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Incarceron by Catherine Fisher.
I honestly have to say that this is the most interesting, most plotty, most imaginative and unique book that I have read in a long time. This book was crazy different, the kind of different that makes me kind of wish I'd thought of it first (so makes me a tad jealous).
It's the story of a boy named Finn trapped in a prison world known as Incarceron, a world of metal forests and dilapidating cities. A world he's trying to escape. And also of a girl named Claudia, daughter of the Warden, who lives in a perfect world hiding poison underneath. It's a (older) young adult novel, with the right amount of gritty realism without it being overwhelming (i.e. no sex, no swear word every other sentence, but neither sugar coated and light). The characters were real, the kind you cheer for while at the same time feel annoyed with, and vice versa. And the world - seriously, I cannot say enough about the world.
It did have some pacing issues. Finn's world is a world of excitement and danger, while Claudia's world is a world of secrets and political intrigue, and the author liked to switch back and forth between them, which I found frustrating at times. Maybe it was me, but I felt that the author spent far more time in Claudia's world than in Finn's, and though Claudia's situation was far from boring (and the heart of the mystery rested mostly with her), it was Finn's situation I was more interested in as it was more exciting. Again, this could have been just me, and it wasn't enough to get me to lose interest (though I was tempted to skip ahead, which would have been a bad idea).
There were also aspects of the prison world that I found somewhat confusing and surreal. Again, nothing major, and few and far between, but I had hoped for more explanations of how certain things were possible.
Other than that - and they were pretty minor - it was overall such an excellent read that I cannot recommend this book enough.
ETA: (because I forgot) Okay, so apparently this book is going to be made into a movie. My sister is of the immediate opinion that they are going to ruin it. I'm usually a "benefit of the doubt" type but I'm incredibly iffy myself. I was kind of hoping Hollywood had finally learned a thing or two about adaptations from the Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter movies - that if you want the movie to do well, you sure as heck better make the movie, to the best of your ability, as good as the source. And for a while they were doing that (I am of the opinion that Coraline the movie was actually better than Coraline the book). But these days... I don't know. We'll see.
I honestly have to say that this is the most interesting, most plotty, most imaginative and unique book that I have read in a long time. This book was crazy different, the kind of different that makes me kind of wish I'd thought of it first (so makes me a tad jealous).
It's the story of a boy named Finn trapped in a prison world known as Incarceron, a world of metal forests and dilapidating cities. A world he's trying to escape. And also of a girl named Claudia, daughter of the Warden, who lives in a perfect world hiding poison underneath. It's a (older) young adult novel, with the right amount of gritty realism without it being overwhelming (i.e. no sex, no swear word every other sentence, but neither sugar coated and light). The characters were real, the kind you cheer for while at the same time feel annoyed with, and vice versa. And the world - seriously, I cannot say enough about the world.
It did have some pacing issues. Finn's world is a world of excitement and danger, while Claudia's world is a world of secrets and political intrigue, and the author liked to switch back and forth between them, which I found frustrating at times. Maybe it was me, but I felt that the author spent far more time in Claudia's world than in Finn's, and though Claudia's situation was far from boring (and the heart of the mystery rested mostly with her), it was Finn's situation I was more interested in as it was more exciting. Again, this could have been just me, and it wasn't enough to get me to lose interest (though I was tempted to skip ahead, which would have been a bad idea).
There were also aspects of the prison world that I found somewhat confusing and surreal. Again, nothing major, and few and far between, but I had hoped for more explanations of how certain things were possible.
Other than that - and they were pretty minor - it was overall such an excellent read that I cannot recommend this book enough.
ETA: (because I forgot) Okay, so apparently this book is going to be made into a movie. My sister is of the immediate opinion that they are going to ruin it. I'm usually a "benefit of the doubt" type but I'm incredibly iffy myself. I was kind of hoping Hollywood had finally learned a thing or two about adaptations from the Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter movies - that if you want the movie to do well, you sure as heck better make the movie, to the best of your ability, as good as the source. And for a while they were doing that (I am of the opinion that Coraline the movie was actually better than Coraline the book). But these days... I don't know. We'll see.
