Tag: #Resistance

Calm by SJ Baker

On By @f33lthesunIn Young Adult2 Comments

Blurb

In this enthralling dystopian YA thriller where emotions become weapons, the fight for humanity’s true essence takes centre stage.

In a near-future Britain, society’s calm facade conceals a sinister truth: the state maintains its control by meddling with the nation’s water supply. The result? A population lulled into apathy. Lulled, apart from a courageous few known as the Resistors.

New Resistor Owyn joins lifelong Resistor Tiegan in a fierce quest for freedom. Spurred on by the promise of a mass Resistance, they ignite a chain of events that shakes the foundations of Britain’s oppressive regime.

One thing is clear: the price of freedom is higher than they ever imagined.

Review

“There’s a rumour on the corner
But it’s always been denied
‘Cause they don’t want you any wiser
You’re just toeing the party line”.

Word of Mouth – Mike and the Mechanics

“Swear allegiance to the flag
Whatever flag they offer
Never hint at what you really feel”

Silent Running – Mike and the Mechanics

The lyrics in both these songs came to mind as I read Calm.

In order to quell ongoing violence and disturbances across Britain, the government add chemicals to the water to calm the population, removing any emotional responses the people may have.

Owyn lost his parents and was brought up in a boarding school, knowing nothing else but compliance. However his resistance to the drugs starts to wear off.

Tiegan lives with her family but has a resistance to the drugs in the water. To keep her safe, her parents train her to keep her face calm and not react to anything emotionally.

Calm is told as dual perspective, alternating Owyn and Tiegan’s stories. It follows them as they end up on the run, being hunted by the Servants, being helped by other resistors and some others from the more organised Resistance. As they both separately head north to where they believe there is a Resistance stronghold, we follow their fight for survival.

As well as a lack of knowledge of anything beyond his well controlled boarding school experience and the usual teenage hormones to deal with, the sudden arrival of ALL the emotions is a lot for Owyn to deal with. Anger, betrayal, grief, jealousy, confusion, shame and hate swirl inside his brain whilst he attempts to build trust in others on the run.

The story is riveting, full of well crafted characters and action sequences. I am full of hope for a sequel…please!

Thank you to Neem Tree Press and @The_WriteReads for the eARC to read and review for this blog tour. Look out for all the other blogs too.

Welcome to Dorley Hall by Alyson Greaves

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment

Blurb

What if the only way to fix toxic masculinity were to erase it entirely?

Mark Vogel is like the older brother Stefan never had, but one day he disappears without a trace. A year later, after encountering a woman who looks near-identical to Mark, Stefan becomes obsessed. He finds that dozens of young men have disappeared over the years, many of them students at the Royal College of Saint Almsworth, and most of them troubled or unruly. Why are students going missing? Who are these women who bear striking resemblances to them? And what is their connection to the selective student accommodation on the edge of campus, Dorley Hall?

Stefan starts studying at Saint Almsworth for one reason and one reason only: to find out exactly what happened to the women who live at Dorley Hall, and to get it to happen to him, too.

Review

I was a bit unsure what to expect from this book. I chose to review it for this tour as I am trying to read at least one book a month outside of my usual genres.

What I found was a well written character driven narrative set in dark academia. The content however was not for me. There is definitely an audience out there for Dorley Hall, but it does not include me.

The biggest issue I had was the juxtaposition of the forced feminisation programme being run in Dorley Hall, against the much softer, often humorous, wholesomely frivolous post programme lives of those who have passed through the programme.

The biggest question I was left with was does the end justify the means?

I am not sure it does in this case.

Thank you as always to Neem Tree Press and @The_WriteReads for an ARC to review for this blog tour.

Legacy of the Brightwash by Krystle Matar

On By @f33lthesunIn #YALeave a comment

Blurb

Tashué’s faith in the law is beginning to crack. Three years ago, he stood by when the Authority condemned Jason to the brutality of the Rift for non-compliance. When Tashué’s son refused to register as tainted, the laws had to be upheld. He’d never doubted his job as a Regulation Officer before, but three years of watching your son wither away can break down even the strongest convictions.

Then a dead girl washed up on the bank of the Brightwash, tattooed and mutilated. Where had she come from? Who would tattoo a child? Was it the same person who killed her? Why was he the only one who cared?

Will Tashué be able to stand against everything he thought he believed in to get the answers he’s looking for?

Review

Wow. This packed a punch and is still, a week after reading it, living in my head. It will be there for a long, long time. I immediately want to read the next book to continue the story.

Told from multiple points of view, this is a brilliant, character led story. Yes, there is a murder to solve, but it is not as simple as that. It never is, is it?

When Tashué Blackwood, Regulation Officer, is on the scene when the mutilated body of a child is found and no one else seems to want to know who, why or how, he decides to find out.

What follows is a story of flawed humans, moral dilemmas, vulnerability, political intrigue, power struggles, emotional turmoil, complex relationships, found family and love in all its forms.

This is a dark story, the characters have all faced (and are still facing) trauma and moral dilemmas, made their choices rightly or wrongly and are living the consequences of those choices.

Finding the corpse is the catalyst for Tashué to change the trajectory of his life, to try to make up for the decisions he has taken “for the Authority”. Is it too late?

Krystle Matar has created a complex and compelling world in which complex and compelling characters live and breathe.

Thanks to @The_WriteReads for the eARC.

Faith of Their Fathers by Samuel M. Sargeant

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment

Blurb

False God.

At the dawn of the 10th Century in a small Icelandic settlement, these words, daubed in blood, herald the arrival of a killer. 

Soon, a spate of murders threatens the fragile peace between pagans and a growing Christian minority. Arinbjorn, a young pagan farmer resolves to track down the killer before the community is permanently torn apart. His investigations will draw in Freya, an isolated housewife whose secrets could either condemn or free her.

Meanwhile in Norway, King Olaf Tryggvason has his own designs upon Iceland and its people. War is rife in Scandinavia, and a Christian Iceland would bolster his control over the region.

Only one thing is certain: these murders will change Icelandic society forever.

Review

Considering that I love historical sagas and devour television series like Vikings and The Last Kingdom, I rarely read them. Faith of their Fathers piqued my interest and has very much tempted me to right this wrong and read more of them.

Unlike the sagas mentioned above, Faith of their Fathers focusses not on violent invasions or raids, but on the farming and trading population in a small settlement in Iceland, whilst still encompassing the desire for rulers to expand their power bases.

The King of Norway’s priest has been sent to convert the Icelanders to Christianity, but he is not converting as many as the King wants/needs. How can he speed up the conversion rate and also keep the peace between the newly baptised Christians and the majority who still worship the Old Gods? How will the murder of a Christian family impact on his work?

The author, using historical events to centre the story, describes life for these Icelanders clearly and the characters are fully formed and believable. There are explicitly violent scenes, as was the way of things at that time, with religion being used as an excuse for violence to convince one side or the other that their way is the right way way, their god is the right god. However, they do not take away from what is a well crafted, character led story.

As was also the way at that time, it is mostly the men who feature in this story, although the women who do, Freya, Bera and Tyra, are strong and perceptive, making the most of their circumstances and opportunities to influence the actions of the men they love and care for. Freya is particularly strong willed and influential.

Thanks to Neem Tree Press and @The_WriteReads for the ARC to review for this blog tour.

Guns and Almond Milk by Mustafa Marwan

On By @f33lthesunIn AdultLeave a comment

Blurb

Meet Luke Archer, a British Egyptian doctor who struggles to be from two worlds at the same time. He’s working in one of the world’s most dangerous hospitals in Yemen. When rebel forces take over the city, a group of Western mercenaries take refuge inside the hospital and Luke and his team find themselves in the middle of a deadly clash. To make matters worse, leading the mercenaries is an unwelcome figure from Luke’s past. After years saving the lives of others, Luke needs to face the demons of his past in order to save his own.

Set in the UK and Yemen, Guns and Almond Milk is a literary thriller that deals with identity, diversity and old coins of arguable value. It’s The Sympathizer mixed with M.A.S.H by the way of Ramy.

Review

I was unsure what I expected from this but what I got was a fast paced, fairly graphic story with dry, gallows humour, of medics treating soldiers in war torn Yemen, with the intriguing back story of two of the characters, who find themselves reunited in siege circumstances as the hospital comes under sustained attack from the rebels.

The back story of Adam/Luke and Max was not what I expected. What could a first time volunteer medic and a mercenary possibly have been involved in together in the past? Sorry, no spoilers.

Besides the obvious war theme, the other main theme is that of names and identity. Yes…the age old “but where are you really from” question.

An interesting and thought provoking read.

Thank you to the author and @The_WriteReads for the eARC for the purposes of this review.

The Siren, the Song and the Spy by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

On By @f33lthesunIn #YA, FantasyLeave a comment
Cover by Victo Ngai (@victongai)

Blurb

A diverse resistance force fights to topple an empire in this vibrant fantasy about freedom, identity and decolonization.

By sinking a fleet of Imperial Warships, the Pirate Supreme and their resistance fighters have struck a massive blow against the Emperor. Now allies from across the empire are readying themselves, hoping against hope to bring about the end of the conquerors’ rule and the rebirth of the Sea. But trust and truth are hard to come by in this complex world of mermaids, spies, warriors, and aristocrats. Who will Genevieve – lavishly dressed but washed up, half dead, on the Wariuta island shore – turn out to be? Is warrior Koa’s kindness towards her admirable, or is his sister Kaia’s sharp suspicion wiser? And back in the capital, will pirate-spy Alfie really betray the Imperials who have shown him affection, especially when a duplicitous senator reveals xe would like nothing better?

Meanwhile, the Sea is losing more and more of herself as her daughters continue to be brutally hunted, and the Empire continues to expand through profits made from their blood. The threads of time, a web of schemes, shifting loyalties, and blossoming identities converge in this story of unlikely young allies trying to forge a new and better world.

Review

I only realise after reading this that it is the second book set in this world, however I was able to read it without having read the first. Not giving anything away by saying I will be reading the first one, The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea.

The author’s world building is excellent, as are the characters she has created and developed. They are well formed and deep. I think the use of chapters giving us multi viewpoints throughout helps us to bond with them. I particularly loved that the sea had her own chapters, which provided a link between a lot of the others.

The big themes of identity (individual and group), freedom, decolonisation, war and resistance are covered well and the friction between wanting freedom but having to inflict violence to achieve it is palpable, especially in Koa, one of the suppressed nation’s warriors.

If you enjoyed series like Utterly Dark by Philip Reeve or Orphans of the Tide by Struan Murray you will enjoy this. Note that this is definitely Young Adult, not for KS2 like those mentioned.

Thank to NetGalley and Walker for the eARC in exchange for this review. It will be published on 1st February 2024.