I just recently finished it and really enjoyed it. The second book was slow but it laid the groundwork for the 3rd being great.
Honestly, I read the first book and found the TV adaptation was better (which is rare). The characters have better motivations, secrets aren’t spilled so quickly — it’s just a tighter narrative.
There are more secrets! I'm at the end of book 3 and still having secrets revealed.
Oo I found a copy of the first one in one of those little libraries a few months back and have been meaning to get to it. I’ll bump it up on my list.
I am currently on the third book, halfway through. It has definitely kept my interest, but the plot doesn't really hold up to much questioning lol. Book 2 frustrated me for that reason.
I just finished book two last night. I'm enjoying the ride, but I admit that as the "how we got here" plot has unfolded in book two, I find myself a little perplexed. Maybe I just didn't understand
spoiler
Thurman's original motive. His line of reasoning is just not connecting for me._
I just finished book 3. Yep. I enjoyed the ride, but the plot seemed a little stretched the more things got expounded on. There was also some unnecessary filler that wore me out to read...
spoiler
all the long-form expounding on every crisis, struggling, fighting, chasing puppy etc. scenes.
spoiler
The premise of Thurman's design seemed a little "out there". Having a competition that each silo was unaware of and only one being allowed to survive seems ridiculous. Humanity is always going to fragment. As populations grow, expand to different territory, local customs and rites will evolve. Limiting things to only one silo is just unnecessary cruelty. The argument of needing the citizens to forget everything about nano tech, and bombs...also ridiculous.
Nevertheless, I still greatly enjoyed the books.
I listened to the audiobooks after I finished the series and loved it. I do recommend listening at a 1.15 speeding rate though, because some sections were slow.
I read this years ago and loved it, I'll have to check out the TV show!
I remember reading the book and not liking it, mainly because I was looking for fast paced action?
I'll give a try again later on.
I found the pacing of the first book to be too slow for me as well. The first one or two stories were properly paced in my opinion, but then it felt sluggish. That being said, the show makes a few changes to the story and it doesn't change the story overall, but it does give a more action feel to it rather than a slow mysterious dystopian drama.
Just a heads up. The pace doesn't really pick up much throughout the entire book series so if you find it too slow at the beginning you probably won't like the rest too.
I read the whole thing and while I wasn't expecting fast paced action, I remember thinking the reveal didn't quite justify the lengthy buildup.
The books are fantastic. I just finished his book 'Sand' and I'm ready to jump into the sequel!
Hard agree! I'm about 20 pages from the end of 3 and love this series!
Just finished the series myself, what a read! I personally would not have minded a few more chapters for just more closure, but I'm not unhappy with where it landed.
Books
Book reader community.