"What had promise was quickly ruined by a selfish, whiny, entitled protagonist who wants what she wants and she doesn't care who she has to step on or hurt to get it."Pros: An interesting concept and the twist at the end was moderately surprising.
Cons: Lalla is an obnoxious, spoiled, selfish brat.
***Spoiler Alert***
Full Review:
Lallage, or Lalla, was born at the end of the world. The economy collapsed as she grew and the world around her became a war zone, a cemetery and a lawless Hell while she learned to walk, talk and read. And through all of this chaos, she was kept relatively safe. Her Father had invented the Dove, similar to the Cloud, where those with ID Cards can be tracked, given food rations etc.
And while each passes and the world gets worse, Lalla begins to hear her parents talking of a ship. She remembers people coming to their London flat, wondering who they were and how her Father would be gone for long stretches, weeks at a time. But on her 16th birthday, she finds out why.
Her father is insistent that they leave now and though her Mother is hesitant, a tragic accident forces them to flee and without any time to process what is actually happening, Lalla finds herself aboard the much talked about ship and must adapt to a world and a way of life she never knew or thought possible.
As the days on the ship turn into weeks and then to months, Lalla realizes the vastness of the ships bounty. She is shown the food stores and knows they will never starve. And she begins to wonder if what her Father has done was out of the goodness of his heart or if it was selfish. He has so much food while the others left behind in London are starving and dying.
Lalla's Father starts to insist that all those on the Ship refuse to look back. That they stop mourning what they've lost and promise to move forward and live, really live, on the Ship. And though Lalla doesn't say anything, she can tell that the way the people see her Father is starting to change. He's becoming something of a Messiah and it's more than unnerving.
She of course sleeps with Tom, the boy with the green eyes who she first noticed in her flat in London. And since they're young and she's been sheltered her entire life, she doesn't know what protection is and she get's pregnant. Tom wants to be with her, to marry her and live their lives on the ship but Lalla isn't ready for that.
She likes the fact that she has a secret; that no one knows about her and Tom. But there's something strange about the Ship, something strange about the Sun, it doesn't seem to rise and set in the same place as its supposed to every day and also the weather is changing. When Lalla asks people about the sun they simply tell her to ask Michael (her Father) where the sun will rise or set, he'll know and he does. But there just seems to be something very otherworldly, very deceptive and almost sinister about the Ship. No one will tell Lalla where they're going and Hell, people might just not know. But her Father won't say a word. It's all very strange and though Lallas sullenness and prone to sulking does get annoying since everyone else is living their lives and seems happy, there is something off putting about the whole thing.
Lalla finally finds out why the sun doesn't rise and set in the same place every day. Her Father is turning the ship around in circles, purposely keeping them adrift so that they'll never find land. Lalla is, of course, horrified because nothing can last forever, they'll all eventually die and what will be the purpose of the Ship then? But her Father simply explains that he's made this Ship for her and her children and he'll die knowing that he gave her a better life and that's all he's ever wanted.
Again and again, over and over, people tell Lalla to simply accept things for how they are and live her life. And by the end of it, you want Lalla to just stop whining and be happy. But she chooses not to. Instead she chooses to leave, even when she loves Tom, even when she knows that there's a life growing inside of her. She wants to see if she can find a better life for her child and so she sets off on the small lifeboat attached to the ship in search of land.
In essence this was a coming of age story, the realization of Lalla that she had been raised and pampered her entire life, sheltered from the true horrors of the world come at the very end. And she doesn't want that kind of life for her child and that's why she chooses to leave. I can understand it but at the same time, it took far too long and far too many angst ridden angry moments of childish sulking for her to come to this realization.
I would recommend this book to anyone who's interested in post apocalyptic fiction but at the same time, Lalla is a very spoiled, obnoxious brat and her constant questions get very annoying very quickly.
And while each passes and the world gets worse, Lalla begins to hear her parents talking of a ship. She remembers people coming to their London flat, wondering who they were and how her Father would be gone for long stretches, weeks at a time. But on her 16th birthday, she finds out why.
Her father is insistent that they leave now and though her Mother is hesitant, a tragic accident forces them to flee and without any time to process what is actually happening, Lalla finds herself aboard the much talked about ship and must adapt to a world and a way of life she never knew or thought possible.
As the days on the ship turn into weeks and then to months, Lalla realizes the vastness of the ships bounty. She is shown the food stores and knows they will never starve. And she begins to wonder if what her Father has done was out of the goodness of his heart or if it was selfish. He has so much food while the others left behind in London are starving and dying.
Lalla's Father starts to insist that all those on the Ship refuse to look back. That they stop mourning what they've lost and promise to move forward and live, really live, on the Ship. And though Lalla doesn't say anything, she can tell that the way the people see her Father is starting to change. He's becoming something of a Messiah and it's more than unnerving.
She of course sleeps with Tom, the boy with the green eyes who she first noticed in her flat in London. And since they're young and she's been sheltered her entire life, she doesn't know what protection is and she get's pregnant. Tom wants to be with her, to marry her and live their lives on the ship but Lalla isn't ready for that.
She likes the fact that she has a secret; that no one knows about her and Tom. But there's something strange about the Ship, something strange about the Sun, it doesn't seem to rise and set in the same place as its supposed to every day and also the weather is changing. When Lalla asks people about the sun they simply tell her to ask Michael (her Father) where the sun will rise or set, he'll know and he does. But there just seems to be something very otherworldly, very deceptive and almost sinister about the Ship. No one will tell Lalla where they're going and Hell, people might just not know. But her Father won't say a word. It's all very strange and though Lallas sullenness and prone to sulking does get annoying since everyone else is living their lives and seems happy, there is something off putting about the whole thing.
Lalla finally finds out why the sun doesn't rise and set in the same place every day. Her Father is turning the ship around in circles, purposely keeping them adrift so that they'll never find land. Lalla is, of course, horrified because nothing can last forever, they'll all eventually die and what will be the purpose of the Ship then? But her Father simply explains that he's made this Ship for her and her children and he'll die knowing that he gave her a better life and that's all he's ever wanted.
Again and again, over and over, people tell Lalla to simply accept things for how they are and live her life. And by the end of it, you want Lalla to just stop whining and be happy. But she chooses not to. Instead she chooses to leave, even when she loves Tom, even when she knows that there's a life growing inside of her. She wants to see if she can find a better life for her child and so she sets off on the small lifeboat attached to the ship in search of land.
In essence this was a coming of age story, the realization of Lalla that she had been raised and pampered her entire life, sheltered from the true horrors of the world come at the very end. And she doesn't want that kind of life for her child and that's why she chooses to leave. I can understand it but at the same time, it took far too long and far too many angst ridden angry moments of childish sulking for her to come to this realization.
I would recommend this book to anyone who's interested in post apocalyptic fiction but at the same time, Lalla is a very spoiled, obnoxious brat and her constant questions get very annoying very quickly.
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