Book Review: Dove Arising

Title - Dove Arising

Author - Karen Bao

Series - Dove Chronicles #1

Genre - YA Fantasy Sci Fi

Published - February 24th 2015

Publisher - Viking Books for Young Readers

Format - Kindle review copy

(Goodreads)(Amazon)

Synopsis

Phaet Theta has lived her whole life in a colony on the Moon. She’s barely spoken since her father died in an accident nine years ago. She cultivates the plants in Greenhouse 22, lets her best friend talk for her, and stays off the government’s radar.

Then her mother is arrested.

The only way to save her younger siblings from the degrading Shelter is by enlisting in the Militia, the faceless army that polices the Lunar bases and protects them from attacks by desperate Earth-dwellers. Training is brutal, but it’s where Phaet forms an uneasy but meaningful alliance with the preternaturally accomplished Wes, a fellow outsider.

Rank high, save her siblings, free her mom:  that’s the plan. Until Phaet’s logically ordered world begins to crumble...

Suspenseful, intelligent, and hauntingly prescient, Dove Arising stands on the shoulders of our greatest tales of the future to tell a story that is all too relevant today.

Review

I received Dove Arising from the publisher via from First To Read in return for an honest review. Phaet lives on the moon she works in the garden and hopes to one day be a bioengineer. However that is never meant to happen when her mom becomes sick only to end up on trial and Phaet with her younger siblings is sent to shelter. Knowing the only way to take care of her siblings is to join the Militia Phaet signs up being one of the youngest trainees and not only does she succeed in finishing the training she ends up a high ranking Captain which will change her future and provide enough Sputniks to support her family.

With the money from graduation  she’s able to bail out her mother and she will get a sooner trial allowing her to live at home till she meets the council. Upon rescuing her mother she learns that she’s been badly taken of and seeing her daughter dressed as a Captain takes a toll. At her mother’s request Phaet stays away because seeing her upset’s her so much. Phaet’s first assignment is to watch the Atrium patrol oversea the privates until an important assignment will be ready for her. Her assignment is quickly wearing her down as a baby sitter she doesn’t have anything really to do. With the upcoming trial for her mother only weeks away Phaet suddenly gets her new assignment to travel to earth and find out about a potential attack. Only problem she leaves the same day of her mother’s trial, will she go or stay risking it all. What about the reason her mother is on trial?

I liked Phaet she’s smart and choose to do what is needed for the family even if it changed the future she had been hoping for. I just didn’t love her like I wanted to I really tried to but I wasn’t able to connect with her. I felt her family and friend are to judgmental and I didn’t care for that, I was frustrated that they didn't support her.

I’ve had Dove Arising on my TBR for a long time and when I happened to win an advanced copy I couldn’t wait to dive right in. Right from the start I struggled with Phaet’s story she was a likeable character but not memorable and I spent most of the book wanting to love her but not. I think the author did a great job creating an interesting concept the idea of Earth vs the Moon colonies is still new and exciting for me. While the idea is awesome I just don’t think it was executed the story felt slow and like it dragged on. I’ve been picking up the book and putting it down for month lacking the motivation to start it. It’s taken me about 5 days to read it and the whole time I kept hoping it would get better. It’s just not fast paced enough for me, and I was hoping for more. The author’s writing style is a little overwhelming but overall it’s really not that bad. I think for a first book she did a great job and I plan to read the next one in the series because I would like to see what happens to Phaet because the last 40% was much better than the beginning.