| Title | : | Mimi of the Nowhere (Chronicles of the Great Migration #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 144 |
| Publication | : | Published November 1, 2020 |
here.
In the bowels of the giant walking city of Manhatsten, Mimi survives, homeless, and unique as the only telepath in what’s left of humanity. Mimi has isolated herself for centuries, watching the few friends and lovers she let close die, as she endures.
Then, after decades alone with her gift, something interrupts her telepathy. She realizes she might not be alone after all. Mimi soon discovers a secret that has remained hidden since the walking cities took their first steps a thousand years ago. A secret that could cost her life, or worse.
Will she survive, or will the city ultimately recycle her?
Mimi of the Nowhere (Chronicles of the Great Migration #1) Reviews
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Mimi of the Nowhere was a top ten finalist in the 2020 Author Elite Best Sci-fi of the year contest!
Editorial Reviews for Mimi of the Nowhere:
This book presents an engaging twist on a post-apocalyptic world... The novel offers an authentic representation of the lives of the homeless; a thoughtful look at the horrors of advanced technology; and a fresh take on psychic beings fighting for the world's welfare. Protagonist Mimi is so human and sympathetic that the reader will feel immediately invested in her substantial evolution.
- Publishers Weekly Booklife Prize Annual Contest -
Disclaimer: The author is a friend and literally handed me three books in three series so far.
I didn't like this as much as I wanted to. Saying it was too short is shallow, but I think it was far too short to accomplish everything it needed to.
The concept is great. Walking cities after a climate catastrophe and women who have different telepathic powers? Yes! That's awesome and unique. That the main character is also LGBTQ is a plus, and she's homeless, so another plus in my book. This is all setup for something that could have been one of my favorite books.
However, the plot rushes along and we're at the end just as we're getting established on the world. The city of Manhatsten is never really established as a unique setting. It feels like any generic city, to me. Even the sort of, post apocalyptic setting doesn't get much description, making the overall strong rather bland.
A lot of the dialogue is stilted, or otherwise didn't read right to me. A lot of it was stuff I couldn't picture anyone ever saying. There was confusion during several scenes of multiple characters speaking with no dialogue tags. Also, there aren't a lot of actions during dialogue segments, the little mannerisms or character quirks that subtly convey character, so the characters weren't as well-defined or differentiated as they could have been.
That said, it was an enjoyable read, because of the thriller like pace and good tension in the latter third.
I think this is a decent first book with a lot of potential. The other two books are at least twice as long as this one, so I hope the pace is a little slower and we really get to learn about the setting and characters. -
I have to admit, this book had me gripped from the first page. I love the world the author has created, a dystopia reminiscent of The Mortal Engine meets City of Ember.
It has all the elements to draw a reader in. Great world building(though as one of the other reviews mentions, I would have preferred a bit more description of the walking cities and the outside world, the reasons behind the great migration, etc, which is the ONLY reason this isn't a solid 5-star review).
I loved Mimi, a seemingly downtrodden nobody from literally nowhere. And the foreshadowing of a battle between good and evil is enough to have me jumping right into the next book. -
Fun read!
Loved the premise - dystopian, lesbians, mind readers, moving cities, and kick a$$ women saving the day!
You buy into the main character and want to know more about her past and how you can make her happy. -
A walking city?
Cities that get up and move around! What a best concept! I want to know the whole back story of this! Why would you need to move a complete city and not just dome it from the world.
And then you mix in some kind of witches? Wow! What will we read about next? -
Really, I want to give this one a 4.5. One day we'll be able to leave 1/2 stars, maybe.
Mimi is a fascinating character who is living in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian world in our far future. Her city of Manhasten walks and wanders the world, trying to avoid other cities and trying to find the necessary resources that the city needs. Manhasten has a pretty strict class system, but as a homeless and one of the people who call the Nowhere home, she's outside that system.
Mimi has lived for centuries upon centuries, trying to stay hidden and alive, and trying to hide the fact that she can skim minds and get information that way. She's had lovers, but the relationships always end badly, especially if she tells them the truth, but now she has Shannon, and she loves her.
Poor Mimi, I can't imagine living your entire life watching the people you love die. She lives lies so that she doesn't lose her lovers too early, but it still doesn't last for long.
It's a fascinating world with an interesting story that I'm excited to continue to read. -
I just finished Kilmans first book in his series. As a newbie to this genre, I was immediately pulled in by the scarred complexity of the main character, Mimi. I found myself rooting for her at every turn of the page. Just started his second book!
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This is a heck of a start to a series. I picked it up just intending to read a little bit tonight and steamed right through to the end. Gripping, engaging, and rich. Extremely nice.
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This review first appeared on scifiandscary.com - copy provided by the author for review consideration
‘Mimi of the Nowhere’ is a book with an intriguing concept that feels like it could have been great. Unfortunately, for some reason it didn’t click with me at all. The setting is a far future dystopia where giant walking cities wander the land. Deep within one of them a woman, Mimi, lives with her lover. Mimi is a discarded person, not cared about by the wealthy city rulers. As the book progresses it becomes obvious that she has powers that will help her fight for the rights of others like herself.
If it sounds like a cross between lots of dystopian anime and YA novels that’s because that’s how it comes across. I don’t have an issue with it being a bit familiar, in fact I think it could have been really good. There are two things that prevent that, in my opinion anyway:
Firstly, the grandeur of the walking cities is never apparent. They sound really cool, but they’re never described in a way that makes them come to life. I can imagine a giant walking city, but I don’t want to have to do that. I want the author to tell me about it, to lay out the details of why it’s so awesome. That just never happened.
Secondly, I wasn’t engaged by the characters at all. Mimi, who it turns out is hundreds of years old, is intriguing in some ways, but I never cared about her or what happened to her. As a result the book felt like a bit of a slog, even though it’s very short.
I always worry, with books that make me feel like this, that I’m missing something. Certainly ‘Mimi of the Nowhere’ has its fans on GoodReads, so maybe in this case I am. It’s the first in a series of novellas, and the synopses for the next two books make it sound like the concepts of the first are developed interestingly. If the idea of it appeals to you, it might be worth you giving it a try. I’m afraid I’ll be stopping with this one, though. -
I'll admit was a little hesitant to read this book, as I'm not that much into sci-fi. I mostly read young adult fantasy and fiction, but this book really got me hooked. I loved Mimi and the way she dealt with loss and pain after so many years of life. I enjoyed the slow introduction into this future world, and the way the author wrote diverse characters. I became hooked, and wanted to learn more about this world and its characters. Would recommend!
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Actual rating 2.5.
An odd book. The quality of the writing suggests a first time author, as it skips around a bit. Still the story it is trying to convey is interesting. I don’t think I’ll be chasing the sequel/s though. -
It was okay, but nothing special. I liked the mind reading, but the story didn't really do it for me, and I'm not quite sure why.
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Interesting storyline and read
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Mimi is compelling and sympathetic character. The post apocalyptic setting is wonderfully described. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series
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Fascinating story - well written with genuine characters and a story idea that is unlike any that I have read before. I will be reading more from this author. Highly recommend!
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I was given an advanced copy for review of this book, and all I can say is that I am so glad I had the opportunity to be one of the very first readers of this book. Now, I'm a self-proclaimed hard-to-please reader. There are more books that I've "started" reading than books I've actually finished. For me, a book must possess certain qualities to keep my attention. I have to become attached to the character. There has to be building action, uncertainty and a storyline that keeps me asking questions in a way that it keeps me reading to find out. It has to be beautifully written with just the right amount of poetic meter in its metaphors. "Mimi of the Nowhere" has all of these qualities.
The book starts with action and does not stop, sweeping us into a world so far into the future it's almost difficult to imagine. We meet Mimi, the heroine of our story and almost immediatley fall in love. We feel for her. Want to see her succeed. The author, Michael Kilman, manages to create a harrowing post apocalyptic landscape infused with just enough danger, magic and intrigue that makes the reader almost as nervous to navigate it as the main characters.
I could easily see this book becoming a movie in the future. My only complaint is now that I've finished it, I want to read more! -
I really enjoyed this story and the dystopian world being presented here. The characters and plot are both engaging and I'm looking forward to the next book to see how the story progresses. Recommend.
