Review: Outside In by Maria V. Snyder

Outside In by Maria V. Snyder
Published: January 2011

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

Me? A leader?

Okay, I did prove that there's more to Inside than we knew. That a whole world exists beyond this cube we live in. And finding that led to a major rebellion—between worker scrubs like me and the snobby uppers who rule our world. Make that ruled. Because of me, we're free. I thought that meant I was off the hook, and could go off on my own again—while still touching base with Riley, of course. He's the one upper I think I can trust. But then we learned that there's outside and then there is Outside.

And something from Outside wants In.

Review:

When I finished reading this I was so torn. I loved Inside out, and had really high hopes for Outside In. But I was left feeling very blah about it. There was just a feeling of the author not really caring about developing anything in depth or about where the story was going. 

Trella is still a strong character and I'm glad that at least didn't change, but her relationship with Riley just confused me. There's no showing of how they are falling in love. We are just told they are, and then given a couple of make out sessions, which while being steamy, felt more like filler. I wanted to be part of their falling in love, and we don't get that. Maybe Snyder added in the romance angle because it's expected in YA, but this is not a romance. It is a science fiction novel, and I think it would have worked better if the romance weren't in there.

I also had a hard time with the plot. Too many people were double crossing everyone else, and there's no real explanation as to who the Outsiders really are and what their reasoning was. It's possible that Snyder is planning on a third book in the series to answer these questions, but I don't think I really care, and it makes me really sad to say that because I enjoyed Inside Out so much. 

The book wasn't horrible, and it's possible that my ambivalence towards science fiction writing is coming through. The writing is decent, and there were some good scenes between Trella and Riley, and Trella and Lamont, just not enough to get me through he confusion of Trella being captured, tricked and tortured by a different group every couple of chapters. 

Book Trailer: Inside Out

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

You can check out my review of Inside Out here.

Review: Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder
Published: April 2010

Publisher: Harlequin

Available: Amazon

Synopsis:

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

Review:

There was something about Inside Out that made me think of Across the Universe. Even as I say that I know that they are completely different stories, characters, etc. but there's just something...When you get to the end of the book, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. That said, I found it just as enjoyable as Across the Universe, and for completely different reasons.

Inside Out tells the story of Trella, a lowly 'scrub' on the 'inside' scrubs are a dime a dozen, living in cramped quarters, breeding, and spending their days cleaning up after the 'uppers'. Trella knows she was born an upper but was given up by her birth parents to live in the lower levels. She knows a scrub can't expect much out of life, and she's determined not to get close to anyone, as too often scrubs are feed to the chomper. When she unwittingly starts a revolution, she has to decide whether she is willing to take the risk on trusting others in order to find the elusive 'outside'.

Trella is an interesting character. She is aloof and unfriendly, unwilling to trust others, but she is fierce in her commitment to her friend Cog. She spends a lot of time telling everyone, including herself that her goal is to disprove the existence of 'outside' yet by the end, I feel like she is the one that needs it the most.

The romance angle was alright. I just didn't feel like it was a necessary part of the story. It's there, but luckily Snyder doesn't try to force it full steam on us. Riley and Trella come together cautiously and it felt more natural than if she had jumped right into love with him.

The ending was great, and leads perfectly to a sequel. I am definitely going to be checking out Outside In.