Interestimg alternate world but inconclusive endin

Having just finished this book i have to say that the ending is infuriatingly inconclusive. It approaches a conclusion that doesn't actually get there, which is really really annoying. So don't expect all the loose ends to be tied up.

The first part of this book (and i mean the whole of part 1) is really really slow... I nearly gave up several tumes, as nothing of note really happens, it just really sets the scene and outlines the world that these people are living in.
There are a group of people called the God's Gardeners, who are trying to live in harmony with nature while the world around them goes to pot. It is set a little way into the future, many species of animals have become extinct while others have been heavily genetically modified, and the world is incredibly corrupt. For example the standard food is "secretburgers" which is any random species of meat ground up and stuck in a burger - including human flesh. The gods gardeners are living in a rather charming little world, very simple and punctuated by regular feast days based around modern day eco saints, with much singing of their own brand of hymns I didn't mind all the singing other reviewers have commented that they didn't like it or that it was cringey but I quite like the songs even found myself coming along to some of them afterwards. Another somewhat idealistic disposition myself I found the sentiments of the gods Gardeners and their hymns quite enlightening and hopeful. From the beginning the gods gardeners are predicting that there is going to be a catastrophic flood that will end and cleanse the world. they don't know what form it will take, and we don't find out until part 2 of the audiobook when it is revealed that it is a nasty virus that kills people. very soon most of the inhabitants of earth are dead. The rest of the story deals with the little isolated bands (mostly of fragments of gardeners group) and how they eventually reunite.

I bought this book after reading the handmade tail because i like something setting to the future imagining and alternate world and this that an away but it is not nearly as good as the handmade detail and i probably won't be buying any more of her books based on this it's not terrible but it's not a gripping adventure story in in anyway is interesting the alternate wells that's my girl atwood creates but not what i would call gripping i did speak with it until the end because it became a lot more interesting in add to after the plague began to kill people and the anti was up to a that i was ultimately left feeling very and satisfied by the ending there was the suggestion that there was another race of human beings that has been genetically engineered but this pieces out with no real conclusion as to what happened to them i can only suspect that there must be a sequel perhaps horrocks and crate because they are mentioned in this book?

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Possibly even slower than the first

Another rambling, slow and mixed story. There's never any real pace, threat or jeopardy and so it may meanders along. I'm interested in the overall story but it's hard work getting to it. I ended up listening to this at 1.15 speed, just to get through it. Having said all that, I've bought the third book and want to get to the end of the story. I just wish I could enjoy the delivery more.
Good performance from Lorelei King. She breathed more life into this story than the first audio book had.

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Still confused

Any additional comments?

Book 1 in this series was confusing in parts, or perhaps intentionally mysterious about what was going on. It ended on a cliff hanger, just as I thought I'd got the gist of it, so I was excited to start book 2. It does not pick up where book 1 leaves off. It tells a concurrent story of different and intertwined characters leading up to the same point, with different narrator, and hugely irritating long sections about a particular cult's theology combined with unnecessary and awful 'hymns'. However, all that being said, it was still intriguing and there was a little thrill each time one recognised a crossroads with book one events and characters. Halfway through this book I nearly gave up and wasn't planning to bother with book 3' but having soldiered on, I find myself needing to listen to book 3 and hope for a full reveal and satisfying conclusion.

So in conclusion, if you like slightly surreal and intriguing literature, which is undoubtedly well written, and are ready for the long haul, then go for it.

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An unexpected pleasure

What did you like most about The Year of the Flood?

I loved the narration and the "hymns" from the God'sGardeners. The first book Oryx and Crake left me hanging a little at the end but was so enjoyable, I couldn't wait to listen to this one.

What did you like best about this story?

I was totally immersed in the dystopian world created by Ms. Atwood. Bit by bit the characters came to life, none of them good or bad, each of them flawed by their experiences. I am a bit of an eco warrior in my mind, so I was quickly drawn in to the sect created by Adam 1.

What about Lorelei King’s performance did you like?

I was more entranced by the singing voice and spent ages on line trying to discover who it was. Ended up buying the songs!

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Both. Couldn't switch off and then couldn't wait for the third book in the trilogy.

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Good read

Too much singing for my liking but great book all the same, would highly recommend

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The Gardener songs were incredible.

This book has been one of my favourites of Margaret Atwood's. The world she describes is still so familiar to me despite it being dystopic. As a biology teacher it's been really interesting to see the biomedicalised utopia / dystopia created by a few large companies. I always appreciate the real and flawed people in Atwood's books.

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Bad production choices

I was a little worried about how good a follow up this was going to be and, unfortunately I was largely correct. Too much time is spent early on in the narrative where if there is overlap, it is subtle. Once the stories of the first and second book start to converge, it gets a bit rushed.

Also, who the hell decided to actually have songs in the audiobook? They're tedious enough in print, never mind having your audiobook interrupted by them! The narration was just below average. Not terrible but not great either.

Basically the story picked up toward the last third of the book, otherwise I would definitely be returning it. I may still do.

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1 person found this helpful

I didn't enjoy listening to this audiobook at all:

It ended up feeling like a chore to complete and I was glad when it was over but that's not at all the writers fault nor the narrators:

I found that I was put off and unenthusiastic before the narration even started due to the AWFUL performances of the hyms. They really ruined the emersion for me; they were so jarring that I totally lost interest and found myself concentrating more on skipping the next awful CBeebies-esc song more than the story I was being told!! I understand why performing them was a decision but (in my opinion) it really didn't add anything to the story but rather took away from it. After the very first hym I was so confused as to what kind of book I was listening to I practically wrote the story off for being too 'wishy washy' which I later found is not the case!!

So definitely not the best introduction to Margaret Atwood as a new reader, it's a shame because within the story there were spiritual references, scientific explanations and Atwoods own ideas that came together in such an interesting and creative way. The world that Atwood has created in this book is intriguing and often rather dark - it follows two female characters (which I liked) and describes their experiences while they navigate through this dystopian, pre-apocalyptic world; Even though I feel like this should have been a book I enjoyed I can't say I'm eager to attempt to read, re-read or listen to anymore of the series and that is mostly to do with the audiobook production and my lost enthusiasm rather than the series itself, though I can't help but be disappointed overall. 

Side note: I didn't feel like I missed out on any details having not read Oryx and Crake.

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1 person found this helpful

The Waterless Flood has arrived...

The second book in the MAddAddam trilogy does take a little getting in to and I was a bit cross that we didn't pick up where "Snowman" left off. However, the characters of Ren, Tobi and Amanda soon became just as interesting as Jimmy as we now find out what has happened to the people and families of "God's Gardeners" who live outside the compounds when Crake's plague hits. Jimmy and Crake make cameo appearances but the gardeners take centre stage and Margaret Atwood introduces us to characters who want to save the human race rather than destroy it. Some reviewers have said they didn't like the Adam One speeches and the hymns being sung but I actually quite enjoyed them and they are, of course, supremely cleverly written. As the second novel in a trilogy, this one could have been a "Two Towers" let down but actually stands on its own remarkably well.

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If you loved Oryx and Crake...

...then read the sequel. It’s not as good in my opinion but it’s still brilliant and it’s a thrill to be back into the disturbing world of chaos and fracture so well described by the author. Yes the hymns are terrible and the joke didn’t pay off for me but it’s simple to skip them. A slight criticism of the otherwise good narrator is that I would have liked a different voice (literally) for the 2 main female characters

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