Alive (Generations Trilogy, #1)

by Scott Sigler

A young woman awakes trapped in an enclosed space. She has no idea who she is or how she got there. With only her instincts to guide her, she escapes her own confinement -- and finds she's not alone. She frees the others in the room and leads them into a corridor filled with the remains of a war long past. The farther these survivors travel, the worse are the horrors they confront. And as they slowly come to understand what this prison is, they realize that the worst and strangest possibilities they could have imagined don't even come close to the truth.

• ISBN10: 0553393103
• ISBN13: 9780553393101
• Publish Date: 14 July 2015
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 11 October 2023
• Imprint: Del Rey Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Berls]

See this review and others from Berls at Fantasy is More Fun.

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I picked up Alive from Netgalley because the concept sounded slightly similar to The Maze Runner which I enjoyed, but not so similar it would be boring. I was right, it wasn't very similar at all. The only real similarity was a group of young people waking up not knowing who or where they were. Otherwise, it was completely different.
What Worked:

• Alive was a real page turner! It was fast paced and kept me curious.


• Alive actually snuck in a lot of social issues/questions in an unexpected way. The question of nature versus nurture is all over this book. Are we who we are because of what we experience and how we are raised or because of our genetic makeup? It also questions the role of religion - in a kind of jarring way, but still - I liked that the book makes you think.


• I have to say I like that it was written in present tense - something I usually HATE - because it really suspended that feeling of living only in the present. The characters have no sense of their own pasts or future so the present is all they have. A really smart choice by the author.

What Didn't Work:

• Alive was CONFUSING! I know that some of that was necessity. The characters don't know what's going on, so how can we? But sometimes things were just introduced in really haphazard, awkward ways - like the religion element. It's just BAM! out of the blue. I felt the character's frustrations, that's for sure.


• At some points, I think it was a little too weird for me. I don't want to give specifics and spoil, but there were elements I really couldn't even visualize.


• I kind of hated the main character. She wasn't evil or anything that bad, but I did not like being in her head at all. Her obsession with everyone's beauty and how much older they all were got tiring. Her endless NEED to be in control frustrated me. I was not her fan.

Because the characters are in a place of constant discovery telling you too much about the book would really ruin the experience and I did like it enough to say you should try it out for yourself, so I don't want to ruin that. I think I'll read book 2 when it comes out next month - though if I don't ever get around to it, the way Alive ended would work as a standalone too. If you try it, let me know I'd be curious to know what you think!

[cornerfolds]

This review will have to stay really vague because, trust me, you do NOT want to know what to expect in Alive! As I tend to do, I went into this one not knowing very much about it other than the Goodreads synopsis. This is the kind of book that keeps you totally in the dark (pretty literally in this case) until almost the very end! It's not for the faint of heart though - this is definitely one of the darker dystopians I've read.

Alive begins with our heroine, Em, waking up inside a coffin. Yes. Insid of a coffin. As in buried alive. As in nope, no, thank you! Right away this book is immensely creepy. This book also immediately made me think "Maze Runner." The beginning of Alive is almost identical to the book the synopsis actually compares itself to. M wakes up in a box and doesn't know where she is, has no memories, and doesn't know her name. Sound familiar? At this point I was creeped out, yes, but I was also really skeptical. Luckily, the similarities are far fewer after this first scene.

But back to Em. She's the group's leader, although she can't figure out why and everyone who hears this thinks it's a joke. She's brave when she has to be, a fighter when she needs to pull out the moves, and she doubts herself constantly. This kind of character can really go either way, but I feel like these characteristics worked in Alive. I liked Em and felt like she was a really strong character, but with flaws that made her human. I could understand her doubts and her fears freaked me out too.

I also really enjoyed many of the other characters. Each had a distinct personality although none of them had a clue about anything either. I did feel like there were too many names thrown around without people to attach them too, but perhaps more of those personalities will come to the forefront in the next book. There was no real romance in Alive - more like a few butterflies here and there - and, given the circumstances, I can really appreciate that.

I can't say much about the world of Alive without giving things away, but I will say that it was amazing! Some authors have the ability to make their readers -see- their settings, and Scott Sigler has that. I felt like I was right there with M and her companions and it made this book that much more unique! From the very first page, the action is non-stop and I was constantly on my toes, not knowing what to expect next.

My only real (minor) complaint is that I feel like it could have probably been a lot shorter... There was a lot of walking through hallways, which I DO understand based on things that are learned throughout the book. I just remember finishing it and thinking that they could have left out some of the group marches.

While Alive started out on shaky footing because of it's uncanny similarity to The Maze Runner, it quickly took off in its own direction and really blew me away! I was never quite sure what to expect and I love that in a book. One of my favorite things is being kept in the dark until the big twist so this book really won me over so I'll definitely be reading book two! If you're a fan of dystopia and are tired of the same old thing, this should be the next book on your list!

[shannonmiz]

This review was originally posted on It Starts at MidnightAs the book starts out, we know nothing about what is going on. Nothing. But the key here is, neither do the characters. They are as much in the dark as we are, which makes things kind of fun. The reader is figuring things out, getting clues, learning potential information at the same time as the characters. I was constantly guessing, and I did not have a clue as to what was going to happen next. Literally, around every dark corner was another crazy surprise, and I basically couldn't put the book down because I needed to know all the things. It was the type of book that answered my questions, and then left me with new ones so I was never, ever bored.

But while I was in the dark, I was never overwhelmed or confused. The author managed to have me on the edge of my seat, completely oblivious, but in a way that I still was able to follow when something happened. For me, that is really the mark of a quality fast-paced book, because I can get lost with too much action. I felt that Alive had just the right balance to keep me excited without making me overwhelmed.

As for the characters, it's hard to really decide how I felt about them because they don't even know who they are. They are seriously just empty shells who know a few basic facts (some of them incorrect, such as their age), and haven't a clue who they are or where they came from. Em (the main character) has to figure everything out from scratch, and we get to watch her do so in a really believable way- she is not in any way perfect, but she is trying like hell to survive. I did enjoy watching all the characters' personalities grow- and they definitely do- as they faced more challenges and started turning into actual people again. So while I didn't quite know them, there's a reason, and it isn't an issue at all.

Another thing I really loved was how vivid the setting was. I really felt like I was in this place, like I could see exactly what the characters were seeing. The setting was not pleasant, but it was incredibly well done, detailed but not annoyingly so, again achieving a fabulous balance.

In fact, there was only one thing that kept me from giving this one the full five stars: the attraction piece. I won't even go so far as to call it a romance (I mean, these people just met and are trying to you know, stay alive), but sometimes Em would start thinking about being attracted to someone out of the blue, and it was just... odd. Not even being attracted in itself, but focusing on actual beauty and physical traits. I could see being enamored with someone because they've been loyal or kind or even skilled. But would you really have the time or inclination to look at some dude's abs or whatever? Doubtful.

Bottom Line: This book is kind of fabulous. It is fast paced, and kept me guessing the entire way through. In fact, when I finished it, my exact response was "next book please!", because I absolutely must know what happens next.

[tweetybugshouse]

This was my first Scott Sigler book and i have to say i am fan of his and will have to check out his other books. I think what i loved most about this book is a total mind blowing read you are just as lost as the characters and you are guessing the whole time what is really going on and when you find out your like what what awesome. Thanks for an amazing read and excited to see what is in store for these characters.

I really loved this book, it was not what I was expecting. I love the main character and the other secondary main characters. The author did a great job of creating them.

The book had me hooked from the first chapter and I couldn't put the book down. Good thing I read it on a day I had nothing to do, because I finished it all in one day. I was not disappointed.

Another thing the Author did, was I did not guess correctly on several of the revealings, only a couple. I liked that, because I've read too many books with being able to easily guess what's going to happen. This book was different from others I have read in the past.

Overall I loved this book and I hope the Author continues it. Which from the ending, it sounds like there could be a second book. Considering this isn't even out yet, I will have to wait a long while for it.

I was given this book for an honest review from Goodreads giveaway.