Above World

by Jenn Reese, Kate Rudd (Read by)

Overview

Thirteen-year-old Aluna has lived her entire life under the ocean, just like all of the Coral Kampii in the City of Shifting Tides. But after remaining hidden from the Above World for centuries, her colony is in trouble, its survival in doubt: the tech that allows the Kampii to breathe underwater is beginning to fail, and many Kampii have already died. Yet the colony’s elders, including Aluna’s father, are unwilling to venture to the dry and dangerous Above World to search for answers.

So it’s up to Aluna and her friend Hoku to face the terrors of land to find a solution. Once in the Above World, Aluna and Hoku learn that their colony is not the only one struggling to survive—so are others in the skies and in the deserts. Will Aluna’s warrior spirit and Hoku’s intelligence be enough not only to keep themselves safe but also to find a way to save their city and possibly the world?

Here is a thrilling ride through a future in which greed and cruelty may have gone unchecked but the loyalty of friends remains as true as ever.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781511329934
Publisher:	Brilliance Audio
Publication date:	09/08/2015
Series:	Above World , #1
Edition description:	Unabridged
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 6.75(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

About the Author

Jenn Reese writes science fiction and fantasy and has published short stories and two books for adults. She loves martial arts and has trained in kenpo, kung fu, tai chi, and weaponry. She lives in Los Angeles.

Kate Rudd was born and raised in coastal West Michigan. Her lifelong love of storytelling led to a career in acting and vocal performance. Her audiobook narrations cover young adult, romance and fantasy titles, including Celine Kiernan's Moorehawke Trilogy. Kate's work can be seen in several feature films and at www.KateRudd.com.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

A warrior heroine with a caring heart, stalwart friends, an edgy futurist subtext and the suggestion of a possible sequel make this a thrilling sci-fi adventure. Imaginative and riveting.
—Kirkus Reviews

Action-seeking readers should enjoy the many revelations, twists, and hand-to-claw battle sequences, and fierce, take-charge Aluna is the kind of heroine who is easy to get behind. An open-ended conclusion leaves the door to Reese's futuristic world wide open for future adventures.
—Publishers Weekly

Editorial Reviews

First-time author Reese takes mermaids (and other mythological hybrid creatures) into postapocalyptic territory in a straightforward but exciting adventure. Aluna, a hotheaded 13-year-old Kampii who is just about to trade her legs for a tail in a coming-of-age ceremony, has discovered that the poorly understood mechanisms that support her isolated, underwater community are beginning to break down. Defying the Elders and accompanied by her loyal sidekick, technophilic Hoku, Aluna sets out to find HydroTek, the long-lost source of her people’s technology. Aluna and Hoku are determined and resourceful protagonists, and the novel’s hybrid species are fun and cleverly imagined (the birdlike Avians factor heavily into this installment); the Upgraders, who murder other post-humans for their body parts, are sadistic, one-dimensional monsters that owe a thing or two to the Borg of Star Trek. Action-seeking readers should enjoy the many revelations, twists, and hand-to-claw battle sequences, and fierce, take-charge Aluna is the kind of heroine who is easy to get behind. An open-ended conclusion leaves the door to Reese’s futuristic world wide open for future adventures. Ages 10–up. Agent: Joe Monti, Barry Goldblatt Literary. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

A warrior heroine with a caring heart, stalwart friends, an edgy futurist subtext and the suggestion of a possible sequel make this a thrilling sci-fi adventure. Imaginative and riveting.
—Kirkus Reviews

Action-seeking readers should enjoy the many revelations, twists, and hand-to-claw battle sequences, and fierce, take-charge Aluna is the kind of heroine who is easy to get behind. An open-ended conclusion leaves the door to Reese's futuristic world wide open for future adventures.
—Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Gr 5–8—In Jenn Reese's science fiction novel (Candlewick, 2012), humans have created different colonies of altered humans to escape the threat of an epidemic. There are mermaids living underwater, equines inhabiting the desert, and aviators living in the sky as a result of genetic engineering. However, the technology that allowed humans to adapt is failing, and Aluna, a brave mermaid, and her friends set out to confront the mad scientist who created it. Although the premise is interesting, the story unwinds tediously, with a lot of effort spent explaining details that don't advance the plot or reveal much about the characters. For example, almost an entire chapter is devoted to Dash teaching Aluna how to build a fire, going into great detail about gathering kindling and using flint to start a spark. Girls will appreciate the hints of romance and the strong female characters, while male listeners will be disappointed in the scarcity of action and violence. Kate Rudd's narration fluctuates effortlessly between the serious tone of the situation and the chirpy attitude of the juvenile characters. Not a first purchase.—Cynthia Grabke, McCormack Middle School, Dorchester, MA

School Library Journal - Audio

In a dystopian future, 13-year-old Aluna has spent her entire life in a city hidden in the ocean. When the devices that allow her people to breathe underwater begin to fail in the weeks before Aluna’s legs will be transformed into a tail, she and her friend, Hoku, leave home to search for solutions in the Above World. Narrator Kate Rudd channels Aluna’s frustration and anger as she fights and forges alliances with other tribes of genetically modified humans. Rudd also captures Hoku’s wonder as he begins to understand the technology that will save their people. Accents help define the various tribes, and a sense of urgency pervades the entire performance. A fast-paced and distinct entry in a crowded genre. A.F. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

FEBRUARY 2012 - AudioFile

In a future world in which habitable space has been exhausted, Humans have physically modified to survive in the skies, oceans and deserts. Living in the hidden City of Shifting Tides, 13-year-old Aluna heroically strives to save the ocean-dwelling Coral Kampii when their lives are threatened by destructive forces in the Above World. Feisty Aluna and her techie pal Hoku have the Kampii's "thick bones and tough skin, adaptable vision, [and] breathing necklaces." Even though Aluna will soon trade her legs for a swimming tail, she doesn't fit with the isolated Kampii and defies them by secretly training to be a hunter. When their breathing necklaces mysteriously fail, causing Kampii to die, Aluna opts to leave before receiving her tail and journeys with Hoku to the Above World to try to find some answers. Along the way, Aluna and Hoku encounter deadly Dragonfliers, aquatic Deepfell demons, winged female Aviars, half-horse Equians and brutal Upgraders. Fighting every step of her perilous quest, Aluna enlists help from creatures of the air, land and sea. A warrior heroine with a caring heart, stalwart friends, an edgy futurist subtext and the suggestion of a possible sequel make this a thrilling sci-fi adventure. Imaginative and riveting. (Science fiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews