have read several MR Carey’s (aka Mike Carey) books but I think this is the first science fiction themed book of his I’ve read. Honestly I’m not much into sci-fi and I think I requested it on NetGalley just on his name alone without reading the synopsis as I loved the Felix Castor series and The Girl with all the Gifts so much. I also didn’t realize it was the first book in a trilogy but that’s my fault not the author’s.

The post apocalyptic story where nature becomes vicious towards man and how the world looks 100 years into this environment was interesting. I had a hard time with the language and Koli himself was a bit annoying. The character who had sexual identification issues I felt was just tossed into the story so it felt more “woke” and didn’t add much to the plot.

If you like sci-fi definitely give it a try. He is a good author that I usually really enjoy reading. But science fiction really isn’t my thing.

Thanks to the author and publisher for the e-arc I received in exchange for my honest review.

I am going to blame the pandemic for this book being difficult/confusing to get through. It was confusing and, at the time, I DNF'ed the book. I would give the book another try in a less confusing time and space to see how it goes.

-- This review is several years past the release date due to the many issues of 2020, but a huge thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early copy of the book.

This book! Why did I not read it sooner?! A post-apocalyptic like tale about a teenaged boy named Koli who discovers the secret to operating tech and is cast out from his village because of it. The setting is so interesting and different than other post-apocalyptic books I’ve read before.

I was going to give it 4 stars because the beginning was hella confusing. The way the characters are named, their different stations and titles, and the way they speak takes a bit of getting used to. Once I got past the first couple of chapters, it became easier to follow and I sped through the rest of the book, eager to find out what would become of Koli.

This is the first book of a trilogy and I can’t wait to read more about Koli’s adventures in the next book.

*Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for sending this book for review consideration! All opinions are my own.*

I LOVED the girl with all the gifts so my expectations of this author are sky high. While I don't think it lived up to the debut, I think it was well written and compelling. I routinely suggest it to patrons looking for apocalyptic fiction

The Book of Koli is the first book of the Rampart Trilogy where forests are filled with deadly vines and trees. Our main character, Koli, is a 15 year old boy living in a small village of Mythen Rood, where people called the Ramparts basically run the town. Ramparts are people who can 'wake up' old technology and use it, and they're given a special status along with their living arrangements, etc. Koli wants nothing more than to be a Rampart and gets desperate when he doesn't become one after being tested for it. This starts a series of events that show us (and Koli) how messed up the post-apocalyptic world has become. The highlight of this book for me was Monono's character. She was hilarious and a breath of fresh air from Koli's POV. Overall I thought this book was an intriguing start to a trilogy. I was hoping to be more invested in it, but maybe I'll have better luck with the sequel.

I decided to request this book as I had been a fan of the author's other book, The Girl With All the Gifts. This did not disappoint and I am excited to continue on with the trilogy. The Book of Koli is a very entertaining novel. Koli is a likable protagonist who makes readers genuinely feel for him and the situations he is put in throughout the story. The world building is interesting, but I was hoping for more of an emphasis on the post-apocalyptic environment.

This one didn't work for me, I struggled to get into the story or care of any of the characters. It took me forever to get through because I keep putting down the book and not wanting to pick it back up. The overall idea was really interesting but there was nothing keeping me pulled into the story.

This may be due to the pandemic but I had a very hard time getting through this one. The feeling of being lost in a mad world and not knowing most of the time how to handle events made this one not very enjoyable for me. Probably not the books fault, just the time I was reading it

Interesting writing choice and very entertaining! Took me awhile to read, due to the writing but enjoyed it!

Five solid stars. I enjoyed this book during a run of literary horror, and it came highly recommended from a friend with similar taste and did not disappoint. I have yet to finish the series but am looking forward to it.

Koli lives in the future, but not an advanced future. They live in smaller spaced out villages that have more of a feeling of 100's of years ago, not 100's of years to come. Our current world was devastated by many things including a war. Koli and his people consider teach magical and something only few, those known as Ramparts, can use, When he figures out the secret of the Ramparts and the "tech" he is turned "faceless" and made to leave his village. This book follows Koil on his quest to stay a live and learn about other areas of the world and tech. Including his tech, the Dreamsleeve. With his Deamsleeve, Cup, and Usrula he will try to save humanity. .

What a great start to a new dystopian trilogy. Great world building start. I can’t wait to see where the series goes.

Thank you to the Publisher and Netgalley for the advanced e-reader copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

DNF - did not finish. I tried to read this Fantasy release but could not connect with it. Thank you netgalley and publisher for the early copy.

The Book of Koli has to be one of the most entertaining books I've read all year.

First, Koli's world is downright exciting. Plants, in general, are quite aggressive, and trees, well, trees are murderous, grow incredibly rapidly, and make traveling during the sunlight impossible. Humanity has fallen from extreme heights to villages filled with a few handfuls of people in each.

These people use remnants of technology from the once-great reaches of humanity to fight back the trees, animals, rogue military tech, and cannibalistic cults roaming through the forests. In Koli's village, each person, upon reaching their age of maturity, is granted the opportunity to see if the tech will respond to their touch and voice. If so, they become ramparts, protectors of the village. If not, they're given the ability to state their name and, thus, their profession.

Koli, like all the other children in the village, has always dreamed of becoming a rampart. And that, of course, is where the trouble begins.

The cast of characters in the novel is great, ranging from Koli, the good-hearted but ill-tempered and wisdom-impaired main character to corrupt rulers, rulers too afraid of worse possibilities to end the corruption, a crazy traveling doctor who might just be making sense, a manic pixie dream girl AI trapped inside a Sony-made MP3 player of the future, religious fanatics, and more. There's humor, compelling storytelling, character growth, and a good number of pop-culture callbacks.

The beginning of the book does have a touch of a pacing issue, but I'd argue it's still enjoyable to read, and the second half makes up for any of those issues anyway. I also think the book takes a couple of shortcuts to get things through Koli's thick skull

Is this a book that's so deeply ingrained into the questions of humanity that it makes it tough to read? No, it's not. It's a quick, enjoyable read full of violent flora, snarky AIs, and a world long-forgotten. If you're looking for your next book and want it to be a fast-paced, humorous, action-filled romp through the genetically engineered forests of the post-apocalyptic future, this is your book.

I do not understand why this book is still listed for me I send my feedback three years ago. Sending this to remove,

Post apocalyptic story of Koli and his companions. The people in tge world are struggling and barely surviving, everything wants them dead. Trees have become dangerous kilkers, technology and medicine are hard to gind, and mostly considered magical.
Koli must begin to travel and discover more about the world.

After loving Girl With All the Gifts, this series by Carey was a must-read. I enjoy the premise and the world-building; the author does a great job of that. It took me quite a long time to get used to the speech patterns of Koli. The grammar (it’s purposeful) just kind of grated on my teacher brain. That said, I definitely plan to continue the series.

DNF at 20%. Worldbuilding is incomprehensible and I am struggling to understand what's happening. Not for me.

This book wasn’t what I was looking for. It has an interesting plot, but something about it just wasn’t sticking with me. I do think it’s a good book, it just wasn’t really what I expected. I think I was expecting a bit more horror

A great start to a trilogy. Unfortunately, I didn't realize it was meant to be a trilogy at first and was temporarily disappointed by an anti-climactic ending. The first half of the book did a lot of heavy-lifting in the world building department and was more enjoyable to me than the action packed second half. Regardless, I'm really excited to start Book 2 and waiting patiently for Book 3 to come out next year.