Review | "Ignite Me" by Tahereh Mafi

Ignite me by Tahereh Mafi
YA Dystopian published February 4, 2014
Harper Collins
Author's website  |  Goodreads  |  Buy the Book on Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The heart-stopping conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Shatter Me series, which Ransom Riggs, bestselling author of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, called “a thrilling, high-stakes saga of self-discovery and forbidden love.”

With Omega Point destroyed, Juliette doesn’t know if the rebels, her friends, or even Adam are alive. But that won’t keep her from trying to take down The Reestablishment once and for all. Now she must rely on Warner, the handsome commander of Sector 45. The one person she never thought she could trust. The same person who saved her life. He promises to help Juliette master her powers and save their dying world . . . but that’s not all he wants with her.

My Thoughts...

Ok, I loved this book!  I loved this series, but this book was probably my favorite of the three.  I will say, though that I think this book was more about the characters and less about the conflict and so the ending did seem really rushed to me.  I do tend to enjoy books that are more character driven though and that's probably why I liked this one so much.

In the beginning of this series I was concerned about how the author was going to make me root for Warner, but she definitely did it.  I think, for me, and probably for others as well it was done by degrees.  I liked him a little in the first book, there is just something about a bad boy that I just can't help but like, then I read the novella that centers around him and I really got him after that.  By the end of the 2nd book I was nearly there, but after just a few chapters of this book I was fully on Team Warner.  

I will say that I didn't particularly care for the fact that this book seemed to be a hate on Adam book though.  He was painted totally as the bad guy and I felt a little like this was used to sway all those Team Adam people over to the other side.  Sure he was a total jerk throughout the entire book, but it's not like he didn't have a reason to act this way.  He was hurting and he lashed out, he went a little overboard at times or most of the time, but it's easy to see why.  I just didn't feel like he needed to be quite so badly portrayed, but that's just my opinion.

This book takes up right where the last one ended.  Juliette and Warner end up forming an unlikely alliance with the other survivors of Omega Point when they decide to take down The Reestablishment from the inside and they know they can't do it alone.  Juliette is finally realizing her full potential, something that Warner has seen in her from the beginning.  It's not all fun and games as they train to take on Warner's father.  They have to learn to work together as a team and that's not easy to do when they all have their secrets.

I still think that Tahereh has one of the most beautiful and unique writing styles and I love that this shows in Juliette's voice.  This book had less of it than the other two since Juliette wasn't so much inside her head in this one, but it's still there and it's beautiful to read.

I was so sad to see this series come to an end and it seems to be an abrupt end.  The final scenes in this book were a little rushed and then it's just over.  I am not unhappy with how it ended, I just think maybe an epilogue to show where they ended up would have been a nicer way to end the series.  

If you are looking for something new to read and you enjoy YA Dystopian you need to give this series a try.  While the concept is not entirely unique the writing definitely is.

XOXO, Shelly

Video Review | The Park Service Series by Ryan Winfield

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XOXO, Shelly

YA Dystopian Review "State of Nature" by Ryan Winfield

Title: State of Nature

Author: Ryan Winfield

Released On: November 23, 2013

Publisher: Birch Paper Press

Buy Link -  AMAZON 

Author's Website:   https://www.facebook.com/ryanwinfield
Author's Goodreads Profile:  Ryan Winfield

Synopsis

From New York Times bestselling author Ryan Winfield, a thrilling tale of friendship, betrayal, and adventure.

The final chapter...

After leaving the Isle of Man, Aubrey and Jimmy return to the Foundation to confront Hannah about her betrayal and to free the people of Holocene II only to find themselves facing new and more difficult challenges in a world where nothing is as it seems.

Don’t miss the epic conclusion you’ll have to read yourself to believe.

Destined to become a classic, The Park Service trilogy will inspire and delight readers of all ages.

MY REVIEW

Well...what can I say about this book?  Not much without spoilers!  I will see what I can do though...

So this book starts right where the last one left off.  Aubrey, Jimmy and the Professor are in the sub on their way back to Hannah and Holocene II.  Now, Jimmy and Aubrey are none too happy with Hannah and with good reason.  What they find when they get there gives them even more reason to be furious with her.   She is manipulating them all into doing what she wants.   She wants to put Eden back online and she needs Aubrey to go down into Holocene II to let them all know that they will begin retirement again soon.  

Aubrey ends up taking Jimmy with him and that's when things start to get really intense.  They find literally an underground movement that is run by someone they call The Chief.  Aubrey finds out more about himself throughout the course of this book.  He also finds out things about Hannah that have him even more determined to put an end to her.  She is trying to take over where her father left off and she's trying to blackmail Aubrey into helping her.

This book is full of twists and turns where Aubrey and Jimmy travel around the world again in an effort to once again attempt to save the people of Holocene II.  They are trying to make it safe for them to finally come and live on the surface like man was intended to before The Foundation decided that man was a danger to the planet.    There is a continuing theme of love and loss throughout this series, but this book was at times heart wrenching.  Aubrey and Jimmy go through so much in this book and they are closer than ever.  They even going so far as to put words to those feelings even though they are vague leaving the reader to decide just how they want to perceive the relationship.  No matter how you look at it the relationship between these two is rock solid and gets more so as the story progresses.

It's so hard to say much more without spoiling anything.  I was sad when the book came to an end.  I will say that while I was sad, I was happy for the time I got to spend in this world and with these two characters.  It was a joy to see how Aubrey went from the gangly boy in the first book to the man he became in this book even though he had to go through so much heartache to get there.  I think this sums it all up pretty well for me and it's a beautiful sentiment at the end of the book.

”Leaves will fall, cold will creep in
A circle of life that ends where it begins
It may take a thousand years and a thousand poems penned
But my hair will someday gray and my back will bend—
Then my shadow will join my body in the earth once again.

I know not the way, or even the when
Or who chooses that day we’re called away to ascend
But you bathed me in your bravery and forgave me my sins
You made a home in your heart for mine to live in—
And in return, my friend, this poem is my oath that a river of love will run through it until the very end.”

Ryan has a way of pulling you into a story and keeping you there with the vivid description and characters that you can't help but fall in love with.  I will miss this series but I can't wait to see what he has in store for us in the future.

If you would like to read my reviews of the 2 prior books in this series you can do so here:

The Park Service
The Isle of Man

I am also going to do a full series video review of this trilogy on my YouTube Channel so be sure to go subscribe so you will be notified when it posts!

YA Dystopian Guest Post, Review & Giveaway "Monsters" by Ilsa J. Bick

Title:  Monsters (Ashes #3)
Author: Ilsa J. Bick
Publisher:  Egmont USA
Publication Date: September 10, 2013
Genre: YA Dystopian

Buy the book: Amazon  |  B&N  |  Indiebound
Author's Website 
Author's Goodreads Profile

Synopsis from Goodreads: 

The Changed are on the move. The Spared are out of time. The End...is now.

When her parents died, Alex thought things couldn't get much worse-until the doctors found the monster in her head.

She headed into the wilderness as a good-bye, to leave everything behind. But then the end of the world happened, and Alex took the first step down a treacherous road of betrayal and terror and death.

Now, with no hope of rescue-on the brink of starvation in a winter that just won't quit-she discovers a new and horrifying truth.

The Change isn't over.
The Changed are still evolving.
And...they've had help.

With this final volume of The Ashes Trilogy, Ilsa J. Bick delivers a riveting, blockbuster finish, returning readers to a brutal, post-apocalyptic world where no one is safe and hope is in short supply.

A world where, from these ashes, the monsters may rise.

Guest Post by Ilsa J. Bick

What Would You Do?

Presuming I make it through the first 24 hours? I would: grab my bug-out bag,
grab my husband (and whatever stray family members happen to be
around) and get as far away from other people as quickly as I can
because desperate people get ugly in a hurry.

First order of business once we get where we’re going (has to be near a
ready supply of fresh water, too): find/make a shelter; build a fire;
find food; check how much ammo I’ve got for that Glock. Probably
get myself ready to move around a lot, too. An optimal place to hang
would be relatively close to a small town for ready re-supply in
those first chaotic months, but also scope out places to boogie fast
if I have to, with handy supply caches along the way. Ultimately,
I’d like to have about three, four satellite camps that I’d visit
and through which I’d rotate.

I’d also like to say that I’d find a whole ton of books to bring, but
the nitty-gritty about survival is that it takes up quite a bit of
your free time.

My Thoughts on Monsters...

Overall, I loved this series.  I will tell you right up front that this book is a HUGE book, coming in at 800+ pages.  It's no small feat to have read this book in a week while working a full time job! In fact I finished this series in about a week and a half and each of the books is relatively long.

So, this book starts where the 2nd book left off and I am SO glad that I read them all back to back or I would have been lost.  As it was I was a little lost because the opening scenes were with completely new characters.  It took me a gook 200 pages to really get back into the story.  At this point in the story we seem to have lost a lot of what the story seemed to be about in the beginning.  That makes no sense really, but if you have been reading the series you may understand what I am saying.  Alex seems to be lost most of this book.  In the previous books she is a major character, I feel like in this book she gets kind of lost and then when the author attempts to "wrap up" her story line, it's just not as fulfilling as it should be.  

I don't really know how to describe the story and what happens in this book.  The Changed are changing, even more so than in the last book and we get a little more insight into Finn's group and what they are doing to Peter and to the Changed that they have locked up.  There is a lot of action, gory sequences, the story is constantly moving so there is no lapse in action.  But there are times when the story overlaps (like in the 2nd book) when different characters are the main focus.  There are times when I was reading that I had NO idea what was going on!

Even though this is the finale book, it was probably my least favorite of the trilogy.  I think it was just way too long.  The writing is great, what I didn't care for so much in the 2nd book continued on in this one with even more characters to keep track of.  I loved getting the whole story from Alex's POV in the fist book and when it changed in book 2 it wasn't so bad because I was able to keep up with the couple other characters that it switched to and from.  This book added even more characters, NEW characters and honestly it just got confusing. 

Like I said in the beginning, I like the series as a whole, but honestly, this book was just way too long and drawn out.  In the end I do have to say that I wasn't overly thrilled with how it ended, but I didn't hate it.  I would have liked to have had more answers.  Instead I was left with questions that a series that takes over 1800 pages to tell should have answered.  I did enjoy Ms. Bick's writing and would not hesitate to pick up more of her work.  

*Disclaimer:  I was provided with a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

GIVEAWAY!!
EgmontUSA has been kind enough to allow me to do a giveaway of THE WHOLE SERIES here on the blog!  

So...here are the rules:

• Must be at least 18 to Enter
• You must live in the US for hard copy books.
• You will have 24 hours to contact me once it's confirmed that you are the winner and I have emailed you.
• Failure to contact me in 24 hours will result in my drawing another name as winner. 

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2 Mini YA Dystopian Reviews "Ashes" & "Shadows" by Ilsa J. Bick

Title:  Ashes (Ashes Trilogy 1)
Author: Ilsa J. Bick
Genre:  YA Dystopian

Synopsis from Goodreads

It could happen tomorrow . . .

An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the sky, destroying every electronic device, wiping out every computerized system, and killing billions.

Alex hiked into the woods to say good-bye to her dead parents and her personal demons. Now desperate to find out what happened after the pulse crushes her to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom—a young soldier—and Ellie, a girl whose grandfather was killed by the EMP. 

For this improvised family and the others who are spared, it’s now a question of who can be trusted and who is no longer human.

Author Ilsa J. Bick crafts a terrifying and thrilling novel about a world that could be ours at any moment, where those left standing must learn what it means not just to survive, but to live amidst the devastation. 

My Thoughts...

I am not doing mini reviews on these because I didn't like them, quite the opposite actually.  I loved them, but I am going to do a big review on the last book in the series next week and I will post more thoughts about the series as a whole on that post.  Basically I just wanted to give you a quick taste of the series before that review.  

I got this book on my kindle when it first came out and for some reason never read it, but when Egmont approached me to review the last book I jumped on the chance.  I read the first 2 books in just a couple of days but the 3rd book, in addition to being titled Monster, is literally a monster coming in at nearly 820 pages so I am still working my way through that one! 

So the synopsis covers the basic plot of this book pretty well.  This one is told exclusively from Alex's point of view in 3rd person.  Alex is suffering from brain cancer that is basically inoperable.  She has done all the treatment including some very advanced experimental treatments, but she still has the tumor.  She has decided to take some time off and head to the woods to kind of say goodbye to her parents who died some years ago.  She is a few days into her trip when the EMP happens.  She is also with Ellie and her grandfather when it happens.  She and Ellie survive, but Alex suffers some type of episode and she is left changed.  One of her senses, a sense that her tumor took from her has returned and is super enhanced.

They are discovering that the really young and the really old are the survivors.  Then there are the Changed who are mostly teenagers and young adults, but some, like Alex and Tom, are spared and as of yet they have no idea why.  The changed are very like what we think of as zombies.  She and Ellie are trecking it and fighting off "the Changed" when they meet Tom and now they are three.  They go through some pretty rough times, but they kind of become a little family.  Ellie is your typical 8 year old and she gives them grief pretty much most of the time.

There is a just a touch of a love story here, but for the most part it's just pretty intense action and horror.  This is YA so it's not super gory, but as the story progresses it does tend to get more intense.  There are some kind of older teenage themes and language.  I would probably recommend it for 15+ age group.

Title:  Shadows (Ashes Trilogy 2 )
Author: Ilsa J. Bick
Genre:  YA Dystopian

Synopsis from Goodreads

The Apocalypse does not end. The Changed will grow in numbers. The Spared may not survive.

Even before the EMPs brought down the world, Alex was on the run from the demons of her past and the monster living in her head. After the world was gone, she believed Rule could be a sanctuary for her and those she’d come to love.

But she was wrong.

Now Alex is in the fight of her life against the adults, who would use her, the survivors, who don’t trust her, and the Changed, who would eat her alive. 

Welcome to Shadows, the second book in the haunting apocalyptic Ashes Trilogy: where no one is safe and humans may be the worst of the monsters.

My Thoughts...

This second book of the trilogy things just get worse for Alex and all the spared.  Where the last book was told from Alex's POV, in this one we get it a look from pretty much all directions.  The main narrators in this one are Alex, Tom and Chris with a few others thrown in.  I actually liked the first book better for this reason.  Also, the first book was told in a continuous flow with no over-laps in time.  This one has sections where there are overlaps because there are different POV being told, so while we are with Tom for 2 weeks and we have no idea what's going on with someone else, she has to catch up with that later and at times it's confusing.  Not so much so that I didn't enjoy the story though!

The Changed are starting to change and so is Alex.  She knows now that the reason she didn't become one of the Changed is likely because of her tumor.  She is also learning that even the ones she thought could help her can't be trusted.  Really she is all on her own once again and this time she is in the fight of her life.  

There isn't much more I can say without giving too much away.  If you like YA Dystopian and you don't mind intense action scenes with some nice gore mixed in then you are probably going to like this series.  Even if you aren't a YA fan and you like horror, zombies, etc...then you should give this series a try.  I am enjoying it quite a bit.

I will be posting my review for the 3rd book this coming Monday and I will be doing a giveaway for all 3 books in the series so if you are interested in reading this series be sure to check out that post!

*Disclaimer:  I was provided with a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

YA Dystopian Review & GIVEAWAY "Quarantine: The Saints" by Lex Thomas

Title:  Quarantine: The Saints (Quarantine #2)
Author: Lex Thomas
Publisher:  Egmont USA
Publication Date: July 9 , 2013
Genre:  YA Dystopian

Buy this book on Amazon 
Author's Website 
Author's Goodreads Profile

Synopsis from Goodreads:  

A cross between the Gone series and Lord of the Flies, Quarantine #2: The Saints continues this frenetically paced and scary young adult series that illustrates just how deadly high school can be.

Nothing was worse than being locked in—until they opened the door...

McKinley High has been a battle ground for eighteen months since a virus outbreak led to a military quarantine of the school. When the doors finally open, Will and Lucy will think their nightmare is finished. But they are gravely mistaken.

As a new group of teens enters the school and gains popularity, Will and Lucy join new gangs. An epic party on the quad full of real food and drinks, where kids hookup and actually interact with members of other gangs seemed to signal a new, easier existence. Soon after though, the world inside McKinley takes a startling turn for the worse, and Will and Lucy will have to fight harder than ever to survive.

The Saints brings readers back to the dark and deadly halls of McKinley High and the QUARANTINE series.

My Thoughts...
Ok, so I liked the 1st book, but this book took it to a whole other level for me.  The story in this one was more involved and we learned SO much more about the characters and the gangs.  The ending was pretty unexpected and quite frankly it was awesome!

This one starts where the the first one left off.  David is gone and suddenly Will is in charge of the Loners.  Then there is a small ray of hope when the doors open again.  That hope is dashed so quickly by a barreling school bus, but not before some of them escape.  Many of the escapees were Loners so that brings the few Loners who are left way down.  They can't compete at the drops because of the low numbers.

The kids who opened the doors are from a local private school.  These kids have essentially been on the run for the entire time since the virus hit.  Their number has been greatly decreased from the beginning because the military has hunted and killed them.  The McKinley kids have dubbed them The Saints.  Their leader, Gates is charismatic and quite likable, but there is something about him that isn't quite right.  One by one the Loners move on to new gangs leaving only Will and Lucy are the only ones left, but how long can that last?

This book is quite possibly more viscous and bloody than the last one.  Many of the main characters go through tremendous changes in this book.  Will grows up, Lucy transforms into something incredible, Hillary becomes more insane and Sam is a whole other story.  The influx of the new kids changes the the whole dynamic of the school and not necessarily for the better even though it seems like it in the beginning.

I am going to have a hard time waiting for the next book to come out for sure!  This one was just one crazy thing after another and the pace is just so fast I read this book in no time.  There are some more adult themes in this one as well.  If you read the first book and enjoyed it then you will like this one without a doubt.  If you haven't read these and you like YA Dystopian then I highly recommend this series.

*Disclaimer:  I was provided with a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

I have been authorized to giveaway ONE PAPERBACK COPY of Quarantine 1: The Loners and ONE HARDCOVER copy of Quarantine 2: The Saints!!  So enter for your chance to win.

So...here are the rules:

• Must be at least 16 to Enter
• You must live in the US for hard copy books.
• You will have 24 hours to contact me once it's confirmed that you are the winner and I have emailed you.
• Failure to contact me in 24 hours will result in my drawing another name as winner. 

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YA Dystopian "Quarantine: The Loners" by Lex Thomas

Title:  Quarantine: The Loners (Quarantine #1)
Author: Lex Thomas
Publisher:  Egmont USA
Publication Date: July 10, 2012
Genre:  YA Dystopian
Buy this book on Amazon 

Author's Website 
Author's Goodreads Profile

Synopsis from Goodreads:  

It was just another ordinary day at McKinley High—until a massive explosion devastated the school. When loner David Thorpe tried to help his English teacher to safety, the teacher convulsed and died right in front of him. And that was just the beginning.

A year later, McKinley has descended into chaos. All the students are infected with a virus that makes them deadly to adults. The school is under military quarantine. The teachers are gone. Violent gangs have formed based on high school social cliques. Without a gang, you’re as good as dead. And David has no gang. It’s just him and his little brother, Will, against the whole school. 
 
In this frighteningly dark and captivating novel, Lex Thomas locks readers inside a school where kids don’t fight to be popular, they fight to stay alive.

My Thoughts...
I was asked to review the 2nd book in this series and EgmontUSA was kind enough to send me this book as well so I wouldn't be lost reading the 2nd one.  I am glad I did because this is an excellent series, but you do need to start with this book to fully comprehend what's going on.

David and Will are headed to school, a brand new high school actually and it's a pretty big school.  Definitely bigger than anything around here where I live.  It's Will's first day of High School, but David is an old pro.  He was one of the popular kids at one time, QB of the football team, hot cheerleader girlfriend, etc...  He's not the same kid he was a year ago though.  Their mother died and a little part of David died with her.  He quit the team and just before school started again he discovered his girlfriend has been cheating on him with one of his former teammates.  Things are already looking down for him, then he gets to school and things literally explode.  One whole wing of the new school is gone, the teachers are all dying, the students have no idea what is going on.  Later they learn that they have been infected with something that makes the adults around them die.  Once they transition out of puberty the infection leaves their system and they are harmless again.  For now, though, they are sealed inside the school with no way out.

This reminds me a little of The Hunger Games only on a more frightening scale.   These kids are left on their own with no clue whats going on in the outside world.  They have no idea if what they are being told is even the truth.  They just know that they are trapped and that they have to find a way to survive.  Eventually, they get more information, they are given the means to leave when they transition out of puberty so that they don't die once they become "adults".  The ones that are left split off and form gangs according to affiliation (Varsity, Pretty Ones, Geeks, Skaters, Sluts, etc...) they are identifiable by their hair color.  The virus left them all with white hair a blank canvas for koolaide dye which they get from the supply drops that come through a constructed "tear" in the ceiling of the quad.  

David and Will are not part of a gang, they are considered scraps.  The scraps are kids that are outcasts or chose not to be a part of the other gangs.  The problem is that when the drops come they are on their own and it's pretty much a free for all situation.  One gang in particular is ruthless at the drops, they end up hoarding supplies and generally making life miserable for everyone else.  Each gang has a trade, per se, that they take to the "Market Place" after the drops.  This is where the kids barter what they have for what they need.  Long story short, David becomes somewhat of a hero and he ends up leading a whole new group called the Loners.  I don't want to give away any more plot so I am going to leave it at that.

This is a dark, bloody somewhat terrifying scenario.  The inner workings of this society are, at times, cringe worthy. There are some plot holes and it's wholly unrealistic at times, but hey, what dystopian type novel isn't?  The relationship between David and Will is quite realistic.  They fight like brothers for sure.  I was annoyed by Will for much of the book but that's because he was feeling sorry for himself for most of the book.  He finally gets over his pity party and the book is over!

Overall I really enjoyed this book, it's really different from anything I have read recently, for sure!  I would recommend this to anyone who likes dystopian novels from a YA perspective.  I will say that this book has a lot of violence, some gore, sexual situations or talk of them, talk of rape, lots of cursing including f-bombs.  I would probably recommend it for a high school age or higher because of this.  

*Disclaimer:  I was provided with a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

YA Dystopian Review "Isle of Man" by Ryan Winfield

Title:  Isle of Man (The Park Service #2)
Author: Ryan Winfield
Publisher:  Birch Paper Press
Publication Date: April 16, 2013
Genre: YA Dystopian
Format:  Kindle 470 kb  |  Paperback 310 pages

Buy this book on Amazon:  Kindle Version  |  Paperback
Author's Website:  http://www.ryanwinfield.com/
Author's Goodreads Profile:  Ryan Winfield

Synopsis from Goodreads: 

The journey continues...

After discovering the horrific truth behind the Park Service, fifteen-year old Aubrey Van Houten has overthrown its leader with the help of his best friend Jimmy and his girlfriend Hannah. But their victory has left all three parentless and alone in a world where drones still hunt humans. And while the Park Service founder might be dead, he's far from gone. Now, Aubrey's quest to free his people will lead him even farther into a world where nothing is what it seems.

My Thoughts...

I have to say that I think I liked this second book of The Park Service Trilogy more that the first one!  I have no doubt that the conclusion of this series will be even better.  If you would like to read my thoughts on The Park Service you can read my full review here.

I have to keep this relatively brief because there is really no way to reveal the full scope of my feelings without dropping major spoilers and you know how much I hate to do that.  I will warn you that while I won't post spoilers for this book, there will be spoilers from book one. 

This book takes these characters into places that I never expected both emotionally and logistically.  The bulk of book one takes place on what appears to be a new planet.  It's actually Earth 900 years in the future where the "Park Service" has all but destroyed humankind on the surface allowing it to return to an "eden-like" state.  What humans managed to survive are continually hunted by drones programmed to kill them.  Aubrey discovers all of this when he essentially escapes from the underground world where he grew up.  Now Aubrey, Jimmy and Hannah are on a mission to de-program the drones so they can free the people underground without fear of them being hunted on the surface.

This book takes them halfway across the globe in search of what they need to free Aubrey's people.  On The Isle of Man nothing is what it seems, but it's all so very interesting!  It's like stepping back into medieval Ireland complete with a castle and tournament games.  The imagery is so vivid that you feel like you are right there roaming the castle with Aubrey and competing in the tournament with Jimmy. 

There are some definite "hold your breath" moments in this book.  You hit a point where the action just keeps coming at you and then things take a turn that I totally wasn't expecting.  I have to say that I have a whole new respect for Ryan Winfield after reading the last 1/4 of this book.  I would imagine that it takes a lot out of a writer to put his characters through this, not to mention what they are sure to face in the next book.

There are some pretty tense moments between Aubrey and Jimmy in this book and it makes you wonder just what exactly is between these two.  At times they are the best of friends, but there are times when they seem to be more although it's never quite clear.  While it may not be intentional, there is definitely some tension between them.  It will be interesting to see where this leads, if anywhere.  It's clear that Aubrey has grown throughout the course of these books.  He is truly well on his way to becoming the man he will need to be in order to lead his people once they are freed.  He is starting to see people for what they really are instead of how they portray themselves to others.  

Maybe humans are the problem.  Some humans, anyway.  At least a person can see a shark's teeth.  They don't hide their intentions.  And they don't kill because they can kill, they kill because they need to survive. 

So, I loved this book!  I had a couple minor issues with the first book, but there was nothing like that in this one.  It's a great YA read and really I think my daughter is going to love this series if I can ever part with my Kindle Fire long enough to let her read it!