I don't know what I expected when Tom and Gi teased an announcement earlier this year, but it certainly wasn't that they had written a book together, and especially not that it would be the first in a trilogy of YA dystopian novels based on gender. Eve of Man is definitely my most anticipated book of the year so when I was granted an early review copy it felt like all my Christmases had come at once, and my goodness it did not disappoint!

No girls have been born in 50 years. A generation of men is living on the brink of extinction in the freezing flood waters of a planet ravaged by climate change. They have lost all hope. That is until miracle happens; a girl is born. She is named Eve and she is destined to be the saviour of humanity. We join Eve when she is 16, and she is getting ready to meet her three Potentials. These are boys that have been specially selected for their compatibility, breeding qualities and preparedness for a life dedicated to repopulating Earth. It is down to Eve to choose the best match. She is relatively at ease with the task and she looks forward to bearing the responsibilities ahead. However, when the meetings with the Potentials don't go to plan, she begins to question everything she knows, with the support of her closest friend.

To be honest, I found the story line weird at first. It's like a Disney movie! Eve is the princess, sitting in the highest room of the tallest tower with maids (the Mothers) tending to her every need, tasked with choosing her ideal partner from a group of carefully selected appropriate men. Only this time instead of living in a kingdom and being required to continue the royal blood line she is in the middle of dystopian London and is expected to literally reboot humanity! It's very strange but it works!

The world that Giovanna and Tom have created is vast and it borrows from lots of different places. Not just Disney but from sci-fi too, taking inspiration from the likes of Avatar and Doctor Who. They manage to throw it all together to create something new and original, which is impressive. Having said that, a few of the inventions and scenarios did stretch my imagination a bit too far, making it confusing and less believable. It didn’t detract from my enjoyment overall though.

I instantly fell in love with Eve! She is so sweet and real and not at all like your typical dystopian teen protagonist. In similar novels it annoys me how the main characters are always breaking the rules from the start and then they are surprised when there are consequences. They get themselves into trouble by flagrantly flouting authority and then they're all "but I don't want to be a spy/ the Mockingjay/ the Chosen One!!" It gets irritating after a while, but Eve isn't like that at all. She starts off embracing her role- she's like "Yeah, I'm the saviour of humanity, and what?" which is really refreshing. She starts to push the boundaries just a tiny bit, then feels the gravity of the consequences and repents. As she starts to question and learn more, she pushes those boundaries gradually further and further in a much more realistic way. It makes her arc glorious!

Her relationships with her fellow characters also develop gorgeously. The villains are superb. They are chilling yet still show glimpses of humanity, so I’m intrigued to find out more about them in the next book.

I've mentioned in previous reviews my issues with both Tom and Giovanna's writing styles and they are repeated here to an extent. It is a little overly explanatory and repetitive in places, and it has instances of phrasing that I wouldn't have used, but it didn't bother me nearly as much as in their past novels. In fact, the writing mostly flows well and the pacing is excellent. As with all strong dystopian writing, the next big shock or unexpected twist is never far away and the plot is consistently exciting. It kept me up late every night I was reading it!

I don't think this review is doing justice to how much I enjoyed the book! Eve of Man is Giovanna's best work yet by far. She combines her years of building relatable women characters with elements of her non-fiction writing about motherhood and takes on the challenge of writing in a new genre. Her talent shines through brilliantly. As for Tom, well he has the magic of The Christmasaurus to live up to, but he still does an awesome job and I could tell he revelled in writing in a new voice too.

I'm so happy that Eve of Man lived up to my wildly high expectations. It has flaws but the story is so fun, exciting, thoughtful and deep that I absolutely loved it regardless. I would highly recommend that any fans of Gi and Tom, or indeed any fans of dystopian fiction go and grab a copy when it is released. I will be eagerly awaiting the sequel and I can't wait to read Eve of Man for the second time. In fact, I may just go and start now!

9.5/10

An absolutely fantastic read! The dual authors really matched the dual perspectives and I really felt it helped put the reader into the head of the character. The concept for the dystopia was unique and felt completely realistic, despite being very different from reality. Overall there were no major flaws or problems, and I am beyond excited for the rest of the trilogy.

Two authors so twice as good, well in my opinion anyway I has I absolutely love this book not what I expected a different kind of story. 50 years and no female births all males the world is in chaos and then the first woman is born in 50 years so they call her Eve. A large complex is built to protect her and a team is gathered around to protect your not only from predators but also the reality of life and what's going on behind the scenes. Her best friend Holly it's not all that she seems and is actually well I won't ruin the surprise read it that this is a book I don't think will disappoint you can use the cliches Page Turner or couldn't put it down but well I couldn't put it down as I got it on eBook wasn't so much a page turning but a page tapping book. There is a lot of scope for this book and hopefully we'll see a continuation of the story in a follow on book or three. This book has something for everyone there's action drama, suspense and romance but not too much guys don't worry.
I was sent a free copy of this book in return for a honest review from Netgalley.

What a read I absolutely loved this book from the very first page.

This book had me intrigued as my daughter is a massive Tom Fletcher fan and I was curious to see how these authors came together.

Eve of Man is fast paced with brilliant characters, Eve who was born against the odds in a world where girls have ceased being born and Bram who has grown up in a world that is all about Eve humanities last chance of survival.

I loved how this book unfolded and the story and character development and eagerly await the next installment of this trilogy.

JUST WOW

I've been a huge fan of Tom Fletcher's children's books for a long time having read them all with my girls but I've never read anything of Giovanna's so I was intrigued by them writing a novel together. Even more so when I saw that it was a genre that I really rather enjoy.

Told from dual points of view we have two quite astonishing characters. What I'd consider the main protagonist Eve and then the supporting role of Bram.

What really drew me to this book was the concept, quite unique but not hard to believe, it's something that could possibly happen in the future in a round about way.

Eve is the first born girl in 50 years and at the ripe old age of 16 her time has come to be the saviour, to start producing more females so that the population can once again grow but what sounds like a noble concept actually turns into something more sinister.

I don't want to go into too much detail about the story itself because I feel that would spoil the full effect that you get when getting deeper into the tale but what I can say is that for someone who normally reads books at a rapid pace, I slowed myself down. Not because I struggled but because I wanted the story to last.

I'll be not so patiently waiting for the next instalment!

Having two authors could have been a disaster but this worked and not just in an ok way, in a great way. The alternating chapters between the two characters complimented each other, the change overs were seamless making the words flow with ease.

All I can say is MORE PLEASE

Brilliant. This is not my favourite genre however this book may have changed my mind. I do love Tom and Giovanna’s other books they’ve written on their own.
This was easy to follow and I love that the chapters are by character. It’s very science fiction blended with a lovely love story. Great read for anyone I think.
Loved the story. I now need book 2 as soon as possible because I cannot wait to find out what happens next.

What a start to a trilogy! I was hooked from the first page and the pace never let up. The characters are believable, the plot is intriguing, the writing is brilliant. My jaw dropped at the end, I will be recommending this to everyone!