Title: Clade
Author: James Bradley
Rating: 3/5
Genre: Environmental, Dystopian Future, Sci-Fi, Fantasy
Note – after a three month hiatus, I’ve returned back to (hopefully) regular blogging. Apologies for such a long time. My Masters has finally finished!
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So, as a few of you know, I get kindly sent books from Titan Publishing in order to read and review them a few weeks before publication. I get to pick and choice my books from a brief synopsis, which allows me to get excited about them before they arrive in the post.
About a month ago, I was sent Clade by James Bradley, and was instantly drawn in by the blurb. Set against a very startling and believable world of climate change, Clade follows the tale of one family and their generations as they struggle to live in a world that has been ravaged by pollution and population size. The world is close enough to our own to feel familiar, but also fitting in with the sci-fi/dystopian genre of YA fiction.
With each chapter virtually introducing a new character/story arc (and possibly set years apart from the previous arc), this story explores both familial and romantic relationships against the backdrop of a decaying world. One thing that I did notice was that sometimes it took a while for the key figure to be introduced, which made me drift slightly whilst reading it. The almost ‘snapshot’ image of this new member of the family (the Leith family, for anyone interested) did well in keep with the horrific world that they lived in, but it did make me, as a reader, a bit unsure about who I was reading about, and why Bradley focussed on them. This may have been because the book is relatively short (250ish pages) and in order to write about an entire generation, you need a much larger book.
However, when Bradley really wanted to concentrate on the development of the relationships and the family member, he did so with delicacy and precision. One relationship I particularly enjoyed reading about was Ellie and Adam, as their relationship is shown from extreme happiness to a complete breakdown.
Bradley’s other strengths lie with the world building. A very plausible and alarming future has been built, and Bradley keeps the reader intrigued with his tidbits about how super tsunamis/storms/earthquakes affect the rest of the world and not just the countries in which Clade is set. He has also taken one hell of a controversial and political subject and made it very readable for people who aren’t entirely clued up with the climate change deal.
All in all, Clade has been a refreshing take on the dystopian/environmental future genre. Apart from some weaknesses with the Leith family dynamic, (which could be down to Bradley being an overeager writer?) Clade is a relatively short, well-written novel that will leave you mulling over climate change after you’ve finished the last page.
Buy Clade by James Bradley on Titan Books
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