Three by Kristen Simmons

Series: Article 5 (bk. 3)

Genera(s): Dystopian Sci-fi/Romance

Subjects: resistance to government, fugitives, survival, totalitarian dictatorships, near future

Setting: The east coast

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, past tense, Ember Miller

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 380 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: MacMillan: Tor

Summary/ product description: “Ember Miller and Chase Jennings are ready to stop running. After weeks spent in hiding as two of the Bureau of Reformation’s most wanted criminals, they have finally arrived at the safe house, where they hope to live a safe and quiet existence.

And all that’s left is smoking ruins.

Devastated by the demolition of their last hope, Ember and Chase follow the only thing left to them—tracks leading away from the wreckage. The only sign that there may have been survivors.

With their high profile, they know they can’t stay out in the open for long. They take shelter in the wilderness and amidst the ruins of abandoned cities as they follow the tracks down the coast, eventually finding refugees from the destroyed safe house. Among them is someone from Chase’s past—someone he never thought he’d see again.

Banding together, they search for a place to hide, aiming for a settlement a few of them have heard about…a settlement that is rumored to house the nebulous organization known as Three. The very group that has provided Ember with a tiny ray of hope ever since she was first forced on the run.

Three is responsible for the huge network of underground safe houses and resistance groups across the country. And they may offer Ember her only chance at telling the world her story.

At fighting back.”

My Review:  Three is the final book in the Article 5 trilogy. The second book was Breaking Point. This series is near-future dystopian, set after a war caused our government to switch to a totalitarian dictatorship. There are strict laws about marriage and having children. Article 5 is specifically about any child born out of wedlock. Since Ember had a single mom, Ember is considered an Article 5 violation. Her mother was killed in the previous book for this and this set Ember out on her journey.

This series also has some hot romance. I loved Chase, Ember’s love interest. He reminds me of Tobias/Four from Divergent. He’s tough, protective and care so much about Ember. He treats her right and respects her. He used to be a solider, but he’s a fugitive like Ember. In this book they take their relationship further. No love triangles, no break-ups & make-ups.

I like some of the side characters too. Sean was really funny. He liked to joke around. He and Rebecca were together. I liked Tucker, despite his issues. In the previous book I liked him too. I think he really redeemed himself in the end.

This book had its bad points too. I got bored a lot because it was moving kind of slow. It didn’t really speed up till around page 150. There was action and adventure. They went to different state in the eastern US. They went in disguise. They met new people. They stayed in a town called Endurance. That part was pretty interesting. I just had a hard time ready everything. Some pages I skimmed. I feel like I’ve been in such a reading slump. Maybe I should have refreshed myself on what happened in the previous book first.

I recommend this series to fans of Divergent, Shatter Me, Delirium, Eve, and other dystopian series. This series in much more realistic and believable that other dystopian books. It has very little sci-fi, no advanced tech or paranormal stuff. No environmental changes. It’s just war stuff.

Cover Art Review: Looks like a window and Ember and Chase are looking at what’s going on outside. It fits with the previous covers. Also, Nekro is an awesome cover illustrator.