BookView Review

BookView Review rated it:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Penguins & Ducks Press

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Author website

ISBN 979-8-9881209-0-2, $3.99 • Ebook • 324 pages
US Publication: Nov 14, 2023
ISBN 979-8-9881209-2-6, $23.99 • Hardcover • 6”x9” Page count 268
US Publication: Nov 14, 2023
ISBN 979-8-9881209-1-9, $17.99 Paperback • 6”x9” Page count 268
US Publication: Feb 6, 2024

Genre:

FICTION / Science
Fiction / Action & Adventure;

FICTION / Science
Fiction / Apocalyptic & PostApocalyptic;

FICTION / Fantasy /
Action & Adventure

Author interview

In a dying future, two teenagers team up with a desperate prisoner to save their world in King’s first installment in the planned dystopian series. The planet is dying. With the government controlling food supplies, survival is something people have to fight for. A rebel group, viciously fighting the government, is in control of a precious nest of honeybees, the last in the known world. When the authorities learn of honeybees, they configure a dangerous plan in their bid to conquer the rebels and secure their precious supplies of honey. King’s worldbuilding is intriguing and fully realized, incorporating both utopian and dystopian elements along with relevant hot-button issues such as societal inequities, surveillance, and oppression. The cast is fully realized, especially X and Y, and their individual and shared struggles easily gain readers’ sympathies.  Mel also undergoes realistic, engrossing, and meaningful growth as she struggles with questions of integrity and sacrifice. Her tumultuous relationship with X and Y develops in gentle, unexpected ways. The third-person omniscient narrative places readers directly into the characters’ minds, and the age factor (X and Y are adolescents) helps strike an excellent balance between vastly different viewpoints of adults and children. The overall premise, which seems simple initially, grows in scope as the stakes rise, and the novel beautifully examines the ways in which corrupt and oppressive systems work to control people’s lives. An engrossing series starter with engaging concepts and memorable characters.

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