as bad guys go he gave me the chills.
Sera to me felt like a Luna Lovegood type character, despite floating around in her own “have faith” bubble she was actually one of the most together of all of them. I’m really looking forward to finding out more about her in future books, she has tons more going on I think especially with her almost 6th sense about things.
It’s a really atmospheric book as well, from hiding in an abandoned mall to them being in the belly of the beast, I found myself holding my breath a number of times, reading so quickly to find out what happens next I was scared I would miss something important.
There are so many unanswered questions still though despite everything that we have already learnt, what’s with the house? Why are the giant wolves so giant? Is there significance with the stars? These don’t impact on the enjoyment of the book at all but pull me into wanting to read the rest of the series, which I hope I get an opportunity to do soon.
It is a fast paced book which covers so much within it’s pages, getting to the end and looking back at where we started was a bit of a “woah” moment I have to say. I loved how we were straight into the action, on the move without a chance to catch our breath. I find that too many books spend time setting the story or just give a massive infodump but with Andromeda this feels like a natural place to start and we are given enough detail to get by with. I loved the parallel timelines in the different POV’s as well, just willing the 2 groups to catch up with each other, but then where would the story be?
There are some really great characters shining through and the relationship dynamics work so well together, Sera’s blind faith against Jades’s utter cynicism is a stand out and President Vise is beyond creepy, he brings to mind images of President Snow from the Hunger Games, utterly ruthless and utterly deluded – a dangerous and as far as bad guys go he gave me the chills.
Sera to me felt like a Luna Lovegood type character, despite floating around in her own “have faith” bubble she was actually one of the most together of all of them. I’m really looking forward to finding out more about her in future books, she has tons more going on I think especially with her almost 6th sense about things.
It’s a really atmospheric book as well, from hiding in an abandoned mall to them being in the belly of the beast, I found myself holding my breath a number of times, reading so quickly to find out what happens next I was scared I would miss something important.
There are so many unanswered questions still though despite everything that we have already learnt, what’s with the house? Why are the giant wolves so giant? Is there significance with the stars? These don’t impact on the enjoyment of the book at all but pull me into wanting to read the rest of the series, which I hope I get an opportunity to do soon.
May 21, 2018
Okay Start To A Dystopian Series
I found this book was a bit slow to start, and wasn't sure I was going to continue, but then I started to get in to it.
For me, it was a bit flat or slow in places, but the different POV's helped. The main POV's where either Jade or Anyon. Both were pretty decent characters, and somewhat believable. Their two travelling companions, Sera and Malachi, were also good characters. Malachi was not as well developed, but he was a secondary character, so it wasn't really a problem. Sera developed more in the second half of the book.
The premise of the story was believable, which is a U.S after a deadly infection hit, where most people were not immune. We follow four people, the two girls and the two boys, who eventually meet up in the Valley. Once in the Valley, the story becomes about a cure.
Overall, it wasn't too bad. It would be for people who like dystopian, or books about deadly infections. At this point, I'm undecided if I would read the rest of the series. For me there was just something lacking.
I found this book was a bit slow to start, and wasn't sure I was going to continue, but then I started to get in to it.
For me, it was a bit flat or slow in places, but the different POV's helped. The main POV's where either Jade or Anyon. Both were pretty decent characters, and somewhat believable. Their two travelling companions, Sera and Malachi, were also good characters. Malachi was not as well developed, but he was a secondary character, so it wasn't really a problem. Sera developed more in the second half of the book.
The premise of the story was believable, which is a U.S after a deadly infection hit, where most people were not immune. We follow four people, the two girls and the two boys, who eventually meet up in the Valley. Once in the Valley, the story becomes about a cure.
Overall, it wasn't too bad. It would be for people who like dystopian, or books about deadly infections. At this point, I'm undecided if I would read the rest of the series. For me there was just something lacking.
April 12, 2018
Great Story & Love That You're a New Writer!
I don't really read much of the front before starting a book & it wasn't until the end that I realized you were a new writer. What a great story with awesome attention to detail & in describing the characters. I'm very curious about book 2 & I can't wait to read it!
I don't really read much of the front before starting a book & it wasn't until the end that I realized you were a new writer. What a great story with awesome attention to detail & in describing the characters. I'm very curious about book 2 & I can't wait to read it!
June 25, 2018
I thought this book was decent, though a bit vague, for the first 3/4 of the way through. Then the last 1/4 went at warpspeed with a whole lot of plot with little details, causing a complete disconnect from enjoying what happened. Seemed like a rough draft in need of major tweaking.
October 15, 2017
Formulaic teen post apocalyptic series that I will not be reading any more of. Audio was frustrating as the mispronounced words got really annoying and distracting.
April 13, 2020
Great
Liked this book very much as it kept me enthralled to the very end, on to book two of series
Liked this book very much as it kept me enthralled to the very end, on to book two of series
July 3, 2020
One nighter
I could not put this book down. I stayed up all night reading, I just had to know how things worked out.
I could not put this book down. I stayed up all night reading, I just had to know how things worked out.
March 18, 2017
Pretty decent ya/dystopian read. I enjoyed the characters, although I definitely questioned some of their decisions through the book. By the end, even some of those questionable decisions made more sense.
March 12, 2015
*I got a free copy from the author of the book Amy Bartelloni in exchange of an honest review.*
My actual rating 2.5 Stars.
For a budding author the book was a good start. The genre of the book was YA Dystopian, Science Fiction. Writing style is third person narration. The language and vocabulary used is very simple and easy. There wasn't much to the story though it was quite very simple and no complications as such. If you're an avid reader then the story might become predictable for you.
The story circumvolves around four characters Jade, Sera, Anyon and Malachi who are running for trying to protect themselves from an infection which is permeating through out everywhere. The weak points in the story was that few characters and what role do they exactly play were left unattended. Their situations and their importance in the book was not explained properly. Like from where did Lazarus came and what happened to him in the end. The woman they meet in Albany, Constance McGovern and when everyone's after these four for the prize money why was she the only one helping them out. And Sera's strong sixth sense also had no reason. She was portrayed overly optimistic, like she already knows what's coming next in the scene. It was sometimes very irritating. It was strange that after all those years too Sera carries the cure and the way her memories came back as soon as she returned to her home camp was also kind of unbelievable. Agreed that it was a fiction but even a fiction carries the answers about why is all that happening in a book. There wasn't much to the story except that these four keeps on running away and lives like a nomad. I found Jade to be the most humanly character of the book because maybe her grief and sorrow and struggle was explained precisely. There was no prologue to explain what was the life before the spread of the infection and it was all very haphazard to contain in. The book was not a page turner, you might not regret leaving it in between if you're not such a big fan of reading.
The climax was very dramatic, usually in a dystopian book there is a touch and sense of reality which you couldn't sense in the ending. President Vise was the star caitiff of the story but nothing much was explained about him and he dies quite very soon after his entry in the scene.
The book had the potential to be better than it was if not for those few far fetched characteristics of Sera and unanswered or rather unexplained situations and people who enter and leave mysteriously.
I'm no one to criticise the book because obviously it wasn't me who put the efforts to write it. But as a reader I didn't enjoy it reading that much as much as I expected to. The book ends not with a cliffhanger but with anew beginning. The story is incomplete without the sequels so I'm gonna read the next part too.
For a person who hasn't read and wants to start with YA dystopian genre then give it a try, it's especially good for middle grade students and it could easily go into the category of children's book.
My actual rating 2.5 Stars.
For a budding author the book was a good start. The genre of the book was YA Dystopian, Science Fiction. Writing style is third person narration. The language and vocabulary used is very simple and easy. There wasn't much to the story though it was quite very simple and no complications as such. If you're an avid reader then the story might become predictable for you.
The story circumvolves around four characters Jade, Sera, Anyon and Malachi who are running for trying to protect themselves from an infection which is permeating through out everywhere. The weak points in the story was that few characters and what role do they exactly play were left unattended. Their situations and their importance in the book was not explained properly. Like from where did Lazarus came and what happened to him in the end. The woman they meet in Albany, Constance McGovern and when everyone's after these four for the prize money why was she the only one helping them out. And Sera's strong sixth sense also had no reason. She was portrayed overly optimistic, like she already knows what's coming next in the scene. It was sometimes very irritating. It was strange that after all those years too Sera carries the cure and the way her memories came back as soon as she returned to her home camp was also kind of unbelievable. Agreed that it was a fiction but even a fiction carries the answers about why is all that happening in a book. There wasn't much to the story except that these four keeps on running away and lives like a nomad. I found Jade to be the most humanly character of the book because maybe her grief and sorrow and struggle was explained precisely. There was no prologue to explain what was the life before the spread of the infection and it was all very haphazard to contain in. The book was not a page turner, you might not regret leaving it in between if you're not such a big fan of reading.
The climax was very dramatic, usually in a dystopian book there is a touch and sense of reality which you couldn't sense in the ending. President Vise was the star caitiff of the story but nothing much was explained about him and he dies quite very soon after his entry in the scene.
The book had the potential to be better than it was if not for those few far fetched characteristics of Sera and unanswered or rather unexplained situations and people who enter and leave mysteriously.
I'm no one to criticise the book because obviously it wasn't me who put the efforts to write it. But as a reader I didn't enjoy it reading that much as much as I expected to. The book ends not with a cliffhanger but with anew beginning. The story is incomplete without the sequels so I'm gonna read the next part too.
For a person who hasn't read and wants to start with YA dystopian genre then give it a try, it's especially good for middle grade students and it could easily go into the category of children's book.
September 24, 2014
Andromeda is set in the near figure, ten years after a pandemic has worked its way through the population, leaving millions dead and millions infected with an incurable disease.
The story is told from two groups POV's, the first group is Jade and Sera(phina) two teenagers who have had to leave the relative security of their camp following an attack, they are making their way on foot slowly to Albany in New York, the alleged location of a safe refuge where the survivors of this global catastrophe can live safely.
The second group is made up of Anyon and Malachi, these two young men are trying to find Sera and Jade, Anyon had been assigned to protect her and in doing this he and Jade have grown extremely close, he has been trained as a soldier and his past which involves Sera is clouded in mystery.
Both groups struggle on foot to Albany, the road is dangerous, not to mention long, wild animals and lone survivors are just some of their worries, the constant fear of infection is always in the back of their minds.
Reaching Albany first, the girls hopes are dashed when the camp is not how they imagined (not spoiling for you!) but they do find hope in the shape of an older lady who has been living in the city, she has supplies and she also has a young man staying with her, Lazarus.
Lazarus puts Jade's back up straight away but after the discovery that their best option is to continue heading north they take his offer of help and they leave the lady behind and make their way out of the city.
Finally reaching Albany, Anyon and Malachi discover the camp and they also discover that the girls have passed through, seeking refuge with the lady, she tells them about the danger that they are in as Lazarus is not all that he seems (no spoilers again!) she urges them to find the girls before it is too late.
So what is Lazarus up too, well I can say this, the government are desperate to find our four travellers, they will stop at nothing to get them but what will happen to them when they are finally snared by them.
Sera is the main prize, her parents are scientists who had been working on an antidote to the virus but she has not seen them for a long time and her memory is very patchy as to what happened when she was younger, against all odds they need to avoid being captured, but will they?
Andromeda is a fast paced exciting tale, I love a nice gripping tale like this, when I read the synopsis and saw pandemic, I was kinda expecting zombies but there are none, just extremely ill people in various stages of illness, desperate to live.
Our four young characters are very believable it's been several years since I was a teenager but all the emotional angst that a teenager goes through was there.
Whether you like your Dystopia full of zombies or bombs, you will enjoy this and just now its FREE on Kindle so you have no excuse, give it a read!
Andromeda is awarded 4 out of 5
The story is told from two groups POV's, the first group is Jade and Sera(phina) two teenagers who have had to leave the relative security of their camp following an attack, they are making their way on foot slowly to Albany in New York, the alleged location of a safe refuge where the survivors of this global catastrophe can live safely.
The second group is made up of Anyon and Malachi, these two young men are trying to find Sera and Jade, Anyon had been assigned to protect her and in doing this he and Jade have grown extremely close, he has been trained as a soldier and his past which involves Sera is clouded in mystery.
Both groups struggle on foot to Albany, the road is dangerous, not to mention long, wild animals and lone survivors are just some of their worries, the constant fear of infection is always in the back of their minds.
Reaching Albany first, the girls hopes are dashed when the camp is not how they imagined (not spoiling for you!) but they do find hope in the shape of an older lady who has been living in the city, she has supplies and she also has a young man staying with her, Lazarus.
Lazarus puts Jade's back up straight away but after the discovery that their best option is to continue heading north they take his offer of help and they leave the lady behind and make their way out of the city.
Finally reaching Albany, Anyon and Malachi discover the camp and they also discover that the girls have passed through, seeking refuge with the lady, she tells them about the danger that they are in as Lazarus is not all that he seems (no spoilers again!) she urges them to find the girls before it is too late.
So what is Lazarus up too, well I can say this, the government are desperate to find our four travellers, they will stop at nothing to get them but what will happen to them when they are finally snared by them.
Sera is the main prize, her parents are scientists who had been working on an antidote to the virus but she has not seen them for a long time and her memory is very patchy as to what happened when she was younger, against all odds they need to avoid being captured, but will they?
Andromeda is a fast paced exciting tale, I love a nice gripping tale like this, when I read the synopsis and saw pandemic, I was kinda expecting zombies but there are none, just extremely ill people in various stages of illness, desperate to live.
Our four young characters are very believable it's been several years since I was a teenager but all the emotional angst that a teenager goes through was there.
Whether you like your Dystopia full of zombies or bombs, you will enjoy this and just now its FREE on Kindle so you have no excuse, give it a read!
Andromeda is awarded 4 out of 5
November 5, 2014
Andromeda was a very interesting read. I had seen it be classified as a dystopian before, but honestly, I felt more like it was a post-apocalyptic read. I’m not sure if those are similar genres, or one in the same…but I have only ever read one other dystopian novel (series), which was the Hunger Games, so I didn’t really have much to compare it to.
Jade and Sera have been split up from their buddies Anyon and Malachi and the novel is told through the eyes of mainly Jade, Anyon, and a few others along the way. I believe the provincial government found the camp they had been staying at and had attacked and so the four ran off in hopes to meet up again in Atlanta at another camp. The whole novel, it is expressed that Jade is protecting Sera, Anyon had been assigned to protect her and Malachi is helping as well. I knew pretty much from the first page what Sera’s secret was.
Jade and Anyon have an affection towards each other, but I never felt it. I was waiting for that moment where I could feel how difficult it had been being apart and then reunited, and I was told, but never shown. I wanted to feel that. I wondered a lot while reading the story if that was because it was third person omniscient. I tend to gravitate to books that are written in first person and I did wonder if that was the reason I never felt their “love” for one another. I could tell they liked one another, but never felt the love.
Sera’s “powers” if you want to call it that was pretty cool. I liked that she was able to keep them out of trouble just by a simple feeling. I wondered if it had anything to do with her beginning to remember parts of her past. Out of all of the characters I think I liked Sera and Nicky the best. I liked their personalities and although brief, I really liked Nicky’s relationship with his girlfriend. I could really feel how much he cared for her.
I liked the astrology references throughout the book and would have liked to have seen more of that. The story itself was solid and only took me two days to finish. I liked that it was easy to follow and flowed nicely. I’m interested to see more from Amy Bartelloni!
Jade and Sera have been split up from their buddies Anyon and Malachi and the novel is told through the eyes of mainly Jade, Anyon, and a few others along the way. I believe the provincial government found the camp they had been staying at and had attacked and so the four ran off in hopes to meet up again in Atlanta at another camp. The whole novel, it is expressed that Jade is protecting Sera, Anyon had been assigned to protect her and Malachi is helping as well. I knew pretty much from the first page what Sera’s secret was.
Jade and Anyon have an affection towards each other, but I never felt it. I was waiting for that moment where I could feel how difficult it had been being apart and then reunited, and I was told, but never shown. I wanted to feel that. I wondered a lot while reading the story if that was because it was third person omniscient. I tend to gravitate to books that are written in first person and I did wonder if that was the reason I never felt their “love” for one another. I could tell they liked one another, but never felt the love.
Sera’s “powers” if you want to call it that was pretty cool. I liked that she was able to keep them out of trouble just by a simple feeling. I wondered if it had anything to do with her beginning to remember parts of her past. Out of all of the characters I think I liked Sera and Nicky the best. I liked their personalities and although brief, I really liked Nicky’s relationship with his girlfriend. I could really feel how much he cared for her.
I liked the astrology references throughout the book and would have liked to have seen more of that. The story itself was solid and only took me two days to finish. I liked that it was easy to follow and flowed nicely. I’m interested to see more from Amy Bartelloni!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 9, 2015
Originally posted here: https://heatherreviews.wordpress.com/...
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Wow. There were so many things about this book that just hooked me completely. The relationship between the characters, the post-zombie virus world, the cold, dictator. It was intense in a good way.
I was preparing myself to read a zombie book when I first read the blurb, but it was a refreshing change of pace to have the ‘zombies’ be a secondary point to the plot. I loved the villain set up – President Vise was just pure evil! Even after everything that humanity had gone through, to behave the way he does… I was just astonished by how low he went.
The relationship between Jade and Sera is such a great bond of friendship. You can see that even though they’re two different personalities, they really complement each other and work well within their survival mode. I also liked that Jade and Anyon’s relationship wasn’t a huge focal point for the plot. It was nice to see that develop as the story progressed.
The ending was a bit of a surprise to me, I wasn’t expecting it at all. I was on the edge of my seat, powering through the final chapters just so I could find out what happened. I was completely hooked!
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Wow. There were so many things about this book that just hooked me completely. The relationship between the characters, the post-zombie virus world, the cold, dictator. It was intense in a good way.
I was preparing myself to read a zombie book when I first read the blurb, but it was a refreshing change of pace to have the ‘zombies’ be a secondary point to the plot. I loved the villain set up – President Vise was just pure evil! Even after everything that humanity had gone through, to behave the way he does… I was just astonished by how low he went.
The relationship between Jade and Sera is such a great bond of friendship. You can see that even though they’re two different personalities, they really complement each other and work well within their survival mode. I also liked that Jade and Anyon’s relationship wasn’t a huge focal point for the plot. It was nice to see that develop as the story progressed.
The ending was a bit of a surprise to me, I wasn’t expecting it at all. I was on the edge of my seat, powering through the final chapters just so I could find out what happened. I was completely hooked!
August 27, 2014
I'm not big on rehashing the book in my reviews. If you want a synopsis, other reviewers have done so, or you can read the blub provided.
This is Amy's debut novel, I believe, and what a concept! Fans of YA dystopian will love this book. She does a very good job setting up this post-apocalyptic world, the new decrepit place where Jade, Sera, Anyon, and Malachi are now forced to live in since the infection, well, infected the world.
This is a series, but there's no cliffhanger (yay!), and it ties up so well that it leaves me wondering what book #2 will even be about.
It was slow in parts, but I kept turning the page because I had to know what was going on with Sera. She seemed to be the key to the whole thing, which is super cool. A tad more characterization with Sera would have been nice, though.
This book is written in 3rd person, which is both nice and not so nice. Nice because it's different anymore, where a lot of books are being written in 1st person. However, for those of us so used to 1st person, it can make it hard for the reader to connect (which isn't the authors fault in any way).
All in all, this book would make a cool movie! It was so easy to see what the characters saw and the world the author created. So, if you enjoy YA dystopian, give Andromeda a try!
This is Amy's debut novel, I believe, and what a concept! Fans of YA dystopian will love this book. She does a very good job setting up this post-apocalyptic world, the new decrepit place where Jade, Sera, Anyon, and Malachi are now forced to live in since the infection, well, infected the world.
This is a series, but there's no cliffhanger (yay!), and it ties up so well that it leaves me wondering what book #2 will even be about.
It was slow in parts, but I kept turning the page because I had to know what was going on with Sera. She seemed to be the key to the whole thing, which is super cool. A tad more characterization with Sera would have been nice, though.
This book is written in 3rd person, which is both nice and not so nice. Nice because it's different anymore, where a lot of books are being written in 1st person. However, for those of us so used to 1st person, it can make it hard for the reader to connect (which isn't the authors fault in any way).
All in all, this book would make a cool movie! It was so easy to see what the characters saw and the world the author created. So, if you enjoy YA dystopian, give Andromeda a try!
January 17, 2015
I initially found this book on a facebook page, and one-clicked it because the intriguing cover really got my attention. Right away, you enter a time just after a disease hit the human race, hard. The story follows four main characters after an attack on their previous home, where they became separated in the midst of chaos. They adventure to find a new place to call home, and hope to be reunited once there. Armed with Sera (a girl with amazing intuition) and hope of a promising future and a cure, they set off to Albany.
Amy Bartelloni does a fantastic job of posing questions throughout the books. She gives you just enough details to keep you satisfied, but also enough questions to keep you guessing what will happen next. I also have to commend her for her ability to switch between characters and places seamlessly. This allowed her to show more of each character's emotions in these trying times, and enabled the reader to gain more detail about the story-line.
The only criticism I have is that I wish there was a little more character development, and slightly more detail to paint a vivid picture in my mind. The ending felt a little bit rushed as well. That being said, I'm REALLY excited to start on Orion's Curse!
Amy Bartelloni does a fantastic job of posing questions throughout the books. She gives you just enough details to keep you satisfied, but also enough questions to keep you guessing what will happen next. I also have to commend her for her ability to switch between characters and places seamlessly. This allowed her to show more of each character's emotions in these trying times, and enabled the reader to gain more detail about the story-line.
The only criticism I have is that I wish there was a little more character development, and slightly more detail to paint a vivid picture in my mind. The ending felt a little bit rushed as well. That being said, I'm REALLY excited to start on Orion's Curse!
November 11, 2015
Eh. Maybe I didn't LOVE this one because I just finished reading "Anyone?" and they're pretty similar. Maybe I didn't LOVE it because it was just an okay story. There wasn't a lot of character development with the book relying largely on the plot, which didn't move very quickly, lacked back story, was anti-climactic, and predictable.
Honestly, it is a pretty typical teen, post-apocalyptic, girl & boy fight to survive book. Not that that's entirely a bad thing; it makes life really easy when a student LOVES one book/series to then have something else to recommend... but this story arch is starting to get a little old (in my opinion). I think the most telling thing - as far as how good the book was - is that the only reason I got the sequel is because I was able to get it free through Kindle Unlimited. I don't think I would have paid to read the second book in the series - this one just didn't leave me desperate to find out what happens next. But is was good enough that I finished it in two days, thus the three stars.
Honestly, it is a pretty typical teen, post-apocalyptic, girl & boy fight to survive book. Not that that's entirely a bad thing; it makes life really easy when a student LOVES one book/series to then have something else to recommend... but this story arch is starting to get a little old (in my opinion). I think the most telling thing - as far as how good the book was - is that the only reason I got the sequel is because I was able to get it free through Kindle Unlimited. I don't think I would have paid to read the second book in the series - this one just didn't leave me desperate to find out what happens next. But is was good enough that I finished it in two days, thus the three stars.
July 20, 2015
I am a big fan of all things Dystopian so I was quite excited to get my hands on Andromeda by Amy Bartelloni. As a natural cynic, I immediately identified with Jade and felt as though I was walking along side her and Sera as they made their perilous journey to Albany. Sera's faith and intuition served as a catalyst for Jade's reluctant hope that reaching their destination would somehow offer them safe haven. Her unrelenting drive to keep moving forward, despite the unknown made Sera lovable and balanced out Jade's cautionary view of the world.
Anyon and Malachi are traveling along in the girls' wake, determined to reach them before the Provisional Government and its head hunters can. Though they are always a step behind, neither wavers in their pursuit of the girls and getting them to safety. Their loyalty to each other is undeniable, but believable. Friendship and love are bordering states in this story. I absolutely loved how, despite the distance between them, the author was able to skillfully build an undeniable connection between Jade and Anyon. Andromeda is a great read, and I am looking forward to the next installment!
Anyon and Malachi are traveling along in the girls' wake, determined to reach them before the Provisional Government and its head hunters can. Though they are always a step behind, neither wavers in their pursuit of the girls and getting them to safety. Their loyalty to each other is undeniable, but believable. Friendship and love are bordering states in this story. I absolutely loved how, despite the distance between them, the author was able to skillfully build an undeniable connection between Jade and Anyon. Andromeda is a great read, and I am looking forward to the next installment!
September 22, 2014
Oh my word! I think everyone here knows how much I love a good dystopian by now, so sometimes my expectations get a bit high. And Amy Bartelloni soared past them, ya'll! Andromeda was a slice of wonderful that brought me back to my dystopian roots and made me feel right at home in my comfort zone.
For a debut author, I was so pleasantly surprised by the characters in this book. Very quickly on, I became so invested in the characters of Sera and Jade. The way that Amy Bartelloni develops her characters is very well done and I enjoyed seeing all of the relationships evolve and grow in Andromeda.
Can I just brag on Amy again for how amazing this book is? The concept behind Andromeda was so interesting. I've enjoyed getting lost in this book. It was a refreshing perspective on YA dystopians. I think fans of dystopians will find a new favorite with Amy Bartelloni's Andromeda!
**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.
For a debut author, I was so pleasantly surprised by the characters in this book. Very quickly on, I became so invested in the characters of Sera and Jade. The way that Amy Bartelloni develops her characters is very well done and I enjoyed seeing all of the relationships evolve and grow in Andromeda.
Can I just brag on Amy again for how amazing this book is? The concept behind Andromeda was so interesting. I've enjoyed getting lost in this book. It was a refreshing perspective on YA dystopians. I think fans of dystopians will find a new favorite with Amy Bartelloni's Andromeda!
**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.
November 26, 2014
This book was interesting enough to draw my attention, so I one-clicked it. I have had this book for a while, but was recently asked to review the second book and I figured now was as good a time as any to read the series.
I really tried to like this book, but it was difficult to read. The editing was fine, and it flowed fine for the most part, but there was no connection. The book went by too quickly, skipping through things and losing an emotional connection in the process.
The whole idea of it all was pretty interesting, which is what kept me reading, but the execution needs work. There are parts that make no sense, contradict themselves, and are just filler space. It would have been better if the author went into a little more detail on the relationships and things going on in the story. Everything just seemed too cluttered.
It needs work, but I would be willing to reread if changes are made.
2.5/5 Platypires
http://www.platypire.com/j-hooligan/a...
I really tried to like this book, but it was difficult to read. The editing was fine, and it flowed fine for the most part, but there was no connection. The book went by too quickly, skipping through things and losing an emotional connection in the process.
The whole idea of it all was pretty interesting, which is what kept me reading, but the execution needs work. There are parts that make no sense, contradict themselves, and are just filler space. It would have been better if the author went into a little more detail on the relationships and things going on in the story. Everything just seemed too cluttered.
It needs work, but I would be willing to reread if changes are made.
2.5/5 Platypires
http://www.platypire.com/j-hooligan/a...
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August 6, 2014I met Amy in a line at BEA and she was very sweet! I was quite intrigued with her book as she was telling me about it, so I made sure to follow up on it when I got back. Andromeda starts off with a very The Testing/I Am Legend feel. Jade and Sera are trying to make it to Albany, where they have agreed to meet up with friends from the government camp where they were living. We see the journey through their eyes and also through the eyes of Anyon and Malachi, who they are going to meet. The story alternates points of view between the two sets of travelers and is interspersed with flashbacks that help us learn more about these characters.
It's a very intriguing concept, but...
Read the full review on Book Nerds Across America: http://www.booknerdsacrossamerica.com...
It's a very intriguing concept, but...
Read the full review on Book Nerds Across America: http://www.booknerdsacrossamerica.com...
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