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Contained
After a viral attack from Screechers left the Earth desolate, a safe house rose from the disease ridden ground; a place where people are protected from the virus and the wrath of the creatures that delivered it to their doorstep. Life outside of the man-made walls of Containment became a distant memory. Eighteen-year-old Reverence Arthur is thirsty to escape the Container she has spent her entire life in and bring justice to the Screechers. When she becomes the first female to join the Watch, the Containment military, enduring cat-calls while she showers is the least of her problems. The Watch has fired shots declaring war, her cold shouldered mother has become particularly arctic, and a rumor about her father, a Watch General killed in action, raises questions about the motives of the officials within Containment. Then, amid the battle for Earth, Reverence sees a human. A living, breathing human surviving unprotected in a world where the air is toxic, and she uncovers a truth about her home that is vile enough to kick-start a war of its own.
412 pages, Paperback
First published August 19, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 1, 2017
The story is fast-paced and the major characters are well-drawn. I imagine the story works well enough for YA literature. But for readers who expect some credibility in the creation of a fictional world, the book has significant weaknesses. The plot is dystopian, and dystopian novels with ruthless female warriors are certainly in vogue. Clearly the homage shown to "Hunger Games" can't be accidental. Most of the characters are stereotypical and show little growth. Then there are the containers. Because of an alien invasion and plague, people have retreated into containers linked with underground tunnels. Left unexplained is how the containers were able to grow their food, given a fairly large population and limited space and no mention of greenhouses.
On the other hand, the book had some interesting plot twists that keep the reader interested. If one can overlook the incredible plot features, it is an enjoyable read. The language was clean with no overt sexualization and the violence was muted to an acceptable level. Unfortunately, the book is fairly short (274 pages) and leaves many questions unanswered. Trying to hook readers into reading the sequel, no doubt. Overall, it is a fairly well-done YA novel, that young readers might enjoy.
On the other hand, the book had some interesting plot twists that keep the reader interested. If one can overlook the incredible plot features, it is an enjoyable read. The language was clean with no overt sexualization and the violence was muted to an acceptable level. Unfortunately, the book is fairly short (274 pages) and leaves many questions unanswered. Trying to hook readers into reading the sequel, no doubt. Overall, it is a fairly well-done YA novel, that young readers might enjoy.
October 15, 2015
More YA - SciFi/Dystopian/Paranormal book reviews at Kreatures of the Night
Contained falls under two categories: science fiction and dystopia. If I had to choose which genre was more dominate, I would pick dystopia. The world within Contained is set in the future and has many science fiction elements to it, but I’m going with dystopia on this one.
Reverence Arthur has spent her entire life inside man-made “Containers” to protect the surviving citizens of Earth from a virus that was released by an alien species called “Screechers”. Screechers are given their name for the loud, screaming way in which they communicate.
Characters:
The lead character is 18 year old Reverence Arthur. She is an only child – which is rare in Containment as having babies is practically forced upon the people. I enjoyed Reverence. She is kinda sassy and has a rebellious spirit. But my favorite thing about her is that she is not really special in anyway. Yes, she is the first female to join the Watch, but she doesn’t have a super power, she isn’t some child prodigy and people don’t just randomly follow her around and become obsessed with her. She is a girl that doesn’t fit in, but has a determination like no other, and is willing to fight for what she cares about. Alongside Reverence is her best friend Andy. He is goofy and loyal and they are perfectly matched.
Each character in Contained is unique and play their role well within the story. I didn’t feel like someone was mentioned once and never spoke of again, or that there was anyone that was useless.
I do wish that there was more backstory to the characters. I question where some of these came from and what their lives were like before the Watch. Even Reverence’s backstory is completely known. Contained starts at a certain point and continues to move forward the entire time. The world building was nice, but I just wanted a little bit more history.
Plot:
Let me officially go on the record – I hate book comparisons. Now, with that said, I think this book has elements that can be compared to Divergent. The book itself is a completely separate entity, if you liked Divergent, chances are you will like Contained.
Divergent and Contained are similar only really in that the setting is military based. Tris and Reverence both join their world’s military and go through training. However, fans of Divergent will notice that Reverence doesn’t go into as much detail about her training as Tris did. Yet, I don’t think this takes anything away from the story. The story progresses in such a way that you don’t need to know how much weight she can lift or if she can run a 6 minute mile. The specifics of her training where mentioned when it was necessary, such as to show team building and bonding. Reverence’s approach was more of: “yeah I’m at training and that is happening, but all of this other important stuff is happening too so I’m going to tell you about this instead.” Personally, I didn’t care about how well she could shoot a gun and all of that other stuff, I was more concerned about what was going on with the Screechers, so I didn’t miss it not being included in the story.
At the end of the book there is a twist. I didn’t expect it, and Green gets major props for coming up with this type of scenario – I have honestly never seen it in a SciFi/Dystopia before.
Contained packs a lot of action and during the book raises several questions that I am sure will be answered in the sequels, but I can’t help but think that Green is trying to send a message. Some books I read for pure pleasure, but some I analyze and try to figure out what is the author really trying to say. If I had to guess, I would say that Green is sending a message about tolerance. I won’t say too much, because this message has a lot to do with the twist at the end – and I want you to read it and find that out for yourself – but as you are reading, just keep this in mind and see if you are taking away the same meaning.
Writing:
I appreciate S.E. Green’s writing style. The writing is quick and tight and keeps me focused on the story and what is happening. Every word in this book counts and contributes – there is no filler or fluff.
Something I also appreciated was the way Green approached Reverence’s inner thoughts and musings. Often when I read first person present, the character can have a tendency to drone on and on about a certain situation, just repeating the same thought over and over and not really getting us anyway. It’s like when you’re sad or stressed out and you keep worrying and thinking the same thought, tossing it around in your mind. Yes, this happens in real life, but it doesn’t make for good reading. Reverence’s thoughts provided an insight to how the character was feeling, but it also helped to push the story forward – and that I very much liked.
A constant criticism of present tense is that you can lose some of the suspense that is created by withholding information with past tense writing. I can’t deny that there is some truth to this, however, with Contained I did not feel cheated out of any of the tension. There is actually a scene in which Reverence is in a prison and there are all of these weird things going on and let me tell ya – it was actually a very eerie scene. I don’t get pushed to the edge of my seat while reading often, but the action was very well described.
If I had to pick a favorite thing about Green’s writing, it is that I don’t really know what anyone looks like. I mean, I know if they’re a boy or girl and what color their hair is, occasionally what color eyes they have and their age range. But whenever someone is described, it is just the facts. None of this, “her golden hair reflected the suns rays like the glass face of a watch held in just the right position, blinding, yet, memorizing.” The main features of her characters are not how extremely and unearthly beautiful they are or good looking, but their intelligence, or their kindness toward others, or their great sense of humor – things that make you actually love a person!!! People are just people!
Finally…someone gets it.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
This is S.E. Green’s debut novel and if this is what she has to open with…I can’t wait to see what else she’s got. This is an indie book and if it were available in print, it would definitely be going on my bookshelf.
According to the author, the sequel to Contained is set to debut in January 2016 and I can’t wait!
September 17, 2015
Read more of my reviews here: https://paigeturnerreads.wordpress.com/
I was completely caught off guard because of Contained. My expectations were admittedly lowered when I saw the usual one-word title (that are on most dystopian books), the words ‘Screechers’ and ‘Watcher,’ and the heroine’s first name, Reverence. I was expecting a generic dystopia, where there’s some type of war against some type of creature that is out to kill humans and the heroine is named differently than everyone and is the only one with questions and eventually starts a rebellion. When I say, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed, I truly mean it.
I did roll my eyes at Reverence’s name, but half-way undid my eye-roll when I saw that there were other out of the ordinary names like “Force,” “Brute,” and “Apollo.” I appreciated Reverence, much more than I thought I would. She wasn’t a perfect heroine with no flaws who immediately steps up to any challenge. Instead, she was an eighteen year old girl who had many questions, a rebellious streak, but a rather good head on her shoulder. She was a leader, an actual one. Her leadership abilities weren’t something she was conveniently blessed with and everyone wanted to follow her like mindless zombies. Reverence earned respect and her role as a leader. She didn’t cry when things got hard, she understood that she had to have a cool and calm exterior, even if she was falling apart inside. I recall her crying maybe four times, twice it was somewhat detailed and once it was merely mentioned. I said four because I like even numbers. Reverence preserved, didn’t allow hormones or ridiculous love triangles get in her way of being the heroine she is, and made great decisions under pressure. She had obvious room for improvement, but it made her realistic.
I loved the other characters as well. From Sergeant Powell to Brute, I adored them all and what they brought to the table. They were genuine, unique, varied in personality and strengths and weaknesses, and were the definition of a devoted team. Not a single one was a plot pusher or a filler, mentioned once and then forgotten, nor were there any other common mistakes made with characters. Green did a wonderful job creating them.
First and foremost, I have to give Green credit for coming up with a reason why Reverence doesn’t menstruate. I won’t give any spoilers, but in most Young Adult novels, the main female character never seems to have her period. No matter how many days, weeks, or months go by, she never has a crippling pain in her abdomen. Green’s writing skills are superb and they shone brightly in Contained. Admittedly, I saw a few mistakes in some sentences, words and punctuation missing, but nothing that halted my journey through Reverence’s life. Green wrote Contained with a fast pace, but took care to make sure there weren’t any loose ends, unanswered questions, or undeveloped information. I believe that any book in a series (I assume this is a series, the ending hints towards it) should always end at a point where if the reader wants to continue, they can, but if they don’t, they won’t have an overwhelming amount of questions unanswered. The plot had a twist that I didn’t completely foresee and I loved it. I think what I disliked the most was the blatant sexism in the story. After the virus, one guy takes over and convinces everyone that a woman’s sole purpose is to breed. It’s frowned upon if a woman hasn’t had children after she turns sixteen and men are supposed to have as many children with a single woman (their only rule is that they can only reproduce with one woman) as they can, but they aren’t required to marry her. Only men are allowed to be recruited to be a Watcher, as Reverence puts it, “...we [women] must stay put and pop out little humans to increase the population.” Why is that? Why would every single woman have to have babies? Was there no resistance to this at all? Why would women just calmly accept that they have no other purpose besides making children and bringing in a few extra rations? Even when Reverence can no longer menstruate, her first thought is, “What man will want to be with me knowing I can’t reproduce?” I was disappointed after reading that. Reverence is such a strong character, if anyone, I would have wanted her to recognize that her worth isn’t based on whether or not she’s capable of reproducing. I felt that there should have been a different reason as to why Reverence is the first and only woman to be recruited to join the Watch. The reason that was given wasn’t strong enough for me. Besides that, I did enjoy the romance. It didn’t interfere with the main plot, there was no love triangle, and it was introduced gently and subtly, until you’re quietly rooting for them. There are no cheesy, intense-stare filled moments, but rather sincere and endearing moments that are rather rare, but are appreciated. Green’s amazing execution deserves an applause.
All in all, I was captivated by Contained. I appreciated the detail that Green provided, the lack of info-dumping, the world building, the characters, and the plot itself. It’s been mentioned many times that I don’t like series and rarely do I continue them after the first book, but if I was ever handed a free copy of the sequel (although there is no mention of one), I would read it.
I was completely caught off guard because of Contained. My expectations were admittedly lowered when I saw the usual one-word title (that are on most dystopian books), the words ‘Screechers’ and ‘Watcher,’ and the heroine’s first name, Reverence. I was expecting a generic dystopia, where there’s some type of war against some type of creature that is out to kill humans and the heroine is named differently than everyone and is the only one with questions and eventually starts a rebellion. When I say, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed, I truly mean it.
I did roll my eyes at Reverence’s name, but half-way undid my eye-roll when I saw that there were other out of the ordinary names like “Force,” “Brute,” and “Apollo.” I appreciated Reverence, much more than I thought I would. She wasn’t a perfect heroine with no flaws who immediately steps up to any challenge. Instead, she was an eighteen year old girl who had many questions, a rebellious streak, but a rather good head on her shoulder. She was a leader, an actual one. Her leadership abilities weren’t something she was conveniently blessed with and everyone wanted to follow her like mindless zombies. Reverence earned respect and her role as a leader. She didn’t cry when things got hard, she understood that she had to have a cool and calm exterior, even if she was falling apart inside. I recall her crying maybe four times, twice it was somewhat detailed and once it was merely mentioned. I said four because I like even numbers. Reverence preserved, didn’t allow hormones or ridiculous love triangles get in her way of being the heroine she is, and made great decisions under pressure. She had obvious room for improvement, but it made her realistic.
I loved the other characters as well. From Sergeant Powell to Brute, I adored them all and what they brought to the table. They were genuine, unique, varied in personality and strengths and weaknesses, and were the definition of a devoted team. Not a single one was a plot pusher or a filler, mentioned once and then forgotten, nor were there any other common mistakes made with characters. Green did a wonderful job creating them.
First and foremost, I have to give Green credit for coming up with a reason why Reverence doesn’t menstruate. I won’t give any spoilers, but in most Young Adult novels, the main female character never seems to have her period. No matter how many days, weeks, or months go by, she never has a crippling pain in her abdomen. Green’s writing skills are superb and they shone brightly in Contained. Admittedly, I saw a few mistakes in some sentences, words and punctuation missing, but nothing that halted my journey through Reverence’s life. Green wrote Contained with a fast pace, but took care to make sure there weren’t any loose ends, unanswered questions, or undeveloped information. I believe that any book in a series (I assume this is a series, the ending hints towards it) should always end at a point where if the reader wants to continue, they can, but if they don’t, they won’t have an overwhelming amount of questions unanswered. The plot had a twist that I didn’t completely foresee and I loved it. I think what I disliked the most was the blatant sexism in the story. After the virus, one guy takes over and convinces everyone that a woman’s sole purpose is to breed. It’s frowned upon if a woman hasn’t had children after she turns sixteen and men are supposed to have as many children with a single woman (their only rule is that they can only reproduce with one woman) as they can, but they aren’t required to marry her. Only men are allowed to be recruited to be a Watcher, as Reverence puts it, “...we [women] must stay put and pop out little humans to increase the population.” Why is that? Why would every single woman have to have babies? Was there no resistance to this at all? Why would women just calmly accept that they have no other purpose besides making children and bringing in a few extra rations? Even when Reverence can no longer menstruate, her first thought is, “What man will want to be with me knowing I can’t reproduce?” I was disappointed after reading that. Reverence is such a strong character, if anyone, I would have wanted her to recognize that her worth isn’t based on whether or not she’s capable of reproducing. I felt that there should have been a different reason as to why Reverence is the first and only woman to be recruited to join the Watch. The reason that was given wasn’t strong enough for me. Besides that, I did enjoy the romance. It didn’t interfere with the main plot, there was no love triangle, and it was introduced gently and subtly, until you’re quietly rooting for them. There are no cheesy, intense-stare filled moments, but rather sincere and endearing moments that are rather rare, but are appreciated. Green’s amazing execution deserves an applause.
All in all, I was captivated by Contained. I appreciated the detail that Green provided, the lack of info-dumping, the world building, the characters, and the plot itself. It’s been mentioned many times that I don’t like series and rarely do I continue them after the first book, but if I was ever handed a free copy of the sequel (although there is no mention of one), I would read it.
June 17, 2017
Pretty cool overall, but lacks color
While the premise of corrupt governments in a dystopian future is not exactly new, this one is written pretty well.
Plenty is left to the imagination as this book lacks the descriptions of people, places, and things that most sci fi books give. I would have liked more details, but the story is pretty good.
While the premise of corrupt governments in a dystopian future is not exactly new, this one is written pretty well.
Plenty is left to the imagination as this book lacks the descriptions of people, places, and things that most sci fi books give. I would have liked more details, but the story is pretty good.
September 9, 2015
I was hooked in the first chapter, and it never let up. If I had had the time I would have finished it in one go.
The main character, Reverence, is a loveable rouge teen. The concept of a virus, alien invasion and near extinction of humans isn't new, but the way this tale is woven is brilliant. You think it's going to follow the usual patterns, you try and predict the next step, and for a while you can, so you feel safe. And then the end of the story comes, but it isn't the end, it's the twist you didn't see coming!
Yes, there are a number of typos and grammar issues, and some can stump you a bit, but with a story this captivating it didn't matter.
Loved it. Hope there will be a sequel. While the book resolves the immediate issues, it's also wide open to more.
My concern, though, is that there might not be a sequel, or it may be difficult to find. Contained has been removed from Amazon, potentially due to a clash of Sarah Green's author name (S.E. Green) with the pen name of well known author Shannon Greenland (S.E. Green). So who knows what new pen name Contained or any others will pop up as...
The main character, Reverence, is a loveable rouge teen. The concept of a virus, alien invasion and near extinction of humans isn't new, but the way this tale is woven is brilliant. You think it's going to follow the usual patterns, you try and predict the next step, and for a while you can, so you feel safe. And then the end of the story comes, but it isn't the end, it's the twist you didn't see coming!
Yes, there are a number of typos and grammar issues, and some can stump you a bit, but with a story this captivating it didn't matter.
Loved it. Hope there will be a sequel. While the book resolves the immediate issues, it's also wide open to more.
My concern, though, is that there might not be a sequel, or it may be difficult to find. Contained has been removed from Amazon, potentially due to a clash of Sarah Green's author name (S.E. Green) with the pen name of well known author Shannon Greenland (S.E. Green). So who knows what new pen name Contained or any others will pop up as...
October 13, 2015
Excellent book that I had an issue with putting down! I usually read at night, shutting off my Kindle when I start catching myself doing the head bob thing. This book kept me interested and captivated so much so that I never did reach the head bob point.. I read straight through the night only finally putting my head on the pillow around 4am. I really enjoyed the twists and turns in the story line. Just when you think you can anticipate what is going to happen next, the story makes a slight detour from the predictable and takes you along for the ride. Very well written and, even though I don't usually care for cliff-hangers, the end was choreographed beautifully to transition the reader into the next installment. I just hope that next installment comes along sooner rather than later!
October 5, 2015
Not bad
The book was slow but good. I thought that a lot of information could have and should have been added to training as she was only girl but all in all I was happy. I guessed quite a bit of what was happening but there were a couple twists at the end regarding the "war" i didn't expect.
The book was slow but good. I thought that a lot of information could have and should have been added to training as she was only girl but all in all I was happy. I guessed quite a bit of what was happening but there were a couple twists at the end regarding the "war" i didn't expect.
September 10, 2015
Enjoyable
Nice story. The book could still use a little editing, but other than a glitch here and there, still a nice read. Will read the next book!
Nice story. The book could still use a little editing, but other than a glitch here and there, still a nice read. Will read the next book!
November 6, 2015
Loved it
I had a hard time putting this one down, can't wait to start the next one! Intense and addicting book.
I had a hard time putting this one down, can't wait to start the next one! Intense and addicting book.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews