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Cold Awakening #2
Crashed
Everyone Has Some. Before the accident, Lia Kahn was happy. Before the accident, Lia Kahn was loved. Before, Lia was a lot of Normal. Alive. Human. Lia no longer believes in before. Six months after the crash that killed her, six months after being reborn, Lia has finally accepted her new reality. She is a machine, a mech, and she belongs with her own kind. It's a wild, carefree life, without rules and without fear. Because there's nothing to fear when you have nothing left to lose. But when a voice from her past cries out for revenge, everything changes. Lia is forced to choose between her old life and her new one. Between humans and mechs. Between sacrificing the girl she used to Between sacrificing the girl she used to be and saving the boy she used to love. Even if it means he'll hate her forever.
480 pages, Paperback
First published August 27, 2009
75 people are currently reading
3555 people want to read
About the author
Robin Wasserman
113 books1,478 followersRobin Wasserman is the author of the novels MOTHER DAUGHTER WIDOW WIFE (June 2020) and GIRLS ON FIRE. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Tin House, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and several short story anthologies. A recent MacDowell Colony fellow, she is also the New York Times bestselling author of more than ten novels for young adults and teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Southern New Hampshire University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 307 reviews
January 30, 2019
Okurken çok sıkıldım...Lia uyuzun teki,jude ile olan sidik yarışı bunaltıcı...
January 24, 2021
2.5 stars. It wasn't specified that this was a second in the series but don't think it would have changed much for me. It wasn't terrible but I did not enjoy the story anywho. Didn't connect with the characters and didn't find the plot as exciting as I had hoped.
August 21, 2016
Gerçekten değişik bir kitap. Bu tarzda tonla film ve kitap var, hatta diziler... Ama ben öyle meraklısı olmadığım için takip etmezdim pek. Ama bunu sevdim gibi. Bu kitabı ilkinden daha çok sevdim :)
June 27, 2013
I read the first book a while ago and was less than thrilled. I couldn't get interested in the characters. I didn't care about them and I found the main character (Lia) to be irritating. I don't like starting a series and not finishing it so I decided to give Crashed a try.
The concept of the series is interesting. The philosophical argument of what makes a person a person: brain, body, soul? I wanted to like this series. I just can't get into it. The author also sometimes doesn't clarify who is talking. I got lost and had to reread several parts trying to figure out who was saying what. Maybe this is just me.
Something like this:
The pair walked down the street discussing the weather.
"The weather is nasty today."
"I agree absolutely terrible."
"And it doesn't look like it will improve much."
Who is saying what? In my example it doesn't really matter, but in the book it can completely change the plot. There were a few points in the book where I was wondering why Lia was saying something. Her lines just weren't making sense. Then I realized it was a different character talking.
I haven't finished this one yet. I normally finish a book this size in a few days. It's been a few weeks. Reading it is so uninteresting.
The concept of the series is interesting. The philosophical argument of what makes a person a person: brain, body, soul? I wanted to like this series. I just can't get into it. The author also sometimes doesn't clarify who is talking. I got lost and had to reread several parts trying to figure out who was saying what. Maybe this is just me.
Something like this:
The pair walked down the street discussing the weather.
"The weather is nasty today."
"I agree absolutely terrible."
"And it doesn't look like it will improve much."
Who is saying what? In my example it doesn't really matter, but in the book it can completely change the plot. There were a few points in the book where I was wondering why Lia was saying something. Her lines just weren't making sense. Then I realized it was a different character talking.
I haven't finished this one yet. I normally finish a book this size in a few days. It's been a few weeks. Reading it is so uninteresting.
May 19, 2011
Ok, this book was irritating. I found myself wanting to punch the majority of the characters. They're all selfish, self-sabotaging, whiny & liars. In the first book, I was a little annoyed with Lia's self-absorbed rich girl attitude, but thought maybe as the series went along her character would develop a little more maturely. And no, she's not obsessed with her social status or being the hottest girl anymore, but only because she has no social status as a mech & can't revel in her beauty because it's not her body. And there are moments when it looks like she'll actually do the right thing & then she won't. And the lies.. Even though it's obvious it's a better choice to tell the person involved something she doesn't. And half the time it's not something so majority huge that she keeps from them but by not telling them it blows up in her face. I think the main thing that bugs me about this series, especially in this book is there's no one to root for. Once you start thinking ok, I like this character they go & do something stupid & you want to kick them. I get that the story is supposed to be about miserable people who have died & are stuck in a downloaded version of themselves. But it's like for one reason or another each character is so absorbed in their pity parties that they're turning into just rotten people in general. I'm still reading the third book because the general storyline is interesting, but I hope the characters develop more.
March 18, 2016
Schade, den ersten Teil fand ich so toll, weil es mal so eine ganz andere Geschichte war.
Die Fortsetzung ist aber total langweilig und ich konnte mit Lia nichts mehr anfangen...
Die Fortsetzung ist aber total langweilig und ich konnte mit Lia nichts mehr anfangen...
April 29, 2021
3,5 Sterne
Ich mag die Geschichte total gerne, aber der Schreibstil und die Charaktere sind schon sehr gewöhnungsbedürftig. Nichtsdestotrotz freue ich mich auf den dritten und finalen Band der Trilogie, der im Mai definitiv gelesen wird.
Ich mag die Geschichte total gerne, aber der Schreibstil und die Charaktere sind schon sehr gewöhnungsbedürftig. Nichtsdestotrotz freue ich mich auf den dritten und finalen Band der Trilogie, der im Mai definitiv gelesen wird.
October 19, 2022
Güzel bir seri. İkinci kitabını uzun sürede okumamın sebebi çok fazla diyalog ve daha az olay olmasıydı. Genel olarak güzel. Her seride ikinci kitap hep ara konuları ele aldığı için bu durumu normal kabul ediyorum. 4.5/5
December 15, 2009
This was a good sequel...but it wasn't anything to get too excited about, unfortunately. The plot and characters of this book seem to hitting snags in their development; I couldn't help feeling as I read that I'd seen too much of this stuff before.
For one thing, Lia's intense mental and moral angsting gets old. I like when characters muse over ideas and problems and think things through, but the constant and often repetitive buzz of Lia's angry, sad, tortured, thoughtful inner monologue started to wear on me after a couple hundred pages. The ideas behind her thinking are fascinating - "What constitutes humanity? Feeling? Memory? What is it to be alive?" - but she already hashed these questions out in the first book. It gets ad-nauseum here.
There is more action here, and some development in terms of who's good, who's bad, and who's going to be dangerous to our main characters. Many people are still very ambiguous, but not because they're being mysteriously developed, just because they seem to flip-flop between being kind of cool and being annoying. I still can't stand Jude, and not even in a respectful villainous way. Just that he's a monumental jerk, and I can't understand any of the various characters' sympathy, trust, or loyalty to him.
The one other area I had a problem with here was Lia's relationship with Riley. I get that she needs to spread out a little and explore exactly what constitutes love and desire in a mech body, but Riley was so...boring. And so was Lia's interaction with him. There was just no spark. Compared to her vital, touching relationship with Auden that developed in the first book, I felt let down, especially because Auden himself stays "offscreen" for most of this one.
The climax scene and last couple chapters were very good though (mostly because Auden reappeared and Lia interacted with him), and made me interested enough to probably read the 3rd and final book.
For one thing, Lia's intense mental and moral angsting gets old. I like when characters muse over ideas and problems and think things through, but the constant and often repetitive buzz of Lia's angry, sad, tortured, thoughtful inner monologue started to wear on me after a couple hundred pages. The ideas behind her thinking are fascinating - "What constitutes humanity? Feeling? Memory? What is it to be alive?" - but she already hashed these questions out in the first book. It gets ad-nauseum here.
There is more action here, and some development in terms of who's good, who's bad, and who's going to be dangerous to our main characters. Many people are still very ambiguous, but not because they're being mysteriously developed, just because they seem to flip-flop between being kind of cool and being annoying. I still can't stand Jude, and not even in a respectful villainous way. Just that he's a monumental jerk, and I can't understand any of the various characters' sympathy, trust, or loyalty to him.
The one other area I had a problem with here was Lia's relationship with Riley. I get that she needs to spread out a little and explore exactly what constitutes love and desire in a mech body, but Riley was so...boring. And so was Lia's interaction with him. There was just no spark. Compared to her vital, touching relationship with Auden that developed in the first book, I felt let down, especially because Auden himself stays "offscreen" for most of this one.
The climax scene and last couple chapters were very good though (mostly because Auden reappeared and Lia interacted with him), and made me interested enough to probably read the 3rd and final book.
March 4, 2011
It is official. I am hooked on this trilogy. Lia Khan has left her family and moved in with the "mechs" who are living on Quinn's estate. She's integrated into Jude's group that is carefully watching The Brotherhood of Man's rise to power complete with a temple, an old advisary, Savona, leader of the "Faithers" who has recruited a new poster boy, Auden. Jude sends Riley and Lia to a corp town to pick up some tech gadgets, and they are caught up in a bio-hazard situation that killed many in the compound. While the toxic gas did not harm Riley and Lia, they knew they would be blamed for the disaster, so they went on the run. Lia is comfortable with Riley who does not expect anything from her except loyalty to Jude. This bio terrorism is only the beginning of a story that personifies betrayal, racism, and hatred, and how that hatred is media created until it finally erupts into a fiery end. What I really like about Lia is that she fights to maintain her own perspectives when the forces that pull at her are putting her in situations of life and death. Not only that, but her best friend, Auden, is out there at the mercy of Savona's pack of hyenas...or has the leadership changed, and is Auden in charge? Recommended for grades 7+; readers who like Hunger Games, The Adoration of Jenna Fox, or The House of the Scorpion will like these engaging sequels.
July 14, 2017
better than the first one - broaches the same what-does-it-mean-to-be-human questions but goes deeper (although i have read the books before so it might just be that i had heard it all before with book 1)
May 20, 2016
My problem with this series is how the African American male character was turned into a Caucasian robot... I guess it is to show how sick white supremacy can be that they will make white robots before any other kind. Ugh! So many issues raised in this series, it's really good!!!
August 28, 2018
I loved this book. Bought it in Kindle form in the last few months. This series is just as good as I remember it to be. I received a free copy of the first book in 2008 when I was in 8th grade. It always stuck with me, lingering in the back of my mind, not forgotten. I've recently found out this type of scifi is called "speculative fiction" so now I know the term to look to find books like this.
This book was written for teens but is mature enough for adults to be interested in too. It deals with a lot of ethical and philosophical questions and ponders where our economic system and tech industry are leading to. As a socialist, I enjoyed the class issues being so explicitly addressed between the city dwellers (equivalent to lumpen prol/low income) vs corp-owned townspeople (middle class) and the elites (capitalist ruling class).
I really was fascinated by the main character's descriptions of how she feels things in a different way, more dissociated than normal humans. In the book they do extreme stunts because it's the only way they can feel anything "real". Everything else feels artificial, like the sensation is acknowledged but does not integrate the full self body, mind and soul of an organic human. It reminds me of neurodiversity, because some people process sensory info a lot differently than the majority.
A good thing about this series is reading it a decade later, it does not seem dated or silly. That is a sign of good writing.
This book was written for teens but is mature enough for adults to be interested in too. It deals with a lot of ethical and philosophical questions and ponders where our economic system and tech industry are leading to. As a socialist, I enjoyed the class issues being so explicitly addressed between the city dwellers (equivalent to lumpen prol/low income) vs corp-owned townspeople (middle class) and the elites (capitalist ruling class).
I really was fascinated by the main character's descriptions of how she feels things in a different way, more dissociated than normal humans. In the book they do extreme stunts because it's the only way they can feel anything "real". Everything else feels artificial, like the sensation is acknowledged but does not integrate the full self body, mind and soul of an organic human. It reminds me of neurodiversity, because some people process sensory info a lot differently than the majority.
A good thing about this series is reading it a decade later, it does not seem dated or silly. That is a sign of good writing.
March 25, 2021
Beklediğim aşk ilişkileri olmadı bu beni biraz hayal kırıklığına uğrattı
dnf
December 5, 2025damn this was boring
January 6, 2010
Lia Kahn has given up on her old life. She’s accepted what she is, a mech and not a human. She’s left her family and their home to live with others like her. They live a crazy life without rules or boundaries, searching for ways to defy their programming so that they can feel and dream. But though Lia tells herself that she’s gotten used to it all, that she doesn’t care about her past anymore, she’s lying because there are people from her background she’s not willing to give up on. When Lia’s past turns against her, her new life starts to spin out of control. In a world increasingly hostile to the inhuman, hate mail isn’t all the mechs have to face, and when war between the orgs and mechs becomes a possibility, everything is at stake. But only one side of anything can win, and Lia must make a choice to determine what—and who—she’s fighting for.
This second installment in the Skinned trilogy is just as original and thrilling as the first. Things are even more dangerous and uncertain for the mechs, especially due to a radical religious group intent on stopping what they view as the unnatural creation of humanlike forms, or mechs. This, or course, lends itself to many new twists and turns in the story, all of them unexpected. Wasserman is a master at manipulating plot, and I’m glad to say there’s not one section of this book that isn’t interesting or exciting. Crashed was less about personal identity than its prequel Skinned was; it focused more on control of one’s life, choices, and the different sides to every conflict. Lia’s experiences and struggles continue to force the reader to consider many aspects of life we often take for granted, like the ability to feel emotion and basic human rights. Crashed is an enthralling continuation of a story about what it means to be alive.
The Skinned trilogy will be enjoyed by fans of Unwind by Neal Shuterman, the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, and The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson.
reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com
This second installment in the Skinned trilogy is just as original and thrilling as the first. Things are even more dangerous and uncertain for the mechs, especially due to a radical religious group intent on stopping what they view as the unnatural creation of humanlike forms, or mechs. This, or course, lends itself to many new twists and turns in the story, all of them unexpected. Wasserman is a master at manipulating plot, and I’m glad to say there’s not one section of this book that isn’t interesting or exciting. Crashed was less about personal identity than its prequel Skinned was; it focused more on control of one’s life, choices, and the different sides to every conflict. Lia’s experiences and struggles continue to force the reader to consider many aspects of life we often take for granted, like the ability to feel emotion and basic human rights. Crashed is an enthralling continuation of a story about what it means to be alive.
The Skinned trilogy will be enjoyed by fans of Unwind by Neal Shuterman, the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, and The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson.
reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com
November 22, 2009
It took me a little longer to get into this one than I expected, and for all I know that was on me--maybe I was tired from traveling. The second time I picked the book up it sucked me right in, and I put it down only reluctantly after that. I liked it as much as SKINNED, and given how much I liked SKINNED, that's saying a great deal.
Lia is trying still to adjust to life as a "mech," a human consciousness downloaded into an android body. Now she is beginning to see how manipulated people, those who are "orgs," organic, and mechs alike, are by the corporation which holds the patents on the mechs. Jude, who is a kind of leader for her loose group of mechs, manipulates them all to amuse himself. As Lia continues to ask questions, he sends her to a meeting in a dangerous city, one at which a terrorist act claims the lives of over thirty people. Worse, the terrorist who releases the deadly gas is caught on film, and she has Lia's face.
What has Jude gotten Lia and his best friend Riley into? Why is he manipulating one of their group into negotiating with the anti-mech Temple of Man? And what if the rumors are true, and the anti-mech faction is developing a way to kill the mechs--forever?
There are a number of issues that are familiar for our time: the haves and the have nots, who gets medical care and who doesn't, and what determines the quality of life? And the moral issues are painful ones, issues we may have to face one day.
Now I just have to wait for the next book. Patiently.
Lia is trying still to adjust to life as a "mech," a human consciousness downloaded into an android body. Now she is beginning to see how manipulated people, those who are "orgs," organic, and mechs alike, are by the corporation which holds the patents on the mechs. Jude, who is a kind of leader for her loose group of mechs, manipulates them all to amuse himself. As Lia continues to ask questions, he sends her to a meeting in a dangerous city, one at which a terrorist act claims the lives of over thirty people. Worse, the terrorist who releases the deadly gas is caught on film, and she has Lia's face.
What has Jude gotten Lia and his best friend Riley into? Why is he manipulating one of their group into negotiating with the anti-mech Temple of Man? And what if the rumors are true, and the anti-mech faction is developing a way to kill the mechs--forever?
There are a number of issues that are familiar for our time: the haves and the have nots, who gets medical care and who doesn't, and what determines the quality of life? And the moral issues are painful ones, issues we may have to face one day.
Now I just have to wait for the next book. Patiently.
September 14, 2020
2020
I really liked the first book in this series.
This one wasn't as appealing to me. I struggled to even read most of it (I was pretty bored the majority of the time). It's definitely more of a bridge book than it's own story. It's building on the previous book and setting us up for the next one. And that's super important and all, but it's also a little boring.
I don't like what the author is doing with Lia's family, either. Which, the majority of the time, is basically nothing. They just keep acting in exactly the same roles over and over and over again. Honestly, I can't even figure out why they were included in this in the first place. Zo serves a purpose, I supposed. So far she's joined a cult and let's Lia know that she is definitely no longer her sister. However, Dad just serves the purpose of having a bank account. And Mom might has well not be in the picture at all.
Also, I'm a bit annoyed with all the betrayal. Would it have really been that difficult for Quinn to keep it in her pants? Or for Ani to not go psycho on the rest of the mechs because she felt hurt? Or for Auden to constantly make the dumbest decisions a smart boy could make? Seriously, how does one even get talked into signing up to be a spokesperson for a cult? And that Riley and Jude. They might as well be butt buddies with how much Riley just blindly supports Jude and all Jude does.
I really liked the first book in this series.
This one wasn't as appealing to me. I struggled to even read most of it (I was pretty bored the majority of the time). It's definitely more of a bridge book than it's own story. It's building on the previous book and setting us up for the next one. And that's super important and all, but it's also a little boring.
I don't like what the author is doing with Lia's family, either. Which, the majority of the time, is basically nothing. They just keep acting in exactly the same roles over and over and over again. Honestly, I can't even figure out why they were included in this in the first place. Zo serves a purpose, I supposed. So far she's joined a cult and let's Lia know that she is definitely no longer her sister. However, Dad just serves the purpose of having a bank account. And Mom might has well not be in the picture at all.
Also, I'm a bit annoyed with all the betrayal. Would it have really been that difficult for Quinn to keep it in her pants? Or for Ani to not go psycho on the rest of the mechs because she felt hurt? Or for Auden to constantly make the dumbest decisions a smart boy could make? Seriously, how does one even get talked into signing up to be a spokesperson for a cult? And that Riley and Jude. They might as well be butt buddies with how much Riley just blindly supports Jude and all Jude does.
July 13, 2009
In Crashed, sequel to Skinned, the stakes have gone up. Lia has been in her mech body for long enough to know that some things will never change, and others will never be the same. She is trying new things and attempting to get used to the fact that many people don't think she is a human being. She is also experiencing firsthand the politics of a biomedical ethics uproar. Where Skinned is mostly introspective, Crashed is full of action. There's also a VERY satisfying romance, and we get to know Lia a little better. This series is more than just dystopian science fiction; it feels real, like maybe Lia and her friends are living in a not-too-distant future.
June 26, 2009
I got the ARC of this book and finished it last night.
This book really compliments the first book in the trilogy. There is so much added suspense and twist and turns and NO one turns out the way I thought they would... I am soooo excited to read the third book!!!! I just don't know if I can wait a whole year!!!
This book really compliments the first book in the trilogy. There is so much added suspense and twist and turns and NO one turns out the way I thought they would... I am soooo excited to read the third book!!!! I just don't know if I can wait a whole year!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 29, 2009
I just received a copy of the ARC to read and wow, it's sucked me right in. It's really good so far.
**I loved this book. This was way better than Skinned. I wasn't a fan of Skinned, but man did I enjoy this book. I can't say much, but I will say there are lots of twists and turns and I can't wait for the next book.
**I loved this book. This was way better than Skinned. I wasn't a fan of Skinned, but man did I enjoy this book. I can't say much, but I will say there are lots of twists and turns and I can't wait for the next book.
November 10, 2011
I didn't like how Auden turned out. He's all weak...and semi-nuts...and no, I just don't like how he turning out.
At first, I did want Riley to be with Lia, but then, I think I like Jude better for her. He challenges her more. Can't wait to find out how he is and everything in the next book...
At first, I did want Riley to be with Lia, but then, I think I like Jude better for her. He challenges her more. Can't wait to find out how he is and everything in the next book...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 19, 2016
I received the ARC of this book and really enjoyed it. It is better than Skinned. Totally unpredictable and sucked me into the story.
Content: teenage sex, language & lesbian relationships
Content: teenage sex, language & lesbian relationships
August 18, 2017
Living with other mechs since her wealthy parents transplanted her brain into a mechanical body to prevent her from dying in a horrible accident, Lia becomes a pawn in a religious leader's movement to outlaw mech technology and eradicate machines such as Lia.
Rating: ★★★☆☆ – liked it
Genre: young adult fiction, ya science fiction, ya dystopia
Pros: well written, allegorical, realistic
Cons: slow paced, frustrating main character, realistic
I'm giving this book 3 stars because every problem I had getting into the book and enjoying the story was because I personally didn't like Lia (the MC), and with the first person POV it's all Lia all the time. If I had liked her I can tell this story would have been entirely engrossing.
One of the things I really liked about the writing is also one of the things I liked the least. That is, that the characters and their actions were so realistic.
Despite being mechs, with damage resistant bodies and memory back-ups in case they are destroyed, none of them are elite fighters or even excelling at anything much. They are completely realistic teenagers. Give them extra-strong bodies and they pull extra-dangerous stunts. Put a group of them in a house and leave them to their own devices, they screw around (in all meanings of that phrase) and bicker. There are no "maturity level of an adult, leading a teenage revolution" sort of characters. Just a group of kids with problems, facing the destructions of all their rights, trying to figure out if there's even anything they can do about it.
The reason I almost wish it wasn't so realistic? The constant bickering leading nowhere at all! Not to mention, hardly anything ever got done. (It was the last 1/3 of the book before they really got down to making any moves.)
This book deals a lot with prejudice. Mechs are struggling to even be seen as people. Wasserman portrays it accurately, with nuance from character to character. As opposed to a homogenous group who all feel the exact same way and hate without logic. Not everyone against the mechs is just an evil creep; some are just angry and looking for someone to be angry at, some are confused and genuinely think they are on the right side, some hide behind religion. Of course, some are just hateful people, too.
I definitely recommend this series so far. Wasserman's writing is good enough that I enjoy it even with first person narration (something I personally hate) and a main character who sometimes tested my patience.
I also have a book blog :)
Rating: ★★★☆☆ – liked it
Genre: young adult fiction, ya science fiction, ya dystopia
Pros: well written, allegorical, realistic
Cons: slow paced, frustrating main character, realistic
I'm giving this book 3 stars because every problem I had getting into the book and enjoying the story was because I personally didn't like Lia (the MC), and with the first person POV it's all Lia all the time. If I had liked her I can tell this story would have been entirely engrossing.
One of the things I really liked about the writing is also one of the things I liked the least. That is, that the characters and their actions were so realistic.
Despite being mechs, with damage resistant bodies and memory back-ups in case they are destroyed, none of them are elite fighters or even excelling at anything much. They are completely realistic teenagers. Give them extra-strong bodies and they pull extra-dangerous stunts. Put a group of them in a house and leave them to their own devices, they screw around (in all meanings of that phrase) and bicker. There are no "maturity level of an adult, leading a teenage revolution" sort of characters. Just a group of kids with problems, facing the destructions of all their rights, trying to figure out if there's even anything they can do about it.
The reason I almost wish it wasn't so realistic? The constant bickering leading nowhere at all! Not to mention, hardly anything ever got done. (It was the last 1/3 of the book before they really got down to making any moves.)
This book deals a lot with prejudice. Mechs are struggling to even be seen as people. Wasserman portrays it accurately, with nuance from character to character. As opposed to a homogenous group who all feel the exact same way and hate without logic. Not everyone against the mechs is just an evil creep; some are just angry and looking for someone to be angry at, some are confused and genuinely think they are on the right side, some hide behind religion. Of course, some are just hateful people, too.
I definitely recommend this series so far. Wasserman's writing is good enough that I enjoy it even with first person narration (something I personally hate) and a main character who sometimes tested my patience.
I also have a book blog :)
August 11, 2018
"Crashed" ist der zweite Band der Gripped-Trilogie von Robin Wassermann. Es wurde 2016 beim Imprint script5 des Loewe Verlags veröffentlicht. Der zweite Band war gut, die Konflikte mit den Gegnern und unter den Mechs kamen zum Vorschein, Lia erhält langsam Einblicke in die Vergangenheit der anderen Mechs, aber sie selbst hat mich total genervt und ich habe sehr oft beim Lesen pausiert, weil ich keine Lust hatte, weiter zu lesen. Insgesamt bekommt das Buch von mir 3 Lilien.
Lia hat am Ende des ersten Bandes ihre Familie verlassen und lebt mit den anderen Mechs auf einem riesigen Anwesen zusammen. Der Anführer Jude versorgt sie mit neuer Technologie und mit Dreamern. Ein Art Drogen fürs Mechs, die das System überlasten und dafür sorgen, dass sie etwas fühlen. Lia hält sich von den Dreamern fern und ich weiß nicht, ich hatte, dass Gefühl, dass sie immer unzufriedener wird. Jude und die anderen verheimlichen immer noch viel von ihr, ihr ehemals bester Freund Auden hat sich nach den Geschehnissen in Band eins den Erleuchteten angeschlossen und hilft Rai Savona dabei, den Hass und die Abneigungen gegen die Mechs zu verstärken. Als dann auch noch ein Anschlag geschieht, bei dem Menschen sterben und sich Mechs zum Attentat bekennen, wird die Stimmung immer gefährlicher.
Nachdem der erste Band sich größtenteils um Lias Gefühlsleben gekümmert hatte, hatte ich hier gehofft, dass sich Lia mit ihren neuen Freunden darum kümmert, die Gefahren, die von den Erleuchteten ausstrahlt zu hinterfragen und auch mal bei BioMax mehr zu forschen. Die haben ja auch ihre Geheimnisse. Vor allem als herauskommt, was mit den ersten "Freiwilligen" der DownloadTechnologie passiert ist. Da war ich ja schon entsetzt. Allerdings hatte ich das Gefühl, dass sich Lia dafür gar nicht wirklich interessiert. Sie war immer noch so selbstbezogen, hakte nicht genug nach. Sie nervte mich mit ihrer Art.
Die Handlung, die um die Konzerne und um die Erleuchteten gesponnen war, fand ich viel interessanter als Lia. Es war einfach grausam, wie die Konzerne mit den Menschen umgehen, wie Rai Savona und Auden die Massen manipulieren und ihre Propaganda durchs Network schicken. Allerdings gingen die für mich spannenderen Sachen bei Lias Selbstzweifeln einfach unter. Das war total schade. Dank Lia konnte und wollte ich das Buch sogar immer wieder weglegen. Aktuell habe ich auch keine Lust den letzten Band zu lesen.
Lia hat am Ende des ersten Bandes ihre Familie verlassen und lebt mit den anderen Mechs auf einem riesigen Anwesen zusammen. Der Anführer Jude versorgt sie mit neuer Technologie und mit Dreamern. Ein Art Drogen fürs Mechs, die das System überlasten und dafür sorgen, dass sie etwas fühlen. Lia hält sich von den Dreamern fern und ich weiß nicht, ich hatte, dass Gefühl, dass sie immer unzufriedener wird. Jude und die anderen verheimlichen immer noch viel von ihr, ihr ehemals bester Freund Auden hat sich nach den Geschehnissen in Band eins den Erleuchteten angeschlossen und hilft Rai Savona dabei, den Hass und die Abneigungen gegen die Mechs zu verstärken. Als dann auch noch ein Anschlag geschieht, bei dem Menschen sterben und sich Mechs zum Attentat bekennen, wird die Stimmung immer gefährlicher.
Nachdem der erste Band sich größtenteils um Lias Gefühlsleben gekümmert hatte, hatte ich hier gehofft, dass sich Lia mit ihren neuen Freunden darum kümmert, die Gefahren, die von den Erleuchteten ausstrahlt zu hinterfragen und auch mal bei BioMax mehr zu forschen. Die haben ja auch ihre Geheimnisse. Vor allem als herauskommt, was mit den ersten "Freiwilligen" der DownloadTechnologie passiert ist. Da war ich ja schon entsetzt. Allerdings hatte ich das Gefühl, dass sich Lia dafür gar nicht wirklich interessiert. Sie war immer noch so selbstbezogen, hakte nicht genug nach. Sie nervte mich mit ihrer Art.
Die Handlung, die um die Konzerne und um die Erleuchteten gesponnen war, fand ich viel interessanter als Lia. Es war einfach grausam, wie die Konzerne mit den Menschen umgehen, wie Rai Savona und Auden die Massen manipulieren und ihre Propaganda durchs Network schicken. Allerdings gingen die für mich spannenderen Sachen bei Lias Selbstzweifeln einfach unter. Das war total schade. Dank Lia konnte und wollte ich das Buch sogar immer wieder weglegen. Aktuell habe ich auch keine Lust den letzten Band zu lesen.
September 23, 2017
I changed this 4 star rating to 1 star, because this is a one star series, and here's why.
Original Review:
I feel bad writing this review, because I read the first in this series years ago so I don't remember why I'd rated it 5 stars besides the fact that I remember blazing through the story wanting to know what happened next. I did that with this one too. The plot builds, tension mounts, and the author presents many paths for the main character Lia to choose...so, as a reader, naturally you're hooked to keep reading to find out which she chooses. However, this didn't feel like a five star book to me. I agree with some other reviewers that Lia's philosophical inner monologues were amazing in the first book but made me raise an eyebrow in this one. I was disappointed in Lia; for the entirety of this book she's totally neutral, so many sides to choose and you don't get the sense she's rooting for any one. This says something interesting about the moral dilemma they're in, but it unfortunately doesn't make for interesting character development. I wanted to be in *any* of the antagonists' heads...at least they *believed* in something. At least they'd *monumentally* grown since their bodies had failed them...whereas Lia, well, she seemed just as lost as she was in the first book, except this time she was cynical about it rather than heartbroken, which doesn't make for a likeable character. Also, the Riley/Jude/Lia romantic tension felt fake and forced...like it was expected to be there, which is why it was there. But seriously...Lia has basically turned into an asexual aromantic, so what motivation does she have to pursue romance? I couldn't help but wonder, she thinks so hard about everything else, why did she never think about her relationships? Her friendships? At least never in any deep way. Any thought that wasn't about her own immediate dilemmas and emotions was pretty much immediately dismissed. It made her come off as incredibly selfish, which is contradictory to the growth she seemed to have done at the end of the first book. I'm giving this four stars because, despite my criticisms, I really want to know what happens next. I care about the outcome of this plot, even though I'm still unsure if I care about the characters. And, I gotta give it to Wasserman, she's a talented writer; I lose myself in her prose every time. She makes it so easy to fall into the world she's created, like swimming into an ocean you don't want to emerge from.
Original Review:
I feel bad writing this review, because I read the first in this series years ago so I don't remember why I'd rated it 5 stars besides the fact that I remember blazing through the story wanting to know what happened next. I did that with this one too. The plot builds, tension mounts, and the author presents many paths for the main character Lia to choose...so, as a reader, naturally you're hooked to keep reading to find out which she chooses. However, this didn't feel like a five star book to me. I agree with some other reviewers that Lia's philosophical inner monologues were amazing in the first book but made me raise an eyebrow in this one. I was disappointed in Lia; for the entirety of this book she's totally neutral, so many sides to choose and you don't get the sense she's rooting for any one. This says something interesting about the moral dilemma they're in, but it unfortunately doesn't make for interesting character development. I wanted to be in *any* of the antagonists' heads...at least they *believed* in something. At least they'd *monumentally* grown since their bodies had failed them...whereas Lia, well, she seemed just as lost as she was in the first book, except this time she was cynical about it rather than heartbroken, which doesn't make for a likeable character. Also, the Riley/Jude/Lia romantic tension felt fake and forced...like it was expected to be there, which is why it was there. But seriously...Lia has basically turned into an asexual aromantic, so what motivation does she have to pursue romance? I couldn't help but wonder, she thinks so hard about everything else, why did she never think about her relationships? Her friendships? At least never in any deep way. Any thought that wasn't about her own immediate dilemmas and emotions was pretty much immediately dismissed. It made her come off as incredibly selfish, which is contradictory to the growth she seemed to have done at the end of the first book. I'm giving this four stars because, despite my criticisms, I really want to know what happens next. I care about the outcome of this plot, even though I'm still unsure if I care about the characters. And, I gotta give it to Wasserman, she's a talented writer; I lose myself in her prose every time. She makes it so easy to fall into the world she's created, like swimming into an ocean you don't want to emerge from.
September 1, 2021
This was more of a 2.5 read because as interesting and thought provoking the premise is, Jude is just grating the shit out of my nerves. The banter he and Lia constantly have is annoying. I was very disconnected from the characters and done with Jude. I'm with Lia on this, Jude is the type of Know-It-All fake guru that acts like he's bigger than life just because he lived in the dumps before the download and is now entitled to lord his knowledge over the newer mech dweebs.
I found the book less than riveting and had to put it away for weeks by how bored I was. The character development was slow and lagged worse than a buffering internet connection. The one point I liked that Wasserman made with Riley's character was the erasure of race and generic white mech suits were all that he, Jude and other mechs were given. I liked that parallel, that race may no longer exist in the future and we will all be reduced to look the same, that individual identity is gone the moment one becomes a robot. That they don't matter. That was a very nicely placed theology for a dystopian book. Lia's aversion to his new, true identity at the end also showed the fear of difference. She was honest with her aversion but later accepted that that was who Riley really is, an African American. It's still him only with his true racial identity.
Others than that, I wasn't impressed much with this sequel. Time changes when you're a teenager first reading this to when you're an adult that doesn't have time for whiny, weak and pathetic banter.
I found the book less than riveting and had to put it away for weeks by how bored I was. The character development was slow and lagged worse than a buffering internet connection. The one point I liked that Wasserman made with Riley's character was the erasure of race and generic white mech suits were all that he, Jude and other mechs were given. I liked that parallel, that race may no longer exist in the future and we will all be reduced to look the same, that individual identity is gone the moment one becomes a robot. That they don't matter. That was a very nicely placed theology for a dystopian book. Lia's aversion to his new, true identity at the end also showed the fear of difference. She was honest with her aversion but later accepted that that was who Riley really is, an African American. It's still him only with his true racial identity.
Others than that, I wasn't impressed much with this sequel. Time changes when you're a teenager first reading this to when you're an adult that doesn't have time for whiny, weak and pathetic banter.
March 3, 2018
SHATTERED by ROBIN WASSERMAN
Ok this book I finished a while ago and never wrote a review so HERE IT IS NOW, I don't remember everything so let's try this shall we?
I LOWKEY HATE AUDEN KINDA IDK ANYMORE. OK that's the bad feelings out of the way.
But like seriously what happened to him? Was he brainwashed or is he legit this way? Should we have known since the beginning when his mum didn't change him genetically? Or the fact he wears glasses? SHOULD I HAVE REALISED? But either way the ending scene with the angst™ really got me.
This book was not as good as the first one in the sense that it was a bit repetitive with its philosophical questions which we have heard before, but it was a really good read and I still will (actually currently I am) reading the last book, just to see how it ends!
Now I am not a large fan of the Riley/Lia situation, I don't feel anything between them? Maybe that's the whole point since the books are about these robots and their realisation they don't feel much. Who knows. Anyway it was just there and every time they were together I was like ????
The thing is, after the whole accident at that town thingy, I was lowkey bored of reading the book. It only started picking up when they went to the Temple thingy where Auden was and I was thinking THIS GIRL IS GOING TO BETRAY THEM! Forgot her name, but it happened.
Fav stuff idk:
"It was peaceful, and not the kind of empty quiet that forced unwanted thoughts into my head. This quiet was full-of rustling grass, of wildflower, their bright blues and purples"
"Know your enemy, my father used to like to say. When you are the enemy, I guess that translates to Know yourself."
"It was like a cut on my lip that I couldn't help worrying with my tongue. Knowing that I should let it alone, knowing better, (...) without intent or even awareness, my tongue slipped back into that place, exploring the crevices of the wound until the pain woke ,e up."
"When we were kids, they always tried to drill it into our heads, the way the universe constructed itself through a simultaneity of opposition: Light is a particle. Light is a wave. Light is both, at the same time it's neither. Every reality contains its own opposite; every whole truth rests on two half lies."
"Sharp, imminent fear, a red, flashing danger sign, like when you're hurtling toward the Earth at a hundred miles per hour. And when the fear's sharp enough, it overpowers that annoying voice, the one wanting to know If I'm afraid, why aren't my hands shaking? Why aren't my teeth chattering? If I feel fear, why don't I feel fear?"
"I would only look weak. I would stay; I would listen. It was no more than I deserved."
"There was no "I."
"I" was an illusion, evanescent, a null spot at the eye of the hurricane, an emptiness that drew its reality from the storm swirling around it."
"Feel. Such a ridiculously imprecise verb. What was a feeling? The scratch of something rough against your skin? The sensation of a toe dropping into water, the deep, wordless truth of this feels cold this feels wet."
(finished at 12:05pm on 11/2/18)
Ok this book I finished a while ago and never wrote a review so HERE IT IS NOW, I don't remember everything so let's try this shall we?
I LOWKEY HATE AUDEN KINDA IDK ANYMORE. OK that's the bad feelings out of the way.
But like seriously what happened to him? Was he brainwashed or is he legit this way? Should we have known since the beginning when his mum didn't change him genetically? Or the fact he wears glasses? SHOULD I HAVE REALISED? But either way the ending scene with the angst™ really got me.
This book was not as good as the first one in the sense that it was a bit repetitive with its philosophical questions which we have heard before, but it was a really good read and I still will (actually currently I am) reading the last book, just to see how it ends!
Now I am not a large fan of the Riley/Lia situation, I don't feel anything between them? Maybe that's the whole point since the books are about these robots and their realisation they don't feel much. Who knows. Anyway it was just there and every time they were together I was like ????
The thing is, after the whole accident at that town thingy, I was lowkey bored of reading the book. It only started picking up when they went to the Temple thingy where Auden was and I was thinking THIS GIRL IS GOING TO BETRAY THEM! Forgot her name, but it happened.
Fav stuff idk:
"It was peaceful, and not the kind of empty quiet that forced unwanted thoughts into my head. This quiet was full-of rustling grass, of wildflower, their bright blues and purples"
"Know your enemy, my father used to like to say. When you are the enemy, I guess that translates to Know yourself."
"It was like a cut on my lip that I couldn't help worrying with my tongue. Knowing that I should let it alone, knowing better, (...) without intent or even awareness, my tongue slipped back into that place, exploring the crevices of the wound until the pain woke ,e up."
"When we were kids, they always tried to drill it into our heads, the way the universe constructed itself through a simultaneity of opposition: Light is a particle. Light is a wave. Light is both, at the same time it's neither. Every reality contains its own opposite; every whole truth rests on two half lies."
"Sharp, imminent fear, a red, flashing danger sign, like when you're hurtling toward the Earth at a hundred miles per hour. And when the fear's sharp enough, it overpowers that annoying voice, the one wanting to know If I'm afraid, why aren't my hands shaking? Why aren't my teeth chattering? If I feel fear, why don't I feel fear?"
"I would only look weak. I would stay; I would listen. It was no more than I deserved."
"There was no "I."
"I" was an illusion, evanescent, a null spot at the eye of the hurricane, an emptiness that drew its reality from the storm swirling around it."
"Feel. Such a ridiculously imprecise verb. What was a feeling? The scratch of something rough against your skin? The sensation of a toe dropping into water, the deep, wordless truth of this feels cold this feels wet."
(finished at 12:05pm on 11/2/18)
February 5, 2017
This YA sequel to "Skinned" was all about the marginalization that happens in human society when one group is different than another. In this futuristic case it's about technology that creates "mechs" which are android bodies controlled mostly by the minds of deceased "orgs" or humans that have the resources to keep their consciousness alive after their body dies. It's a good premise for a sci fi story but the problem I had with it was the repeated and tiresome thought sequences of the main character as she tries to cope with her new condition after her organic body died. I'm pretty sure that these issues were covered in the first book and didn't require so many pages in this one. I found the book easy to put down and hung in there until the end because the last 15% of the book finally moved the story along to a disappointing predictable conclusion that did nothing but set up the next book in the series. I think that teens who love Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series may enjoy this one too.
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