Title: Gone
Author: Michael Grant
Illustrator: -----
Genre: Science Fiction
Age: 12-14
Pages: 576 (paperback)
Publisher: HarperCollins
Gone... This is what everyone is saying over and over in their minds. Everyone over the age of 15 has vanished in Perdido beach. One second they were standing there talking, and then "poof" they were gone! Soon mass confusion breaks out and Sam Temple takes it upon himself to take charge of the situation. With his small group of friends, (Astrid, Quinn, and Edilio) they run around town trying to take in the situation and what caused it. They discover that a round sphere has been placed around the area and you can't get out! They call it the Fays (Fallout Alley Youth Zone). A new rebel group of kids from Coates Academy (a school for rich yet "troubled" students) arrive and take over the town. Sam discovers that he and a few other kids have powers and he and Caine (the leader of the Coates kids) are the only ones with a four bar power. Soon mutations start to grow and a war against Caine and his thugs is breaking loose. An unknown species called the Darkness is growing and needs to be fed! Will Sam and his friend discover the mystery behind the Fayz?
A compelling novel with a twist at every turn! Grant used his great storytelling skills to develop this amazing Sci-Fi novel. The novel Gone has a very original plot. I mean a town where everyone over the age of 15 just disappears, it's just genius! The way Michael Grant brought an un-realistic situation and the characters developed realistic response to it was very interesting. I actually believe that if this sort of events happened today, I would act in familiar ways as the characters. This made the story very entertaining yet not predictable. The characters inner conflicts are sometimes revealed but we see them more and more as the story progresses and it really helps us relate and get to know the characters. The Evil against Good was somewhat apparent in the book yet I did enjoy how they always twist it around a bit and at some point they don't have a choice but to fight evil with evil. For once, a great novel contains just the right amount of romance. Not enough to change the thrilling action into a boring lovey-dovey fairytale story, but enough to make you want to see how they'll end up!
Ok... well as a reader I do enjoy if the author writes about more than one character, but at some point too much is too much! I didn't mind the chapters that switched too Sam, then Caine's thugs and then back Sam etc. Although sometimes you'd have Lanna's Point of View, which in my opinion was really boring and unnecessary. Then sometimes you had Mary's Point of view, again really boring. I do understand that those characters, or point of views were essential, but who cares about a small daycare center when Sam's off fighting monsters right?!
To summarize, Gone is a very action packed and mysterious Sci-Fi novel, with tons of plot twist that makes you want to read more and more!
Available on Amazon
Rating: 4/5
9 comments:
Gack I STILL have to get to that book! :( I keep hearing awesome things from all the book bloggers in the blogosphere and I haven't gotten around to picking it up! I don't even know if it's on my TBR list...
Okay, well, my ranting aside, great review! :) I probably couldn't write a review that good! I'd probably just veer off track and end up talking about how my day went. ;)
Eileen @ ***Singing and Reading in the Rain***
Hey Eileen, you should really take a look into the book. I really enjoyed it and I rarely read Sci-Fi! If you're interested in buying the book you can click on the link to amazon and get it at a cheap price. I'm sure you'd do a great job at reviewing it too ;)
I've seen so many people reading this novel lately, that I wasn't sure if it was any good but after reading your review I will give it a try if I get time!
I agree with you on the switching POV's!
Overall great review and hope to see some more soon! :)
- Alex
Hey Alex, this series is definately a great one! It's by far my personal favorites! And the 5th book has just come out, there's one left in te series and i'm waiting to get it deperately! Thanks for the comment :)
I've heard so much about this book and really anticipate reading it soon. When I first heard about it, it reminded me of the novel The Girl Who Owned A City by O.T Nelson, which I read in elementary school but will probably never forget. I loved that book! Gone sounds like a great novel, and I love the sci-fi aspect to it as well. Thanks for sharing!
Hey! Indeed, Gone is a great series. The fifth novel: Fear. Just ame out recently, it got me back into the series :D
I've never heard of that book, although just by the title it seems quite relatable. Your welcome!
Yeah, I heard it The Girl Who Owned A City may be made into a movie, but I think it might just be rumors. It would be so cool if it was though. It creates a neat dystopian with all children. It sounds like Gone is pretty similar to that.
Hey!
I read this book this summer actually and I was disappointed. I thought I was going to love it a lot more than I did. I agree that the story was a brilliantly original idea. And the characters made me laugh, but I felt like there was a whole lot of nothing going on for a while. There was action, but it was random and in between I felt it a bit dragged out. I wished more things would have happened in all those pages but I still think it was a very good and interesting read same as you!
I love the way you talk about books, it reminds me of how I feel about them.
Hey Maureen,
I kind of know how you feel. I mean I do understand how sometimes nothing happens but you got to expect that in thei world they are shut down from other society, develop powers and havoc is being dispersed. At some point the kids just have to sit down and do nothing xD Anyways thanks for the ocmment, I do beleive that we have a similar passion for novels. :P
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