Series: Blackout (bk. 2, Final Book)
Genera: Near-Future Dystopian Sci-fi/Thriller
Subjects: terrorists, viruses, superpowers, abilities,
war, military
Setting: Washington and Oregon, the Cascade Mountains
POV/Tense: 3rd person POV, past tense: Jack
and Aubrey, mainly, but also: Krezi, Tabitha, Alec and others
Age/Grade Level: Teen
Length: 373 pgs.
HC/PB: Hardcover
List Price: $17.99
Publisher: HarperTeen
Summary/ product description: “Homeland meets Marie Lu’s
Legend in the explosive sequel to Blackout, which #1 New York Times bestselling
author Ally Condie called “a thrilling combination of Wells’s trademark twists
and terror. Fantastic!”
America
is at war—and five teens are caught in the crossfire.
It began
with a virus. Then a series of attacks erupted across the nation. Now the true
invasion has begun, and a handful of teenagers with impossible powers are
America’s only defense.
Robison
Wells blew readers away with his first novel, Variant, which Publishers Weekly
called “a chilling and masterful debut” in a starred review. In Dead Zone, he
delivers his most nail-bitingly tense read yet—and an electrifying conclusion
to a two-book series that’s perfect for fans of The Maze Runner and I Am Number
Four.
Praise for
Blackout
“Wells
knows how to snare readers’ attention and hold them spellbound.”—Publishers
Weekly (starred review)
“In a
world where terrorism is an increasing threat, this fast-paced book brings it
home.”—Kirkus Reviews
“This
eerie look at an all-too-possible future is tense and gripping.”—Michael Grant,
New York Times bestselling author of the Gone series”
My Review: Dead
Zone is an awesome sequel, but still not as good as Blackout. I’m fine with
that because I really enjoyed both. This 2 book series is filled with action,
danger and super-powered teens. It’s a real thrill ride and great for fans of
X-Men and the Gone series by Michael Grant. These teens are called Lambda’s by
the military. They got their powers from a virus.
I really enjoyed the characters. Aubrey is my
favorite. She’s got the ability so go unnoticed by those within a certain
radius. It isn’t true invisibility, but it makes her a good spy and assassin,
and that’s why the military wants to use her. She’s in love with Jack, who has
enhances senses. They have a good romance together. He uses his super hearing
to relay what Aubrey is saying when she’s on a mission. There’s Krenzi, who can
heat things up and make them explode or light on fire. Rich can understand how
any machine work and use it with expertise. Tabitha has telepathy and can talk
to people in their minds, but they can’t talk back (she can’t read minds). Alec
can implant memories.
I didn’t enjoy this as much as Black Out because the
first book introduced us to what was happening and the characters, and this
book centers around Russia’s invasion into the US and tracking down a specific
Lambda. It’s still an interesting plotline. I really like how the team has to
work together and use their skills. Some may not like what they are doing and what
they are ordered to do. Teens should not have to kill people. It’s questions
the ethics of war and right vs. wrong. The deeper message of this book is do
what you think is right. Help save your country, and keep people alive. Don’t
let people use you for their own gain.
Dead Zone is the 2nd and final book in this
duology. I hope Robison Wells has something just as awesome for use to read in
the future. His other series includes Variant and Feedback. His brother is Dan
Wells, author of the Partials series. I recommend this series to fans of:
X-Men, The Gone series by Michael Grant, Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi,
Reboot by Amy Tintera, The Darkest Minds series by Alexandra Braken, and other
sci-fi series that include teens with abilities or that are soldiers and spies.
Cover Art Review: Nice explosion image. The red makes
it look scary.
