Title: ReMade Episode One: Shadows and Dreams
Author: Matthew Cody
Pages: 32
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Release Date: 14 September 2016
Author: Matthew Cody
Pages: 32
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Release Date: 14 September 2016
From Goodreads: "You live. You love. You die. Now RUN. ReMade.
Every minute, 108 people die.
On October 14th, 2016, from 9:31-9:32 p.m. EDT, 23 of those deaths will be teenagers.
Now they are humanity’s last hope for survival.
Awakened in a post-apocalyptic world and hunted by mechanical horrors, these teens search for answers amidst the ruins of civilization. Fate, love, and loyalty face off in this adrenaline -pumping YA adventure.
ReMade will unfold across 15 episodes. "Shadows and Dreams" is the first episode.
Holden Black never imagined his crush knew his name, much less that he’d suddenly be driving her to a party. But life can change in a second, especially when you’re 16. A look. A flash of headlights. A scream. What do you do when the unexpected jumps straight to the unbelievable, the dream becomes a nightmare, and waking changes everything except your heart’s desire?
This episode written by Matthew Cody."
Thank you to NetGalley and Serial Box for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review!
ReMade is a serialized novel that is being released across 15 episodes. Episode one is Shadows and Dreams which was written by Matthew Cody. For only being 32 pages long, with 24 pages of actual story to read, this was a pretty good opener to the series. It starts off with a very creepy and unknown vibe, with our main character Holden having a dream about a fairy queen and mechanical monsters. We then flash over to what is probably reality and Holden is getting out of his Mustardseed costume from A Midsummer Night's Dream. As he is leaving to go home, he discovers that his crush is having car troubles and offers her a ride to a cast party for the play. They talk a bit as they make their way through back roads, and then suddenly get into a car wreck. What happens next is almost too crazy to believe.
As an introduction to the serialized novel, Shadows and Dreams was a pretty good opener. I can only imagine the stress that Matthew Cody must have been under to produce a really quality opening to this series, and I think that he did a solid job. There's some pretty crazy stuff that goes on in this short story and I was really able to sit down and get drawn into the world. I feel like Matthew Cody's writing is very strong and descriptive, and I found myself getting fairly creeped out at the mention of mechanical spider-esque creatures!
"...the caretaker reminded Holden more of an upright sarcophagus balanced on eight metal legs. The multifaceted, insect-like eyes were arranged in a cluster so that it could watch all directions at once."
Holden as a character didn't really impress or disappoint me. It's a weird feeling to be somewhat neutral towards a character, but I feel like I wasn't able to get to know Holden as much as I would have liked to. Since this is only the first episode, I'm holding out for more Holden later on in the series because I would really like to know what happens with him, Umta, and Seyah! I think that the story could go in an interesting direction and I'm curious to know if the other stories will involve other characters from the series.
Shadows and Dreams opens up the ReMade series very nicely with creepy mechanical monsters, captivating writing, and characters that are sure to keep you guessing. I thoroughly enjoyed this first installment and highly encourage anyone looking for a new science fiction YA series to pick this up and give it a try!
