Happy October! What a weird feeling to make to near the end of the wild year that has been and still is 2020.
Finishing LIFEL1K3 makes 70 books I’ve read so far. My goal is still 100, and according to Goodreads, I’ve 4 books behind. I told my spouse this the other day and he suggested I read some graphic novels or some shorter books, lol.
Title: LIFEL1K3 (Lifelike #1)
Author: Jay Kristoff
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release date: May 29, 2018
Genre: Young adult, sci-fi, dystopian, post-apocalyptic
Length: 402 pages (U.S. hardcover)
Synopsis: (via Goodreads) “It’s just another day on the Scrap: lose the last of your credits at the WarDome, dodge the gangs and religious fanatics, discover you can destroy electronics with your mind, stumble upon the deadliest robot ever built When Eve finds the ruins of an android boy named Ezekiel in the scrap pile she calls home, her entire world comes crashing down. With her best friend and her robotic sidekick in tow, she and Ezekiel will trek across deserts of irradiated glass, battle cyborg assassins, and scour abandoned megacities to save the ones she loves and learn the dark secrets of her past.”
I admit I was hesitant to start another series by this author alone. I love his work with Kaufman with the Illuminae Files and the Aurora Cycle, but I read Kristoff’s adult fantasy, Nevernight, and didn’t care enough for it to continue with the series. I feared the same would happen with this series.
Well, I’m glad to say that’s not the case. I really enjoyed this first book and loved the concept of it. It’s described as Romeo & Juliet meets Mad Max (the latter of which I’ve never seen), but it also has bits of Anastasia (trust me, just keep reading the book) and… Damn, I can’t hate that. I loved Evie and Lemon, their friendship, and just these tiny glimpses into this mysterious past of Evie’s. The romance between Evie and Ezekiel wasn’t horrible either, and this is a bit where that forbidden romance comes into play. Initially I struggled with the whole romance due to some major questions regarding how it would all work out, considering what Ezekiel is.
The entire world-building is cool, too—this post-apocalyptic world of what was definitely the USA (despite the weird spelling of California). I do however wish we had a bit more. Like I’m grasping it here but it’s also a bit like I’m grasping at straws. We get some sense of why the Lifelikes were created but I just want…more. I want to know more about them and how they exist and live their lives, and is Evie’s father corrupt for doing what he did or…what?
I also enjoyed the giant reveals toward the end of the book. I definitely guessed absolutely zero of the things regarding Evie and Lemon, lol. The ending definitely left you eager for the second book, so I’m glad the series is all out so I can start the next one.
You can purchase this book from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Book Depository (Australian edition), or with your local indie at IndieBound.
Check out these other reviews:
- Midu at Midu Reads wasn’t impressed but hopes the 2nd book is better.
- Dani at Perspective of a Writer gave the book 4 stars, too.
- Aweng of Beast Books rated the book 5 stars!
I felt just like you did about Nevernight… but I actually did enjoy this. He’s very good at developing friendships I just don’t enjoy it when he gets super adult, His twists can really rock your bookish world though. So I’m always willing to give his work a go.
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Ah, here is the review! 🙂
I know exactly what you mean about Kristoff and Nevernight and the other books. I loved Illuminae and Aurora Rising – still gotta read Aurora Burning though – and didn’t care much about Nevernight at all. I just couldn’t get into it.
But I’m glad you liked this one, that gives me hope for liking it as well, since I was wondering if the books are maybe better if he has a co-author….
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I generally seem to like Kristoff paired with Kaufman more as a co-author team.
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