Author: Lars Teeney
Release: July 20th, 2015
Series: The Apostates Series
Genre: Science Fiction. Post-Apocalyptic. Dystopian.
Edition: Kindle
Pages: 615 pages
Publisher: Self-published
Source: Author
Buy it here: Amazon

Rating: ★★★★★

Blurb:

New Megiddo has been born out of the ashes of America, an America that has sacrificed liberty for security. Ravaged by environmental disaster and shuttered off from the rest of the world by border fortress walls, and the strict dogma of spiritual leader, The Reverend Wilhelm Wainwright, the people take small comfort from the sermons the Reverend delivers straight to the people’s minds via the [Virtue-Net]. However, the President John W. Schrubb Administration has been losing its grip on power. Murmurs and rumors of a resistance group of Apostates emanate from “Database” dens in the slums, financed by a mysterious source, are said to be scheming to free the people. Will the Apostates strike in time before the Born Again Gathering ushers in a state-induced Armageddon?

Review

Plot/Story: I love the moral issue the author addresses, of putting your freedom for your safety. Would you give up your freedom for safety? The author took this subject and gave it a nice dark twist to a Dystopian story.

New Megiddo is the new post-apocalyptic America and The Apostates are the people who fight against the brainwashed and chip-implanted people. These people fight for their freedom and against the strict spiritual leader.

Characters: Greta was revived (yep… revived) after she killed herself and she starts to fight for freedom and against the mindless following. Graham, who came from a rich family and was part of the government, but knew what, was the right thing to do.

Somewhere just after the third part of the book, the characters seem to blur all into two major groups. Now, if it would be a different book I would mind, but here it worked nicely and I just didn’t mind.

There are many amazingly written characters that made the story feel more real, that at some point you will wonder on which side it is best to be.

Romance/Kills: Well, there is a lot of violence here and dark issues rise up, so keep in mind when you’re about to read this book. This book has a lot of actions scenes full of kills, bombs but for me it was not too much and I liked the fast pace of it.

Writing: I love the writing style. There are many twists and turns to this story and many layers. This story touches a lot of subjects like Science Fiction, religion, politics and war and most important, humanity… and what make us human. These are all writing and woven so well together that even though this book long book but it feels relatable and I wanted to know more of that world. The author takes us through different POV’s and he did it effortlessly.

Beginning: From the beginning we see Greta takes her life and reborn to help the fight against the new government and religion. The Apostates want to bring freedom and free will back to everyone.

Ending: The story ended with a positive tone, living me satisfied. The ending also jumped on me fast and I left wanting more.

Cover Art: I love the dark feel of the cover. It fits the story perfectly.

Blurb: The blurb was written well, giving you enough information but no spoilers and it pulled me right into the story with questions of what might happen next.

Other Stuff

Opening Line: “The video feed began with rapturous choir music, and funk bass guitar began playing.”

Highlights: From the amazing world building to the great story, I enjoyed reading this book a lot. There is so much to this story that no matter how long this book is, I still felt it fly by fast. Loved it!

Lowlights: None.

Final Thoughts: This is not a light read, but it is a wonderful book to read.

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You can also read this review at Goodreads and Amazon.