6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Future shock, December 6, 2009
This review is from: Raiders' Ransom (Hardcover)
Sometimes you just want to read a book that starts off with a bang and then proceeds to run its legs off. A book that's able to work realistic emotions and characters into a narrative, while also advertising high-concept plotting. And if that same book just happens to contain preternaturally intelligent felines, snarky computers, futuristic barbarians, and a world underwater, all the better! Debut novelist Emily Diamand comes out swinging with such a book as that. "Raiders' Ransom" is a post-apocalyptic tale of a future Britain, but it eschews moralizing in favor of a slam-bang setting. Better make sure the edge of your seat is nicely padded. You and your kids are going to find yourselves perched there for the majority of this tale.
Thirteen-year-old Lilly's day was normal to begin with. She took her seacat (Cat) out for some fishing just as she always did. But on returning to her village, Lilly finds her Granny dead, the boats of her village destroyed, and the prime minister's daughter kidnapped. The culprits? Raiders. The year is 2216. Much of England is underwater with Greater Scotland laying claim to all but the last ten counties of England to the south. Like futuristic Vikings, Raiders haunt the coasts, and one of them is Zeph, son of the Angel Isling chief, heir to his power. When Lilly and Cat set off to find the prime minister's daughter and rescue her, they run into Zeph and the two strike up an unlikely friendship. To trade for the daughter, Lilly has taken a "jewel", a rare artificial intelligence system from the days before the world changed. Now everyone is fighting to get their hands on it, and Lilly and Zeph must outwit their enemies and survive their trials, if they want to get what they want. The real question is, do they even know what they want anymore?
The other day I was at a talk about children's literature and the speaker mentioned that what kids remember from book isn't metaphors or even (half the time) the author's name. It's usually characters and plots. It got me to thinking about this book. Diamand splits her point of view between two very different characters. There's Lilly on the one hand, under the distinct impression that she has a quest to fulfill, and there's Zeph on the other, just as certain that his future is as his father's heir. Lilly starts off a pretty upright citizen, but Zeph takes some reforming. He has a heart and a soul, but it's buried under a lot of cruelty taught to him by his pa. To become a man he has to be turned away by his father, and that's painful. You find yourself rooting for both characters, even when they're at odds with one another, because you honestly believe that they'll make the correct choices in the end. Add in one particularly snarky machine (who I hope we'll be seeing a lot more of in future books in the series) and then there are three "people" worth following.
The book avoids a lot of the mistakes post-apocalyptic novels usually make. For this story to work, the plot needs to take place not just in our future but also in our future's future. We have to believe that in the future there will come a time when gaming devices with artificial intelligences can create fantastic interactive games in three-dimensions. After that, the world collapses, the sea levels rise, and humanity is thrown into a new dark ages. Now what I particularly dislike is when an author establishes all this and then sets the book a measly 30 years in the future. What good does that do anyone? I suppose the idea is that if you do it only slightly in the future, kids can gasp and go, "Oh no! We better change our ways!" But "Raiders' Ransom" isn't some preachy tome. It's a swashbuckling adventure narrative and as such it makes sense to set it in 2216.
The future we see here has some similarities to the one in "
The Ear, the Eye and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer. Both books involve clever children using a knowledge of the past to defeat a terrible present. Both involve scenes where old-time goods are recovered and reused. This is tastefully done, with the possible exception of a funny moment where a Mr. Saravanan says, "Be careful! . . . Those are Harry Potters. I have half a dozen historians fighting to get their hands on them." Ditto the mentions of Metallica and Manchester United.
And, of course, I like the cat. Cat is just one of a fine series of felines published in 2009 that act like their real-life counterparts. It would not be entirely insane to pair "Raiders' Ransom" with "
The Cats of Roxville Station" by Jean Craighead George. In the George book, feral cats act and respond according to their instincts. In the Diamand book, Cat acts like a cat but has a certain intelligence that sets him apart. That intelligence will do you little good if you don't know how to interpret what he does. Example: Apparently when he's twitchy or nervous, that's bad. Best that you do what he indicates. At the same time, you can't read this book thinking that Cat's abilities are all in Lilly's head. At one point she is captured and Cat uses his talents to outwit the guard on duty in a truly inspired manner. It's a good book for cat lovers, really.
I'm calling this a book for the 10 and up crowd, but make no mistake that there are some dark elements at work here. The trial by knife where Lilly is questioned in a violent manner never leads to anything much more than psychological terror, but for the squeamish that might be enough. The fact that the poor little prime minister's daughter spends much of the book scared is a toughie too. Still, I've found that things like that tend to upset adult readers far more than children. Kids have tough emotional hides that we sometimes forget about when it comes to literature. Some concern has come up regarding the chief's concubine. Does her presence in the book make it difficult to read this to middle grade kids? I don't think so. She is always referred to as the man's wife. No overt sexual references are made (though there are plenty to read between the lines). Kids won't get what she is, only adults. But it's worth noting. As for the language, it's fine. Apparently while I'm sure that other words have been lost to the waves of time, there is one moment when Zeph refers to a wife as a "skank". So that word, of all terms, proves its longevity. Ditto futuristic sketchy slang like "find your plums" (you can pretty much figure it out within context).
I wouldn't say that this is a book for everything as it can prove to be a hard novel. But for any kid interested in action/adventure who isn't afraid of a little sci-fi as well, this is well worth seeking out. Fun, well-written, the whole nine yards. Diamand is a woman to keep your eyes pinned on from here on in.
Ages 10 and up.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rip roaring, futuristic Pirate tale, March 21, 2011
I loved this book. It sets off at full steam with an action packed beginning, has great dialogue, fabulous settings and an original story and cast of characters which keep you hooked.
I can't think of anything to criticise as it is such an entertaining, well written story.
13 year old orphan Lilly, the 13 year old friend Zeph she meets on the way and her prized sea cat are on an epic tale to rescue the Prime Ministers, 7 year old daughter Alexandra.
I loved the names of futuristic Britain where 'Lunden' (London) and all but 10 counties of England are under water as a result of global warming (but don't worry this is just the setting and not some great moral environmental tale) and Londoners are split into family tribes like the 'Angel Islings', 'Brixt' and 'Chell Sea'. Scotland is the home of all the technology that is left and the remainder of the 10 counties are poor fishermen or farmers like our fisher heroine Lilly.
There is a great deal of humour in this book which keep it light and entertaining rather then bogged down in fighting and plot of delivering the Reavers' Ransom to free Alexandra. The valuable computer in this story seems to be a comedy relative of the head only apparition from 'Red Dwarf' as it provides much humour from it's unforseen circumstances, 147 years since it was last turned on.
Emily Diamond really sets the scene of flooded Britain, she makes you see and hear it. It's been a very long time since I've read such great dialogue from a childrens' book. The book is also cleverly told in different chapters from the view of Lilly and Zeph making it as entertaining for boys as for girls. The heroine also goes disguised as a boy in a for much of this book. There are twists on friendship which makes it more complex than a straightforward romp.
I highly recommend this book for children and there is also much for adults to enjoy in a 'Red Dwarf', 'Harry Potter, post civilisation 'Waterworld' on what is left of dry land kind of way. It's very entertaining and would make a brilliant visually exciting film with intelligent settings and dialogue.
Lets hope someone makes it.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Coffeechug Book Review - [....], January 9, 2011
This review is from: Raiders' Ransom (Hardcover)
I really believed this book had potential to be awesome. I really enjoyed some parts, but there was enough that bothered me to not give it glowing reviews. Here are a few things that really bothered me.
1. The first 50 pages. I don't know if it was due to the fact that I was super tired this week or felt sick with a head cold when I first picked this book up, but I was so confused in the beginning. It took me some time to realize that the chapters were switching back and forth. Later I finally figured out the pictures behind the chapter number represented either Lilly or Zeph. Duh! I know, but it was not clear for me early on and I lost focus and interest.
For some reason I continued on because I really wanted to like this book. Once I figured out the style, I became interested in the plot line. The whole Raiders vs. English and the future where things are not quite as advanced as we are now really grabbed me again. However......
2. The cat drove me insane. It is a seacat. I kept waiting for something spectacular to occur, but no. So much time was placed on this creature, but it never talked or did anything special(at least in my mind). I kept waiting for it to transform into a monster like a Pokemon or something. Very disappointed in the cat.
However, I did love the action and fighting scenes. I wish there was more early on to grab me earlier in the story. I really liked reading about some of the final scenes. Very cool.
3. Another sequel! Whatever happened to stand alone novels? I know it sells and makes more money. I know the sequel comes out in the UK March 1st. Will I read this sequel? Yes, I probably will because I am that type of person that must know what happens and I need closure.
There you have it. There are many reviews about this book. Some love this book and others don't. I am torn down the path of which side to go with. I flipped back and forth. I will leave it up to you decide about this book.
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