Raven, her boyfriend and his twin brother were sent away to a summer camp when the teens got into some trouble at home. While at camp however the attacks from those known as the Nahx began happening around the world. With little communication those at the camp chose to stay where they were and hope for rescue but that comes to an abrupt end when Raven’s boyfriend is found with a Nahx dart in his back, it seems their safe haven is no longer safe.

Eighth has no voice and no name, only his rank to identify him. His orders are to dart the humans and leave them where they fall repeated over and over inside his head. His only company, a sixth, has just been killed and now Eighth has no idea what he should do. Now with Sixth gone Eighth begins to ignore his directives humming in his mind and that is when he comes across Raven and her friends.

Zero Repeat Forever is the first book in the new Nahx Invasions young adult sci-fi series by Gabrielle Prendergast. This first book is one that while I enjoyed the story I hesitated on how to rate this one for several reasons and decided to give it 3.5 stars. The first reasoning behind the rating was simply this one heavily reminded me of The 5th Wave while reading. But perhaps even a slower, less eventful version of that story which also brought down my rating a tad since I’m not a huge fan of the slower pace.

But even with the reminders of another story and the slower pace I did find myself quite intrigued with the book and curious if it would end up standing out on it’s own. A few positives in this one is that there’s diversity within the characters and enough world and character building to keep a reader’s interest and prolong the intrigue with wanting to know more.

Then just as I was wondering what the author had in store there was a pretty intense end to this one that left me with that feeling of where oh where is the next book?? So all in all this was a decent start to the series that left me wanting to continue but I do hope the pace can pick up a bit in the next read and really distinguish it’s own story from others.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

****Huge thank you to Simon & Schuster for sending me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!****

I really, really wanted to enjoy this book more because the premise sounds fantastic and I’m always up for a good sci-fi with aliens invading Earth! Unfortunately there really wasn’t much to salvage here and that disappoints me.

Trigger Warnings: Racism, Abuse (Mostly Emotional and Verbal), and Suicidal Thoughts

PLOT

Where do I even start?

First of all the pacing was terribly slow all the way throughout the book, sure there were a few action scenes that were pretty good but they didn’t last very long and we’d get dumped right back into the tediousness. There weren’t really any plot twists to speak of and like I said the action was few and far between. It was boring to be frank.

Events that occurred throughout the plot felt really forced and too convenient at times. “Oh you’re going to die out in the cold passed out and your friends have abandoned you? Here is another character that will carry you back towards your friends and build you fire to keep you warm until you wake back up.” Come on, are you kidding me? At least make me worry for the characters a little bit, show me they have actual survival skills since that’s what this book is about!

Then to make matters worse it took half the book for Eighth and Raven to even meet up, which is indicated in the synopsis. I didn’t want to wait that long for the “main plot line” to commence. On top of that a good third of the book is just Eighth nursing Raven back to health, seriously, that’s a third of the book. It was so incredibly boring and then there’s even a bit of Stockholm Syndrome too. Why did that need to last so long? Development? Development that didn’t actually develop anything or anyone at all?

Then that ending………I liked the cliffhanger it makes me consider reading the sequel but I’ll still probably pass. The only BIG plot twist that happened in the entire book is “revealed” at the end and it was 100% predictable, I am not joking I predicted this twist at the beginning of the book. That’s no fun.

As for the world building there really wasn’t much of that at all but what bits there were, were very interesting. Mostly we got some insight into the invading aliens (Nahx) from Eighth’s POV which were the only parts I enjoyed.

It only took me 50 pages in to realize I really did not like Prendergast’s writing style, at all. It felt extremely choppy and didn’t flow, it was really forced and I had a hard time reading through it.

Characters

The characters were just as messy, flat, and underdeveloped. If all of them had died during my reading of this book I wouldn’t have cared in the least bit. I actually might have been rooting for the Nahx to take everyone out so I could be finished with this book.

Eighth was an okay character and the only moderately likable character since most of the time he’s pretty innocent and adorable because he doesn’t know much.

Raven I did not care for, I thought her temper and cruelty were too over the top at times. I understand that she’s a flawed character and she had her reasons for that since she was bullied as a child but I really don’t think there’s an excuse for treating others so abusively. Raven was just a very rude character that didn’t make the best of decisions either, not a fan.

The secondary characters were all just as bad too, basically cardboard cut out characters. No one had personality and if they all vanished I wouldn’t have cared either.

Romance

Someone save me! This romance was so cringe-worthy!

There was insta-love to the max! Why was he so obsessed with her right away? What’s the reasoning here? Eighth honestly was ready to do anything for Raven, anything! It made no sense!

Plus there’s sort of a love triangle since Raven technically has another love interest and also still isn’t over her dead boyfriend.

In Conclusion

Overall….not too impressed with this book and I’m really disappointed.

What I Loved:

What little world building there was
Eighth was pretty adorable at times

What I Didn’t Love:

Slow pacing
Events felt forced and too convenient
Writing was choppy
Characters were very flat
Raven was very verbally abusive to others
The big reveal at the end was predictable
Insta-love, cringey romance
Nothing substantial happened with the story

Recommend?

Sadly I can’t say I’d really recommend “Zero Repeat Forever” since I just had so many different issues with it. Overall I just thought it was poorly executed and very tedious to read through.

Last but not least because its not out yet. A cross between Beauty and the Beast and Aliens!! Gotta love it.  All im gonna say is opposites attract. Its a bit slow in points but it doesn't disappoint. Great and unique sci fi take on an old trope. 
4 out of 5 stars cant wait for more!!

This was described as the Canadian version of the 5th Wave and I’d have to say that was pretty accurate; that’s not a bad thing it just helps to provide a visual framework in which to approach this story.

If you aren’t into slow buildups you may have some trouble with this as the pace is more of a steady stroll than a sprint but if you can hang in there it grows on you.

You get aliens, diverse characters, an intricate storyline and an emotional spectrum that actually works to make it all feel captivatingly real. Prendergast made his characters feel relatable, strong but still flawed so we didn’t get more of the type where seemingly normal people can do things that feel impossible.

There are a few plot points I wasn’t very happy with, actions taken by the characters that kind of irritated me, and I felt weren’t necessary to moving the story along but it seems lately everyone has to throw in some kind of soap opera-drama stuff.

The settings were beautiful and perfect for this story so it helped ground the characters more in reality which also felt surprising considering it’s a story about Aliens. By the end you’ll be looking forward to the sequel so if you enjoyed 5th Wave definitely check this out.

First of all, I find the overall premise of this book kind of weird. I don’t know why I keep requesting sci-fi alien books, because I don’t actually like them very much. But anyway, I did like some things about this book. The emotions that I felt at times really took me by surprise. I was going along reading and then all of the sudden one of the scenes really hit me and I really began to empathize with Eighth. Like seriously, my heart just broke for him. Raven, on the other hand, I never really liked. I just didn’t really find her authentic as a character. She had all these mood swings. I mean, I understand that she’s currently witnessing the end of the world and that her boyfriend was killed and all that, but the context in which she has mood swings just didn’t really fit. So with that being said, her and Eighth’s relationship wasn’t my favorite. Eighth deserved better.

The writing in this book was kind of weird at times. It was very slow-moving to begin with, but then the flow wasn’t great or consistent. I mean, the book is almost 500 pages so it’ll take a little while to get through. It also deals with some HEAVY topics like abusive relationships, racism, grief, hope, identity. Just to name a few.

Overall, I thought this book was just okay. It didn’t blow me away, but I didn’t hate it either. Like I said earlier, I was surprised by the depth of the emotions I was feeling in the middle of the book, but I still didn’t particularly care for almost all of the characters. If you’re already into sci-fi, though, you might like this one.

Overall Rating: 3
Language: Moderate
Violence: Heavy
Smoking/Drinking: Moderate
Sexual Content: Mild

Note: I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received an eARC via Netgalley from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

After spending just under a week reading Zero Repeat Forever by G.S. Prendergast, I’m not really sure how I feel about it. My initial reaction was that I loved it, but now that I sit to write the review, I find that maybe I didn’t love it as much as I originally thought. Zero Repeat Forever is told in dual POV and takes place over the course of a year after an alien race seemingly invades Earth and begins wiping out the human population. Honestly this seems right up my alley, but the execution was odd and at times hard to follow.

What I Liked
I really enjoyed the dual POV. Eighth and Raven have distinct enough voices that I did not get confused about whose POV I was reading. It gave the reader a comprehensive look at what was going on in the world and who the Nahx were.

Eighth was my favorite character. I know I shouldn’t have liked him as much as I did, but he was compassionate and resilient. It made me root for him. I liked that the author gave us his POV as it helped to flesh him out, understand his motives, and the daily struggle he lived with going against the directives. He was like a child really in his attachment to Raven, snowflakes and dandelions. It was sweet, even if his violent outbursts broke my heart a little.

The plot of the story has a lot of promise. An unknown invader, post-apocalyptic type survival, and rebellion….what’s not to like?! I enjoyed the parts of the plot that dealt with the Nahx and what was happening. Every new piece of information that I learned brought up more questions about the invasion and who the Nahx really were. It made for an exciting read.

What I Didn’t Like
I was not a fan of Raven, even if a majority of the story was told from her POV. She acted as if the world was out to get her. She was of mixed race (her biological father was white….I think and her mother African American) and she harbored a lot of resentment for bullying she received as a kid. I get that bullying is a thing. What I don’t understand is why it played a role in a post-apocalyptic novel. Shouldn’t those differences be put aside to save the human race? We are all human after all, even Raven makes this point. Yet when one of the characters calls her a “mixed breed” (who does that by the way?! We are people not animals.) and another character tells her that no one thinks of her like that, she takes it to mean because they think of her as white and gets mad about that too…..While this didn’t make a lick of sense to me, it did shape Raven’s character to be an angry person.

The romance aspect….I just didn’t buy it. It felt off to me. I may have rooted for it and my heart broke for Eighth because of how Raven treats him, but it was really weird. It felt like stockholm syndrome and not healthy at all. Eighth was obsessed with Raven and Raven was entirely dependent upon him for everything from food to being able to use the bathroom. It wasn’t healthy, and I just didn’t buy it.

Ugh!!! The pace of the book was SO slow!!!! It started off promising — lots of action, close encounters with the Nahx, and near death experiences. Then it just stopped. There was barely any forward movement in the plot. Eighth’s chapters were short (sometimes just over a page) and made absolutely no sense, leaving big plot holes. Then suddenly the pace picked up again and the book ended. Frustrating!

While this book is billed for YA, I don’t feel it is appropriate for YA…maybe the mature YA, like 16+. There is quite a bit of strong language used, underage drinking and drug use, and sex. It was just a bit much for a YA book in my opinion.

My Conclusion
Overall I really wanted to like this book. I liked Eighth, and aside from her anger issues I liked Raven as well. The romance could use some work though and the plot holes need to be filled in. However the revelations at the end of the book (some of which were predictable due to some good foreshadowing) have me intrigued and I want to read more of the series. If you enjoy scifi and dystopia, don’t mind a slow pace, maybe give this one a go.

Not just another dystopian novel. This book will grab you by the throat and leave you breathless. Told from alternating viewpoints, you will be drawn into the lives of Eighth, a Nahx alien invader, and Raven, a human girl with a troubled past. ZERO REPEAT FOREVER is unlike anything readers have come across before. Full of danger, mystery, loneliness, despair, hope, friendship, and even a hint of romance. Readers won't be able to put it down. Definitely recommend!

This is a very emotional book.

I mention that because you may, like me, be expecting more of an SF adventure. There is that aspect, to be certain. You have an epic invasion, the struggle for survival, and the fight for the human race - all good stuff.

But you also have an exploration of humanity and love and decency.

The book starts out fast paced, but soon slows to a bit of a crawl as we get to know our 2 main characters - as they get to know each other. I did find myself wishing for more action, more adventure, more...anything but talking and sign language during those parts.

But aside from that hiccup, I liked the book and I'm curious about what comes next.

I will 100% admit that I was drawn to Zero Repeat Forever by its shiny cover. It’s just so pretty. Take a minute to really cherish it.

Now back to this story.

On my list of favorite genres, Sci-fi trails somewhere in the middle of the list; it’s not my favorite, but I don’t dislike it. I find it hard to get into, most of the time. Zero Repeat Forever was half sci-fi, half apocalypse story. I couldn’t even call it a dystopia, since that would mean there was some sort of societal order to the setting, but there was just death and invasion.

I was intrigued by the dual POVs of the story, one of Raven, a human girl lost in the wilderness with some camping friends, trying to survive after the aliens invade, and the other was Eighth, a Nahx boy who’s “defective” and rebels against his people.

The survival plot was intense and definitely the reason I kept reading, but for most of the books, as the characters are traveling to and from certain points, not much happens. As my good friend J.M. Tuckerman likes to put it, “a whole heck of a lot of nothing happens. Twice.”

My biggest gripe with the story was that we didn’t even really get a sense of what the Nahx were doing, even though half of the book is written in one of their perspectives. We don’t know where they really came from, what they were doing on Earth and what their goals were. And I understand not knowing what the characters don’t know, but little hints dropped from Eighth’s perspective, just little bits and pieces we could try to put together would have made the story that much better.

All in all, I enjoyed the book, but the ending was ultimately unsatisfying. Had we known more about what the Nahx were up to and how their process worked, the ending might have had a bit more weight to it. I won’t spoil anything, but I felt like the ending was too abrupt and it’s obvious it’s supposed to be setting up a sequel—but I would have liked at least some loose ends wrapped up, or certain things revealed.

I enjoyed this book more than I could ever possibly express! Told from an alternating POV switching from Raven (human) to Eighth aka August (alien), readers can only follow along as the planet is overrun with Nahx invaders. They dart the humans and leave them where they fall. That is their singular mission. Except some of the humans aren't content to lie down and die. These humans search for survivors and plot how they can overcome the invaders.

So many things are explored here... How well do we really know our friends and those we claim to love? When hope seems lost, are you capable of pushing on in the face of what seems insurmountable? Can common ground be found with something that is "other" than human?

Eighth is more emotional than any killer alien has a right to be. Raven is at turns stronger and snottier than any human has a right to be. They are headed together toward a specific destiny, but whether there will be any survivors when they reach it remains to be seen...

I will say that a little ways out, I could see where the author was leading us. It did not detract from the story at all though and made me want to see how the threads were all wrapped up. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series.

You'll see this book compared to Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave - and that's more along the lines of what I was expecting.  But Zero Repeat Forever quickly set itself apart from the standard 'alien invasion' novel.

Raven comes from a troubled past and for most of the book, I struggled with liking her, but by the end of the story, she's undergone quite a metamorphosis, maturing and seeing the world and people in different ways, understanding that things aren't always as they seem.  On the other hand, Eighth, an alien programmed to kill humans, is lethal, conflicted, defective -  and immediately wormed his way into my heart.  Such outstanding character development.

Even with a variable pace, this didn't feel like a 500 page book, and I would have loved to read it straight through.  I guessed early on about a reveal at the end, but many questions are left unanswered, especially regarding the Nahx and their motives, which can be frustrating for a reader.

It takes a lot to stir my emotions, but Zero Repeat Forever succeeded, and I most definitely plan on continuing with this series.  A wonderful blend of introspection and action with a strong emotional component - highly recommend.  This book will stick with you long after finishing the last page.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

This book was very enjoyable and fun to read! I was hooked from the beginning and read it all in one go. I would definitely suggest this book.

This story was an intense mashup. Hints of beauty & the beast could be found within...but the level of backstory, the world building, and the development of the characters was all spot on.

I liked having the POV of both Raven and August. The evolution of their relationship was believable and interesting. It wasn't an easy path, and there was a lot of friction and bumps along the way.
The two were thrown into their circumstances without choice. They were both trapped in that tower in the end...and they both came out.

But the end...oy, the end...I know there's more coming, but it won't be fast enough. I have to know what happens next...

This book moved pretty slowly, but it kept my interest throughout. I enjoyed the story and am looking forward to the next installment.

On the surface this could be your typical apocalyptic, end-of-the-world, alien invasion-type story, and in many ways it follows the formula, but the emotions in this one leap off the page and make you feel. Intensely, at that. The plot does move relatively slowly, but at least for me, the story came alive so effectively it didn't bother me much.

Zero Repeat Forever is told from two perspectives, Eighth (the alien) and Raven (the human). Raven is out for vengeance after the Nahx (the invading alien race) murder her boyfriend. Eighth seemingly has no free will and acts on orders of his superiors (as you might guess, "eighth" is his rank." Events to lead to Eighth and Raven meeting...and...well, you can probably roughly surmise where the story goes from here.

Like I said before, the fact that this story is told a lot in YA fiction should have turned me off, but it really didn't. Prendergast has a really lovely, lyrical way of writing (particularly evident in Eighth's POV) and it kept the story interesting and fresh for me. Raven isn't particularly likable, but she grows on you, and I just wanted to give Eighth a hug the entire time. And I don't even like physical contact. When you find out what "Zero Repeat Forever" actually means, the tears will fall and won't stop until the expected cliffhanger ending.

Book two, where are you?

Thank you Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for my eArc.

Okay so I was really interested in the book because the description sounded like The 5th Wave and I did enjoy Zero Repeat Forever a lot, but it was pretty similar to T5W. Don't get me wrong-- this book could stand on its own and it really is a riveting YA sci-fi novel... but as someone who has read and loved T5W series, it's almost impossible to not make comparisons. I'm going to try not to in this review though. Just know that this is a YA books about alien invasions and, at least from my experience, there aren't a whole lot of them out there, except for T5W which happens to be addicting and popular and sets a high bar for alien YA novels, at least for me.

Let's start with the good!
I was so into this book. I read it in one morning and just did not put it down the entire time. And that's sort of weird because the pace is on the slower side and the book itself is almost 500 pages. So I'm not entirely sure why I found it so interesting... but it does have that X factor of hmm-this-is-fun-why-don't-I-spend-five-hours-out-of-my-day-unable-to-peel-my-eyes-from-these-pages.
I thought the whole idea of the aliens was really cool and original. I don't want to spoil the specifics, but I love when an author can come up with something that's so intricate and unusual that I'm just sitting here like what kind of twisted mind came up with this???

Overall, I liked the writing and the creative ideas. I'm going to get into my complaints and it'll look like I didn't like this book that much, but I really did enjoy it. I'm not going to lie-- this wasn't groundbreaking fiction. I just thought it was fun-- I'd probably recommend it to a friend, but I wouldn't consider it one of my favorite books.

Now for the elements that I wasn't such a fan of...
I know it's strange to like a novel, but just not like almost any of the characters, but that's how I felt. I didn't care for Raven (the main character). I thought she was sort of textbook angsty YA narrator. And I get why-- she's in a really rough situation. And maybe I could have accepted that she is just sort of an unlikable character. BUT then when the love interest(s) describe her it's like she is this sweet, delicate angel. AND THAT IS JUST INACCURATE. I understand that their perspectives were biased based on their own feelings towards her (Eighth's especially, because of his backstory), but I just saw the contrast as more inconsistent and a way of the author trying to make Raven more relatable and likable to the reader, than her making some grand statement about manic pixie dream girls.
This also definitely impacted my feelings on the romance aspect of the novel. There was quite a bit of emphasis on it and I just really preferred the whole alien-world-domination plot over the romance bit. I liked Eighth and I liked how he was portrayed as a second main character (even though his chapters were generally much shorter than Raven's). I also liked reading about the scenes when Raven and Eighth were together because they were filled with awkwardness and irony, but I didn't necessarily ship them at all.

I plan on continuing on with this series. I'm not quite sure how long it will be, since Goodreads doesn't have the rest of the books in the series up yet, but I'm guessing it will be either a duology or a trilogy. I think this story works well as a series, because there is just no way any part of a worldwide alien invasion could have been resolved in just one book.

There are some things I would be especially interesting in seeing Prendergast explore in the next book(s). I'm curious to see the international impact of the invasion. Raven even mentions some of the other characters she interacts with who traveled from different countries and can't return home, so how is everyone else handling it?? The novel takes place in Canada and the characters are in a pretty isolated location. BUT when they do get wifi, I was pretty shocked to see that everyone would just watch gory, alien-murder propaganda. I get that the whole situation is hella traumatic, but why wouldn't they try to reach out to more people??

Anyway, try out this novel if you're looking for a fun yet frightening story about killer (and cuddly?) aliens wiping out the human race. Despite my nitpicking, I really did enjoy this novel and am excited for the next one.

Current release date: August 29, 2017

***I received a free e-ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

**Thanks so much to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review!**

what i liked
This book reminds me a lot of The 5th Wave, yet it's still different. It has its own characters, its own faults, its own plot, its own story and cliffhangers. I absolutely ate it up.
The tenseness throughout the novel--I literally couldn't stop reading at some points and didn't want to believe other parts of the novel because of how much it affected me.
I literally loved the characters. Eighth and Raven were great. I loved reading through both of their perspectives, but if I had to pick a favorite, it would definitely be Eighth.
THIS WORLD. It's all messed up and interesting and I just loved it.
what i didn't like
The pacing felt extremely slow at times. I felt like it dragged on at parts and it took me a little bit to get interested in the book in the beginning. Other than that, I found no faults!!

My review link will go live on August 21!

This book had a way of drawing me in and not letting me put it down. Every time I sat down to read this story, I couldn't just read one chapter, I always had to read at least five, and not just that, I always had to read a chapter of Raven and a chapter of August. It was as though it would be an incomplete experience if I did not read them both in each sitting. The cover is still phenomenal to me, and the title is as clever as the cover and each quote that graced the four parts of the book. I really enjoyed how much Prendergast managed to cover, from loss to hive minds to racism and love, all on top of a wicked plot of aliens, not to mention the mind-blowing plot twist in the very end. Prendergast also did a wonderful job at giving characters realness and layers, even in the less important, background characters. As a reader, you always felt as though you could understand the character, you could see them as a real person in every day life. There was no flatness to the characters, or the plot. And of course, it's impossible not to love Raven and her progress at becoming a better woman as she grows up and fights her way through the alien apocalypse, alongside August who probably deserves the highest medal of honor for trying all the time and never giving up. I'm definitely interested in reading the sequel and continuing this wonderful story of coming of age, for teenagers and aliens alike.

ZERO REPEAT FOREVER is definitely a good choice if you’re a fan of survival stories, alien invasions, or enemies becoming allies with a blush of romance. If you’re a sci-fi nerd, definitely give this book a try because it has some real solid ideas.

Wow, that was not what I was expecting at all.

First off, it starts of REALLY slow, like painfully slow. There were a few times when I wanted to stop reading it and pick up a new book, but I kept with it because I really wanted to know what happened. I'm glad that I did, because the story was really captivating.

We start off with a classic alien invasion, only this time, our story takes place in Canada. They are only given one directive throughout the entire book,"Dart the humans and leave them where they fall." Eighth is with his partner, Sixth, who is higher ranking than he is. Eighth is repeatedly called defective by Sixth and other aliens because he doesn't really do his job, which is darting the humans. In fact, it makes him sad and sick. Most of the time he refuses to fire his weapon. He is a tortured soul, because of all the emotions and thoughts going through his mind.

Then we have Raven, a human survivor trapped in a survival camp in the middle of nowhere. She is a mixed girl with a troubled life. She is at the camp because she got arrested, and the judge gave her that choice or jail, so she chose the camp. Raven struggled to find her place in the world before the invasion, and now all she wants to do is to find her family.

As I said at the beginning, this book is slow. Raven and Eighth really do not get together until after 200 pages in. They have brief encounters, but it really comes to a head after those 200 pages. When they did get together, I immediately had Beauty & The Beast vibes because of their circumstances. Raven wasn't a prisoner of his, per se, but she was trapped and dependent on him.

I really enjoyed reading the progression of their relationship from enemies, to reluctant roommates, to more. It was beautifully done, especially with Eighth's inability to speak. Raven ends up learning his sign language so that they can communicate.

As most books usually do, it ended on a serious cliffhanger! I wasn't too shocked at the alien reveal because I kind of guessed where it would go, but still. I'm definitely eager to read what happens next, because it was intense.

There are some more mature themes throughout the story. Suicide, lots of death, racism, talk about a possible rape, drug use, alcohol, etc. I think Zero Repeat Forever would be better suited for older teens that would be able to handle that sort of content.

Overall, despite the pace, it was a really good read! I enjoyed the story, and the character growth of Raven and Eighth. I look forward to seeing what happens next.