Hazel (1853 KP) rated Nirvana (Nirvana #1) in Books
Dec 7, 2018
Imagine a world without any bees. That is the world that J. R. Stewart conjures up in this new dystopian series, <i>Nirvana</i>. Twenty years from now, the bees have become extinct. There are no more trees, flowers, fruits or vegetables; and more animals have become extinct as a result. Young adult, Larissa, is living in a world that seems unimaginable, but not only is she dealing with this new way of life, she is also grieving the loss of her husband, Andrew.
Andrew was a scientist, an occupation that earned himself and Larissa a place in the Barracks where he could continue with his important research. They both believed they were lucky to receive this opportunity, but then Andrew went out on a mission and never came back. No matter how hard people try to convince her, Larissa cannot accept that her husband is dead, especially as she has seen him in <i>Nirvana</i> – a virtual reality world. As she struggles to piece together what is real and what is not, secrets are being uncovered that blur the lines between reality and the cybernetic domain.
<i>Nirvana </i>is an interesting concept. Firstly, the issue with the extinction of the bees is a very real concern for scientists at the moment. If bees were to die out there would be no pollination of the vital plants that humans use daily. Humanity would be faced with a future not unlike Larissa’s. Secondly, with the advance in computer technology, virtual reality has become a popular phenomenon in contemporary society, and with more expansion it is likely that something similar to Nirvana will be produced.
As a story, however, nothing exciting really happened. There was no major build up to the ending. Characters were suspected of hiding the truth from the very beginning and therefore it was no surprise when certain facts came to light later in the novel. <i>Nirvana</i> is also a very short first installment of the series, which does not give the story much chance to develop at an adequate pace, thus it is difficult to get our heads around the virtual reality concept that Stewart writes about.
Despite these misgivings there is the chance that the following novels in this series will become more thrilling as the truth begins to unravel about Andrew’s disappearance or death.
BigGuide Colombia Map + Ultimate Tourist Guide and Offline Voice Navigator
Navigation and Travel
App
SAVE HUNDREDS OF EUROS IN ROAMING COST WHEREVER YOU GO. Updated maps. Vocal Navigator. Millions of...
BigGuide Brunei Map + Ultimate Tourist Guide and Offline Voice Navigator
Navigation and Travel
App
SAVE HUNDREDS OF EUROS IN ROAMING COST WHEREVER YOU GO. Updated maps. Vocal Navigator. Millions of...
BigGuide Armenia Map + Ultimate Tourist Guide and Offline Voice Navigator
Navigation and Travel
App
SAVE HUNDREDS OF EUROS IN ROAMING COST WHEREVER YOU GO. Updated maps. Vocal Navigator. Millions of...
BigGuide Laos Map + Ultimate Tourist Guide and Offline Voice Navigator
Navigation and Travel
App
SAVE HUNDREDS OF EUROS IN ROAMING COST WHEREVER YOU GO. Updated maps. Vocal Navigator. Millions of...
BigGuide Papua New Guinea Map + Ultimate Tourist Guide and Offline Voice Navigator
Navigation and Travel
App
SAVE HUNDREDS OF EUROS IN ROAMING COST WHEREVER YOU GO. Updated maps. Vocal Navigator. Millions of...
Kyera (8 KP) rated The Eye of Minds (The Mortality Doctrine, #1) in Books
Feb 1, 2018
We meet Michael, Sarah, and Bryson in the VirtNet. They are best friends even though they have never met before in "the wake" or real life. The three get drafted by the VNS, VirtNet Security, to find a dangerous man called Kaine who has been destroying people' virtual and waking lives.
Their coding abilities and determination are put to the test in a series of trials. They don't make it out unscathed and their lives are changed forever. A must read if you're a fan of the author, books involving technology or action, or just YA novels in general. I definitely recommend it and can't wait to finish the series.
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated Tongues of Serpents (Temeraire #6) in Books
Nov 27, 2019
Unfortunately the reality for me fell well short fo what I felt could be acheived. This is the first book by Novik I have read and perhaps starting at number 6 means I am missing something, but this just failed to gel.
The concept of the dragons being a reality and influencing history was one that was easy to grasp but so very little was done with it. The dragons themselves are quite dull - far from the spectacular beast of legend they have little interesting to do and virtually no personality. There is also not a great deal of plot strung out very thinly involving a chase across Australia, but it takes so long to get going and the chase is repettitive and didn't capture my imagination.
There are some sparks of good ideas here - the smuggling, the political issues in Sydney (caused by the governer - a certain Captain Bligh) - but they end up undeveloped and drowned by the plodding narrative which doesn't seem to want to examine anything that doesn't involve the dragons.
The central idea may have promise in other books of the series, just not this one. Sorry Naomi
Coachella 2017 Official
Music, Entertainment and Stickers
App
Welcome to the official 2017 Coachella mobile app! Use it to explore the lineup, activate your...