Received via Hydra/Random House Books and NetGalley in exchange for an completely unbiased review.
Also posted on Silk & Serif

Every once in a while I come across a novel that clearly isn’t written for me. This doesn’t mean the novel isn’t a wonderful book on its own or isn’t worth someone else’s reading efforts; merely that for myself something didn’t “click”. I wasn’t satisfied on a base level with this book and I’m not certain if it was the main character, something about the plot, or the writing style – but this one just didn’t cast the same spell over me as most post-apocalyptic novels tend to and I couldn’t really put my finger on why.

Rhona Long is a survivor – a survivor who, after her death, has herself is cloned so that she may continue leading the human existence against the machines that crushed civilization. The vestiges of humanity need a leader to hold hope of overcoming the mechanical horrors they created in hopes of making human life everywhere easier. Unfortunately, an attack occurs on the bunker where Rhona’s clone is being grown and she must flee with her life without having any memories of her life before waking up in the cloning tank.

Meanwhile, Camus, the new leader of the human resistance and Rhona 1.0’s lover, struggles to accept the return of the love of his life in the form of a clone who remembers nothing. Rhona did not tell Camus about the clone program and he struggles to fight his attraction for the clone-who-is-not-her.

It’s a tall order when any novel attempts to create a narrative so close to the original Terminator story line: the end of civilization due to the computers we created to make life easier, the computers hunting humanity because we are a threat, the life of survivors hiding from these machines. Unfortunately, I’ve yet to read a novel that really captures the complexity and genius behind the Terminator franchise. Machinations also failed live up to it’s iconic predecessor and quickly becomes a novel about a clone finding her way in this new world and invokes a love triangle to add a little more suspense into the mix for female readers.

Machinations is an interesting entry into the post-apocalyptic genre that will please readers looking for plenty of intrigue and romantic suspense.

The fact that Machinations did not live up to my admittedly over ambitious expectations wasn’t at the heart of my dissatisfaction with Machinations. I couldn’t connect with the main character and half way through I wasn’t invested in the characters - not for a lack of effort on the author’s part with her colorful character histories, the evolution of clone Rhona understanding of the world and some interesting character interactions. Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for this sort of novel, I’ll never know. Machinations just didn’t engage me emotionally or intellectually for some unknown reason. I'm relatively certain, regardless of why I didn't enjoy this novel as much as anticipated, my issues were probably due to the fact that a basic ingredient was missing for me. I definitely suggest others check out Machinations if they are a science fiction or post-apocalyptic romance fan.

This novel will appeal to readers who enjoy post-apocalyptic fiction, love triangles, romantic suspense, novels that end with plot twists and love interests with English accents. ( )

So machines have been given a directive to stop war which, of course, leads them to try to eradicate the cause of conflict, us – really, people, did we learn nothing from ‘80s movies like Terminator or War Games? Now there’s a group of plucky survivors in Alaska fighting back led by Rhona Long who isn’t exactly who or what she seems.

Okay, so the post-apocalyptic novel Machinations by author Hayley Stone isn’t the most original of stories. However, ‘not original’ doesn’t necessarily conflate to ‘not fun’. By focusing more of the story on the relationships and the emotional responses of the characters to what is happening, Stone gives the story a more rounded feel. Not to say there isn’t any action here but it isn't the whole story. Overall, a quick and enjoyable read and I will definitely be reading the sequel.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House-Hydra for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review ( )

3.25 Stars
A Sci-fi post-apocalyptic novel with a good premise; some parts fall short and others are written pretty well. The storyline is a little too close to The Terminator (although that's a great series), there's not enough backstory on the machines, and occasionally the female MC seems a bit juvenile to be a former leader. That being said, some of the other supporting characters, such as Samuel, Rankin, and Ulrich and many others are very well-written and provide a human aspect to the book. The witty oneliners give comic relief and I thoroughly enjoy the many pop-culture references. I am interested to see where the story goes in the sequel.

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Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over

Rise of the machines is a popular premise that is easy to do badly, in my opinion, too often influenced by the Terminator movies. Machinations does have one thing in common with those movies in that much of the book occurs at a dead run. However, just when I thought it would stay that way, the book segues into a multilayered people story that asks questions of personhood and personality as well as looking at what it takes to step forward and become a hero despite the risks. Not only that, but the explanation behind the machine uprising is one of the rare premises in this trend that make sense.

The story centers on a great war against the results of human lack of foresight. The enemies (machines built to end human war) are alien and unknowable, except when they are not because of observation or knowledge of their original code. These are not humanoid robots who act like people but rather thinking machines adapted and designed with one task in mind. It’s how they have interpreted the task of ending war that brings us to a place where humanity clings to a few safe havens, and even there, they know the safety is half-illusion.

The book starts in the middle of a life and death struggle, one that “our heroes” are losing badly. Still, even in the beginning, it took me from observing complete strangers to making a connection with two of the main characters, Rhona and Camus. It also sets up the rest of the story in the best way.

Yes, the book most definitely has nail-biting moments with striving for something bigger, and heroic efforts in the face of overwhelming odds. These are well written, inspiring, and stressful in the right ways.

However, what made this into a book where I searched for another moment to read is the people and their interactions. This is no simple story with one-dimensional characters. Even secondary characters have motivations and flaws.

There is politics, leadership, belief in one’s own purpose, and the strength in quiet moments. There’s desperation, loss, and out-of-the-box thinking that balances high risks against the greater good. I enjoyed the rousing speeches, but the characters’ analysis of motivation and goals among the different bases was excellent. Heck, there’s even a love triangle to shake things up.

There were one, maybe two, small continuity issues that bugged me about the world building. Ultimately, the story carried me along well enough that I let them go, preferring to focus on a complex human drama presented in such a way as to ask the big questions and make me care about the answers.

I connected with the characters, was put in positions where I had to ask myself what I would have done, and worried about the characters who got themselves in dangerous situations. There are funny moments and sweet ones, as well. Just enough to think humanity could still recover if they win rather than be so destroyed by the war they are no longer human. Well worth the read.

P.S. I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. ( )

In this post apocalyptic saga, the world is well into a new age in which machines wage war against mankind, and there is a good chance they may prevail. National governments have already been brought down. The irony is that the machines were programmed to bring about the end of war. The plan they came up with was uniting humanity in defense of a common enemy: the machines.

A charismatic leader among the people believes that struggling survivors may lose all hope should she be killed, so she has made a secret plan to have herself cloned, should the need arise. Rhona Long is killed in the arms of her fiance' in the midst of battle in the opening pages of the book.

We pick up her story as she awakens in a vat that has served as an artificial womb. But the process is interrupted by an attack on the remote lab, and she is abruptly helped out, and goes on the run with the scientists who were monitoring the process. She is almost an exact image of herself, but there are some gaps in her memory. They are in remote Alaska and need to get back to the secret headquarters of the survivors, which is within Mt. Denali. She and one of the scientists finally make it back, but not before nearly being overcome by battling machines.

Rhona is shocked that she must prove herself all over again. Some, including her fiance', see her as "other," not truly the same person. But again, the strength of the enemy draws the humans together in spite of differences, and Rhona is able to prove, at least to some, that she is still worthy to be thought of as Rhona, a human being, who selflessly sacrifices for the good of others.

I received the book from NetGalley in exchange for a review. I enjoy sci-fi, and enjoyed most of the book. I did feel like it wrapped up a little too neatly, and didn't truly resolve the dilemma of whether a clone can completely become the original human. ( )