After crossing the Line, Rachel finds herself in a world where survival is never guaranteed - a world where bizarre creatures roam the woods and people have strange abilities. Everything has gone to ruin Away and the survivors have banded into warring clans. Rachel finds her father being held prisoner by a tribe of Others, and she and her new friends set out to rescue him. But when they cross back over the Line, Rachel and Pathik make a foolish decision, bringing them into further danger that can only be resolved with an unthinkable sacrifice.
An adventure filled with life-and-death choices, dark conspiracies, and heart-poundingly suspenseful moments, this sequel delivers.
Teri Hall’s work includes the YA trilogy The Line, Away, and The Island. Her newest book, Murmurations, was written well prior to the Covid-19 Pandemic, which makes the author wary of possible prophetic powers and cautious about her choice of new projects. Teri has always been drawn to themes of courage, integrity and what love really looks like. She lives in a small community in the Pacific Northwest with some rescue pets, one of whom—Tyrone, so sorely missed—was the inspiration for the Tyrone in Murmurations.
I’m not really sure what to say about this book. On one hand, I did actually enjoy this a fraction more than The Line. On the other, it was a case of “more of the same” in terms of the writing, pacing and overall issues I had with the first book.
Away picks up the story shortly after the conclusion of the The Line. Rachel has Crossed and is living with the Others in their camp. Vivian and Mrs Moore are back on the Property, unsure whether they have been betrayed. Rachel finds out that her father is alive and is being held captive by another group of Others.
But honestly, I just found both of these books far too thin and flat to really hold my interest. The prose is impersonal and distancing, told in third person and leaping from viewpoint to viewpoint of the various characters. Again, we are told what each of these characters are feeling, but it doesn’t translate into engaging storytelling. The characters purportedly feel pain, loss, love, hope – yet it all felt blandly monotone to me.
For such a captivating premise, I also wish the world had been better fleshed out. The scant detail provided about the way of life of the Others raises more questions and than are answered. The ending itself was outright abrupt and rang strangely hollow, which is an odd sensation after the investment of reading the two books in their entirety. I’m unsure whether there is going to be a third book in the series, but the ending of Away doesn’t really provide closure, nor does it linger all that much.
But onto what you really want to know. What about the sheep-cats?
They do, in fact, exist on the other side of the Line. But I was expecting something like, maybe, this:
or, this:
The “sheep-cats” of rumour turn out to be Woollies, which are described as something like a woolly lynx.
Disappointing.
That said, Nipper was my favourite character of the book. He definitely exhibited the most personality, in my opinion.
For all the promise of the synopsis, I ultimately felt somewhat underwhelmed by both The Line and Away. However, as a lower YA dystopia, they are adequately thought-provoking and offer a slightly different take a sobering situation.
This in the next book in the Line series. As you can tell by my rating, I didn't enjoy this book much. This has one of my main pet peeves when characters make really dumb decisions and other people have to pay for/sacrifice themselves to fix someone else's mistakes. Any time that happens in a book, I get so angry.
Such a good premise, but mired down by wooden writing and a lack of character development. It's a shame really and I feel bad saying it. Also (as with "The Line") plot elements often feel like kludges, or crude & inelegant means to fix the narrative arc. And yes, they do take the plot from point "A", to the writer's desired point "B"...but they often feel more expedient than truly character driven. The world Teri Hall builds is quite captivating, with a strong premise, full of much promise. But, when populated with characters who lack depth and range, it becomes difficult to know them, to believe in them, to empathize with them, and thus we are rudderless in the sea of text, with no way home and without access to the story.
I don't know about this book...it had potential & it was kind of interesting, but in a lethargic, sleepy, uncaring kind of way. Their thoughts, actions, and speech were just...I don't know, static? Like being underwater? Slow? Unemotional? I am really having a hard times putting it in words. I didn't connect with any of the characters. I mean I honestly just didn't care about any of them. For lack of a better word, "blah" pretty much sums Away for me. I will read the next book in the series though - I don't want to give up quite yet. I need to find out about Nipper. It's pretty sad that Nipper is the only character that I'm semi-emotionlly invested in. I'm left feeling a little disappointed and a whole lot of blah.
Now that Rachel has met Pathik and crossed The Line, life is nothing like she new! Away is a land of warring clans and people with gifts! She knows that now that she has crossed she may never get back. But there are many surprises in store for Rachel!
This was a wonderful continuation of the first book, The Line! It held me captive until I finished! The author did a wonderful job of developing the characters and making them true to life.
Thanks, Teri, for your imagination. This was inspiring!
I finally read this after having read the first book 8 years ago. It is similar to all of the other dystopian books out there and near the end I was ok with the idea of all of the characters dying. Good for ages 12 and up.
It's hard for me to put into words why I like this series. I'm going to say some things now that might seem insulting to the book/author, but I'll explain later.
* This story is boring...not alot of action. * The characters are pretty flat and uninteresting. They show very little emotion, unless highly scared or mildly confused. * The author only gives crumbs when it comes to world building. I want big chunks of buttery bread with jam...but I get crumbs. * There is no romance. NONE.
BUT STILL... I find the story interesting. Sparse Prose, maybe meant to reflect the sparseness of the time they are living in.
* The story: yes, a little boring, nuttin' much happens. And when it does happen, it's still pretty sparse. Maybe the author uses the lack of showy words and world building to allow you the reader to build it for yourself. Coming in a 235 pages, this is ok. If this book was say, 500 pages of this, I would throw it against the wall in frustration.
* The characters: Flat, I tell you. But again, they seem like real people. So many books nowadays just try too darn hard to make the characters interesting. They all have a favorite book, they all play an instrument, they are all amazing at _____ but love to point out that they suck at _____. Again, I think the author leaves it in to your hands to decide about the characters.
Rachel seems like your average teen girl from the future who has been sequestered away from her peer group and has no idea how to interact with people.
Pathik, too. Only growing up with a few his age, I'm glad he's not this sassy, smirking fool that is trying to sweep Rachel off her feet. He's trying, but the past has shown him love only brings pain and loss.
* Crumbs: There is NO world building. I shouldn't say there isn't any at all...but you only know 3 or 4 very vague things about this time. There was a war...the people are segregated by The Line...The Others have mutated enough that some have powers...It's rough out there in Away.
That's it. Oh, and the Government wants to use the Others with Powers for something.
* Romance...Yeah, they occasionally hold hands, and there is a little kiss near the end. Thank God there are no 'knowing glances, and raised eyebrows, and smirky smirks, and lips brushing collar bones, and fingers in hair' stuff. See "Sparse Prose" above. If anything, neither of them would know any of that stuff because both grew up in a place with people who weren't with those they loved. They wouldn't have seen real courtship and affection. So it works.
I might be TOTALLY off base with all of this, but this is how I feel. The author could really pull an awesome rabbit out of her hat and have the next book be a real Door Stopper (like 500+ pages), and just really thoroughly explain everything... and throw in a little more emotion.
This worthy sequel to Hall’s The Line (2010) continues to build a dystopian world with suspense and moral choices. Rachel enters “Away,” the wild area on the other side of the “Line,” the border of the “Unified States.” Life has evolved in Away. There, Rachel meets Pathik, and others of his family and group, many of whom have a supernatural power. Rachel rescues her father from a rival camp. Indigo, Pathik’s grandfather and leader of their camp, decides they should relocate to an island that may offer real safety. Hall tackles morality in the use of the characters’ supernatural powers. Indigo, for example, can kill with his mind. Her dystopian world is vividly shown, and her characters stand out. The Away people live without electricity, but they live freely. As they make their way to their new life readers will be waiting for them. Overall, this book expands the imagination and portrays how unexpected life can be. I really enjoyed this book and I would recommend it.
I really enjoyed The Line, though did think it dragged a bit in the beginning. This sequel doesn't drag at all. It pulled me in from the beginning and kept me turning the pages. I loved getting to learn about the world of Away and its inhabitants, The Others. The search for Rachel's father was really suspenseful and action-packed.
Crossing back over the Line to get Rachel's mom and friends was fun to read about and then the "foolish decision" (from the summary) of Pathik and Rachel really raised the stakes and I was a bit shocked at the way it ended up. It was an interesting way of resolving that situation. The ending was like that of The Line- it ends this book's adventure and I was satisfied, but there could definitely be more coming and I wouldn't mind reading more about this world and these characters.
Overall, a great follow-up and I can't wait to read more from Hall.
While not as good as "The Line", the first book, still a compelling read. I really want more about the history of the collapse of the society, and how people who were living per usual before the collapse adjusted their lives ... so maybe Ms. Hall can help me out with some more info on that point? These books seem to come in threes, so I'm hoping if there is a third it will be better than this one and answer some more lingering questions about this world.
"Give people something simple to hate and fear, and they will hate and fear with a passion."
This book was a lot better than the first one! (The first book was definitely necessary to understand this one) It was nice to read a book where not everything ended up happy. I did like the love tension-it was very well written, definitely not overdone.
This was so good it had me in tears near the end. The story leaves a lot of questions unanswered, so I can't wait for the third one in the series. Action packed, heart wrenching, and engrossing, this story will grab readers from the beginning and just not let go.
I wish the characters were more fully developed, especially as this was the second book. Although the world was interesting, and the premise had a lot that could happen, unfortunately the story never fully took us there. Some of the situations could have so easily been avoided (nudge, come on Indigo!) so it was a bit disappointing when the plot took the easy way out. I will still probably read the third because I do want to see how it all ends. I just hope that there is more to the third book than the first two. I want to know more about the world that they live in. There is so much potential that is being skirted around.
Short, again, felt like an installment and not a full book, like half a book. Got online through overdrive library. Interesting story, but would need 4 to 6 of these installments to consider it a full story arc. I am guessing Wool is why it's broken up this way, except with that one you were told you were getting a serial. This seems to be a trend now, stretched out installment stories, that they don't tell you up front. Or maybe they hope it stands on it's own, but, no.
COPIED FROM GOODREADS SITE: After crossing the Line, Rachel finds herself in a world where survival is never guaranteed - a world where bizarre creatures roam the woods and people have strange abilities. Everything has gone to ruin Away and the survivors have banded into warring clans. Rachel finds her father being held prisoner by a tribe of Others, and she and her new friends set out to rescue him. But when they cross back over the Line, Rachel and Pathik make a foolish decision, bringing them into further danger that can only be resolved with an unthinkable sacrifice.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
In my opinion, this book was better than the first one. So many things got revealed, and there were also some very sad deaths, as well as some very stupid moments that led to those deaths. I'm not sure if there's a third book already published or if it's coming out, but if there is, I'm definitely reading it!
Away focuses on what's beyond "the Line" and introduces many new characters into the story. But Away is a dangerous place to live and if the first book of the trilogy was a bit slow, in this second book things start happening faster and there is a little bit of romance showing up. By the time you get to the end you feel that you must read the third book to see how this story ends!
2.5* Very predictable plot. Everything was going so smooth that of course there needed to be bad luck at some point. How it was happened was just so unnecessary
I really liked this book. For some reason this series has totally gripped me. Its not like it has a lot of action but there's just something about it that I love.
This book picks up right where we left off at the end of "The Line". Rachel has crossed the line into Away. She arrives at the camp with Pathik where she meets Indigo and Malgam, Mrs. Moore's love and son. While there she also meets Nandy, Malgam's wife; and Fisher, a boy a little older than herself. In the book she also find her father, who is alive.
I loved reading all about Away and Pathik's camp in this book. The Others are people who learned to survive in a truly horrible situation. They make due with what they can. They have a "hospital" where injured and sick people are taken and a healer who works on them. They have homes that they have made with mud and stones. The hunt and gather food to eat. They have a school and make due with sitcks, pans and sand for school supplies. They have neighboring camps that are their enemies. They have weird animals like Nipper, who is like a lynx with sheep wool instead of fur. They basically live like the very first ancient people did. But this is in a world where just across the line they have vehicles and technology that hasn't even been invented in our world yet. Its amazing to see the contrast between both worlds.
Its also amazing to see the gifts that some of the Other's have. Pathik has teh ability to sense people's emotions. A girl named Serena, can take people's feeling away. A little boy named Bender can bend metal. Kinec can make things move with his mind. Malgam can see through other people's eyes. Indigo's gift is deadly. All the children go to a class called Usage, where they learn how to control their gift and learn when to use their gift. Above all else, they are taught never to harm or kill anyone with their gift. Reading about these people's powers make me wish they were real cause I'd like to have some!
I really liked Indigo a lot. He's the leader of Pathik's camp and he is very kind. He is friendly, wise and genuinely likes Rachel. He doesn't approve of hurting or killing people with their gifts. He is self-sacrificing and does what is best for his people and family. At first Maglam rubbed me the wrong way because of his reaction to Rachel who was a Reg. Later on he softens to her and is really a kind, gentle, wise man like his father Indigo. Nandy is sweet, caring and tough. Fisher is sneaky, mischievous, funny and knows how to push Pathik's buttons. We learn more about Pathik in this book too. He clearly cares for Rachel but he won't admit it even though he shows it in stuble ways like holding her hand, giving her looks and protecting her. He is just like his grandfather and father, he is kind and caring but can be fierce and protective. He is also wise for his age. He, like Indigo and Maglam is all about doing the right thing. I also liked Rachel in this book as well, who is kind to the Other's and while she may be afraid of their gifts she doesn't show it and doesn't treat the other's like less than human. In fact she is the odd one out in this book, being constantly called a "Reg" by the Others.
Pathik and Rachel's romance is subtle and not the center of the book. Its really cute to read about the little touches, looks and word they exchange that show the reader their feelings to each other, even if they won't admit it. Later on in the book they kiss and while the author alludes to the fact that they both know how they feel about each other, nothing is ever said aloud....at least not yet. But I like the idea of them together and hope that is does happen.
There are some action scenes in the book, like when Rachel, Indigo, Nandy, Pathik and others go to rescue her father from the neighboring camp, the Roberts. The same group who rescued Rachel's father crosses the line again to go get Rachel's mom and Mrs. Moore to bring them to away. Some people die, one of which really pissed me off. The group, mostly intact, crossed back into Away at the end of the book and decided to go to the Island that Indigo had wanted to move to. The book ends off with the group, again mostly intact, on the beach of the island they have not explored yet.
I can't wait for the next book of the series, so I can find out what happens on the Island.