Author: Cameron Stracher
Genre: Young Adult/Sci-Fi
Publication: Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: January 1st 2011
Pages: 240
Spoilers: I’ll try not to spoil too much!
Rating: 
(2.5 / 5)
So lets start with the fact that I got this book about 9 months ago at a book haul thingy in the Netherlands. The books was very cheap (about €3 I think) and the cover really caught my eye. I read the back and decided that this would be my new favorite book. I never picked it up though, I was too busy doing other things, but I finally picked it up this weekend. I was reading Seeker but went away for the weekend to my parents’ house. Forget Seeker but found The Water Wars was still on my book shelve there. I picked it up and started reading.
“Vera and her brother, Will, live in the shadow of the Great Panic, in a country that has collapsed from environmental catastrophe. Water is hoarded by governments, rivers are dammed, and clouds are sucked from the sky. But then Vera befriends Kai, who seems to have limitless access to fresh water. When Kai suddenly disappears, Vera and Will set off on a dangerous journey in search of him-pursued by pirates, a paramilitary group, and greedy corporations. Timely and eerily familiar, acclaimed author Cameron Stracher makes a stunning YA debut that’s impossible to forget.” [goodreads]
So this book promised to be about a world without water. And that really spoke to me. I’m really into ‘end of the world’ stories. Don’t get me wrong, but to me, dystopian can mean two things: Divergent or real. Divergent is one of my favorite books, but it just doesn’t feel real to me. The Water Wars felt totally real. It was realistic (the world) in ever single detail. But for the story… not so much.
Vera and Will live with their parents in a village without water. Actually, most of the world is without water. Yes, there are seas. But seas are salt and it is very expensive to clean the salt out of the water. So, in short: no water. Then they meet the mysterous guy Kai. He says he knows were to find water. And then he disappears. Vera and Will decide to chase after Kai.
Okay, first: Kai is mysterious. As for his characteristics, that’s all there is to say about him. Vera of course falls head over heels in love with him. Seems too easy, too fast and too shallow. Will, on the other hand, doesn’t care about Kai. And their parents are totally clueless. So maybe the way Vera falls in love is totally high school. But it’s cute.
But the whole story stays shallow. YES it is freaking exciting and somehow the story managed to confuse me. But overall, it wasn’t my thing. The characters were either stereotypes or totally flat. Their parents didn’t seem to care that their children were gone and missing. Vera and Will decide to chase after a obviously untrustworthy guy and his even more untrustworthy father.
As for the world: amazing. Very visual. I felt thirsty by only reading about the dryness of the land. I think this book could have a lot more than it has. The characters could’ve been elaborated more, the plottwists were okay but most of the time it was one story, following Vera and Will, and all the while, the rest of the world was a sleep – that’s what it felt like. I was a bit disappointed by the book in a way I think I actually feel sorry. I wanted it to be good sooo badly. I’m not saying you shouldn’t read it: it’s a fun read. But don’t expect to much of it. If you want to read a fast, light book, this is the one for you. Still, I had a fun time reading it and was looking forward to reading it. But at the end, I felt like it let me down.
It’s not a bad book, but it’s not very good either. But if I knew from the beginning about all of the above, I’d still decide to read it. The story and the world that’s depicted in the book; amazing. Plot and characters: boring and shallow.
So that’s why I rated it 2.5 😉
I’m really curious if anybody has read this book and has experienced the same thing? Let me know please!
