Monday, March 23, 2015

Rebellion


Rebellion by Stephanie Diaz (Book 2) 3.5 STARS


Rebellion (Extraction, #2)Synopsis
The uprising has begun.
It's been seven days since Clementine and Logan, along with their allies, retreated into hiding on the Surface. The rebels may have won one battle against Commander Charlie, but the fight is far from finished. He has vowed to find a way to win—no matter the cost. Do the rebels have what it takes to defeat him...and put an end to this war?
As Clementine and Logan enter a desperate race against time to defeat Commander Charlie—and attempt to weaken his power within his own ranks—they find themselves in a terrifying endgame that pits them against a brutal enemy, and each other. With every step, Clementine draws closer to losing Logan...and losing control of herself.
Continuing with the mesmerizing saga that started with Extraction, Stephanie Diaz blends science fiction, epic romance, and heart-stopping adventure to create a world that no reader will soon forget.
 
 
* I received a copy from net galley in exchange for an honest review 

Review

I enjoyed Stephanie Diaz's 2nd book in the series Rebellion about as much as I did Extraction ( the first book).  Which is to say, I enjoyed it but it wasn't anything "amazing" "new" or different. I will say though that the characters were more developed, especially Clementine (I still hate that name, or her nick name Clem.) But I felt that the book, much like its predecessor, was slow in too many areas. And I don't think action is required in a book to make it fast paced or interesting.


This book starts basically where we left off. Clem and the other rebels are in the headquarters. What really brought Clem to life, was the PTSD she suffers from that we really see (though lest this remind us of another book....Hunger Games anyone?) Clem is also paranoid about everything and everyone. In some ways this works for her and in others against her. Clem and Logan decide to go undercover in the camps she came from after learning that things above ground are changing and no one knows why. Here I find Clem to be a little to trusting. For someone so paranoid and who has been burned before, it seemed like she was willing to forego that to trust people she'd never me. Additionally, she is constantly acting like a martyr, (Divergent?) trying to "save" everyone. It amazed me that she survived given her stupidity and  overly trusting nature.  Without giving away spoilers, this book focuses on the new threat Charlie poses and the way in which he intends to control his population. This aspect of the book I found very clever, new and intriguing. And this is around the time I actually became interested. (Okay that's a bit dramatic but still).

There were a few really crazy and interesting plot twists. Some of them I predicted and were extremely obvious, others actually surprised me! I am pleased with the lack of a love triangle, I find that Logan and Clem, though constantly getting in each others way, are good "lovers". unfortunately there were a few problems with this book, the slow pace, especially at first, and the similarities between this and other books was hard to ignore. In the end, overlooking the issues, I found that it wasn't a complete wash, and that I generally enjoyed this book. I am planning to read the last one for sure as it left me of a cliff!!!