Review: Nil by Lynne Matson

Nil by Lynne Matson
384 Pages
Release Date: March 4th, 2014
Publisher: Henry Holt
Level: YA
Genre: Sci-fi/Survival
Rating: 4 STARS

Goodreads Summary:
On the mysterious island of Nil, the rules are set. You have one year. Exactly 365 days--to escape, or you die.

Seventeen-year-old Charley doesn’t know the rules. She doesn’t even know where she is. The last thing she remembers is blacking out, and when she wakes up, she’s lying naked in an empty rock field.

Lost and alone, Charley finds no sign of other people until she meets Thad, the gorgeous leader of a clan of teenage refugees. Soon Charley learns that leaving the island is harder than she thought . . . and so is falling in love. With Thad’s time running out, Charley realizes that to save their future, Charley must first save him. And on an island rife with dangers, their greatest threat is time.

Thrilling and captivating, Nil had me enraptured into it's island and Charley's and Thad's story. One of my favorite things about this book is its setting. The island of Nil is so mysterious and just has this creepy aura to it that I absolutely loved the idea of it. In many YA books, setting isn't as developed as much as I would like or it just drones on and just makes me want to skim it but with Nil I loved seeing what the island was like and how everything worked. It would be pretty cool to have a map of it which would definitely help understanding some parts of what was described. The City was cool too; it had its diverse population and everyone did their part to contribute. I loved the conflicting characters and how realistic they were. There are some questions I still have concerning the plot and would like some answers to but over all by the end of the book a lot was explained.

It was cool seeing a character that could easily adapt to her character and Charley surprised me with her personality. I honestly wasn't sure what I was even expecting but it was different than how she really was. She had a mixed personality; not the quiet type but not the super social girl. Not competitive but willing to do what she needs. She didn't have one type of personality. It's kind of hard to explain but it was like she was a mix of everything. I wasn't a huge fan of her denseness and it irritated me at times. Two of my favorite characters are Rives and Natalie. I love the encouraging and hopeful aura they give to the book. Fun and great characters, they were awesome friends and easy to empathize for. 

Thad was a great leader. I love how he takes his role responsibly and does what has to be done. He definitely was a factor in helping Charley adapt quickly to the island as she tried figuring the island out. The only thing I had problem with him personally is how easily he let ideas be dismissed. Like Charley's theories and ideas on the carvings; I get if he didn't fully accept it because that's reasonable but to completely say that it most probably doesn't have anything to do with getting off the island was just like no. I think that Thad and Charley didn't have as much character and meaning as they did themselves. It might be because I don't like how fast their relationship progressed or the whole "I loved her when I first saw her" which he does say somewhere in the middle/end of the book. They were cute at times and they work really well together but I wished their feelings as being friends developed first before they went head into being together.  

A great survival story with an awesome story and premise, Nil takes you on a creepy journey to learning about an island's story and teens' capability to survive without any adults. Definitely one for sci-fi, mystery, and survival story lovers! Happy Readings!