Starters (Starters, #1)

by Lissa Price

First, Callie lost her parents. Then she lost her home. And, finally, she lost her body. But she will stop at nothing to get it back ...Callie and her little brother are on the run, living as squatters, fighting off unclaimed renegades who would kill for a cookie. But with the Body Bank comes a promise of much-needed cash, and with it, hope. And then despair ...The Bank allows teenagers to rent out their bodies to those who want to be young again. But Callie's renter intends to do more than party in her body. She intends to murder ...To bring the book cover to life, simply download the free STARTERS BOOK app from the App Store or Android Marketplace, launch the app and point your device at the front of the book.

• ISBN10: 0375990607
• ISBN13: 9780375990601
• Publish Date: 13 March 2012 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 20 April 2017
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Delacorte Press
• Format: Hardcover (Library Binding)
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[layawaydragon]

Well, for starters... I couldn’t resist, I’m sorry.

The Good:
+original concept with renting young bodies
+liked Callie for the most part
+liked Callie’s family
+wha….? ending that makes me want to continue

The Bad & The Other:
-fucking romance drama shit damn near ruined everything
=typical “humblebrag model gorgeous” female MC but it’s important to the story at least.
-fat shaming descriptions and ‘fat’ girls disregarded as candidates.
=backstory isn’t filled out but the gaps lend to ponderings and the continuation as a series. The more you think about it though…

I like the original aspects it brings: the renting of young bodies by the geriatric, and the death of adult resulting in such a large age gap. It does acknowledge the income issues, but not anything else.

However, two years is really quick for these kinds of changes and at least some adults should have survived the spore bombs. They are the least at risk, after all. Would some older folks bow out as well? Wouldn’t they prefer their kids to live for their grandkids?

I can see how the policies began with rounding kids up since they have no guardians anymore but…not allowing them to work or do anything else? Why vote for that? Wouldn’t they NEED them to work to fill in the roles of the deceased adults?

Admittedly, I might be missing something here, and if you can just roll with it, it doesn’t matter.

However, what almost killed the book for me was the romance. It dragged when she’s off with Rich Dude. And then of course, triangle time!!





It started going somewhere. Then romance drama. Rise and repeat. I was ready to call it quits, but the set-up was interesting enough. I wanted to find out the answers. Plus my August challenges…
However, with all the back and forth ridiculousness, I was ready to declare ‘eh, another ruined by tropes and trends’ and give up on the series.

But wait, there’s more! It’s about to wrap up all nice and neat and blah, but it throws a curveball. Now Starters is back in the game. What in the world is going on? I kinda have to find out now…

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#ARCAugust read! I'll be back with a review before the end of August, but I have more books to get to for now :D

[anne]

Well Erin was right. This is compelling reading. Great idea. Some great writing. But quality is inconsistent, especially second half of the book. And the Cinderella bit in the middle was twee.Would be 3 1/2 stars for me. Also the Aurasma trigger did not work.

[Mercy]

Una historia que no es la novedad del año, pero engancha un montón. Una distopía bastante impactante que hasta me ha dado terror. Con crudas descripciones y una protagonista fuerte. Aunque tal vez se ha dejado bastante de lado algunos elementos esenciales, espero que, en su segunda y última parte sea explicado.

Reseña completa: http://thebooksaremylife.blogspot.com/2013/10/resena-starters-lissa-price.html

[inlibrisveritas]

I want to thank Random House/Random Buzzers for sending me an arc copy of Starters.

The summary of this book is so intriguing that I finished two books just so I could start it sooner. It certainly didn’t disappoint but I can honestly say I have a ton of questions that I really want answered, and I’m hoping with the second book they will be.

I really like the plot’s premise, and the whole idea of renting actual bodies is super creepy and interesting. In fact it makes my skin crawl a bit to think about someone wearing my body like a new suit, even if the money was a fantastic intensive. I do like that concept of a company taking advantage of the desperation of the remaining people, both old and young. As horrible as that sounds it’s kind of one of those believable yet unbelievable concepts that really strike me as a great idea. I did enjoy the whole conspiracy part of this and I enjoyed seeing Callie react to what was thrown at her. Overall I felt the idea to be original because I personally haven’t really seen this idea outside of the horror spectrum and it’s a nice change.

Callie was an interesting character but unfortunately by the end I didn’t really know who exactly she was, the plot doesn’t really leave open much room for expansion on her actual character and I’m hoping that it will in the second one. Micheal and Tyler were also semi glossed over, you get some idea of their connection to one another but the story moves away from them so fast that you never get chance to see how close they are to Callie. I also didn’t quite understand how Callie related to Blake at all, it moved super fast on her part and I wasn’t sure how exactly it came about. I did however really like The Old Man, I felt his character was the most intriguing and I am super curious about him.

Like I said before I do have a ton of questions now, and I have a feeling that a few will be answered in the next one. I do wish that the whole Spore War thing would have been delved into more, I understand that it’s not really huge in the actual plot other than background but I would have loved to know more about it.

While I wasn’t really drawn in by the characters I did love the plot and concept and I do want to read the second one when it comes out. There was also a moment at the end that practically determined that I’m reading the second one no matter what, because I simply HAVE to know.

[kimbacaffeinate]

When I saw the cover and read the synopsis I was immediately intrigued by Starters. I have a real love for dystopias and post-apocalyptic novels. Starters is the debut novel of Lissa Price and the exciting start of a new series. The world-building and story are fascinating. Parts of the tale, had a disturbing ring of truth to them. This novel quickly captured my attention and I breezed through it in a single day.

The protagonist sixteen year old Callie, lost her parents during the Spore Wars. Without grandparents or any other living relative, she and her seven year old brother Tyler are left to fend for themselves. They are living in abandon office buildings with their friend Michael. Callie learns of a way to make income through another Starter. Prime Destination’s offers Callie an opportunity to gain enough money to rent a home and provide food for a few years. The catch, she has to rent out her body three times to an Elder. Her instincts scream this is dangerous, but after a raid on their shelter, she makes the decision to take the job. The tale that unfolds is mine boggling and kept me engrossed. Callie is lovable, confident, and intelligent. Her courage and loyalty when faced with adversity was refreshing. I connected with her and other key characters such as Blake and the Elders. The relationship between Callie and Blake was interesting and a startling revelation near the end of this novel shocked me. The villain, referred to as the Old Man was creepy and his motives not yet clear, I am looking forward to learning more in the next novel.

The world-building, and history of the reality Callie, and the other Starters find themselves living in was intriguing. Some of the issues in this society, eerily parallel our own reality. A lot of moral issues are raised regarding a society where the gap between the poor and the wealthy has widened. Where the rich take what they want regardless of the impact of the rest of society. The world building wasn’t without flaws. I question some of the back story. The large number of children left without guardians in a world where the average grandparent is 100 years old. The math just doesn’t add up.To believe what is written, there is a whole generation missing from this tale. The way in which the unclaimed young are treated is deplorable and the governments reasons and actions vague. I felt the storyline needed to be more tightly knit. Despite these concerns; I loved the characters and plot.

I highly recommend Starters to fans of post-apocalyptic dystopias.
I want to thank netGalley and Random House for providing this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

[Kelsenator]

Originally posted on my blog Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf

I got this Advanced Readers Copy from NetGalley for my eReader. Thank you!

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book when I first started, but while reading I knew it was going to hook me into it. There’s mystery and action involved as Callie tries to figure out just what is going on with her and the Ender who inhabits her body, all while trying to survive and keep her brother safe. I loved the loyalty and caring that Callie showed to Tyler and Michael, and the cast of secondary characters she meets along the way. Sara was definitely my favourite, she made me want to cry.

What Callie’s Ender hopes to do, and what Prime is planning as the book goes along, were all surprises, and definitely get you involved with the story. I had a hard time putting this book down the more I read it. I won’t spoil any of the best parts here, it’s up to you to read it to find out.

The end of the book leaves you on a cliffhanger, with some things coming to an end, but more questions popping up about what’s going to happen next. I highly recommend picking up this book and giving it a try. I know I will be eagerly awaiting the next installment, which according to my book comes out Winter 2012. Yay!