Outside In

By: Maria V. Snyder

Narrated by: Amanda Ronconi

"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."

©2011 Maria V. Snyder (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Great Story

The beginning of the story was debatable whether to go on or not. however when it finally got started it became very interesting. so much so that I did not want to stop listening. the story was great. the narrator did a great job. the author is very talented and had fabulous imagination. Loved the story.

Boring in the beginning and then picks up

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I read the first book and loved it so I had to find out what happens in the series so yes because it is a series. However, the booked really dragged in the beginning and didn't pick up action until 2/3rd's of way through. The author spends a lot of time reviewing the first book which I had just completed so the review was boring and continues throughout the book. The scenes are as realistic as they come! That's why the book was so boring because the middle of the book had a lot of bureaucracy, indecisiveness, and waiting. You just wait and wait for Trella to do something, anything! The ending is packed with action, love scenes, and is very well written. If you have completely forgotten the first book and need a review then you probably won't find the review so annoying in this one.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

The ending was great and well written. I am so happy that finally the writer creates action and suspense. Because of the ending alone, I will probably read the next book in the series when it comes out.

What about Amanda Ronconi’s performance did you like?

I hated her voice for Trella because it was so ugly sounding but her voices for everyone else especially the men were amazing. She can sound just like a man and she does very well with voice distinguishes.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

yes

A Great Sequel to Inside Out

This picks up right where Inside Out leaves off. They have figured out that Outside is Outer Space, and they are aboard a space ship. Not everyone is happy with the way things are being run in the wake of the rebellion, and there are forces rising against the people making the rules. There is also something on the Outside, that wants In.

Trella is overwhelmed by her new responsibilities, and has a tendency to get herself into a lot of trouble.

I found myself wondering constantly through this one just what exactly would happen, and how they could possibly manage to work things out.

AS GOOD AS THE FIRST

I did not expect this one to go where it went either. Sometimes the second book isn't as good, but this one is good and kept me wondering, what next?

Great Story! Leaves you wanting more!

Any additional comments?

The first book was great, the second.... is even better! This is a different take on another way of life that makes you believe, wow that could happen in the future!

Amanda does great narration and keeps you interested in the characters. I am hoping another one is on the way with the same Narrator!

Fantastic idea; a little lackluster on the execution

The idea that this book plays with, continuing from the first book, is fascinating. But this one was a little too formulaic for me and the writing lacked much needed finesse. Still, though, fantastic idea.

excellent reading

Where does Outside In rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I've listened to all ten books and they are all equally great.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Riley's great gift of getting herself out of trouble.

What about Amanda Ronconi’s performance did you like?

Amanda Ronconi did and excellent job expressing each character.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, It took me three days to listen to the book but that was because I didn't have the time to listen to it in one sitting.

Any additional comments?

I have listened to all ten of Maia V Snyder's book and I was surprisingly captivated by all of them. I will be a loyal follower.

Even better than Inside Out!

A few reviewers have said that they found the beginning of this slow. I am not certain why that would be-- I found it moved along nicely. Trella is experiencing a period of self-doubt, and she goes back and forth in her mind about her role in the new society. However, there is a lot of action with bombs going off in Inside, vital systems at risk, and people dying. It's a great follow-up to Inside Out, so if you liked that,you'll love this.

Who Do You Trust?

A good wrap up for Inside Out (see my review here.) This could be read alone as the author recaps the events of first book but you would miss a lot of character detail and background so I do recommend reading Inside Out first.

Young Trella was the catalyst for a rebellion of the Lowers in the first book, Inside Out.
Now that the Lowers have freed themselves from the control of the Uppers the society has a bit of a breakdown. A committee of Uppers and Lowers is formed to direct the new order but there is no clear leader, no clear direction and lots of distrust. Since the Uppers haven’t started doing their share of the work, the workers (Lowers) are starting to strike and work isn’t getting done at all. Some of the leaders, and especially the Lowers, feel betrayed by Riley because she won’t continue her leadership role. She doesn’t see herself as having the skills to lead and she just wants to move in the shadows and let others make decisions.

Add to these problems there are acts of sabotage against vital areas of the ship that may be intended to allow one power group to gain control. The Committee doesn’t know who is responsible and slowly they are slipping back into old patterns of control with a new police force taking the place of the old Pop Cops but acting much the same.

Trella is helping out in the infirmary and trying to resolve her feelings about the Doctor who claims to be her mother. Riley pulls away from Trella as he too feels betrayed by her isolating herself from the ongoing problems. Trella finds it hard to stay aloof when attacks start hitting herself and injuring her friends including Logan who is needed for his computer skills if they are going to figure out who is behind the saboteurs.

The problems heat up even more when The Controllers take control of the systems and lock out the committee, and other human, input. Slowly they realize that there is an “outside” entity trying to gain control of the “inside”. It is hard to tell who Trella can trust as two distinct groups are trying to use her and telling her different versions of the truth.

This second book had some additional influences that were a bit “out there” but on the whole it does a good job of expanding on the first book and wrapping up open issues. This one wasn’t quite as fully engaging as the first book and that may have been partially created by Trella’s character being wimpy about taking on responsibilities to help leadership. (I had this similar reaction with The Hunger Games series as the heroine's character seemed to be weaker in the final book.) The author has again included good twists to keep you guessing and the conflict continues and keeps you alert to the very end.

The narrator does a good job with the emotions and characters although I felt the outside forces were not as distinctly portrayed through the narration as they might have been. A fine line complaint, I know, and it did not diminish the enjoyment of the good story.

Maria V. Snyder books are on my must get and read list! If you have not yet discovered this author you are missing some fine reading entertainment.

Great story love Maria v snider

I love the story I’m definitely into reading YA sci-fi/fantasy series and these two books kept me on my toes wanting to find out more.. however Trella got me angry. She can be quite annoying. Her voice is annoying and her actions are too.