The Defiant by Lisa M. Stasse

Series: The Forsaken (bk. 3)

Genera(s): Dystopian Sci-Fi/Romance

Subjects: rebellions, resistance to government, war, fascism, survival, action, adventure

Setting: Various places in what was once the USA, now the UNA: Texas, Chicago, Illinois, Ohio, Iowa

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, present tense: Alenna

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 343 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover  

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Summary/ product description: “In this gripping conclusion to The Forsaken Trilogy, Alenna’s loyalties are put the ultimate test—and it’s one of life and death.

Alenna Shawcross and the others who escaped the wheel are working toward an all-out assault on the United Northern Alliance. The plan is to dismantle it from the inside—and Alenna is one of the few people who can access the organization’s inner sanctum. But when she returns to the home she has nearly forgotten, she encounters old friends and is swept into a secret plan that puts everything she loves in danger.

Knowing what is at stake for her and her friends, Alenna ventures into the heart of the treacherous UNA. She’s determined to bring them down, because freedom is the only choice. Or is it?”

My Review:  A wonderful exciting finale to an epic dystopia series, The Defiant takes us to places the series hasn’t been before, both literally and figuratively. Alenna, Liema and Gadya and other rebels travel to the UNA to lead the rebellion into overthrowing the government. It doesn’t go how they expect it. Alenna is taken to see David and he give her a task to infiltrate a work camp that Liam is at, but she is captured and put in a home at the Hellgrounds. Alenna must save Liam, and cause rebels to rise up and fight.

There’s a lot of adventure in this book. Even state and major city has New in front of it. She lands in New Dallas, New Texas and is sent to the Hellgrounds in New Iowa. She and her friends must travel to New Ohio and then New Chicago. Lot of stuff happens that moves this story along at a fast pace. Just so much, but I don’t want to spoil it. I was exciting and I hated having to put this book down when I had to do something else. I have to now how it would end.

This was more exciting than the previous books. I loved The Forsaken, and The Uprising was good, but took me about a week to finish. In less than four days I was able to complete this and I hate that it’s over. It’s a great conclusion, but in some parts I felt like there’s no way this could be the final book. So many changes and big things happened, I felt like this could have been 2 books. This is the definition of finale. Like a firework show, the finale is when they blast a lot of fireworks off at the same time. There’s were twists every few chapter. Miy mind was blown with that ending.

Alenna is a great narrator. I still don’t know what she looked like, but is doesn’t matter. She should be up there with Tris Prior and Katniss Everdeen, in the land of badass heroines. She killed a lot of people in this book. She really cared strongly about her friends. She regretted her decisions, even when it was the right thing to do. She did her best and she succeeded most of the time. With her friends, she was able to overcome so many changes in this book. Liam wasn’t just a love interest, he was her rock, and Gadya was her best friend. I miss reading about these character.

If you have not read The Forsaken, it’s like Catching Fire because it’s about surviving on a prison island. This final book felt like the Divergent series, partly because part of it was in Chicago. This dystopian series is about a corrupt government. It’s also about survival. It’s not post-apocalyptic, but it feels like it sometimes. There’s a lot of advanced technology, genetically modified mutants, and brain washing drugs. It’s pure dystopian, which may not seem unique. The author wrote the Forsaken before the Hunger Games was a thing, though it came out later. I’m surprised this series isn’t more popular. Spread the word. This is one dystopian series every Hunger Games and Divergent fan should read.

Cover Art Review:  I love this cover. It’s neon green in person. Really bright and attractive. The wire frame faces are cool and there’re 2 on this cover. The double exposure photos are almost ghostly. The dome, watchtower and the insect like machine add to the sci-fi feel. The title really stands out in bright yellow. Everything fits together in this cyber-punk style that almost feels like a Cold-War era art piece.

The Uprising by Lisa M. Stasse

Series: The Forsaken (bk. 2)

Genera: Dystopia Sci-fi

Subjects: survival, islands, resistance to government, fascism, love

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 375 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $16.99

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Summary/ product description: “In this dystopian sequel to The Forsaken, Alenna has survived the brutality of life on the wheel—and now she’s going back for more.

Alenna escaped. It was expected that she would die on the wheel, the island where would-be criminals are sent as directed by the UNA—the totalitarian supercountry that was once the United States, Mexico, and Canada. But Alenna and her boyfriend, Liam, made it to safety. Except safety, they will soon learn, is relative.

In order to bring down the UNA, they must first gain control of the wheel. If the mission succeeds, the wheel will become a base of revolution. But between betrayals, a new Monk leading a more organized army of Drones, and the discovery of a previously unknown contingent, Alenna, Liam, and their allies might be in over their heads. One thing Alenna knows for sure: There will be a reckoning. And not everyone she loves will make it out alive.”

My Review: This was a good sequel and addition to a cool dystopian series. I love the setting(s). The island especially. As I’ve said before in my review of The Forsaken, it’s kind of like Catching Fire, Lord of The Flies, The Maze Runner and Lost. But in this book,  it’s starts out in Australia, and goes on to Antarctica and then back to the wheel. The wheel, also know as Prison Island Alpha, is located somewhere in the south Pacific between Hawaii and Australia. It’s shaped like a jagged circle, and has different sectors, named after colors. It’s about 35 miles across. The blue sector is where the villagers were located. The gray sector is where machinery and building are located.

The narration is awesome. I love Alenna’s perspective. She reminds me of Tris from Divergent, or even Katniss. It’s 1^st person, present tense which makes the story a lot more intense and exciting. I also like Liam. He’s does remind me of Four/Tobias, or maybe Alex from Delirium. He cares so much about Alenna that he almost stays behind when he’s asked to help rescue his father, but Alenna insists he goes. He’s a warrior with a good heart, even though he has trust issues when it comes to the drones/former drones.

Cass is a former drone, and now no longer drugged.  She seems very nice and smart, and similar to Gadya. Gadya is still on the wheel. She was my favorite side character in the first book, and I was waiting for her to make a come back. She’s so funny and sarcastic. Wish we could have a novella or story from her POV. We also get to meet a new group that aren’t drones or villagers, but call themselves travelers. The made me this of the Tree People in Defiance by C.J. Redwine. Also, David is on the wheel still, and Alenna and Liam think that he betrayed them. He lost their trust for something he did.

The only issues I had with this book was that it took me a week to read, but that was because I was so busy. But sometimes taking your time with a book is a good thing. Rushing through a story makes you miss thing. I wish there was more romance also. The ending was awesome. Alenna is very brave for what she did. They all made a lot of hard choices in hopes saving the kids frozen in the archives and taking the island back. Can’t wait to see how this turn out in book three.

I recommend this series to fan of The Hunger Games series, Lord of The Flies, The Maze Runner, Divergent, the Glitch series by Heather Anastasui, and Shatter Me, and TV shows like Lost.

Cover Art Review: Love this cover! The typography in amazing, and the color scheme. I love the image and the vector connected lines. 

The Forsaken by Lisa M. Stasse

Series: The Forsaken trilogy (bk. 1)

Genera: Dystopian Sci-fi

Subjects: Survival, islands, resistance to government, fascism, prisons

Length: 375 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $16.99

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Summary/ product description: “As an obedient orphan of the U.N.A. (the super-country that was once Mexico, the U.S., and Canada), Alenna learned at an early age to blend in and be quiet—having your parents taken by the police will do that to a girl. But Alenna can’t help but stand out when she fails a test that all sixteen-year-olds have to take: The test says she has a high capacity for brutal violence, and so she is sent to The Wheel, an island where all would-be criminals end up.
The life expectancy of prisoners on The Wheel is just two years, but with dirty, violent, and chaotic conditions, the time seems a lot longer as Alenna is forced to deal with civil wars for land ownership and machines that snatch kids out of their makeshift homes. Desperate, she and the other prisoners concoct a potentially fatal plan to flee the island. Survival may seem impossible, but Alenna is determined to achieve it anyway.”

My Rating: êêêê

My Review: This book turned out to be better than expected. I’ve seen some bad reviews, and I was starting to think I was going to be disappointed. The Forsaken is kind of like Catching Fire, Lord of The Flies, and The Maze Runner put together, with a little bit of Lost. And also reminds me is Witch & Wizard, Harka reminds me of the One Who Is The One.

This story is very much a survival story. There’s not much romance, but there is a lot of friendship. And there are lots of trust issues between the village people. They think David’s a spy, Alenna was sure he wasn’t. There the Monk, who the drones worship. The Wheel is a totally crazy island either somewhere in the Caribbean, or maybe Hawaii.

There’s a lot of mystery about the island’s true intentions and why they were sent there. There’s a place called the Gray Zone, and they find some pecular things there. The Wheel is a very dangerous place, and bad surprises lurk everywhere. If you’re looking for a thrilling survival story/mystery/dystopian, then check out the Forsaken.

Cover Art Review: Somebody called this a “dust cover.” It is pretty interesting. Looks like it was done in charcoal. Makes me think of a math or science text book from the 70s or 80s. Does anyone else get the retro-text book vibe? Or record album cover. It also reminds me on the covers from The Chemical Garden Trilogy. All the connections and stuff. I’m not sure what design era it’s mimicking. Art Deco is geometric, but in the late 60s, and 70s there was a lot of art like this.

~Haley G