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Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick
Apr. 19th, 2012 10:31 pmThe Blurb On The Back:
”No, she thought. No, please. God. I’m not seeing this.”
Seventeen-year-old Alex is hiking through the wilderness when it happens: an earth-shattering electromagnetic pulse that destroys almost everything.
Survivors are divided between those who have developed a superhuman sense and those who have acquired a taste for human flesh. These flesh-hunters stalk the land: hungry, ruthless and increasingly clever …
Alex meets Tom, a young army veteran, and Ellie a lost girl. They will fight together and be torn apart, but Alex must face the difficult question of all: in such a vastly changed world, who can you trust?
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Ilsa J Bick’s debut YA novel mixes apocalyptic, superhero and dystopian fiction but despite some great ideas, it never really took off for me. My biggest issue was with Ellie, an 8-year-old whose selfish, unthinking behaviour triggers each plot point in the book and made me root for the cannibals to take her. However I was also disappointed by the way the plot degenerates into a set-up for yet another YA love triangle and the dystopian village in the second half has all the normal elements that I’ve seen in other books and done better. For these reasons, I’m unlikely to read on with this trilogy.
Seventeen-year-old Alex is hiking through the wilderness when it happens: an earth-shattering electromagnetic pulse that destroys almost everything.
Survivors are divided between those who have developed a superhuman sense and those who have acquired a taste for human flesh. These flesh-hunters stalk the land: hungry, ruthless and increasingly clever …
Alex meets Tom, a young army veteran, and Ellie a lost girl. They will fight together and be torn apart, but Alex must face the difficult question of all: in such a vastly changed world, who can you trust?
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Ilsa J Bick’s debut YA novel mixes apocalyptic, superhero and dystopian fiction but despite some great ideas, it never really took off for me. My biggest issue was with Ellie, an 8-year-old whose selfish, unthinking behaviour triggers each plot point in the book and made me root for the cannibals to take her. However I was also disappointed by the way the plot degenerates into a set-up for yet another YA love triangle and the dystopian village in the second half has all the normal elements that I’ve seen in other books and done better. For these reasons, I’m unlikely to read on with this trilogy.
