Today obscurists, we’re talking about P.J. Sky’s “A Girl
Called Ari,” a post-apocalyptic adventure and journey to get back home—where
ever that may be.
***The Non-Spoiler part of this review***
What I love about this book:
This story isn’t a reimagining or even directly references this at all, but “A Girl Called Ari” reminded me of the feel of “Journey to the West.” I feel this way because of the relationship between the two protagonists and their adventures together. Characters from different worlds must travel together, in this case over a post-apocalyptic wasteland—and there are numerous challenges and setbacks that must be overcome.
I like Ari, the character the story is titled after a lot. I’m always a big fan of a practical person who can—albeit sometimes with a bit of coaxing—see the value of empathy. Plus, Ari shows herself to be tough, resourceful, and creative in her own ways—typically when she’s employing violence, but hey, she’s lived almost all of her life out in the wasteland.
I also appreciated that P. J. Sky never feels the need to info dump or over-explain how the world has gone to shit. They just throw you into the story, and the details come in time when pertinent to the story.
What I don’t love about this book:
Without spoiling anything, directly at least, one of the protagonists at the end of this story makes a decision that just baffled me. It’s kind of telegraphed in an earlier conversation, so it’s not totally out of left-field. Still, it wasn’t a conversation that the character initiated, so I guess my problem is I had a break in understanding this character’s motivations, which I wasn’t a fan of at basically the conclusion of the novel. I’m guessing it’s addressed in the sequel.
Dogs are present in this book, and it doesn’t work out well, and that always makes me very sad. It’s effective in terms of getting me to instantly despise a character—so there is that. But if a character hurts a dog—I hate them. Rarely can I see beyond that point and be understanding.
Like Starla, I don’t really understand the antagonists’ motivations in this story. Power and influence over her father, maybe? But why did it involve a kidnapping plot that relied on leaving the city? There might be good reasons why keeping a hostage in the city wasn’t desirable compared to out in the wasteland, but I missed them. This meant, for me, the reason we’re out in the wasteland is that the plot demands it and not that it was logically inevitable.
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Author's Website: https://pjsky.wordpress.com/
***The Spoiler part of this review***
***Ye be warned to turn back now***
The quick and dirty synopsis:
Starla Corinth, daughter to the mayor of “the city,” goes to a party on her 18th birthday. Despite her privileged position, she’s dissatisfied because she feels as if she’s trapped in an ivory tower—with no real control over her life. Not much is revealed yet about this “city” other than it’s surrounded by a wasteland. Shortly before her father gives a speech at the celebration, a mysterious young man cryptically warns her that she’s in danger.