I received an eARC of Camp Zero by Michelle Min Sterling through Netgalley, thanks John Murray Press! This dystopian novel comes out March 30.

The story is set in our near future, when climate change has impacted the world even more than it already has today. We follow several POVs in the far north of Canada, at a building project. Rose is one of a group of escorts/prostitutes, there to entertain the men working at the project, but she has a secret mission. Grant is a college professor new to the project, trying to escape his family name. And we also follow a group of women in a research center in the freezing middle of nowhere, in chapters called “White Alice”.

I was most intrigued by the White Alice chapters, although, due to the way it’s written, it was harder to connect emotionally to that POV. But I would have loved a whole book dedicated to the characters in that intriguing POV, and dig deeper into the things that happen in those chapters. As for the others: Grant was a bit bland to me, interesting flashbacks to his past but in the present his character didn’t interest me much. But seeing the role the men play in this book, maybe he was written this way on purpose? Rose was the easiest to connect to and I liked following her story, both the flashbacks and the present. The way these POVs connect was great; there were some twists that I didn’t see coming until the last second.

The writing is very good, and I really enjoyed the setting, and the cold atmosphere. I love books set in cold or isolated places and this story had both of that. The ending was a bit more open than I would have liked, but I also can’t picture a neatly tied up ending that would have fitted with the rest of the story? So this was probably the best way to end things. 

This was my first “clifi” (climate change fiction) and it was a really good read. I know it’s also being compared to Station Eleven (which I haven’t read yet) so I assume if you liked that you’ll like this one too. I for one will happily pick up future works by this author if she writes any. 4 stars from me.

A near future dystopian story set mostly in a desolate part of Canada. I enjoyed the book on the whole but it is quite slow and jumps around a lot. Some really great ideas and quite different to a lot of sci-fi and dystopia fiction.
3.5 stars

An interesting premise and well developed story. This is a rather bleak future I would not want to live in. Not in my top ten books but a fairly satisfactory way to spend a few escapist hours.

I really liked the sound of this from the blurb; a dystopian tale set in the near future with a group of individuals facing various challenges to survive. I’m sorry to say I’m struggling to engage with it. I’m about half way through and the pace is so slow, the plotting is confused and it seems to be trying too hard to make various points about ecological changes and potential for disaster, but not doing so very well.

The narrative switches between three central characters and most of the story is flashback. Whilst their back story may be interesting ( or not particularly in the case of at least two of them), it doesn’t move the central theme forward. I wanted to know how they’re coping, what happens next in this bleak, cold wilderness.

It’s well written and there are some scenes where the conditions are well described and almost palpable. But there’s no drama, it’s turgid and I’ve given up. A great idea but badly delivered.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

Not for me ,I did not connect with the story or the characters. The idea of the book sounded great, but it just wasn't the book for me .I feel disappointed but hope others like it more.

I was really excited to get an ARC for Camp Zero, and it was at the top of my anticipated TBR pile for ages. I’ve been enjoying the ‘Frostpunk’ game series at the moment and the idea of a post-apocalyptic camp in eternal winter really appealed.

The story is told through three perspectives – there’s Rose; an escort who has started to work in a newly built camp in the North, Grant; a teacher who has also joined the camp to escape his family’s reputation and the ladies of The White Alice Camp. There isn’t a notion of time or place with these perspectives though, and we are unsure if the timelines are running together or not. We quickly learn that Rose and Grant are in the same time and place as they meet each other but it is a good 90% of the way through the book before we learn how the White Alice storyline fits into any of the narrative.

This was my main issue with Camp Zero, I was expecting either a pacy apocalyptic thriller – a race against the elements to survive, or perhaps a character driven psychological thriller full of secrets and tension and betrayal. Sadly, Camp Zero seems to have none of these elements. There isn’t really much of a plot, what is there is mostly either flashback or build up which leads nowhere. Annoyingly, the book then also ends on a cliff-hanger to what would seem like a much more interesting and action-packed story.

Grants flashbacks are interesting and heart-breaking in places, but I didn’t really feel much for any of the characters as a whole. The blooms are never really explored in much detail beyond broad brush-stokes and the same can be said of the construction workers. At the end the book then shines a spotlight on characters which you have initially dismissed as background characters because they didn’t have much relevance to the plot.

Overall, Camp Zero was just a lot of build-up with zero payoff, with vague characters and very little plot. Thank you to NetGalley & John Murray Press for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Set in the near future of 2049, it is obvious that all attempts to control global warming have failed. Temperatures around the globe have soared ensuring intolerable heat waves, forest fires and tremendous storms. The story is weaved around three locations, a floating city just off the Boston coast, a former Canadian oil town called Dominion Lake and an old Cold War era research station in the far north of Canada. The wealthy live in the floating city where we find Rose working as a ‘hostess’, in the research station, code named ‘White Alice’ we find a group of highly trained women carrying out climate surveillance while at Dominion Lake Meyer is trying to build a new city in the colder climes. Each location has its own story to tell, which all come together in the final few pages.
An interesting storyline in a scenario that I hope never becomes true.

Camp Zero by Michelle Min Sterling is a story set in a post-climate world. A desperate world where storms rage with extreme consequences, south is almost unbearable to live, fires destroy everything in their paths and worst crimes are being punished by a slow death in a suffocating desert.

We follow three different stories intertwining together at the end of the book. A woman called Rose who is sent by a powerful man living in a floating city to spy on an architect nicknamed Meyer. A miserable man working as a teacher named Grant spoiled by father's riches and desperate to run away from his family name and his past. And a group of strong, willing women trying to survive in north.

They are desperate to change their lives, to alter their course for better, and so no-one misses an opportunity when offered to work in Camp Zero.

This book was a really slow burn for me. I didn't got attached to any of the characters. Their stories felt prolonged to me and unnecessary for the amount of time that it was concentrated on. I wish there was a little bit more plot to the story, more twists, more stakes to it.

Probably the most interesting part for me to read was about a group of women trying to survive in north, in a camp called White Alice. This part was more interesting, more to the pace that wanted it to be.

A story about Rose was ok and it didn't made me feel much about it, but Grant, the more a read about him the more I disliked him. This spoiled man who had everything he wanted in his life, at the end of book, made me like him less and less. Especially for what he did with a certain person that in my opinion was very wrong and twisted (not wanting to spoil the story).

Speaking about world building and everything else that is not related to characters. The book gave me vibes of desperation, want and need to sacrifice a lot for a better life in this cruel world. I really wish there was more written about climate change, about all of these natural disasters and struggle of people. It would have gave me a feeling that there were more at cost. But I did not get that from this book.

Maybe it is my fault and I should read more carefully each synopsis before choosing a book, but it did not hit my expectations. That said, the book was ok and It's meant for a more quiet read, with no big, exploding climax.
Definitely a character based reading.

This wasn't for me. The plot had such potential but didn't deliver. At times it was muddled, sometimes very detailed and other times described in broad strokes. Even the big reveal was a let-down. I was tempted to give up about a third of the way through but stuck with it. I wish I had.
Although I have been very negative in my review I have read enough books that I have thoroughly enjoyed and others have hated that I am sure many will enjoy this.

Camp Zero is a bleak, dystopian novel set in the near future. Well written and thought provoking though overlong in places. The characters and story held my interest. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the wrc

This is a dystopian novel in a league with few others. It's not perfect, but is written with style and is immersive yet somehow dispassionate at the same time. Some of the key characters are not named, and several others are only revealed towards the end of the book, as we come to realise that the three main players we follow are separated by more than physical distance.

Rose is an 'escort' who has taken a job at a building / campsite in the far north of the Canadian wilderness, but has an ulterior motive for being there. Grant is a posh boy who is trying to escape the inevitable dullness and predictability of the life laid out for him by several generations of his 'corporate vandal' family. White Alice is an all-female group of eight soldiers and researchers who are stationed in a remote northern outpost to collect data on the rapidly-changing climate, ecology and habitability of the area. Their daily lives are told in detail and we gradually learn their routines, backstories and motivations. There is not much action in the first half but this did pick up later, and rather dramatically towards the end.

The book is beautifully written. The changing world is described very well, and as might be expected the wealthy have taken steps to ensure their comfort and survival whilst the rest of humanity is left to suffer the consequences of climatic and environmental degradation. Food for thought. I do hope that the author is planning a sequel - the situation for most of the characters changes at the end of the book and I'd really like to find out what happens next.

I’m afraid I wasn’t able to read this in its entirety. I managed to get up to 15%, and then skipped and skimmed through to the end. I found that if by 15% of the way through, I didn’t actually like anyone, then it was probably not going to engage me. I get the premise and the post apocalyptic style intrigued me, but ultimately it didn’t make me feel anything.

I've just spent over a week with Aurora, Rose, Grant, and The Barber. It is the near future, and the earth is in cliamate crisis. Rose works in the floating city, a cliamate controlled colony for the wealthy and influential. Rose works there as a prostitute. The Barber lives and works in the far North, in an abandoned town where architects are planning on building a new floating city, a bigger colony. Grant is an academic, he has been enticed North to teach at the new campus in the new colony. Aurora lives at a government scientific station with about five other women, all scientists, all warriors. What will happen when their lives collide?..
An interesting tale, that occasionally felt a little confusing. An interesting tale nonetheless

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the ARC copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This book is set in the near future. Mankind is struggling due to global warming. The South is uninhabitable due to rising temperatures. Mega storms are battering the North.
There are secret plans for the far north of Canada but who is behind them and are they all that they seem?

This was an enjoyable post apocalyptic style read. It's very believable and relatable to todays worries for the future. It touches on class, on women's issues and on migration. I liked how the stories all came together.

The book seems well-written and well-thought-out. Unfortunately, I can't connect it and started to feel like forcing myself to finish it. I decided to DNF it for now, but I want to emphasize it's the case of "It's me, not you" DNF :)

Thanks to the publisher for giving me the possibility to try it. I may give it another try soon.

Thoughtful and interesting recreation of the future - the implications of the melting ice-caps and technological advancements. There were lots of great creative ideas but at the heart of it are the impacts on people and their desires and the power of hope.

Rose works is an elite "hostess" doing her best to improve life for her mother and herself in a flawed and corrupt system that favours only the wealthy. Grant is one of the wealthy, trying to escape the clutches of his corrupt family. And White Alice is a group of specialist women deserted in a remote research station to monitor the climate change. At the centre of the story is Camp Zero - a camp aiming for a better, more natural way of living - a utopia of sorts.

Definitely an addictive read with lots of attention to detail, flipping easily between past and present. The core characters were well developed and unfolded at a good pace. I enjoyed the organic way the futuristic way of life was incorporated. Would have loved a less desolate outlook for at least one of the characters. But overall, I would recommend.

Well this was a pleasant surprise. Michelle Min Sterling brings us a compact yet compelling story that is told by multiple POVs.

The view of the future we see is disturbing yet not entirely unrealistic. Imagine if we don't halt the climate change this narrative will be ours - a place where both the earth and its people are taken advantage of and left to become completely unrecognisable.

The setting of the scene was on point with the brand new floating cities for the wealthy and 'the north' where its bitter and cold yet deserted and has easily become the latest most desirable place to be. To build a new home.

I won't go into too much detail but the multiple narratives are weaved intricately and really pull the story together.

This book was great to read and I can imagine it being a huge hit with all fellow dystopian readers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this e-arc.

I was intrigued by Camp Zero at the beginning - enjoying the characters and wondering about the connection between Camp Zero and White Alice. However it sagged in the middle and by the time the payoff came I'd already worked it out.

However, I liked the characterisation and the world building - would probably read something else by this author.

I loved the concept of this, the worldbuilding was really unique and cool, although a bit hard to get into at first. I wish there had been some more depth behind certain things and more explanations about the background of the world, but it was still interesting to read about and the story flowed nicely.

I liked the beginning a lot more than the middle, the pacing was a bit hit and miss and I wanted some more action for the plot. The ending was also not that suspenseful, but still a good wrap up for the story.

At first it felt like I was reading three totally different stories. Which took some time to get used to, but eventually i was engrossed thoroughly. As the stories and characters became more intertwined, I found myself becoming more and more immersed.

The story was wonderfully written and i could visualise each character, because of how well they were described. My only struggle was not knowing where the story was going and at the same time, wanting to know more.

The three perspectives were used really cleverly and I found myself really captivated by all of the narrator's. It's a book that definitely makes you think about the future and your place in it. Especially as there's an almost scary insight into what you would do to survive and the realisation that not everyone can be trusted.