Nox
by Yves Grevet
So this book caught my eye right away. The cover just...piqued my interest. Also, I'm not gonna lie, nox means night in Latin but it's also a spell in Harry Potter which is probably why I picked the book up in the first place. Then I liked the storyline, so I took it (see I actually did have a valid reason other than my non-stop obsession with Harry Potter).
This is a futuristic dystopian type of book, which I love. It's dark in its reflexion of what our species could evolve to be. Humans haven't changed, but they've segregated into two completely different societies, to the point where one of them has a more developed sense of smell. Here is why (because out of context, that's a weird sense to have developed): one half of the human population lives beneath an atmosphere of pollution and smoke, while the other half lives above it. Three guesses to determine what separated the two in the first place. That's right, money. It always comes down to money, doesn't it? Disgusting. Anyway, the richer classes were allowed to live above the permanent cloud of pollution. They have electricity, running water and are basically a Victorian-era-inspired society.
The ones who live below the cloud live in permanent darkness (which would explain the title), because it blocks out the sun. To have light, they have a metal band around their ankles that generates and stores energy when they walk. The relatively richer have children hidden in the walls who pedal constantly to feed the lamps. Because of this nearly permanent blindness, people recognize each other by their smell. Depending on their social status (which is determined by birth and marriage), people live on a certain level. Those who live in all the levels below 100 are basically the scum of the earth; the richer you are, the higher you live.
The main issue in this book ties back to a political dispute: there are those who believe that everyone should be able to choose where they live and there are those who believe in the social classes. There is a militia that reigns over the lower classes and unfortunately for the terrified citizens, the head of police is also the chief of the militia. There is no such thing as justice.
The story is about a poor boy who will do anything he can to marry his beloved; his childhood friend who has entered the militia and a rich girl who has no idea that there are people living beneath the fog at her city's feet until she is dragged into their world.
The story is very interesting and the book well written. It was a YA novel just like I like them: there was action, a love story that was not overwhelming all the time and an interesting debate on social classes and doing what's right no matter how much everyone may discourage you. This last point applies to all the main characters. The poor boy wants to marry his girlfriend despite his mother's opposition to the marriage, which leads to his expulsion from his home. His friend joined the militia because he was expected to (his father is the chief/head of police that I mentioned earlier) and later regretted his decision. He tried to redeem himself in the end, despite the fact that his father nearly beat him to death afterwards. The rich girl decided the help the lower classes even though all her life she was barely aware that they existed and when she found out, that it became dangerous for her to know so much.
I approve this book. It's not often you find french YA dystopian novels and this one was especially good.
Hope that was interesting, if not informative. I read this book over a month ago, and I can only remember the basic plot line, so if this interests you, I recommend you read an actual summary online somewhere, although I'm not sure if the book has been translated into English. It's worth a try to see if it has!
