The Pursuit (Citizens of Logan Pond #3) by Rebecca Belliston

Let the chase begin . . . 

Six years ago, with the financial collapse of her country and the death of her parents, Carrie Ashworth swore to protect her siblings. She has fought to build a life for them in her illegal clan. Now home and recovering from a government-spread virus, she’s ready to pursue a little happiness of her own. With Greg.

Greg Pierce has no plan to join the growing rebellion or their “Live free or die” mentality. Even after compulsory military service deepened his hatred of President Rigsby’s regime, he wants nothing more than to leave it all behind and start a quiet life with Carrie in Logan Pond. But when word reaches them that Oliver, their patrolman friend and protector, is missing, Carrie and Greg are thrown into a race for survival. Chief Jamansky has discovered Oliver’s little secret and now he wants revenge, forcing their clan to consider abandoning Logan Pond forever.

In this battle for siblings and friends, for homes lost and freedoms stolen, the citizens must ask: How far would you go to pursue happiness?

The stakes are pushed to their boundaries in this highly-anticipated final book in Rebecca Belliston’s Citizens of Logan Pond trilogy, bringing her epic love story to an unforgettable end.

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This is the third book in the Citizens of Logan Pond series and definitely my favorite of them all.  Each book got progressively better and I'm glad I stuck with this series after the first book (which wasn't my favorite).  

In my review of the first book I mention that I don't like Greg at all.  I'm not sure I came out of this series loving him, but he definitely mellowed and became less abrasive in books two and three.  He has many redemptive qualities that came out more in the second and third books.  Thank goodness.

The pacing in this book is fast and constant.  The characters are all fighting for their lives and for the people that they love.  It was easy to get caught up in their plight for freedom.  This book is the climax of the series and it's full on.  The first two books have really built up to this final book and it doesn't disappoint.

Luckily anyone starting this series now, like me, can read the books one right after the other without waiting.  The benefit of coming into a series late, I guess.  😃  

Content:  some violence

- I received a copy of this book free from the author.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Liberty (Citizens of Logan Pond, #2) by Rebecca Belliston

Live free or die . . .

Chicago is burning, a rebellion rises, but that’s the least of Carrie’s concerns. Patrolman Simmons is assigned new partners who threaten the security and secrecy of Carrie's clan. Tensions are high, lines are drawn, and Carrie feels a wedge growing between her and Greg.

Haunted by past mistakes and impending tragedies, Greg knows he should distance himself from Carrie. He knows he should let her love the patrolman who can save her and her siblings, especially with money and resources dwindling. But knowing and doing are different matters. He's busy hatching a plan to salvage things when his citizenship backfires, and he’s asked to do the unthinkable. In this stunning follow-up to Life, loved ones are lost, allegiances are tested, and old enemies plot revenge. At every turn, the citizens of Logan Pond must ask:

What price would you pay for the liberty of those you love?

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This is the second book in the Citizens of Logan Pond series.  I would highly recommend reading the first book, Life, before you delve into this book.  The books are dependent on each other and you would be missing so much if you didn't read them in order.  This is a dystopian book, set in the future of America.

I had a hard time with the main character, Greg, in the first book.  I didn't like him very much.  I have to admit that he grew on me a bit in this book but he still isn't my favorite.  I am grateful for the gentle shift in his attitude though.  It was much easier to find and attach myself to those redemptive qualities in this book.

This book brings all kinds of hardship and struggle to the characters of Logan Pond.  The story line really picks up and tensions increase.  It was like the first book was completely meant to introduce characters and set the stage for this book.  I did enjoy this book more than the first and boy, did it leave off in a doozy of a way.  Talk about a cliffhanger!  I will be picking up the third book in this series for sure.  It's on my review schedule for the first week of January and I'm looking forward to the climactic conclusion!

Content:  Some violence but otherwise clean.

I was given a copy of this book by the author.  A positive review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.

Life (Citizens of Logan Pond #1) by Rebecca Belliston

Her home. Her parents. Her freedom. Gone.
His dreams. His sister. Himself. Lost.
Two people.
One future.

The economy crashed, the country is floundering, and Carrie Ashworth struggles to keep her siblings alive. She has two jobs in her newly formed, newly outlawed clan: grow crops to feed thirty-six people, and maintain contact with Oliver Simmons, their local patrolman. Carrie's life is almost content when Greg Pierce shows up. A man with the ambition to help them survive. A man determined to hate her.

Greg sets to work devising systems to protect the clan from the new regime, but it doesn't take long to realize the true reason behind their safety. Patrolman Simmons has fallen for Carrie. When a government raid nearly wipes out their clan, Greg takes it upon himself to give the socially awkward patrolman what he wants. Only Carrie doesn't like Greg throwing her in Simmons' path, especially when Greg's brusque exterior melts, and she catches a glimpse of the real man underneath. Neither of them realize that Simmons' coworkers have grown suspicious. A clan the size of Logan Pond can't have 'slipped' past his patrols all this time. When their hidden loot goes missing, they want revenge, and the one thread holding Logan Pond together is about to break.

Carrie is forced to choose: follow her heart or save her clan. Life won't let her choose both.

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I always love changing up the genre a bit and delving into a good dystopian.  The thing that makes dystopian books so attractive to me is the idea that any of these things could happen.  They could be a distant reality.  Especially this book with the economic crash and a floundering country left to survive in it's wake.  All too real.

The setting is great.  What used to be a normal suburb is now the hiding grounds for a group of people who have band together to survive.  They have so little yet they make it work.  There were a lot of characters in this book but I felt like I knew them all which is so important in a book like this.  I enjoyed the sense of community and the roles that each person played within the group.

I guess my problem was that I really didn't like Greg.  At all.  By the end of the book he is finally displaying a couple redemptive qualities, but it was too little, too late for me.  I just didn't like him.  I didn't like his mean ways or his in your face way of talking and acting.  I liked Carrie a lot better than Greg but even I got tired of her apologizing all the time for everything.  Kindness is one thing, doormat is another thing.

I'm giving this a solid three stars out of five.  I'm going to be reading the next book and I really hope I like Greg better.  Connecting with the characters is so key for me.  I just didn't feel that in this book, but I really did love the whole premise so I'm going back for more.  Look for my review of the second book next month!  

Content:  some mild violence

- I received a copy of this book from the author.  A favorable review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.

Death Thieves by Julie Wright

You're dead, Summer Dawn Rae.

When Summer Rae is stolen from the moment of her own death and taken to a future where mankind is dying, it is with the hope that she, and other teenagers like her, can save it. But after only a short time in the future, Summer discovers a darker side to the altruistic reasons behind her abduction. She is determined to fulfill her purpose in a world gone literally mad, but can an ordinary girl save a whole world when she only cares about saving one person?

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The concept for this book is so interesting.  It's sort of a mashup of time travel and dystopian with a light smattering of romance thrown in.  Actually, the romance is more of an underlying current for most of the book.  I voted for this book in the kindle scout program because I have read other books by Julie Wright and was really looking forward to reading a book in this genre by her.  I do believe this is her first step into this genre.  I got an advance copy of this book when it won and I'm sorry it's taken me this long to get around to reading it!  It always feels refreshing to step outside my usual go-to genre to read books like this that I also enjoy.

The book started off a bit slow for me but it picks up and the pacing becomes a bit faster.  Maybe it was just that the story really needed Tag.  Once he came into the story, everything seemed a bit better.  Summer is smart and has spunk but she is also pretty selfish in the beginning.  It was hard to really like her.  When she starts thinking past just herself, Summer becomes more likable to me as a character.  I kind of wish I could have seen more of this story from Tag's point of view.  I felt like I was missing out on knowing him better.

It would appear that this book is a stand alone, which is really unusual for this genre.  I was actually glad to have resolution at the end.  Sometimes it's just a relief to have a book come to a conclusion and not have to wait what seems like forever to have the next book.  :)

Content:  Some mild violence

- I received a copy of this book through the Kindle Scout program.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Solstice by Jane Redd + Win This Book!

Four ways to get Banished from the last surviving city on earth are: 1. Cut out your emotion tracker, 2. Join a religious cult, 3. Create a rebellion against the Legislature, 4. Fall in love.

Jezebel James does all four.

Jez is on the fast-track to becoming a brilliant scientist, with one goal—to save her city from total extinction. Her caretakers have entrusted her with a secret plan to stop the rain from flooding the rest of the earth and start civilization anew. But the more Jez learns about the price of a fresh beginning, the more she realizes that carrying out the plan will lead to few survivors, and among the dead will be those she cares about the most.

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I was so excited to finally read this book.  I nominated it on the Kindle Scout program and I'm so happy it got published.  This is an author I love, venturing into a new genre- dystopian.  How fun, right?

I've been hankering for a good, new dystopian book to read and Solstice fit the bill perfectly.  I was drawn into Jez's world where the waters are rising and the earth is dying.  I was absolutely longing to see the sun while I read this book.  

In this world, the government represses the people by suppressing their emotions.  The less they feel, the less they will fight back against what they are doing because the people simply cease to care about anything.  Jez is brilliant and she feels things.  She tries so hard to hide it because she knows if she doesn't, her life will be in jeopardy.  

This book has some fun twists and turns that I didn't see coming.  Of course, I didn't love the cliff hanger ending but I will be coming back to read the next book.  I hope I don't have to wait too long!!

March 14: Book Stalking Publicity / Singing Librarian Books

March 15: My Book a Day / Literary Time Out

March 16: Getting Your Read On / Why Not? Because I Said So

March 17 Peggy Urry Books / LDS Women's Book Review / I am a Reader

March 18: Katie's Clean Book Collection / Wishful Endings / Book Geek Reviews

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Fires of Invention (Mysteries of Cove # 1) by J. Scott Savage

Trenton Colman is a creative thirteen-year-old boy with a knack for all things mechanical. But his talents are viewed with suspicion in Cove, a steam-powered city built inside a mountain. In Cove, creativity is a crime and “invention” is a curse word.

Kallista Babbage is a repair technician and daughter of the notorious Leo Babbage, whose father died in an explosion—an event the leaders of Cove point to as an example of the danger of creativity.

Working together, Trenton and Kallista learn that Leo Babbage was developing a secret project before he perished. Following clues he left behind, they begin to assemble a strange machine that is unlike anything they’ve ever seen before. They soon discover that what they are building may threaten every truth their city is founded on—and quite possibly their very lives.

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I would classify this book as middle grade steampunk dystopian which is such an intriguing combination!  I know younger readers are going to love this series.  It has that appeal to both boys and girls which is really hard to do.

Can you imagine a city, fully functional and built inside of a mountain?  Powered by steam, the city of Cove is multi leveled and self sustaining.  It's people are kept under tight control though and told exactly what to do at all times.  Talk about stifling.  

Trenton is a smart boy and unfortunately for him, creative.  Creativity is frowned upon in Cove and Trenton  is full of it.  Because of this, trouble follows Trenton everywhere.  Kallista and Trenton and two like minds and that means double trouble!  As they work together to piece together a puzzle left by Kallista's father, they run into all kinds of scrapes and adventures.

One thing I loved was the picture at the beginning of every chapter.  In the beginning it is just a faint drawing of a dragon, made up of mechanical parts.  As the chapters progress, so does the dragon.  The mechanical parts become well defined and darker.  It gave me the sense that something big was happening and coming together.  Maybe something that I knew that the characters didn't.

I enjoyed reading this book.  It wasn't silly or over the top as many middle grade books can be.  The world building was excellent as were the characters.  The cross appeal to both boys and girls makes this an excellent book to read aloud to younger children, I think.  Very fun!