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The Ballad of Ami Miles
A teen girl on a quest to find her long-lost mother finds herself on a journey of self-discovery in Kristy Dallas Alley's moving YA debut, The Ballad of Ami Miles .
Raised in isolation at Heavenly Shepherd, her family’s trailer-dealership-turned-survival compound, Ami Miles knows that she was lucky to be born into a place of safety after the old world ended and the chaos began. But when her grandfather brings home a cold-eyed stranger, she realizes that her “destiny” as one of the few females capable of still bearing children isn’t something she’s ready to face.
With the help of one of her aunts, she flees the only life she’s ever known and sets off on a quest to find her long-lost mother (and hopefully a mate of her own choosing). But as she journeys, Ami discovers many new things about the world...and about herself.
Raised in isolation at Heavenly Shepherd, her family’s trailer-dealership-turned-survival compound, Ami Miles knows that she was lucky to be born into a place of safety after the old world ended and the chaos began. But when her grandfather brings home a cold-eyed stranger, she realizes that her “destiny” as one of the few females capable of still bearing children isn’t something she’s ready to face.
With the help of one of her aunts, she flees the only life she’s ever known and sets off on a quest to find her long-lost mother (and hopefully a mate of her own choosing). But as she journeys, Ami discovers many new things about the world...and about herself.
269 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 142 reviews
December 3, 2019
A compelling, post-apocalyptic story where the emphasis is firmly on the heroine.
Ami has been raised in a survival compound her whole life with the knowledge that it is her duty to have babies. When the world “broke” most woman had become in fertile. Ami’s mom was fertile which means she might be too. But when Papa Solomon brings an older stranger to impregnate Ami, she goes on the run... to find her mother. To find herself.
Ami’s character development shines in this story as she sorts out the truth from the lies she’s been told. That interracial marriage isn’t wrong. That her feelings for another girl aren’t unnatural. And that it’s her choice when and if she wants children.
Ami has been raised in a survival compound her whole life with the knowledge that it is her duty to have babies. When the world “broke” most woman had become in fertile. Ami’s mom was fertile which means she might be too. But when Papa Solomon brings an older stranger to impregnate Ami, she goes on the run... to find her mother. To find herself.
Ami’s character development shines in this story as she sorts out the truth from the lies she’s been told. That interracial marriage isn’t wrong. That her feelings for another girl aren’t unnatural. And that it’s her choice when and if she wants children.
December 3, 2020
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
3.5*
I love cult books. I love post-apocalyptic books. So how do you improve upon these already fabulous genres? Why, mash 'em together, of course! And I shall now tell you exactly what worked for me in this book, and then what kind of didn't as much.
What I Enjoyed:
I was rooting for Ami from the start. How could I not? We open the story with her about to be married off to some old man, a literal stranger who just happened to wander into the family cult. Hard pass. And at first, Ami tries to be okay with it, even though she is clearly not. Luckily, not all of her family wants her to become a baby factory, so she's able to get out of dodge. Which leads to the next thing I enjoyed...
Ami had to survive and make her way to a place she hoped her mother would be. I also quite love a survival story, and while this wasn't the whole premise of the book or anything, I did enjoy that we got a bit of it. It was extra intense because Ami had to keep looking over her shoulder (literally, often) to ensure she wasn't being followed by disgusting men trying to impregnate her.
I really enjoyed Ami learning how to navigate friendships and romantic relationships and familial relationships. Ami has never met people before, basically. Certainly not peers- she was told that none existed, for the most part. So to learn how to coexist with people outside her small family cohort was a big change. And, Ami had to navigate how she felt about the family she grew up with, now that she was more aware of the lies she'd been fed her whole life. Fascinating stuff, really.
The overall messages of the book were really positive. I loved that the main focus was, ultimately, inclusion. Ami learned so much, but she also taught people stuff too. There's frank discussion about racial discrimination, homophobia, sexism, and religion, and I found them to be handled well.
What I Wanted More Of:
World Building! I loved the concept of the world. Clearly, there was a big disaster of some sort that lead to a population decimation and reproductive complications. And I wish I had known more about that! And, more about what the world looked like beyond Ami's small corner of the world. Obviously I understand that the story was limited to Ami's knowledge, but I am a curious sort and I cannot help my need to know!
Perhaps a bit more... difficulty? I think this probably ties into the length of the book, and I was thrilled that the story was resolved as a standalone, but there were a few moments that I thought could be better served with a bit more tension or struggle.
Bottom Line: A young woman figuring out who she is and finding her agency all while realizing that everything she thought she knew was a lie.
3.5*
I love cult books. I love post-apocalyptic books. So how do you improve upon these already fabulous genres? Why, mash 'em together, of course! And I shall now tell you exactly what worked for me in this book, and then what kind of didn't as much.
What I Enjoyed:
I was rooting for Ami from the start. How could I not? We open the story with her about to be married off to some old man, a literal stranger who just happened to wander into the family cult. Hard pass. And at first, Ami tries to be okay with it, even though she is clearly not. Luckily, not all of her family wants her to become a baby factory, so she's able to get out of dodge. Which leads to the next thing I enjoyed...
Ami had to survive and make her way to a place she hoped her mother would be. I also quite love a survival story, and while this wasn't the whole premise of the book or anything, I did enjoy that we got a bit of it. It was extra intense because Ami had to keep looking over her shoulder (literally, often) to ensure she wasn't being followed by disgusting men trying to impregnate her.
I really enjoyed Ami learning how to navigate friendships and romantic relationships and familial relationships. Ami has never met people before, basically. Certainly not peers- she was told that none existed, for the most part. So to learn how to coexist with people outside her small family cohort was a big change. And, Ami had to navigate how she felt about the family she grew up with, now that she was more aware of the lies she'd been fed her whole life. Fascinating stuff, really.
The overall messages of the book were really positive. I loved that the main focus was, ultimately, inclusion. Ami learned so much, but she also taught people stuff too. There's frank discussion about racial discrimination, homophobia, sexism, and religion, and I found them to be handled well.
What I Wanted More Of:
World Building! I loved the concept of the world. Clearly, there was a big disaster of some sort that lead to a population decimation and reproductive complications. And I wish I had known more about that! And, more about what the world looked like beyond Ami's small corner of the world. Obviously I understand that the story was limited to Ami's knowledge, but I am a curious sort and I cannot help my need to know!
Perhaps a bit more... difficulty? I think this probably ties into the length of the book, and I was thrilled that the story was resolved as a standalone, but there were a few moments that I thought could be better served with a bit more tension or struggle.
Bottom Line: A young woman figuring out who she is and finding her agency all while realizing that everything she thought she knew was a lie.
December 23, 2020
Okay, so normally I save one-star reviews for books I hated, or books I hated so much that I didn't finish them. I did finish this one, and I wouldn't go so far as to say that I hated it. But it just...wasn't a complete book. This read like the first draft of a better book.
"The Ballad of Ami Miles" follows a girl, Ami Miles, (shocker, I know) on a journey from what could ostensibly be called a cult to a healthier life situation. In this book, the world has undergone some kind of plague that makes it so a lot of women can't have babies. (Blessed be the fruit of Maggie Atwood.) This has led, extremely vaguely, to the downfall of society. Ami lives on a seculded compound in Alabama with some aunts and uncles and her grandparents--her grandfather runs the compound, and his word is law. And Grandpa says that it's time for the sixteen-year-old Ami to breed with some random old dude from down the lane. So her aunts and uncles help Ami escape to find her long-lost mother.
Okay, I admit, the premise is medium-compelling. I don't think I realized we were in a Handmaid's-Tale-Lite situation, but I'm always here for a cult book. Except that "cult" would be a really strong word for this compound: It's basically just a family with a very strict patriarch who relies heavily on his idea of god to run the place. The difference sounds subtle, but it's very obvious on the page. It's less "cult" and more "conservative household with overbearing dad."
Anywho, Ami goes west to find her mom, who's staying at an old resort/compound of other people--much bigger than her old one, and much happier. And this is where my problems with this book really begin. For one, despite the anti-baby plague, there are a lot of kids and people are pregnant enough for the place to have a dedicated midwife--that doesn't track. In fact, the anti-baby-plague becomes essentially a non-factor once Ami makes it away from her would-be rapist. For two, Ami has been taught by her reportedly-ever-imposing grandfather that "the mixing of the races" was wrong, and she's never even heard of gay people. The idea of people coming together without the ability to procreate is totally foreign to her. However, when she is introduced to gay and interracial couples...nothing really happens? She doesn't really have a reaction. She just kind of thinks to herself, "Oh, well. It seems fine. Grandpa must've been wrong about that." Can you even play the "she was indoctrinated" card when the supposed indoctrination can be undone in a paragraph's worth of thought? And, of course, Ami falls in love with a black girl, just to make sure that everyone got the moral that interracial and gay relationships are fine. No self-hatred, no internalized homophobia, none of that stuff that actually happens when someone from a deeply religious life starts to realize they're gay. Ami just basically shrugs and moves on.
The above goes to prove my real issue with this book: There's no conflict. None, things just sort of happen, and happen in the easiest way possible. Ami makes a mistake with her lady-love...who doesn't seem to even have had her feelings hurt by it. Ami just learns that all the stuff she was taught, her whole life, is wrong--there's no pushback from her. She and her mother have a fight--and immediately make up, like within five pages. Right at the end, I really thought we were going to hash some stuff out...nope. Alley completely swerved and chose not to engage with any conflict that might have proven difficult to navigate or that might have sullied her crystal-clear messaging that, yes, the things that all but the most backwater people think are okay are, in fact, okay.
I think we all know that there are two types of "young adult" books. There's the kind that are actually written for young adults--the 13-17 range. And then there are the ones that are really written for adults who read young adult. I would say this difference is usually found in a mix of complexity level and tone. It's very intangible. It's like good art, or obscenity--you know it when you see it. I'm tempted to just file "The Ballad of Ami Miles" away as part of the former category of "for actual young adults" and declare myself too old for its morality tale. But I honestly think this book is so lacking in complexity (and really, lacking in the basic concepts of plot and character development--you can't have either without conflict, just saying) that it feels like an insult to true young adults to say that this is for them. I think it would talk down to teenagers in exactly the way that it talked down to me. This book may have had something, if it had teeth--if the "cult" were more insidious, if Ami had been truly indoctrinated, if she'd had to confront herself or her mother or her grandfather or her sexuality honestly. But she didn't. This book just coasted to the easiest possible conclusions--the literary equivalent of a lazy river.
Like I said at the start, it's hard to say that I hate this book. It's like hating flour. You can't hate flour--unless you've got celiac, I guess. But it's also not really "food." Similarly, I have a hard time calling this a "book." It's more of a draft--I can criticize a draft, but it's hard to outright hate it. Even after paying good money for it, that I wish I could get back.
"The Ballad of Ami Miles" follows a girl, Ami Miles, (shocker, I know) on a journey from what could ostensibly be called a cult to a healthier life situation. In this book, the world has undergone some kind of plague that makes it so a lot of women can't have babies. (Blessed be the fruit of Maggie Atwood.) This has led, extremely vaguely, to the downfall of society. Ami lives on a seculded compound in Alabama with some aunts and uncles and her grandparents--her grandfather runs the compound, and his word is law. And Grandpa says that it's time for the sixteen-year-old Ami to breed with some random old dude from down the lane. So her aunts and uncles help Ami escape to find her long-lost mother.
Okay, I admit, the premise is medium-compelling. I don't think I realized we were in a Handmaid's-Tale-Lite situation, but I'm always here for a cult book. Except that "cult" would be a really strong word for this compound: It's basically just a family with a very strict patriarch who relies heavily on his idea of god to run the place. The difference sounds subtle, but it's very obvious on the page. It's less "cult" and more "conservative household with overbearing dad."
Anywho, Ami goes west to find her mom, who's staying at an old resort/compound of other people--much bigger than her old one, and much happier. And this is where my problems with this book really begin. For one, despite the anti-baby plague, there are a lot of kids and people are pregnant enough for the place to have a dedicated midwife--that doesn't track. In fact, the anti-baby-plague becomes essentially a non-factor once Ami makes it away from her would-be rapist. For two, Ami has been taught by her reportedly-ever-imposing grandfather that "the mixing of the races" was wrong, and she's never even heard of gay people. The idea of people coming together without the ability to procreate is totally foreign to her. However, when she is introduced to gay and interracial couples...nothing really happens? She doesn't really have a reaction. She just kind of thinks to herself, "Oh, well. It seems fine. Grandpa must've been wrong about that." Can you even play the "she was indoctrinated" card when the supposed indoctrination can be undone in a paragraph's worth of thought? And, of course, Ami falls in love with a black girl, just to make sure that everyone got the moral that interracial and gay relationships are fine. No self-hatred, no internalized homophobia, none of that stuff that actually happens when someone from a deeply religious life starts to realize they're gay. Ami just basically shrugs and moves on.
The above goes to prove my real issue with this book: There's no conflict. None, things just sort of happen, and happen in the easiest way possible. Ami makes a mistake with her lady-love...who doesn't seem to even have had her feelings hurt by it. Ami just learns that all the stuff she was taught, her whole life, is wrong--there's no pushback from her. She and her mother have a fight--and immediately make up, like within five pages. Right at the end, I really thought we were going to hash some stuff out...nope. Alley completely swerved and chose not to engage with any conflict that might have proven difficult to navigate or that might have sullied her crystal-clear messaging that, yes, the things that all but the most backwater people think are okay are, in fact, okay.
I think we all know that there are two types of "young adult" books. There's the kind that are actually written for young adults--the 13-17 range. And then there are the ones that are really written for adults who read young adult. I would say this difference is usually found in a mix of complexity level and tone. It's very intangible. It's like good art, or obscenity--you know it when you see it. I'm tempted to just file "The Ballad of Ami Miles" away as part of the former category of "for actual young adults" and declare myself too old for its morality tale. But I honestly think this book is so lacking in complexity (and really, lacking in the basic concepts of plot and character development--you can't have either without conflict, just saying) that it feels like an insult to true young adults to say that this is for them. I think it would talk down to teenagers in exactly the way that it talked down to me. This book may have had something, if it had teeth--if the "cult" were more insidious, if Ami had been truly indoctrinated, if she'd had to confront herself or her mother or her grandfather or her sexuality honestly. But she didn't. This book just coasted to the easiest possible conclusions--the literary equivalent of a lazy river.
Like I said at the start, it's hard to say that I hate this book. It's like hating flour. You can't hate flour--unless you've got celiac, I guess. But it's also not really "food." Similarly, I have a hard time calling this a "book." It's more of a draft--I can criticize a draft, but it's hard to outright hate it. Even after paying good money for it, that I wish I could get back.
January 12, 2021
I really enjoyed the opening of The Ballad of Ami Miles, but plotwise it really goes downhill from there. The story's already short, but so much of it is just characters recapping things to other characters and I honestly felt like I was reading a draft for the first act of a story instead of a fully contained novel. The premise was really interest and Kristy Dallas Alley is definitely a good writer, but this was ultimately a bit of a let down.
January 8, 2020
I wish I could’ve read this book when I was a teenager. I wonder how different my life might have been. A beautiful story that will make life a little better for young people finding their way in this very confusing world.
Thank you for telling this story.
Thank you for telling this story.
August 19, 2024
This is kind of a middle of the road book for me, but there are elements I love about it. It was fun. It had a bit of a cult, a safe haven (a trope I love in dystopian), some great reveals, and a good cast of characters.
April 1, 2021
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*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
2.5/5 Stars
Since she was born, Ami has been raised by her grandparents on a compound in isolation. After the world fell apart, many woman became infertile, so Ami has grown up believing that her sole duty is to have babies, like her mother once did. When Ami was a baby, her mother left, to escape the government coming to breed her. When her grandfather brings an older man to the compound in the hopes of impregnating her, she runs away in the hopes of finding her mother.
I wanted to like this way more than I did. I was initially very excited, because I love cult books, but I was BORED through out this whole story. I did like Ami's character development and exploration of her beliefs, I think this story could help a lot of people who have grown up in extremely strict religious households. It may give them the knowledge (for lack of a better word) that they can form their own opinions and step away from what they have been taught growing up. I do think that her development was a bit rapid and pretty unrealistic, if she was meant to be THAT brainwashed by her upbringing, but alas. The romance was also super instalovey, which I am not a fan of... so I just wasn't invested in this story at all.
Overall, I just found this extremely underwhelming.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
2.5/5 Stars
Since she was born, Ami has been raised by her grandparents on a compound in isolation. After the world fell apart, many woman became infertile, so Ami has grown up believing that her sole duty is to have babies, like her mother once did. When Ami was a baby, her mother left, to escape the government coming to breed her. When her grandfather brings an older man to the compound in the hopes of impregnating her, she runs away in the hopes of finding her mother.
I wanted to like this way more than I did. I was initially very excited, because I love cult books, but I was BORED through out this whole story. I did like Ami's character development and exploration of her beliefs, I think this story could help a lot of people who have grown up in extremely strict religious households. It may give them the knowledge (for lack of a better word) that they can form their own opinions and step away from what they have been taught growing up. I do think that her development was a bit rapid and pretty unrealistic, if she was meant to be THAT brainwashed by her upbringing, but alas. The romance was also super instalovey, which I am not a fan of... so I just wasn't invested in this story at all.
Overall, I just found this extremely underwhelming.
December 19, 2019
Part coming of age story, this YA dystopian tale is told through an authentic voice that’s as gritty and compelling as the main character herself. After escaping her family compound to avoid an arranged marriage to an older man, seventeen-year-old Ami desperately searches for a sanctuary and her long lost mother. Well versed in survival skills Ami manages to find safety only to discover that the world she knew was based on lies. With revelations that will keep the reader turning pages, the unexpected romance provides the perfect balance to the harshness of the dystopian reality. THE BALLAD OF AMI MILES by Kristy Dallas Alley examines the complicated notion of what family really means and how even in the bleakest of circumstances there is still a chance for love
November 22, 2020
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you so much, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Swoon Reads, for the chance to read and review it.
TW: racism, homophobia, bigotism
Ami is a young girl who was raised in isolation with her family at Heavenly Sheperd, her family's trailer-dealership that became a survival compound. Safe and cared for, her life changes when her grandfather brings home a stranger and makes clear her "destiny" as one of the few female still able to bear children is to be with him. Ami isn't ready to be a wife and mother and with the help of one of her aunts she escapes, trying to find her long-lost mother, in a long journey that will bring her to question everything she ever knew.
The ballad of Ami Miles is a book about self-discovery and I really liked reading it. Ami is a young girl and her whole world was the compound and everything she knew was through her grandparents' lessons, through the Bible. How to be a good girl, what her "duty" and "destiny" was, the difference of roles between male and female, how female should act and dress, when to speak and how and so on.
Set in an almost apocalyptic world, where a sickness made almost every woman barren, Amy could be one of the last able to bear children and so, according to her family, it's her duty to God. But Ami can't do it, she's not an animal to be bred, so she runs and her journey to find her mother, who left her when she was a baby, is journey that will open her eyes about the reality and herself, making her question beliefs and everything she thought was true, only because her family said so.
The story is intense, the prose fluid and Ami is a captivating main character, strong, stubborn and determined, willing to learn new things, to grow and face the truth. Because she was so sheltered she is naive and surprised of things other people consider normal and sometimes it was hilarious. Maybe the way she was able to question and discard a lifelong set of ideas in a just few days was a bit unlikely (since her mother wasn't absolutely able in years), but apart from this, I really liked this book. I loved reading how Ami adapts hersef in this new community, how she grows and changes and finds her place in the world.
There are many themes in The ballad of Ami Miles, like racism, homophobia, bigotism. The way the women were treated in Heavenly Sheltered isn't so far-fetched and unfortunately I could see a world where things like that could happen.
I really liked the queer relationship, even though I found it a bit too rushed, but it's lovely and the way Ami was able to find her place with family and friends was beautiful and intense.
Overall, this a 4.5 stars book and I definitely recommend it to those who are looking for a dystopian, queer and apocalyptic book.
TW: racism, homophobia, bigotism
Ami is a young girl who was raised in isolation with her family at Heavenly Sheperd, her family's trailer-dealership that became a survival compound. Safe and cared for, her life changes when her grandfather brings home a stranger and makes clear her "destiny" as one of the few female still able to bear children is to be with him. Ami isn't ready to be a wife and mother and with the help of one of her aunts she escapes, trying to find her long-lost mother, in a long journey that will bring her to question everything she ever knew.
The ballad of Ami Miles is a book about self-discovery and I really liked reading it. Ami is a young girl and her whole world was the compound and everything she knew was through her grandparents' lessons, through the Bible. How to be a good girl, what her "duty" and "destiny" was, the difference of roles between male and female, how female should act and dress, when to speak and how and so on.
Set in an almost apocalyptic world, where a sickness made almost every woman barren, Amy could be one of the last able to bear children and so, according to her family, it's her duty to God. But Ami can't do it, she's not an animal to be bred, so she runs and her journey to find her mother, who left her when she was a baby, is journey that will open her eyes about the reality and herself, making her question beliefs and everything she thought was true, only because her family said so.
The story is intense, the prose fluid and Ami is a captivating main character, strong, stubborn and determined, willing to learn new things, to grow and face the truth. Because she was so sheltered she is naive and surprised of things other people consider normal and sometimes it was hilarious. Maybe the way she was able to question and discard a lifelong set of ideas in a just few days was a bit unlikely (since her mother wasn't absolutely able in years), but apart from this, I really liked this book. I loved reading how Ami adapts hersef in this new community, how she grows and changes and finds her place in the world.
There are many themes in The ballad of Ami Miles, like racism, homophobia, bigotism. The way the women were treated in Heavenly Sheltered isn't so far-fetched and unfortunately I could see a world where things like that could happen.
I really liked the queer relationship, even though I found it a bit too rushed, but it's lovely and the way Ami was able to find her place with family and friends was beautiful and intense.
Overall, this a 4.5 stars book and I definitely recommend it to those who are looking for a dystopian, queer and apocalyptic book.
December 7, 2020
Overall, although it was bit shorter than I would have liked, this dystopian cult story is truly interesting.
Spoiler-free Review: https://amberinoface.wordpress.com/20...
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
Spoiler-free Review: https://amberinoface.wordpress.com/20...
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
September 29, 2024
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
First and foremost, I loved this book! This is definitely one of my top 10 reads of 2020.
Ami is an innocent 16 year old girl who has grown up in a very isolated place. After "the change" most women became unable to have children, so when Ami was born she was considered a blessing. Now that she is of child bearing age her grandfather tries to arrange a marriage between Ami and an older stranger. Not wanting to get married and start having babies, Ami runs away in search for her long-lost mother. If Ami finds her she will have to decide if leaving was worth it, or should she return home to beg her grandfather's forgiveness.
I absolutely adored Ami. I think the author did an amazing job of showing her vulnerability, fear and bravery. You can feel Ami's emotions throughout the story. She learns and grows so much throughout the book and it's reflected in her character.
The story was paced perfectly and the flow was just wonderful. This is an absolutely beautiful piece of work.
I recommend this book to everyone. I can't wait to read more by this author. I'm officially a fan!
First and foremost, I loved this book! This is definitely one of my top 10 reads of 2020.
Ami is an innocent 16 year old girl who has grown up in a very isolated place. After "the change" most women became unable to have children, so when Ami was born she was considered a blessing. Now that she is of child bearing age her grandfather tries to arrange a marriage between Ami and an older stranger. Not wanting to get married and start having babies, Ami runs away in search for her long-lost mother. If Ami finds her she will have to decide if leaving was worth it, or should she return home to beg her grandfather's forgiveness.
I absolutely adored Ami. I think the author did an amazing job of showing her vulnerability, fear and bravery. You can feel Ami's emotions throughout the story. She learns and grows so much throughout the book and it's reflected in her character.
The story was paced perfectly and the flow was just wonderful. This is an absolutely beautiful piece of work.
I recommend this book to everyone. I can't wait to read more by this author. I'm officially a fan!
December 5, 2020
Many thanks to EdelweissPlus and the publisher for providing me with a DRC of this title for review. All opinions are my own.
When I was about 25% done with this book, I was ready to give it a solid shoulder-shrugging "meh" as a review. I went into it expecting a dystopian story with a side of cult psychology and some feminism, and that wasn't exactly what I got. BUT, I found myself unable to look away from Ami and her story of self-discovery. Because, in the end, this was a coming of age story. Yes, it did have a vaguely "cultish" setting in the beginning, and a dystopian storyline about women becoming sterile, but overall, the story was about Ami becoming who she was always meant to be.
Overall, this is a second purchase type of book. It will do well in larger collections, but it will be a hard sell for some people. It doesn't fit nicely into any one genre or niche, which means that some readers will end up disappointed. Recommended for grades 8 and up.
When I was about 25% done with this book, I was ready to give it a solid shoulder-shrugging "meh" as a review. I went into it expecting a dystopian story with a side of cult psychology and some feminism, and that wasn't exactly what I got. BUT, I found myself unable to look away from Ami and her story of self-discovery. Because, in the end, this was a coming of age story. Yes, it did have a vaguely "cultish" setting in the beginning, and a dystopian storyline about women becoming sterile, but overall, the story was about Ami becoming who she was always meant to be.
Overall, this is a second purchase type of book. It will do well in larger collections, but it will be a hard sell for some people. It doesn't fit nicely into any one genre or niche, which means that some readers will end up disappointed. Recommended for grades 8 and up.
November 20, 2020
I didn't have a lot of expectations, going into this book, but it was still completely different from what I imagined. Opening up with the history of Heavenly Shepherd, an outpost and colony of people who fled during the government breakdown, these people reverted back to historic and bigoted practices: racism, sexism, homophobia, and general isolation. What I didn't expect though, was the fact that Ami was meant to be breed like an animal.
This book is only 262 or so pages long and yet so much happens in this story. Ami runs away from home, getting away from the family who mean to make her a baby making machine. She is given information on where her mother might be and goes after her, ending up at Lake Point - a resort getaway turned encampment which is like it's own town. She traverses through woods, escapes her family, and ends up in an entirely new world.
There were a lot of things I really liked about this book and I kind of wished it was longer. I wanted to see more drama between Ami and Papa or an attempt to get her back as she scrambled to get to Lake Point. But besides avoiding people and trying not to starve, the journey seemed easy.
Then we have Lake Point, where Ami meets kids her own age. And meets a girl that she might like. Which is wild for her, since she has grown up with the expectation that she is going to marry a man and have his babies. To serve him. Now, she has friends and a crush on a girl. We talk a lot about the differences between Heavenly Shepherd and Lake Point, but I really wanted the author to go into Ami's transformation more. We see her thoughts and feelings towards certain things start to change, but surprisingly, Ami is very quick to let herself go with the flow and change her opinions.
Honestly, I really liked this book and I think I just wanted more of it. As it is now, it's great. But with more in depth explanations or prolonged anguish, like trying to escape, questioning her sexuality, and really diving into the root of Ami's racist upbringing, I think this book would have been longer and possibly even better.
Overall, I liked this story. I loved the discussion of sexism, racism, and homophobia that this book touches on. I think Kristy did it in a way that is very open, honest, and considerate. Though there are some moments where language needed to be considered and could have been changed. But, generally, a good story with a lot of in depth discussions going on. A solid 4 // 5 stars for me!
This book is only 262 or so pages long and yet so much happens in this story. Ami runs away from home, getting away from the family who mean to make her a baby making machine. She is given information on where her mother might be and goes after her, ending up at Lake Point - a resort getaway turned encampment which is like it's own town. She traverses through woods, escapes her family, and ends up in an entirely new world.
There were a lot of things I really liked about this book and I kind of wished it was longer. I wanted to see more drama between Ami and Papa or an attempt to get her back as she scrambled to get to Lake Point. But besides avoiding people and trying not to starve, the journey seemed easy.
Then we have Lake Point, where Ami meets kids her own age. And meets a girl that she might like. Which is wild for her, since she has grown up with the expectation that she is going to marry a man and have his babies. To serve him. Now, she has friends and a crush on a girl. We talk a lot about the differences between Heavenly Shepherd and Lake Point, but I really wanted the author to go into Ami's transformation more. We see her thoughts and feelings towards certain things start to change, but surprisingly, Ami is very quick to let herself go with the flow and change her opinions.
Honestly, I really liked this book and I think I just wanted more of it. As it is now, it's great. But with more in depth explanations or prolonged anguish, like trying to escape, questioning her sexuality, and really diving into the root of Ami's racist upbringing, I think this book would have been longer and possibly even better.
Overall, I liked this story. I loved the discussion of sexism, racism, and homophobia that this book touches on. I think Kristy did it in a way that is very open, honest, and considerate. Though there are some moments where language needed to be considered and could have been changed. But, generally, a good story with a lot of in depth discussions going on. A solid 4 // 5 stars for me!
December 17, 2020
I could see The Ballad of Ami Miles coming to fruition in some aspects. You hear more and more about infertility as well as couples deciding not to have any children. The attitude surrounding women and their roles that we see at Heavenly Shepherd is unfortunately nothing new. I wouldn’t be surprised at something like it cropping up if something like the Break happened in the near future. Heavenly Shepherd is a terrifying example of a mentality that could take root in isolation and societal collapse.
It is a little difficult imagining Ami adjusting to all the new changes in her life in barely over a week. However, sometimes all it takes is just one example of how you were raised being called into question to uproot other significant ideals instilled at a young age. I found Ami delightful, even if she was exceedingly sheltered and naïve – her situation and the result of it is not something that she could have prevented herself. Ami’s journey to find the mother she has never met is a beautiful one where she learns she is so much more than her origin.
In addition to young adult and LGBTQ+, I would also consider this a coming of age and dystopian. It isn’t so far off from our current time that it feels completely alien and doesn’t feature fantasy or sci-fi elements. If the book description sounds interesting to you, I must tell you that this book is so much MORE than that – I highly recommend checking this one out. It tackles some tough subjects not limited to abandonment, sexuality, religion, and racism. The Ballad of Ami Miles completely surprised me, and I would like to thank Xpresso Book Tours and Kristy Dallas Alley for the opportunity to read it. *Rounded from 4.5 stars*
It is a little difficult imagining Ami adjusting to all the new changes in her life in barely over a week. However, sometimes all it takes is just one example of how you were raised being called into question to uproot other significant ideals instilled at a young age. I found Ami delightful, even if she was exceedingly sheltered and naïve – her situation and the result of it is not something that she could have prevented herself. Ami’s journey to find the mother she has never met is a beautiful one where she learns she is so much more than her origin.
In addition to young adult and LGBTQ+, I would also consider this a coming of age and dystopian. It isn’t so far off from our current time that it feels completely alien and doesn’t feature fantasy or sci-fi elements. If the book description sounds interesting to you, I must tell you that this book is so much MORE than that – I highly recommend checking this one out. It tackles some tough subjects not limited to abandonment, sexuality, religion, and racism. The Ballad of Ami Miles completely surprised me, and I would like to thank Xpresso Book Tours and Kristy Dallas Alley for the opportunity to read it. *Rounded from 4.5 stars*
April 28, 2021
This is a story about a girl who grew up in isolation discovering the outside world and the questions and confusion that goes along with it. It touches on important topics but never goes too deep into anything. The short page count keeps everything moving at a pretty quick pace, though it never feels rushed.
I didn't really go in with any expectations, but I did end up enjoying it. 3.5 stars
I didn't really go in with any expectations, but I did end up enjoying it. 3.5 stars
May 10, 2021
Some pre-Covid reviews of the book take issue with the number of children who live at the site of the former Lakepoint State Park. After nearly a year and a half of living through the pandemic of highly contagious virus, we've learned first hand how uneven the infection rates can be, even in places that are a few minutes away by car. What Ami experiences is possible and relatable in this post-Covid world.
Beyond the set up of Ami's world, is how she grows once she's free of her grandparents. She discovers love and the many different ways families can be formed. She gains access to new to her music and new to her books. She learns more of the history of her area and her former country.
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2021/comm...
666633 - marginalized home Blue Highway
Beyond the set up of Ami's world, is how she grows once she's free of her grandparents. She discovers love and the many different ways families can be formed. She gains access to new to her music and new to her books. She learns more of the history of her area and her former country.
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2021/comm...
666633 - marginalized home Blue Highway
April 26, 2020
#readathon
Really surprising. I couldn't stop reading about Ami! Her story shows just how easy it is for kids to share the beliefs of those who raise them and what can happen once those kids step out into the real world. It's a coming-of-age story set in a post-apocalypse future where most women have gone sterile and having babies has become women's most important job but Ami's not sure that's what she wants.
Ami's been raised on a compound (with cult-like qualities) founded by her great-great-grandfather by her grandparents after being left by her mother, for reasons explained in the book. When she turns 16 and her grandparents bring a man to the compound basically to breed her, she runs away with the help of her aunt. And what follows is Ami's realization that the world outside her compound might be a little different than her extremely religious, racist, misogynist grandfather might have raised her to believe.
It seems like this would be a very dark book but it actually turned out to be a sort of light introduction to the post-apocalyptic/dystopian book genre. There are references to breeding and mating but no actual descriptions were given nor acts on the page (aside from some consensual kissing). And as someone who has read some very dark post-apocalyptic worlds, I kept waiting for it to take a dark turn or for people to turn on Ami or bad situations to happen, but it really does just focus on Ami learning about who she is and what she wants, the world she now lives in and her hopes for a future that might be different than what she was raised to believe in. And it turns out to be a very hopeful story with moments of sadness and heartbreak but an overall feeling of being true to yourself and finding love and happiness even when times are tough. I thought it was really well done and I think a lot of young people will enjoy this book.
CW: mentions of racism, suicide, depression, stillborn babies, death during delivery, abandonment, religion, breeding, homophobia
Really surprising. I couldn't stop reading about Ami! Her story shows just how easy it is for kids to share the beliefs of those who raise them and what can happen once those kids step out into the real world. It's a coming-of-age story set in a post-apocalypse future where most women have gone sterile and having babies has become women's most important job but Ami's not sure that's what she wants.
Ami's been raised on a compound (with cult-like qualities) founded by her great-great-grandfather by her grandparents after being left by her mother, for reasons explained in the book. When she turns 16 and her grandparents bring a man to the compound basically to breed her, she runs away with the help of her aunt. And what follows is Ami's realization that the world outside her compound might be a little different than her extremely religious, racist, misogynist grandfather might have raised her to believe.
It seems like this would be a very dark book but it actually turned out to be a sort of light introduction to the post-apocalyptic/dystopian book genre. There are references to breeding and mating but no actual descriptions were given nor acts on the page (aside from some consensual kissing). And as someone who has read some very dark post-apocalyptic worlds, I kept waiting for it to take a dark turn or for people to turn on Ami or bad situations to happen, but it really does just focus on Ami learning about who she is and what she wants, the world she now lives in and her hopes for a future that might be different than what she was raised to believe in. And it turns out to be a very hopeful story with moments of sadness and heartbreak but an overall feeling of being true to yourself and finding love and happiness even when times are tough. I thought it was really well done and I think a lot of young people will enjoy this book.
CW: mentions of racism, suicide, depression, stillborn babies, death during delivery, abandonment, religion, breeding, homophobia
May 9, 2020
***THERE ARE SPOILERS**** YOU WERE WARNED****
The Breakdown:
Cover Art: 5/10
Initial Grab: 6/10
Characters: 7.5/10
Setting: 6.5/10
Content: 8/10
Readability Factor: 6/10
Overall: 6.5/10
Likely to Recommend: 5/10
Okay, first things first, this book deals with a cult and this really, in my opinion, super sweet, brainwashed young adult having to make sense of everything. She was told her whole life that her mother had to be on the run, one of many lies told to her. The turning point for her in the novel, is in the very beginning, when her cult-like father and family are getting her ready to essentially be bred to a complete stranger and part of her family assists her with escaping.
She finds a place that her mother has been living and it's really Ami Miles journey in discovering herself and her past and the truth. She finds love along the way (LGBTQ+).
Overall, it wasn't a bad read. I like creepy stories and am overall glad I read this one, but this particular one wasn't my cup of tea. I read it fairly quickly but it was hard to keep my focus and read this whenever I was on break at work. I didn't devour this book, but I do think it is work the read.
The Breakdown:
Cover Art: 5/10
Initial Grab: 6/10
Characters: 7.5/10
Setting: 6.5/10
Content: 8/10
Readability Factor: 6/10
Overall: 6.5/10
Likely to Recommend: 5/10
Okay, first things first, this book deals with a cult and this really, in my opinion, super sweet, brainwashed young adult having to make sense of everything. She was told her whole life that her mother had to be on the run, one of many lies told to her. The turning point for her in the novel, is in the very beginning, when her cult-like father and family are getting her ready to essentially be bred to a complete stranger and part of her family assists her with escaping.
She finds a place that her mother has been living and it's really Ami Miles journey in discovering herself and her past and the truth. She finds love along the way (LGBTQ+).
Overall, it wasn't a bad read. I like creepy stories and am overall glad I read this one, but this particular one wasn't my cup of tea. I read it fairly quickly but it was hard to keep my focus and read this whenever I was on break at work. I didn't devour this book, but I do think it is work the read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2023
Found this book because it was on PEN AMERICA'S INDEX OF SCHOOL BOOK BANS in Collierville, TN, a suburb of Memphis. (Pending Investigation). And nothing peak's my curiosity more than something that someone doesn't want kids reading. Written 125ish years into America's future, taking place in Alabama, initially, I couldn't figure out why is was banned, but then Ami runs away from home with the help of her aunts due to her grandfather trying to breed her with a stranger, because only a few females left in society haven't become infertile. The beginning of the book feels real Handsmaid tale-esque, and that's where I thought it was going, Handmaids tale for teens. But once Ami makes it to the place where her mother has been living, she starts to discover things about herself, and lies her grandparents told her and really finds herself and who she wants to be.
Don't see why it should be banned, there are no graphic sex scenes, actual facts about how society is today(re: birth control, Abortion, interracial marriage) Overall, it's a story about a kid finding herself
Don't see why it should be banned, there are no graphic sex scenes, actual facts about how society is today(re: birth control, Abortion, interracial marriage) Overall, it's a story about a kid finding herself
February 13, 2021
The plot points moved too fast and the ending felt super rushed and abrupt.
December 26, 2020
The Ballad of Ami Miles is the first dystopian book I’ve read in quite some time. Kristy Dallas Alley has created a post-apocalyptic world that could easily be our future (or so it feels that way with how it’s described). The author had me completely sucked into this world and I just had to know how everything would play out!
In this book the story basically revolves around our main character, Ami, and her journey into the world she didn’t knew existed. It’s also been awhile since I’ve read such a character driven book and it was so refreshing. I felt I really got to know the main character and it felt like I was with her and along for the ride.
Ami only knows the compound she grew up in. Her grandparents have raised her and she’s known it’s her duty to have a child in a world where most women aren’t able to. Because that’s what happened when the world started having problems. Women weren’t able to get pregnant anymore and the few that could were watched by the government, so they would continue to do so. Seeing how Ami’s mother was able to have her, her family thinks she may be able to as well. Knowing this doesn’t make it any easier for Ami when a man shows up and she knows she’ll have to be with this man.
When she’s told her mother may still be alive and that her aunts don’t believe this should be her future, they help her flee. This is definitely part of the story I won’t forget. Part of her family wanting more for her and her taking that risk. I can’t imagine how scary that was. Leaving the only place you’ve never known and going out into a world that sounds pretty scary and not even knowing how many people are still around.
Ami’s journey was so interesting and emotional. All the little things she discovers along the way. Actually seeing people her age for the first time or the mention of babies. When it turns out the world may not be as she was once told, Ami’s whole world is turned upside down. Even though this is really hard for Ami it also takes so much strength to deal with everything. I don’t know if I would’ve been so brave.
The Ballad of Ami Miles was a pleasant surprise and if you enjoy dystopian books, this is definitely one I recommend. The author wrote this book in a way that I didn’t want to stop reading and I actually had to cut back my selection of favorite quotes, because a lot jumped out to me while reading. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more books by this author.
In this book the story basically revolves around our main character, Ami, and her journey into the world she didn’t knew existed. It’s also been awhile since I’ve read such a character driven book and it was so refreshing. I felt I really got to know the main character and it felt like I was with her and along for the ride.
Ami only knows the compound she grew up in. Her grandparents have raised her and she’s known it’s her duty to have a child in a world where most women aren’t able to. Because that’s what happened when the world started having problems. Women weren’t able to get pregnant anymore and the few that could were watched by the government, so they would continue to do so. Seeing how Ami’s mother was able to have her, her family thinks she may be able to as well. Knowing this doesn’t make it any easier for Ami when a man shows up and she knows she’ll have to be with this man.
When she’s told her mother may still be alive and that her aunts don’t believe this should be her future, they help her flee. This is definitely part of the story I won’t forget. Part of her family wanting more for her and her taking that risk. I can’t imagine how scary that was. Leaving the only place you’ve never known and going out into a world that sounds pretty scary and not even knowing how many people are still around.
Ami’s journey was so interesting and emotional. All the little things she discovers along the way. Actually seeing people her age for the first time or the mention of babies. When it turns out the world may not be as she was once told, Ami’s whole world is turned upside down. Even though this is really hard for Ami it also takes so much strength to deal with everything. I don’t know if I would’ve been so brave.
The Ballad of Ami Miles was a pleasant surprise and if you enjoy dystopian books, this is definitely one I recommend. The author wrote this book in a way that I didn’t want to stop reading and I actually had to cut back my selection of favorite quotes, because a lot jumped out to me while reading. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more books by this author.
December 8, 2020
Ami has grown up on her family's trailer dealership turned compound after the world fell apart. She knows she is one of the lucky ones. She has grown up safe, with enough food in her belly and her family around her. That is until the day the man appeared, the man her grandparent's intended to pair with her with, because Ami might be one of the few fertile woman left in the world.
Realizes this isn't something she is ready to face Ami runs away with the help one of her aunts. She hopes to find not only her long last mother, but hopefully a husband of her choice as well. But journey away from her family's home leads her to learn and find so much more.
Kristy Dallas Alley builds such a realistic world that is easily pictured when telling this story. You can picture the world we live in now that has fallen apart, still exists but had died and left to rot as the human population died off. It makes you understand how hard survival is outside of encampments would be, things wouldn't be easy to do on your own, information would be limited, and nothing would be easy.
Not only is the world well built but Kristy Dallas Alley's character are beautiful. You can feel the confusion and excitement in Ami as she moves through her journey. She has only seen one thing her whole life, her families compound. So when she leaves it is a lot to take in to see anything different or to be told anything different than the religious redirect her family believed. While I loved Ami's character, the side characters were amazing as well, you could see and feel their struggles. They were all fairly well developed and for a shortish story that is quite impressive.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dystopian stories, or stories that involve cults. It is a quick read I read it all in one day always excited to find out more about Ami's thoughts and feelings.
Thank you to TBR and the publishers for my eARC all opinions and thoughts are my own.
Realizes this isn't something she is ready to face Ami runs away with the help one of her aunts. She hopes to find not only her long last mother, but hopefully a husband of her choice as well. But journey away from her family's home leads her to learn and find so much more.
Kristy Dallas Alley builds such a realistic world that is easily pictured when telling this story. You can picture the world we live in now that has fallen apart, still exists but had died and left to rot as the human population died off. It makes you understand how hard survival is outside of encampments would be, things wouldn't be easy to do on your own, information would be limited, and nothing would be easy.
Not only is the world well built but Kristy Dallas Alley's character are beautiful. You can feel the confusion and excitement in Ami as she moves through her journey. She has only seen one thing her whole life, her families compound. So when she leaves it is a lot to take in to see anything different or to be told anything different than the religious redirect her family believed. While I loved Ami's character, the side characters were amazing as well, you could see and feel their struggles. They were all fairly well developed and for a shortish story that is quite impressive.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dystopian stories, or stories that involve cults. It is a quick read I read it all in one day always excited to find out more about Ami's thoughts and feelings.
Thank you to TBR and the publishers for my eARC all opinions and thoughts are my own.
May 20, 2021
The Ballad of Ami Miles written by Kristy Dallas is an action-packed dystopian novel with the main focal point being self-discovery. In this post-societal setting, years of infertility have infected the world and reduced the population dramatically. Within this meltdown we find ourselves in a religious, cult-like and family-owned compound, Heavenly Shephard, with our main character Ami Miles. Ami is brought up believing her duty as a woman is to bear children. Having a fertile mother, the chances of Ami being able to have a child was thought to be more possible. The book begins with Ami coming back home to an older man who also happens to be a complete stranger. Ami immediately knows what is to come next. It is time for her to fulfill her duty “as a woman” with some stranger. Obviously no one would be okay with being knocked up by some stranger your grandparents brought back home. This causes loads of anxiety for Ami, which leads to the next setting in the book. While reading this book, there were obviously many main ideas. For example, Ami must leave her family in order to find her true self. She is raised to believe that she will fall in love only once in her life, with a man, and then give him children. But being able to know her thoughts throughout the story, we know this isn’t what she wants. HE isn’t who she wants. Highlights about race, sexuality, family, and big decisions for a teenager are all shoved into this short book. On the other hand, I loved this book especially being a younger reader. But, this book has a sharp ending that is almost rushed. You get all this time and detail condensed into one final chapter. I would say it is a little mediocre, or unsatisfying because you just want a little more. That could be a good or a bad thing, but overall I enjoyed reading this book. So we’re given this coming of age novel with a somewhat simple character but an extremely complex life. We follow Ami’s journey to love, education, and her true family. LGBTQ is definitely a huge part of this book, and reading how almost natural the author made these scenes makes me more comfortable with myself. This is the first book I have read like this one, but it could definitely be compared to other coming of age novels. In essence, this book reminds me of The Handmaid's Tale. A dystopian novel riddled with infertility as an excuse for an almost cult-like religious belief.
I rate this book a 4.5 stars, but rounded to a 5.
I rate this book a 4.5 stars, but rounded to a 5.
February 19, 2020
If anyone has seen or read anything about cults, IE: Escaping Polygamy, Jeff Warrens, FLDS, etc, it’s clear that’s the type of place we are talking about. It doesn’t seem to be on that large of a scale but the same idea was still there. (I don’t see any signs of polygamy it is clearly a cult none the less). Ami is 16 years old and what seemed very suddenly to her, a stranger named Zeke came to the compound. She put two and two together and seen that they expected her to do “God’s Will” and have a child with this man who was a complete stranger.
Some of Ami’s family has an idea of where her mother is, they don’t want this life for her either so they help her leave. Ami has to learn to interact with different types of people, the difference between what she was taught on the compound and how people on the outside really live.
This is a story about finding out what you believe and how you feel. Not to take what others say for face value and to learn on your own. This is a coming of age and I would recommend it to anyone. Amazing story.
Some of Ami’s family has an idea of where her mother is, they don’t want this life for her either so they help her leave. Ami has to learn to interact with different types of people, the difference between what she was taught on the compound and how people on the outside really live.
This is a story about finding out what you believe and how you feel. Not to take what others say for face value and to learn on your own. This is a coming of age and I would recommend it to anyone. Amazing story.
February 12, 2021
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Ballad of Ami Miles by Kristy Dallas Alley.
This is a story about a young girl escaping a damaging cult who teach her the the majority of her value comes with the ability to reproduce. After being introduced to her future husband, her aunt comes to her rescue and helps her to run. Now Ami is on her own in this new world, and has a lot to learn, about the world and herself.
These kinds of books are hard to read, especially because high control groups like these exist! And many cultures have taught women that motherhood is the end-all role. But even though I've already read plenty of cult books, I felt like this was a worthwhile read, entertaining as well as sobering.
This is a story about a young girl escaping a damaging cult who teach her the the majority of her value comes with the ability to reproduce. After being introduced to her future husband, her aunt comes to her rescue and helps her to run. Now Ami is on her own in this new world, and has a lot to learn, about the world and herself.
These kinds of books are hard to read, especially because high control groups like these exist! And many cultures have taught women that motherhood is the end-all role. But even though I've already read plenty of cult books, I felt like this was a worthwhile read, entertaining as well as sobering.
March 9, 2021
CW: religious trauma, post apocalyptic world, racism, sexism, abuse
Okay I think that post apocalyptic queer love stories are a niche I could quickly become obsessed with. Watching Ami’s whole life unravel before her, with one goal in mind and then realizing that it wasn’t actually all she wanted in life was amazing.
I was a little confused by the pacing of the book. So it starts off with a five day journey, which only takes like two chapters, and then when she gets to the place and they tell her it’ll be a two week wait, it’s like 6-7 chapters. And logically I understand that the compound would be more interesting to read than the woods, but I think a couple time stamps here and there would’ve been a great help.
Overall tho, I really enjoyed the story and the authors take on what the world would look like after society collapsed in on itself. I’m a big fan of authors who don’t over explain the apocalypse, like I don’t need detailed pages of international conflict, a simple world building paragraph will do.
4/5
Okay I think that post apocalyptic queer love stories are a niche I could quickly become obsessed with. Watching Ami’s whole life unravel before her, with one goal in mind and then realizing that it wasn’t actually all she wanted in life was amazing.
I was a little confused by the pacing of the book. So it starts off with a five day journey, which only takes like two chapters, and then when she gets to the place and they tell her it’ll be a two week wait, it’s like 6-7 chapters. And logically I understand that the compound would be more interesting to read than the woods, but I think a couple time stamps here and there would’ve been a great help.
Overall tho, I really enjoyed the story and the authors take on what the world would look like after society collapsed in on itself. I’m a big fan of authors who don’t over explain the apocalypse, like I don’t need detailed pages of international conflict, a simple world building paragraph will do.
4/5
December 7, 2020
This debut novel by (my friend!) Kristy Dallas Alley covers a lot of ground, all told in that lyrical, soft southern voice that eases you through the story like a song. I read an earlier version of the book when she first put it up on Swoon and it was a joy to see how it evolved into this.
December 29, 2020
This strong, compelling heroine questions her beliefs without fundamentally changing who she is as a person. A beautifully written coming of age story.
June 9, 2021
Ami is just a teenager when her grandfather introduces her future husband, a man surely at least old enough to be her father. It’s her duty to reproduce, she’s been told since she was a young child, to help repopulate the world. But for the help of her caring aunts and uncles, this is the fate she would have been resigned to. With their planning, she makes her way off the family compound and begins the journey to find her mother. When she finally succeeds, she realizes the world is much different than she’d been led to believe. A good post-apocalyptic story with cultish elements woven throughout.
February 27, 2020
I have a soft spot for post-apocalyptic novels that center everyday life, so I liked this one. It's not a revolutionary book. It's not full of a huge amount of fast paced adventure. It's about a girl who leaves her fundamentalist childhood and discovers that things were not as she had been told. Not revolutionary, but quite satisfying. Particularly like the positive LGBTQ message, and the fairly utopian lake community.
Advanced reader's copy provided by Edelweiss.
Advanced reader's copy provided by Edelweiss.
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