Atlantia by Ally CondieReleased: 28th October 2014
Published by: Penguin
Genre: YA Dystopian/Fantasy
Source: Publisher
Pages: 320
My Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
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Can you hear Atlantia breathing?
For as long as she can remember, Rio has dreamed of the sand and sky Above—of life beyond her underwater city of Atlantia. But in a single moment, all Rio’s hopes for the future are shattered when her twin sister, Bay, makes an unexpected choice, stranding Rio Below. Alone, ripped away from the last person who knew Rio’s true self—and the powerful siren voice she has long silenced—she has nothing left to lose. Guided by a dangerous and unlikely mentor, Rio formulates a plan that leads to increasingly treacherous questions about her mother’s death, her own destiny, and the corrupted system constructed to govern the Divide between land and sea. Her life and her city depend on Rio to listen to the voices of the past and to speak long-hidden truths.
For as long as she can remember, Rio has dreamed of the sand and sky Above—of life beyond her underwater city of Atlantia. But in a single moment, all Rio’s hopes for the future are shattered when her twin sister, Bay, makes an unexpected choice, stranding Rio Below. Alone, ripped away from the last person who knew Rio’s true self—and the powerful siren voice she has long silenced—she has nothing left to lose. Guided by a dangerous and unlikely mentor, Rio formulates a plan that leads to increasingly treacherous questions about her mother’s death, her own destiny, and the corrupted system constructed to govern the Divide between land and sea. Her life and her city depend on Rio to listen to the voices of the past and to speak long-hidden truths.
Thank you to Penguin Teen Australia for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
As an existing fan of Allie Condie and her Matched series, I was eager to discover what she had come up with in this newest release. Atlantia, as I found out, contains a richly imagined world where the land and the sea converge, and a storyline that explores not only the sacrifices we make for those we love - but how to choose where our place is in society. Although not without its faults, I still enjoyed reading this book as a satisfactory stand-alone.
Under star-dark seas and skies of gold
Lives those Above, and those Below
They sing and weep, both high and deep
While over and under the ocean rolls
The worldbuilding which Ally Condie put into this novel was quite detailed and fascinating to read about. It's been said before, that unlike the cover may lead you to believe - this is NOT about mermaids. Instead, it almost takes a dystopian turn with some people after the 'Divide' choosing to live Above or Below, in Atlantia itself. While it would have been nice to have more of a background to this, the inner-workings of the city, from its social hierarchy, religious system and everyday life for its citizens were all explained really well. As opposed to mermaids, in this book there are sirens which I found quite fascinating to read about.
We are not lost mermaids with seaweed hair and coins for eyes, but human girls, alive and found.
We are sisters, and we did not drown.
Admittedly, the plot did tend to be quite slow in some parts, especially at the beginning which had a lot of repetition around the concept of 'Atlantia breathing'. However, for the most part, there is a focus on Rio wanting to reunite with her sister Bay who had chosen unexpectedly to go Above. I liked the focus on family and sisterly relationships (although this was only really explored in the latter parts of the book), and sacrifices made. All of this was executed with Ally Condie's simplistic and clean writing style, which fans of her previous series will recognise, and that I found gave the whole story an ethereal atmosphere.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Atlantia is an enticing novel which builds around the disturbance of a seemingly tranquil underwater world. Though slow in its pacing, it feels as if you are being carried by the subtle waves of the storyline until you reach the shore at the end. If you enjoyed Ally Condie's previous work, I'd definitely recommend giving this book a try.
Atlantia is an enticing novel which builds around the disturbance of a seemingly tranquil underwater world. Though slow in its pacing, it feels as if you are being carried by the subtle waves of the storyline until you reach the shore at the end. If you enjoyed Ally Condie's previous work, I'd definitely recommend giving this book a try.
