Ellie Quin in Wonderland by Alex Scarrow (No 4 of the Ellie Quin series)
23 November 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Alex Scarrow, Ellie Quin on Wonderland, No. 4 Ellie Quin Series, Sci Fi November 2014
EQ in Wonderland starts, as expected, where the last book left off with Ellie and Jez stowaways aboard a freight ship escaping from Harpers Reach. Be warned, this is the 4th in series and so there will probably be spoilers.
Unexpectedly they’re put down on an unopened theme park and need to await the arrival of a shuttle before they can get off this tiny chunk floating in space. At the same time, back on Harper’s Reach the Administration are investigating Ellie, desperately trying to find her whereabouts and uncovering some startling facts about her past life and acquaintances.
So, Wonderland. A fairly large holiday destination that never was! Unopened for some reason. Large bio domes within which different worlds exist. They can be changed and reprogrammed to look like virtually anything – a beautiful beach with the waves lapping on the sand, or snow peaked mountains with valleys resplendent with pine forests. It’s inhabitants can likewise be created – walking and talking jelly beans or puffs of candy! And yet, something is a little off in Wonderland. Two people remain in Wonderland – seemingly caretakers of sorts they spend their time recreating worlds and playing games to fill the days. One of these characters is a pretty hot surfer dude who Jez seems to be developing feelings for. The other is a slightly off kilter guy who Ellie seems to have wound up with (rather than playing the third wheel). Wonderland is a strange place – it kind of puts me in mind of a futuristic West World.
Meanwhile on Harper’s Reach the search continues. It appears that Ellie is more than first meets the eye – or at least she is to others. A terrorist organisation called the Awoken have been covertly watching Ellie since she was a tiny nipper. It’s all very mysterious.
I admit I’m really enjoying this series. Yes, it’s very simple to follow but it’s intriguing and I confess I want to know what the hell is going on with Ellie.
This is however going to be a short review as this is a short book.
The crux of the matter is – I would recommend this, I think it makes a great series for people who want to take on board more sci fi, okay, maybe it’s not all majorly deep and meaningful, it’s not difficult to understand, it’s not full of internal politics and conflict but it’s entertaining and I look forward to reading the next instalment. I don’t mind saying it’s fun – there I said the ‘f’ word!
In terms of criticisms – well, this ends on a cliffhanger! Not everyone’s cup of tea I appreciate.
However, unless this series takes a serious turn for the worse I will continue to the end!
This is one of my reads for Sci Fi November 2014. Check out the details here.
Beneath the Neon Sky (3rd Book in the Ellie Quin series) by Alex Scarrow
4 April 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Alex Scarrow, Beneath the Neon Sky, Ellie Quin No.3
I simply can’t get enough of this series. It’s really great and I love it. I’m holding off reading No.4 though (even though I already have it) because I don’t know when the next is due out so I’m pacing myself. And, thanks again Carl for putting me onto this series – Stainless Steel Droppings, always with the good book recommendations!
The difficulty in reviewing this is of course being the third in a series it will probably contain spoilers, well, you can’t help spoilers in a series so basically if you’ve not read the first two – beware of spoilers (although I usually try and do remain a spoiler free zone!). I’ve decided not to focus too much on the plot in that case and just give a fairly brief review of events to date.
The story starts where No.2 left off. Ellie, Jez and Aaron are about to embark on their money making scheme. They’re happy and things look like they’re really going to work out well with their venture, dare I say that romantic feelings even seem to be growing between a couple of them. Unfortunately, the killer hired by the Administration to trace down Ellie is hot on her tail. We have a real cat and mouse type of affair going on here (although one in which the mouse has no idea it’s being stalked) that gathers momentum very quickly.
What do I really enjoy about this series? It’s sci-fi – but it’s not what I would consider to be ‘difficult’ or ‘hard’ sci fi. There are aliens, robots and virtual pets, cities living under domes and spaceships – your basic sci fi! But, it’s fun, easy, fast paced and entertaining. The characters are likable and in fact I’ve really started to care about them. In fact I want to shout at the three of them in parts – they’re so naive and trusting – not nearly enough paranoia if you ask me! On top of that there’s the whole mystery of what Ellie actually is and the little ‘wiki’ type snippets that are undoubtedly giving us a clue here and there amongst all the other comments included.
These are only short stories – they almost remind me of the book equivalent of the type of tv series that I watched as a child during summer holidays. The type which are only 30 minutes long and give a little introduction at the start of each new episode and basically you can’t wait to return to the next episode because the last always ends with a cliffhanger!! That’s what these stories put me in mind of combined with, for me, a real shout out to Star Wars. I can’t help it, it just reminds me of the first film (and I do mean the first film – not the film that everyone now calls the fourth film!). Obviously they’re not fundamentally the same story but when I read about Harper’s Reach I envision Tatooine, when Ellie returns to the farm I picture Luke’s uncle’s farm! Okay I’ll stop!!
And, for one crazy moment I thought the author was going to give up the jig about Ellie and let spill what’s so different about her! But he’s sneaky and he’s keeping mum about it all. Sneaking.
Anyway, crazy hateful assassins. Murder. Robotic pets. Plus great characters that continue to grow with each new edition. I love the friendship between the two girls but would point out that I don’t think this means the book is aimed primarily at female readers. I could be wrong but I think this story would appeal to anyone. It’s very entertaining and the mystery is definitely intriguing.
The World According to Ellie Quin by Alex Scarrow
30 January 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Alex Scarrow, The World According to Ellie Quin
The World According to Ellie Quinn is the second in a series that got off to an excellent start with The Legend of Ellie Quin. Again, this is a very engaging read that picks up immediately where the last novel left off (and I would recommend reading these in order as they’re telling a story in linear fashion). If you’ve not read these books then beware of spoilers below. If you haven’t read them and want to do so then my review of No.1 is here!
Again, a very engaging read that picks up almost immediately where the last story left off. Ellie is now living in a little apartment or pod – to be honest it’s more of a shoebox but that’s not a problem. She’s with her new friend and saviour from book No.1 Jez. Fortunately the two seem to have formed a fairly close relationship already which gives the close quarters in which they now live a more bearable feel. Ellie seems a little more secure, she has a job and the two girls seem to be doing well enough to at least enjoy a bit of night life and occasionally buy a few things other than basic necessities. They’re both having a fun girly time basically. Of course, getting too comfortable will undoubtedly lead to complacency and Ellie didn’t leave behind one home just to form another so soon – she wanted more. She wanted to travel. She certainly didn’t just want to make ends meet and eke out a living.
She still continues to meet with Aaron – which is just as well as he seems to be her anchor to reality at the moment – reminding her of her own ambitions and worrying about her fairly quick conversion to all out city chick!
At the same time we have the storyline of the Corporate suits who are trying to find Ellie – with none too friendly objectives in mind. They’ve put their best man in the case. He’s ruthless and unsympathetic and he’s narrowing the search area quite systematically and rapidly!
This is another short story but it manages to cram plenty in. There are a number of adventures with the girls as they seem to go from one drama to the next, fuelled by Jez’s love of life and big schemes until eventually their good luck runs out and they seem to hit a bit of a low.
It’s at this point that Ellie has her ‘bright idea’ – and, I’m going to leave that there.
The historical, ‘wiki’ style entries used in the previous story are used again to good effect – I really like the way these dovetail with the story and give this demonstration of how truth becomes distorted into myth – and yet somehow manages to retain a ‘little’ of what actually happened.
I’m really enjoying this series and from what I’ve read so far I think this is only going to get better. I like the mystery that is posed about Ellie. I like the adventures and the pacing and basically I’m fairly intrigued.
Again, I guess you would call this ‘soft’ sci fi but for me that feels perfect. It’s quirky, engaging and fun and I definitely recommend picking it up.
The Legend of Ellie Quin by Alex Scarrow (Episode 1)
I just recently finished reading The Legend of Ellie Quin by Alex Scarrow and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is only a fairly short novel but it had a lovely simplicity to the story telling that just made me fall into the story and frankly I confess it was difficult to put down once started. Okay, this is clearly, admittedly, only the beginning and we find out only a little snippet but it was really entertaining nonetheless. Be warned though – this is not a self contained novel and whilst that may be annoying to some – the next book is available (so no interminable wait)!! I thoroughly recommend dipping your toe into these waters.
The world created by Scarrow is wide sweeping. Humans have spread throughout the universe. We start with Ellie. Living on some remote planet in the middle of nowhere. Her family are farmers on a yet more remote still spot on this strip of universe in the middle of nowhere. They live in Harper’s Reach. The plants they cultivate provide oxygen – previously much needed on the planet but now the system is stabilising less lucrative to produce. From the outset you can see that Ellie feels constrained by this existence. She spends her time looking at the stars and dreaming of getting off planet (when she’s not dreaming of Sean that is – Sean is her maths tutor and the object of her dreams and infatuation). Ellie has it all worked out, she’s saved a little money and she’s going all the way to the big city to make her fortune. Now, I could easily have felt irritated with Ellie at this point. Running away from home, especially a loving family environment where she’s well looked after seems a harsh way to treat the parents who have brought her up – but, Ellie is not altogether what she first seems. I don’t know exactly what’s going on at this stage of the book but there’s been some genetic programming afoot and this wanderlust that Ellie experiences seems to be symptomatic of that experimentation.
The story is told from a few different point of views which I find I enjoy muchly. We obviously get to hear from Ellie but we’re also given little snippets of information that are relayed to us in the form of ‘sort of’ wiki entries – which start to build up a picture of things within Ellie’s history – again, I like this way of providing information. This gives you the obvious clue of course that things are not as at first suspected.
I liked Ellie. She’s twenty but looks and behaves younger. Of course, she’s lead a sheltered life and is hopelessly naive when it comes to the big city. Plus she’s 20 so clearly she knows what she’s doing!! She spends her time helping her father with the chores and I confess that she reminds me of a female Luke Skywalker in terms of being stuck at home and longing for adventure. So, off she sneaks with her spotted knotted hanky carrying her few possessions and after a near death experience and a little mini adventure she finds herself in the city of New Haven where things very quickly spiral into your basic nightmare situation.
It’s difficult to say much more about the story. This is a fairly short read after all. Yes, there are obvious elements that could be compared to other reads, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Day of the Triffids spring immediately to mind for example. But, none of this is done in a way that detracts from the book. In fact, quite the opposite. It almost feels like a little shout out to other great sci fi stories. I literally loved this little snippet from Ellie’s story and I will definitely read the next instalments. I warmly recommend this book. I admit that I’m not massively read in terms of sci fi, something that I’m gradually working on – if you’re like me and tend to veer more to the fantasy side of books this could be a great intro into the world of SF.
This is my first review for Stainless Steel Droppings Sci-fi experience (btw who pressed the fast forward button on December??) Thankfully, it’s not the only book I’ve read for this event – just the first I’ve reviewed. Stop on over here and check out the details. Carl is a great host and these events are always amazing!
Books and travelling with Lynn 