| Title | : | Ravenous |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | ebook |
| Number of Pages | : | - |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2013 |
Alt Cover ISBN 13: 9780991957101
Overpopulation throttles the world’s food supply. In 2050, the government of the Americas introduces the Food Crisis Act—new measures that create a system for growing and rationing food.
Calla Ryan is pretty much your average teen, except for enduring hunger every day of her life. One morning, new sensors at her high school determine that she exceeds the weight limit of the State, and they send her north to a “fat camp” or re-education centre.
Calla begins to realize the centre holds many secrets. Her counsellor dies mysteriously, and new shipments of recruits are the picture of health. Finally, Calla becomes a guinea pig for a dangerous lab experiment.
On the outside, a virus that began overseas has now made its way to the Americas with deadly consequences.
Calla must run from her captors, escaping to the far north with help from the facility’s chef and fellow inmates Billy and Madge. And to complicate things, the infected are very hungry.
Ravenous Reviews
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I received an e-copy of this book, free of charge, in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Brief Summary: The story takes place in 2050. The world's population has reached 16 billion people and resources are scarce. The three countries in North America are consolidated into one country. Food, among other things, are rationed and controlled by the government. Obesity related illnesses are eliminated as well as other diseases such as STDs and AIDS. As a result of people living healthier and longer lives, measurements are taken to control population growth. Birth control implants are required for teenaged girls. A virus is developed and deployed in developing countries to kill off some of the population. However, the virus mutates and has migrated to other regions of the world. People infected in the later stages of the virus become living zombies (lombies) who fight and kill.
Calla Ryan is a teenaged girl who is carted off by the authorities to a Wellness Center for reeducation about obesity and food. She learns that she, as well as all the new recruits, are not there because they are above the weight as dictated by the government but for antiviral research trials conducted unknowingly on healthy children. As recruits die, Calla survives and develops antibodies of the virus and becomes immune.
She escapes the Wellness Center and finds herself in an isolated aboriginal and autonomous community. She develops close relationships with the escapees and the community leaders and helps them develop a vaccination against the virus.
What I liked about the book: The dystopian plot is an interesting one. It relates to real concerns about what can happen if there is exponential population growth around the world and the scarcity of resources. Calla is a strong character with good values and a kind heart. I also enjoyed the play on words with the title of the book. Raven as in the colour of Calla's hair and ravenous as in hungry as Calla and most of the citizens in this book were almost always hungry.
What I didn't like about the book: Calla is not only immune but she is also immortal? Yet this is not explored any further than a statement of fact from her dying mother before the antiviral serum is injected. I think this bothered me most about the book. Chapter titles - interesting but were they really necessary? It was difficult to reference chapter to chapter because of the names.
The verdict: An entertaining and interesting read, especially for teenaged girls who enjoy the dystopian genre. I do hope there is a sequel.
Note to author (posted on Goodreads only): There is substantial opportunity to grow what you have planted in terms of the plot. What type of government and/or political structure is there? How do citizens feel about it? How is the economy, since food/agriculture has changed and there is virtually no need for a pharmaceutical industry? Is the world more technologically advanced because it's 2050 or has the world been thrown back into a pre-industrial-like era? Who are these aboriginal people? Are they related to the Metis/Iroquois or other tribe nations of today? The children taken away from the aboriginals during the treaty because the American government felt they were not fit to raise them yet they have an overwhelming concern with overpopulation - are there any other reasons why they took the children? If the aboriginals were deemed unfit for parenting, why were they allowed to continue to procreate? Were there other ethnic groups who had the same experience? Does the government punish/penalize the parents of the children who are sent away for reeducation?
Who tattooed Calla and the other children and for what future purpose? If you haven't read Birthmarked by O'Brien, I highly recommend. Some of the children were tattooed with what looked like a birthmark as a way to keep track of the newborns who were forced to be given up. Children were "adopted" into the elite because they could not have children of their own. Perhaps the government in your story knew in advance that the children of the aboriginal people were unique in some way that could benefit them in the future? The tattoos were a way for the aboriginals to reclaim their children in the future?
Regarding the "lombies", do they kill each other off similar to the original virus trials or does the mutation of the virus also affect them as well? Before Calla and Billy boarded the helicopter to Thunder Bay, the "thousands of lombies" appeared to be attacking the van and its contents but not each other. Your "lombies" reminded me of The Maze Runner series, The Scorch Trials specifically and the virus reminded me of Monument 14 (as a reference if you haven't read these books).
Thanks so much for letting me read and review your book! -
This review is also posted on my blog at:
Thoughts and Pens
Note: A free copy was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to read and review.
HA.HA.HA. to the power of Bajillion.
That’s how I laughed every time I flipped a page of Ravenous. The whole thing was ridiculous and I couldn’t quite summon any liking for every element that the book has. Ravenous is set in a future where food shortage has become a critical problem and the government has to put in place stringent measures in controlling the food intake of every citizen. Once a citizen is found out to be overweight, he/she will be immediately endorsed to a Wellness Facility to shed off the excess weight. Unfortunately, our heroine, 17-year old Calla Ryan became one of those citizens. While staying on the Wellness facility, Calla gradually discovered the horrors the facility have been secretly keeping.
When I first read the synopsis of Ravenous, I was immediately hooked and raised my hands to get a free copy to review. Being a food enthusiast, my curiosity was really piqued because I could never imagine the future with food being so controlled. One of my mottos in life is “Live to Eat” and not the other way around. Having said that, there’s no way for me not to read this book and see how the author would scare the hell out of me. Obviously, I was surprised that the opposite had happened. It entertained me to the point that I just couldn’t stop laughing. Maybe not the way the author intended it to be. Nonetheless, I was highly entertained.
Ravenous’ beginning was slightly okay. But as the story advanced, it was glaringly simplistic with so little twists at all. The scenes weren’t that engaging and lacked solid foundation. There were even unnecessary minor info dumps here and there. The lengthy explanation about the bread making and the mushroom really made my day. I felt that the book was competing against a cookbook and “How to Propagate a Mushroom” book. Plus, I understand that Ravenous is all about food but I wasn’t prepared that it’ll go out of its way to highlight a lot of menus and from what crops they’re made of. Every time I read about those, I find myself staring at my laptop screen and check if the book isn’t something straight from the Agriculture bookshop. Or from the Cooking section of our local bookstore.
Next, we have the shoddy characters. No one, not even our hero Calla Ryan is spared from being the typical, boring doormat. Madge, Billy, Chef, Daniel, Marnie, Caleb, Chef and even the villains comprised of Dieter and Robert are all as flat as 1D. I can’t even hate them…. What for? You can’t hate mindless and emotionless robots let alone those good ol’ doormats.
Another thing that set me laughing about Ravenous is the romance. The power of instalove is sooo amazing, it’s irresistible. It was even crudely done. Calla didn’t really notice Billy until she was told that the latter is giving her the eyes. Suddenly, Calla was all over him and then the innuendos came as fast as lightning. Seriously?! After they escaped the facility, they took refuge in one of the Northern villages and there, they said I love you to each other all of a sudden. There was no transition, no subtle hints. Where did that even come from?
Ravenous has a lot of potential but the execution was a total… I can’t even. *sighs irritably* The conflict was resolved so easily like it was just a walk in a park. And that mystery about Calla’s birth, it was sooo meeehh. Instead of getting awed, I found myself rolling my eyes heavenward and beg for some salvation from this book. And that ending, it was absolutely as relaxing as counting from 1-5.
1 star for managing to make me laugh. -
When I read the synopsis for Ravenous I was thrilled to get my hands on a copy. It had a dystopian feel since it is set in the future where food is rationed because the population is out of control. Sounds feasible, right? Well, Calla the main character is sent to the "Health and Wellness Facility aka Fat Farm" which after being there for a while she and a few others begin to believe it more than just that. Calla is subjected to testing when she and the others learn that a virus has turned millions of people into "Lombies". It's an interesting take on the zombie idea, but it is definitely not a zombie book, I think..... At least it isn't a traditional zombie book. No gore, people could still communicate, etc. As the story continues the teens learn more about what the government that has rationed their food for so long is up to, and how they fit into these plans. I think the idea that Loney had a good idea with her original plotline, and it goes much deeper than just a government that's rationing food and poisoning people.
However, I found the book to just skim the surface of the characters, the world building, and the plot. Although, I think the plot will pick up quickly in the next book. What draws me into a book is the characters. Are they funny, brave, klutzy, smart, etc.. In Ravenous I didn't get a feel for the characters much at all. Their personalities were 2-dimensional IMO. I think part of that is because Loney doesn't share their internal dialogue. That's one of the things that I like most about 1st person POV, you can have access to a character's internal dialogue which helps you to connect with them. In this book there was very little of that, probably less than 5%. Other authors will rely on the dialogue to reel you into the world and the characters perspectives, unfortunately this didn't happen either. As a result I just wasn't invested in the characters that much. I couldn't picture them in my head and feel as if I had been transported to a world where food is rationed and BMI monitors are normal for schools. A lot of the book is narrative; both descriptions of clothing and even actions. For example, "When Daniel comes back, he asks us to come up to his house for dinner as he's made new sleeping arrangements for us." It's a description of the action taking place, but not a dialogue or an actual action. This might not bother some people at all, but it perpetually threw me out of Calla's world and back into my own.
On the positive side, the pace and action as well as dialogue picked up immensely around pg 140 (on my iPad). Granted, it did slow down again once people were back in the country; and the book ended on pg 186, so there wasn't an immense time period of action/dialogue but it shows Loney's capability. I think that if Loney continues to dig deep into her characters and expresses their thoughts more frequently and uses the same techniques she did in the last 15% of the book (the Hospital/Lab scene) that she'll really strengthen the reader's connection to her characters and their world. Also, utilizing action verbs and cutting down on some of the overall narrative will help with smoothing the flow of the book. I think this is an interesting idea, and I would like to see where she goes with it. Be aware that Loney is Canadian, so a few of the words are spelled differently but are not typos. The book seemed to be well proof-read and I didn't pick up on any true grammatical mistakes. -
I received this book for free from librarything.com member giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
I knew I wanted to read this book since the moment I read the synopsis of it. I really liked the idea of overpopulation and "punishing" or "correcting" the fat kids. The book was entertaining and didn't disappoint me till the moment where zombies-lombies appeared. To my mind it was just a little bit too much and the book would gain more from sticking to it's original plot including virus experiments. However it wasn't something that would totally spook me off. I just tried not to pay attention to those creatures and not to ask questions.
I also liked the characters. On the one hand they weren't too developed and it wasn't like I cared and felt for them through and through. On the other hand it was good that the characters were ordinary kids with normal emotions and reactions to the things. Unlike in others kid-heros books they were afraid when they should be and not rarely they doings were based on emotions not strong logic, the things that happened influenced them and played a role in their future actions. I really appreciated them not being mere cyborgs.
There were some funny things included in the book. I liked the idea about us being in relationships with the food. I think it is more or less true for almost all of us. I laughed about the dialog where Billy and Calla were discussing Calla being fond of Robert. When Billy is teasing the girl about being in love with her mentor twice her age, she responds: “His socks? They go up practically to his knees. There's no way he lives with a woman, otherwise she'd never let him leave the house looking that way.” At this point I could imagine Robert in front of my eyes very vividly. I could just hope that more statements like this were included about other characters too.
What I didn't like about the book was, first of all, story about lombies, romance part and world development.
I think that romance part should be left out or developed strongly. Insta-love was off topic - I saw him, I vomited on his shoes, he fell in love with me instantly and finally I got pregnant. Really? It just don't work that way. It's not even romantic.
World development was flat. I liked the concept of it but I would like to be thrown into the environment, feel it, smell it, touch it and sense it. Instead I was just given a vague impression of what's its like to live in the overpopulated world in the future.
However I am interested in reading the second book. -
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Books For YA!
Resident Evil meets Abduction, in this fast-paced dystopian novel full of mystery and government conspiracy. It's a very exciting sci-fi thriller that is worth checking out.
The world's population has doubled and was threatening the supply for food and the health of the citizens of Americas. That's why Food Crisis Act of 2050 was created to monitor the production, ration and consumption of every citizen. But it still doesn't solve the overpopulation. And a few people decided that they needed to take the matters into their own hands. They secretly created a virus called Vorax mortuus, which turned people into living zombies or what Madge called Lombies. Now the world is at stake for the virus has mutated and spreading like wildfire.
Enter Calla Ryan, a picture of health. But when a new sensor was put into their school, it detected that she's somewhat overweight and she was sent to a facility for health and wellness up north. After a few days of stay, she and her other two companion, Madge and Billy, figured out that there's something strange going on. And Calla soon found out what it was, the hard way.
This was a really pleasant surprise! I didn't expect to love it this much. The story was intriguing and I love how the author started the book with a bang (or should I say, BOOM!). That first chapter really captured my full-attention and I got to tell you, only a few books could do that to me. The romance was okay, still has a lot more of room for improvement. But the action and mystery was really entertaining.
The characters were simple, normal and uncomplicated yet they were not one-dimensional. Calla was easy to relate with. She's not a strong girl but she learned how to be strong in order for her to save her parents and for her to survived. She was rational and not annoying that's why I like her.
Overall, this was a good read. I would definitely recommend it to all dystopian and zombie lovers out there. -
I received a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Conceptually, I liked this book. I think the aspect of the societal movement toward forced weight loss, public shaming for even slight weight deviations, and public school monitoring and retraining of eating habits despite parental desire is an apt topic to address and to include in a novel written at this precise moment in American history. There is currently debate raging about so-called "fat letters" being sent to parents of elementary school students detailing just how overweight a student is...how apropos. (My social commentary for the day)
Anyhow, I like that the author takes the zombie concept, pulls out what is useful for her purposes and offers up a scientific explanation for the "zombie-esque" behavior. This is similar to other zombie stories I've read and observed on TV and in movies.
The main weaknesses I see in the story are in the telling, not so much in the concept. This story would have done well to have a few more impartial critiques read and suggest revisions prior to the self-publishing.
In summary:
Ravenous offers an interesting take on zombie lore and incorporates societal elements that speak to the times. While character development may be somewhat weak and contrived, plot points are stronger and carry the reader on an interesting ride. -
Great concept, terrible book. The story starts with the idea that, in this world, food is scarce and thus everyone is monitored to make sure they have an acceptable BMI. Those who are over are shipped off to a fat camp. Our story begins with two girls who aren't over being shipped away. (Given that the story also talks about a man, who at 160 was unacceptably obese, their standards are more than a little skewed.)
So we've got an intriguing dystopian fic going on. That meanders on for a while, but then people start disappearing from the fat camp and we learn that they've been experimented on and died from it. Okay, I guess that makes sense.
But then -- zombies attack!
At this point, I've gotten the idea that the author has no idea how to plot a book and just throws something new out whenever faced with a plothole or a scene she can't resolve. This is born out by more of the same -- things just happening for no apparent reason. The end of the book comes about in just the same way, leaving me underwhelmed.
If you've got a great concept, then bloody well stick to it and *plan* what's going to happen in a consistent, logical manner. The firehose approach works on fires, not to create artwork.
I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. -
I was given this book free for review. If it wasn't for that and a fascinating plot, and characters I cared about, I would have not finished reading it.
If there is one thing for sure, that drew me in, I love dystopia books. Not fond of zombies, oops, lombies. (Still not sure where that come from.)
Then I am a frustrated greenhorn farmer living in an apartment, so reading about the commune type living was a welcome relief.
Try as I might, I couldn't get past the present tense method of presenting the story. It didn't, as it sometimes does, make the story more gripping. In fact, I felt, it made the characters seem self absorbed, even conceded. I don't think that was the author's intent. And then, at the end, it changed suddenly as we learned of Madge's recent history. Once I was used to being in Madge's mind I wishrd the story had included her more as she had a sort of toughness that Calla didn't show.
As a maternal person, I was glad to see the attitudes of sex and protection, etc. Good things, I think, for young adults to read.
The sequel is still calling to me as I long to see what happens with everyone. I bet the author's writing has improved. I look forward to seeing more.
Thank you for letting me read your book, Heidi Loney. -
Ravenous is dystopian literature at its best, the characters live within a society that acts as the Antagonist. Living conditions seem unbearable for its citizens due to overpopulation, an unbearable climate, the short supply of food and oppression enacted upon by the government of Americas causing the loss of civil liberties.
Cousins, Laurel then Calla end up into the same fat camp as scanners classed them as having BMI above 19. Laurel informs her cousin about what has been transpiring but Calla doesn’t wake up to the idea until Laurel goes missing.
Just after her 17th birthday, Calla is called to the infirmary and the experience there sets the tone of what lay ahead and left me bewildered yet excited to read on in the hopes of her survival and that of her friends & family.
The built in tension made the novel a compelling read and many scenes such as at the infirmary, of the infected and that of Daniel & his family were unforgettable, moving & thought provoking. I highly recommend this book to enthusiasts of dystopian literature, as its unique & thrilling plot is sure to please. -
Ravenous is an apocalyptic type book set in the future. The worlds food has significantly reduced and fat humans are outlawed and are forced to go to fat camps for re-eduction. But the camps are not all what they seem. With genetically produced virus's to cull the world population one girl and her friends must try to stop the global pandemic. With the virus aready spreading across the world it mutates and transfroms infected into Lombies not alive but not quite dead, they eat all in there path from plants and food stores to what every they can catch.
This is a high paced entertaining novel with nice characters and an excellent plot. Short and easy to read. My only fault would be, needed a little more Lombie action, but with the release of a second part in january 2014 Im sure Heidi will increase this area??????
Well worth reading.
5***** -
This was a very interesting book. I don't think I have ever read a book quite like this one. At the beginning I was a bit confused about what was going on with Dieter Baxman. But that was what kept me reading. I wanted to find out what was going on. The lies and deceit also made it juicy and thrilling. There was also danger which added suspense to the book. I loved the characters in the book. The emotions were so strong it was as though I was feeling what they were feeling. There were many unexpected twists and turns to the book as well. But you need that in a book to keep people reading. I really liked this book. Definitely read it.
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[Heidi Loney] has written an exciting ride in [Ravenous]. The idea of student's being sent to a 'fat farm' is very much like something Orwell would come up with. The fact that they keep disappearing makes for an interesting twist.
I loved the use of the First Nation's and that they were the people to survive. The message that if you respect the land the land will take care of you and the same goes for people. The pace was good throughout the book and I am looking forward to reading [Ancestors] the second book. I want to continue this journey. -
This book was good. It isn't every day I read a book where there's no countries and people get sent away for being overweight of any sort. It was a decent story, I'd recommend it to anyone intereted.
*won on GoodReads First Reads* -
Get your FREE download of RAVENOUS - 2nd edition at KOBO:
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebo...
ANCESTOR, the sequel to RAVENOUS, coming in 2015. -
Started at a 3… went to a 2… and the ending???? Huh? Lol 1 star
The fact that chef out of nooo where is this like fbi dude LOL HUH??? Make it make sense. It was all too convenient and also not enough build up or lead up to a reveal like that 😂
Characters felt so flat. I liked the idea of the story. -
I lot of things in this tale didn't make sense. One was Robert, one day he's a gardener and the next he's some bad-ass military guy running the show? Never mind he told Calla he was the one who told them to test her next. Again, he was a gardener! The mark on her arm is never explained or the comment the guard said while riding in the car. The book is full of innuendos that are quickly dropped. Why mention them?
There are a lot of errors throughout and sentences that make no sense or contradict what the character or scene is trying to impart. Wrong word usage litters the pages. The world building could definitely be improved. It's confusing. There was a war or is a war? Not clear. The government controls everything including a person's weight. We never learn who the government is exactly or who is at war. The further into the story the reader gets the more the plot unravels to read like a first draft. The chapters are titled with words from another language but the author never explains why or what language. The same happens in the story when Calls meets a group of people. They are never named nor is their existence of why the government leaves them alone ever revealed. This book needed a lot more work before it was published.
I can't find the second book but after reading the synopsis for it, that is possibly a good thing. It seemed as if the story was ready to jump into the realm of sublimely ridiculous and turn from dystopian to paranormal. -
I was given this book to read and review and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised; It was quite good!
So this is a dystopian book which follows Calla Ryan who is sent away to fat camp. Although at fat camp nobody is actually fat and they are all pretty healthy. This soon raises suspicions which is complicated by her counsellor mysteriously dying. Calla then becomes the guinea pig in a new experiment and her and her friends, Madge and Billy, must run away to escape the deadly virus, and those affected by it.
I only rated this a 3 stars but I was torn between a 3 and a 4. The reason I couldn't give it a four was because some things weren't fully explained and a statement would be made and then it'd move on to a new topic without giving an explanation for the statement. I'm not sure whether these statements will be explained as the series progresses but it just annoyed me a little bit while reading this.
In conclusion, I think this book was actually pretty awesome. The characters were good, I thought our main protagonist, Calla, was very courageous and I admired her. I also loved the storyline, it kept me very intrigued and eager to read more. Furthermore, the writing style was okay but not amazing so perhaps that could be improved and I also have lots of questions that were not answered in this book, so I will have to continue reading the series, when the books are released, so I receive answers. Overall I would recommend this to you if you want a dystopian young adult novel to read because I did enjoy it and if you're intrigued by the synopsis then you should definitely pick it up! :) -
I got this book from the author, free of cost, in exchange of an honest review from my side!
This story line is set in our near future (in 2050) where due to extreme population explosion the food scarcity has rose to great heights. The government has enforced a new act (Food Crisis Act) to keep a check on the food consumption; huge importance is given to recycling everything into compost and rationing the food.
The protagonist of the story, a mere teenager Calla Ryan’s known world changes when she is marked as overweight by her school sensors and gets shipped to a health check facility in the north and she becomes the witness of a terrible conspiracy which she would have missed if it would have been in her hands, but unfortunately she unravels the hidden secret of a virus (Vorax mortuus) which has the potential to turn humans into deadly zombies!
The story is good but I cannot say that it’s great, the characters could have been flourished and the language could have been enriched as well, it was confusing at certain times which tuned out my excitement. It’s good enough to give it a shot, so go for it and try it out who knows it can be the best dystopian novel you ever read, after all the reviews vary from man to man.
Overall a good start hope that it would transform into a great and awesome sequel and the good points would outweigh the bad points totally.
Thanks a ton Heidi Loney for this great opportunity and hope that I would be able to review your next novel as well. Looking forward to it! -
I would like to thank the author for gifting me this book for a honest review.
The year is 2050 and we are introduced to Calla a young girl, who preety much lives day to day hungry. The world is very different now, people can only eat certain foods and can only have certain amounts of foods. You must weigh a certain weight. One day at school Calla fails the weight check and is sent to a center or Fat Camp, as people referred to it, where they help you watch your weight. The problem is Calla is not over weight and none of the other teens are over weight. Things are not what they seem in this camp. Calla is called in to the nurses office and is told she is not up to date on her shots, as soon as she gets this shot, Calla gets very sick, with fever. The doctors are experimenting on these kids, that makes you very sick. Theres this outbreak or mutation of some virus, people are dying and some are turning zombie like and are very agressive. With help of her friends Billy, Madge and Chef they are able to escape this camp.
This book was very different, I like zombie/dystopian type books, but I felt it was missing something, I needed more zombies maybe? I felt alot of things got left unanswered for us. If this becomes a series, I think theres alot of potential. While I enjoyed Callas character, I couldn't get into all the characters. It was hard to read how they were feeling. It was lacking. Billy seemed like a great guy, but felt like it was lacking. I needed more. -
I was given a copy of this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion.
Ravenous tells the story of Calla Ryan, an average teenager living in a world where overpopulation has put a huge strain on the world's food supply. Food is rationed and everything is recycled into compost to grow more food. People are monitored to make sure their weight does not get above an acceptable level. One day, her school's sensors determine that Calla weighs too much, so she's taken to a "fat farm" to learn to manage her weight. She discovers things aren't as they see and must try to escape.
I really liked the idea behind this story. It sounded interesting and pretty unique. However, while I did like it, I don't think it was as good as it could be. I thought the writing was a little choppy. The story didn't flow as well as it should have. The differing viewpoints also bothered me. The story follows Calla in first-person, but at times it switches to third-person and follows another character. This was confusing and a little annoying. I don't generally like when the point-of-view changes, so I didn't care much for this at all. Also, while I really REALLY like plenty of background into what made the world the way it is, I didn't like the way this information was written here. The transition from the main story to background seemed way too sudden. It didn't really seem to fit into the story. I am glad to get so much information, though.
Overall, Ravenous wasn't a bad read. I think the author shows promise, and I really like the idea behind this series. -
Ravenous (Ancestor, #1) by Heidi Loney
Format: PDF, given to review by author
Review: The book starts out with a scientific experiment gone wrong and the cover up. Fast forward years later and we have the virus, food sanctioning in the conjoined Americans, and Calla’s restricted life.
The first potion of the book does a good job of setting up the scene and problems plaguing the world and the governments’ struggles to keep with the demand of the population spurt. The book starts to get a little foggy after Callas detainment to the “fat camp”, friendship with Madge, and relationships thing with Billy.
The general plotline of the book and sequence of events leading to their escape and new home are fairly easy to follow...after that I got confused with the flow of the book. I feel if the author had threaded more of Calla’s possible history and had more descriptions and explanations of the civilizations that evolved before the plague, the book would have been a bit easier to follow and not so choppy. The very end of the novel regarding Madge and her love interest completely baffled me. It left me ending the novel with a question mark, wondering why this wasn’t blended into the story, rather than left for a puzzling ending.
Still a good and easy read. I would recommend this novel for the younger age group okay with some elements of sex and violence.
I was given a copy of this book for free in return for an honest review. This in no way affected my opinion. -
I enjoyed the story and writing style of this book. The story has an interesting concept. In the future, North America has become one country and the government has control over what people eat. Meat is no longer an option and grains are a main staple. The children are on a weight limit and if they go over that weight they get sent to a "fat camp" to lose the extra weight. I find this whole concept new and fascinating, mostly because the kids are nowhere near overweight. Also added on to all this constriction, there is a deadly virus going around.
The characters are a little dull, but not horrible. Calla is the main character, who gets sent to fat camp after the alarms go off on the new detector at her school. We don't get to learn much about Calla, let alone the rest of the characters. I think this is because the book is slow paced and detail oriented in regards to the scene instead of the characters. I'm hoping the second book will get more into depth with each character.
Overall I really liked the story and I will definitely read the next book. -
Ravenous is the debut novel of a promising author. It is set 100 years into the future, at a time when North America has become a single country - no more Canada, USA or Mexico. Food supplies are short, and the population is booming. Overweight children are sent by the government to fat camps for reeducation on their relationships with food. When Calla is sent to fat camp, she finds out it is not only the fat kids who've been sent there, and something is very wrong.
Meanwhile a virus has spread throughout the world, and hoards of starving "living zombies" - or lombies - are roaming the streets.
This is a YA dystopian novel that feels primarily as though written for a younger audience, although it does contain some mature content. I liked the plot, but found the writing style a bit too simplistic for my tastes.
Heidi Loney, has a great imagination and a ton of potential. Keep an eye on this author and her coming works. -
I gave this one star. Partly because Goodreads requires it, and partly because this is a good concept. But it was terrible. To begin, this is a middle-grade book, at best. Anyone over the age of twelve is not the target audience for it. The character is a moron. There is no other way to put it. And the insta-love is like a parody, it is just so laughable. Also, so much of this book makes absolutely no sense, for example, they don't eat "animal products" anymore--such a common thing that our main character makes a comment about how awful that would be...but all the farms have animals, and when it is convenient, they eat meat and eggs, etc. Also, the timeline is off. One day she's at home, the next she's talking about her newfound companions and doesn't even remember her parents. There are glaring consistency issues, terrible characters, annoying dialogue attempts...it was just bad. I am upset that I wasted money on it.
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I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, and boy do I have one.
When I read the summary of this book I had high hopes, but my hopes were quickly dashed.
I couldn't find much of a plot other than the world is over populated, being super skinny is right (which I found to be a horrible message to include), and that the main character is different.
The pace was just too fast for me & lacked the details I crave in a novel, the characters weren't very developed & I found it all oddly confusing, especially since the story changed point of view too often & without any warning.
Plus, at the end there's a short story on how Madge got pregnant which I found to be unneeded, but maybe it comes up in the second novel.
All in all, I didn't enjoy this novel & will not be reading the sequel -
This is a well written book with an interesting story line. I liked the characters, but didn't feel like they were fully developed. They felt really distant, so it was hard to connect to them. Even though I liked the story, the entire "Village" section felt like an entirely different story to the main plot line. I understand why the "Village" section was in the book, but instead of it adding to the main story line, it felt distracting. Even though I liked it, I didn't feel like it was the most original story.
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*I recieved a copy of this from the author for an honest review.
I honestly just couldn't do it. this is not my cup of tea at all... I don't want to say to much, as my mamma said if you don't have nothing nice to say don't say anything at all...
To the point, the writing was off, the dialogue blah, and storyline not grasping enough. As a dystopian fan I was dissapointed. -
I got this book from the author to review it and I would say overall, I liked it. I think the story is a good idea, though there were parts I wish were fleshed out a bit more. The book would definitely have been immensely helped by better editing, but an interesting idea.
