Santa Olivia (Santa Olivia, #1) in Building a SciFi/Fantasy Library

Jun 22, 2009 Mir rated it liked it

Shelves: cover-love, the-americas, superheroic

The different sections of this book didn't seem to go together to me, genre-wise.

There's the first, shortest, section, really an introduction, which is a gritty, dystopian, very plausible near-future in which the border region between the US and Mexico has been militarized and the citizenship of the denizens revoked. In fact, in legal terms they no longer exist and their presence is forgotten by the general public, although the soldiers use the towns as bases and take advantage of the poverty of ...more

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Jul 13, 2009 Lasairfiona rated it liked it

Shelves: havereadin2009, iown

Are you looking for another Phedra? You aren't going to find her here. You aren't going to find the sex or the epic adventure either. If this is what you are in the mood for, you should probably go elsewhere.

However, if you are up for a quick adventure that is self contained and a bit more real than the fantasy that you are used to from Carey, this is worth a look.

Loup (pronounced Lou actually) has some crazy genetics. She is fast, super strong, and has no fear. Literally. This actually poses a ...more

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Jun 18, 2009 Kimberly rated it it was amazing

I don't read a lot of science fiction but when I do read it, what I like best is science fiction that explores elements of the world we live in and takes them to their logical conclusions. Santa Olivia, while ostensibly paranormal fiction, shares many qualities with this type of dystopian SF. In it, Jacqueline Carey explores current US immigration policy and, amazingly, anticipates the H1N1 flu epidemic by creating the small town of Santa Olivia, formerly part of Texas but now in the midst of a I don't read a lot of science fiction but when I do read it, what I like best is science fiction that explores elements of the world we live in and takes them to their logical conclusions. Santa Olivia, while ostensibly paranormal fiction, shares many qualities with this type of dystopian SF. In it, Jacqueline Carey explores current US immigration policy and, amazingly, anticipates the H1N1 flu epidemic by creating the small town of Santa Olivia, formerly part of Texas but now in the midst of a military buffer zone between the US and Mexico. The town has been struck by plague, and now the US military maintains a presence in Santa Olivia, now Outpost 12, to guard against the threat of raids coming from the south. Most of the citizens in Santa Olivia live at a bare, subsistence level, although there are two powerful families who have benefited from their situation---the Garzas, who have taken over security in Santa Olivia, and the Salamancas, who have taken over commerce in the town, accommodating the military presence with brothels and bars.

Santa Olivia tells the story of Loup Garron, whose mother is a cocktail waitress in Santa Olivia, and whose father is a "Wolf-Man," genetically altered by the US army. From him, Loup has inherited superhuman strength and speed, but perhaps most importantly a lack of fear. Her older half-brother Tommy, fathered by an ordinary soldier, has to protect Loup from her own inability to fear; and the protective and loving relationship between the two siblings is one of the true joys of this book. Loup knows that if her abilities are discovered she will be reclaimed by the US Military, from whom her father deserted; she knows it, but since she is unable to actually feel this worry, Tommy has to worry on her behalf. I was quite impressed by the way Carey distinguishes between the knowledge of risk and the actual emotion of fear, and how Loup has to use the former to make up for her lack of the latter. I found Loup surprisingly easy to relate to; I saw "surprisingly" because both she and her brother have only a rudimentary education and for survival depend mostly on their physical gifts (Tommy may not have Loup's abilities, but becomes a skilled boxer over the course of the book). However, the use to which Loup puts these abilities makes her someone to admire, and reveals the best and worst aspects of being extraordinarily gifted; her difference can make her a hero, or it can make her a freak.

I found Santa Olivia impossible to put down, and had two main reactions once I'd finished it. Firstly, I felt "wrecked," ruined for any other book (probably a good thing considering how late it was!), and craving more, more, more. Secondly, I really wished I was part of a book group, because to me Santa Olivia would make for excellent discussion, for the reasons I mentioned at the start of this review and because of the issues it raises about gender roles and difference, physical and otherwise. I loved Carey's Kushiel trilogies (and am anxiously awaiting my copy of Naamah's Kiss), but in many ways Santa Olivia is very different, the language more elegantly sparse than lushly detailed, and the focus more narrowly defined. If you liked the Kushiel books, you may very well like this one too, but be prepared for something totally different. ...more

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Aug 11, 2009 Schnaucl rated it really liked it

Shelves: lgbtqia, fiction, library, science-fiction, august, read_2009

A plague has left the world devastated. There's little information about the symptoms or transmission of the plague, how it affected the lifestyles of the decimated populations or really much information at all. Suffice it to say, there was a plague. The US is at war with Mexico.

As the book opens, people living in a town on the Texas border are told they are no longer US citizens. Instead, they live in a no man's land controlled by the US Military. The town that was Santa Olivia exists no more. ...more

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Apr 23, 2010 Tess rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, paranormal, dystopia

This story had a lot more about boxing than I thought, and a lot less vigilantism that the back cover suggested. Loup is a fascinating main character, and Carey made her world feel pretty real. I had trouble figuring out how large a "town" Santa Olivia is. Sometimes it felt too small, sometimes it felt like there had to be more going on than the reader was told about.

The story ended abruptly - I was almost afraid about thirty pages from the end that there would just be an untidy cliff-hanger. Lu ...more

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Jul 21, 2013 Cassie rated it really liked it

An interesting sort of post-apocalyptic novel. The main character is very interesting in that she's the accidental offspring of a genetically engineered super soldier. She doesn't feel fear or embarrassment or most normal human emotions, but she needs to keep her nature a secret or she'll be taken by the military. The emphasis in the story on boxing (as the only entertainment and possible ticket out of the Outpost) is very interesting, which I would never have expected. ...more

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Nov 07, 2015 Catherine rated it really liked it

Shelves: sf-f-and-h-w-queer-women-protags

Entertaining postapocalyptic novel involving genetic engineering, werewolf legends, life on the militarized border between Mecico and the U.S., plus a nice lesbian romantic subplot.

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Jun 01, 2009 Heather rated it liked it

Shelves: urban-fantasy

I know a lot of Jacqueline Carey fans have raved about Santa Olivia, but I just didn't quite get it. I am a HUGE fan of her Kushiel's Dart series - I have read it over many times. Reading Santa Olivia was like reading a completely different author! The voice wasn't the same at all and I had a hard time getting into it. I spent most of the book waiting for something interesting to happen, and was kinda disappointed when the big climax wasn't all that climactic. I am giving this 3 stars not becaus ...more

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Dec 04, 2009 Jia rated it it was amazing

poignant and heart-wrenching, yet full of hope.

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May 21, 2009 Kristen rated it really liked it

http://fantasycafe.blogspot.com/2009/... ...more

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Mar 01, 2009 Izlinda rated it really liked it

Shelves: utopian-dystopian

A bit slow getting into the book, but once I did, I really loved it. I wasn't sure what shelf this belongs to though... Science fiction? Vaguely, but not really. Or at least not as how I'd classify science fiction. It's not at all fantasy. But it's a good read about people and their fallibilities (actual word?) and how to push yourself to how far you can go and no more. And it's a good read to realize that what you do can affect others and vice versa. Nothing exists in isolation... ...more

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Aug 13, 2009 Flitterkit rated it really liked it

I have somewhat burned out on Jacqueline Carey, I liked her 1st few books, then she lost me in the others and I stopped reading her books quite a few years ago. A friend recommended I pick this up and I am glad I did. It is very much in a different style than the others in some ways, yet rich in detail and the character is complex. I didn't want to put the book down! ...more

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Jun 06, 2010 Cindywho rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, fantasy-sf

Carey leaves the fantasy utopia of her Kushiel series for a future dystopia of a long barricaded town on the US/Mexico border. There aren't many surprises in the story of Loup the by-blow of a genetically modified soldier. It sometimes chugs along slowly. I liked her but she was just a little boring. ...more

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