Series Review | The Silo Series by Hugh Howey

The Silo series is a dystopian/science fiction series by Hugh Howey.



Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1) by Hugh Howey

For suspense-filled, post-apocalyptic thrillers, Wool is more than a self-published ebook phenomenon―it’s the new standard in classic science fiction.

In a ruined and toxic future, a community exists in a giant silo underground, hundreds of stories deep. There, men and women live in a society full of regulations they believe are meant to protect them. Sheriff Holston, who has unwaveringly upheld the silo’s rules for years, unexpectedly breaks the greatest taboo of all: He asks to go outside.

Back in 2014, I read Wool and loved it. You can read my review here! I tried to read Shift (book 2) not too long after, and it just didn't hook me. After Tracy fell in love with Wool last year, I was anxious to try again. Tracy and I buddy read the last two books in the trilogy, and I'm so glad we did!



Shift (Silo #2) by Hugh Howey

In 2007, the Center for Automation in Nanobiotech (CAN) outlined the hardware and software platform that would one day allow robots smaller than human cells to make medical diagnoses, conduct repairs, and even self-propagate. In the same year, the CBS network re-aired a program about the effects of propranolol on sufferers of extreme trauma. A simple pill, it had been discovered, could wipe out the memory of any traumatic event. At almost the same moment in humanity’s broad history, mankind had discovered the means for bringing about its utter downfall. And the ability to forget it ever happened.

Shift is quite a different read from Wool. Where Wool feels very much like a dystopian novel, Shift is more of a thriller. The characters are different and the tone is different, but it's very good.

Shift does eventually converge with the characters and happenings of Wool, but it requires a little patience and faith going into it. Shift is where we learn how everyone ended up living in the silos and who's really "in charge". I was excited to read more, and I knew I wouldn't wait so long to read the final installment in the trilogy.



Dust (Silo #3) by Hugh Howey

In a time when secrets and lies were the foundations of life, someone has discovered the truth. And they are going to tell.

Jules knows what her predecessors created. She knows they are the reason life has to be lived in this way.

And she won't stand for it.

But Jules no longer has supporters. And there is far more to fear than the toxic world beyond her walls.

A poison is growing from within Silo 18.

One that cannot be stopped.

Unless Silo 1 step in.

The folks who told me I should try again to read Shift because it was worth it to finish out the rest of the series were right! Dust brings us back around to the characters and happenings that were taking place in Wool while still maintaining the thrills and characters from Shift. There is a lot happening! And there were a lot of revelations I was not expecting. I very much enjoy the way Hugh Howey writes. The only reason I'm giving Dust 4 stars instead of 5 stars is because you absolutely have to read Wool and Shift to understand what you are reading in Dust. The overall series as a whole, though, gets 5 stars from me.

Silo Series: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Review | Wool by Hugh Howey

Wool is a science fiction/dystopian novel from Hugh Howey.

Book Description

This Omnibus Edition collects the five Wool books into a single volume. It is for those who arrived late to the party and who wish to save a dollar or two while picking up the same stories in a single package.

The first Wool story was released as a standalone short in July of 2011. Due to reviewer demand, the rest of the story was released over the next six months. My thanks go out to those reviewers who clamored for more. Without you, none of this would exist. Your demand created this as much as I did.

This is the story of mankind clawing for survival, of mankind on the edge. The world outside has grown unkind, the view of it limited, talk of it forbidden. But there are always those who hope, who dream. These are the dangerous people, the residents who infect others with their optimism. Their punishment is simple. They are given the very thing they profess to want: They are allowed outside.

I am in love with this series. Wool wasn't perfect, but I loved it pretty hard core.

Dystopians and I haven't gotten along for a while now, but Wool has reminded me of everything I love about a great dystopian.

So what's the dystopian hook with Wool? A silo. The earth has become uninhabitable, and those who have survived live in a giant silo below the ground.

There is a view up top of the outside, but it's dangerous to spend time dreaming or wondering about the outside. The highest crime is professing a desire to go outside. The punishment for committing such a taboo? You get your wish. They send you outside.

The first half of the book was awesome. It was exciting to have my love for dystopia totally renewed. As Wool progressed, I had more and more trouble suspending my disbelief and there were a couple of plot holes, but overall the suspense and the characters and my curiosity about the silo and the world outside was plenty enough to overcome the technicalities.

The Wool omnibus is also the first book in the Silo series, but for those of you who are series shy, it can absolutely stand on its own. If Wool hadn't weighed in at 500+ pages, there's no doubt I would have immediately picked up the next book in the Silo series. I get reader burn out easy, though, so I know better than to jump into another chunky monkey from the same series. I'm happy to add the Silo series to my current favorites, and I look forward to reading Shift in the near future.

If you enjoy post-apocalyptic and dystopian books (with a strong female lead!), Wool is definitely a book you should put on your radar.

8/10: Great Read

If you haven't heard Hugh Howey's self publishing story, it is fascinating. Have you read Wool? Do you have any favorite dystopian books you'd like to recommend?