Take a photo of a barcode or cover
wren_in_black 's review for:
Sanctuary
by Paola Mendoza, Abby Sher
I really wanted to like this one more than I did. It's a good book. I didn't love it, though.
Sanctuary is a near-future dystopia about a teenage girl named Vali who was born in 2016 in Columbia. Her parents fled a seemingly never-ending civil war when Vali was four. They made the long and dangerous trek from their homeland to California. They became "undocumented" "illegal" residents in the United States.
Eventually the family made their way to Vermont where Vali's younger brother, Ernesto was born. Since he's born in America, he is documented, legal, safe. But the rest of the family is not, a fact that becomes all too real when Vali's Papi was deported back to Columbia. He died there.
Fast forward to 2032 when all US Citizens are given microchip implants to prove their legal status. The United States has a president elected to a third term, a demilitarized zone full of landmines separates Mexico from the United States. Vali and her mother rely on fake ID chips to keep them safe, but that won't work forever...
This book is the story of what happens when Vali's family is torn apart, when California secedes from the United States, and the only hope for survival for thousands upon thousands is to make it to the place now called Sanctuary.
The story starts off strong, full of vibrant detail and characters that will pull at your heart strings. Unfortunately that level of detail doesn't last. Characters become more and more two-dimensional as the story progresses and plot becomes more and more simplistic. This book should have been on par with Hunger Games. The story had that much potential. It could have easily been another 100 pages (or had 50 pages replaced with more straightforward plot with better characterization for supporting characters and planning). I was supposed to feel deeply for the people Vali met on her journey. Instead, because they were so loosely described and often not around for long, I felt next to nothing. That in turn made me struggle to feel as deeply for Vali as I should have.
The book has an open ending, leaving plenty of room for a sequel should the author choose to write one. It's not entirely necessary, but I'd be open to one.
Sanctuary is a near-future dystopia about a teenage girl named Vali who was born in 2016 in Columbia. Her parents fled a seemingly never-ending civil war when Vali was four. They made the long and dangerous trek from their homeland to California. They became "undocumented" "illegal" residents in the United States.
Eventually the family made their way to Vermont where Vali's younger brother, Ernesto was born. Since he's born in America, he is documented, legal, safe. But the rest of the family is not, a fact that becomes all too real when Vali's Papi was deported back to Columbia. He died there.
Fast forward to 2032 when all US Citizens are given microchip implants to prove their legal status. The United States has a president elected to a third term, a demilitarized zone full of landmines separates Mexico from the United States. Vali and her mother rely on fake ID chips to keep them safe, but that won't work forever...
This book is the story of what happens when Vali's family is torn apart, when California secedes from the United States, and the only hope for survival for thousands upon thousands is to make it to the place now called Sanctuary.
The story starts off strong, full of vibrant detail and characters that will pull at your heart strings. Unfortunately that level of detail doesn't last. Characters become more and more two-dimensional as the story progresses and plot becomes more and more simplistic. This book should have been on par with Hunger Games. The story had that much potential. It could have easily been another 100 pages (or had 50 pages replaced with more straightforward plot with better characterization for supporting characters and planning). I was supposed to feel deeply for the people Vali met on her journey. Instead, because they were so loosely described and often not around for long, I felt next to nothing. That in turn made me struggle to feel as deeply for Vali as I should have.
The book has an open ending, leaving plenty of room for a sequel should the author choose to write one. It's not entirely necessary, but I'd be open to one.