Review ~ EARTHSEED (Seed #1) by Pamela Sargent

The classic YA science fiction adventure by Nebula and Locus Award–winning author Pamela Sargent The ship hurtles through space. Deep within its core, it carries the seed of humankind. Launched by the people of a dying Earth over a century ago, its mission is to find a habitable world for the children—fifteen-year-old Zoheret and her shipmates—whom it has created from its genetic banks. To Zoheret and her shipmates, Ship has been mother, father, and loving teacher, preparing them for their biggest challenge: to survive on their own, on an uninhabited planet, without Ship’s protection. Now that day is almost upon them...but are they ready to leave Ship? Ship devises a test. And suddenly, instincts that have been latent for over a hundred years take over. Zoheret watches as friends become strangers—and enemies. Can Zoheret and her companions overcome the biggest obstacle to the survival of the human race—themselves? ~From GoodReads

Set on a spaceship built upon an asteroid traveling the galaxies towards a new home, EARTHSEED is not quite what I expected. Thankfully. I was curious about it, namely because a film based on the series is in the works. I honestly didn't expect to like it much. I've been bitten by my expectations in regards to similar books.

The first portion of the book was exactly what I expected. Sent as the hope for humanity, Ship is carrying teens to a new home. Zoheret and her companions are becoming eager to reach their new planet. In preparation, they begin spending more time in The Hollow, basically a forest setting. The harsh setting of The Hollow begins to bring out the survival instincts in the teens. Some more than others. When the kids begin to make shattering discoveries, they soon discover that nothing is what it seems.

So when the story took a turn for the unexpected, I was hooked. As the teens work and compete to survive The Hollow, I became a great deal more interested. Then the unexpected begins to happen, over and over. The revelations, betrayals, the ramped up atmosphere and the lethal nature of some of the teens was astonishing.

My only true qualm with the book would be my lack of connection to main character Zoheret. She's just not a warm person. I think the third person point of view may have contributed to her distance. And the fact that she was raised my a computer. I just didn't feel her, despite liking her well enough.

Here's how I described EARTHSEED to my friend, April: It's ACROSS THE GALAXY meets LOST meets LORD OF THE FLIES. Sounds crazy and confusing, right? Somehow, it works. The ending was sad and dramatic and set up book two, FARSEED, nicely.


Favorite Quote:

" 'Who are you?' Zoheret said.
His eyes widened in fear; they were dark eyes, not blue like Dimitri's. 'The others,' he said. 'You must be the others.' " (pg 128)


 
Published February 28th 2012 by Tom Doherty Associates

You can purchase EARTHSEED at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Book Depository


Source: Received from publisher in exchange for an honest review.