Sunday, September 2, 2018

Chosen by Brey Willows

ChosenChosen by Brey Willows

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I received an ARC of this book from Bold Strokes Books & Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really had no idea what to expect from this specific book here. I mean, I read and enjoyed the author’s Afterlife trilogy, but that was fantasy. This is science fiction. Post-Apocalyptic science fiction. What I found? Well, there is a rough-ish start, I need to mention that, but after that rough start? I found the book very hard to put down. I inhaled the book – quite enjoyed it.

There were moments in the book that reminded me of other post-apocalyptic lesbian fiction stories I’d read, though very briefly. Like there were times when the women (well two women and one man) were bravely pushing through the wilderness that reminded me of both May Dawney’s Survival Instincts (at least, again like in Vaun’s book, the wandering around outside part – though Dawney’s series is very much a darker future for mankind book), and Missouri Vaun’s Return to Earth post-apocalyptic series (mostly the part in the prequel book when one of the main characters is wandering the post-apocalyptic USA landscape, like in this book here). I stop to mention that Vaun’s ‘Proxima Five’ is the third ARC I requested this month – and there’s this weird thing that developed from reading this book here, then immediately turning to Proxima Five . . . I kind of felt like Proxima Five could very easily have been a sequel of sorts to this book here . . . at least that was the vague vibe I had in the beginning while reading Proxima Five.

But let’s talk about this book here, Chosen.

Chosen is set in the relatively near-future (not that close in time, maybe a hundred years in the future? I think a date was given at some point, but I missed it *opens book for different reason, see that this book is set in 2100) in a world wherein the Earth has succumbed to the ravages of man-kinds impact on it and society has to live with diseases that can’t be treated by anti-biotics; with every rising sea-levels; with constant outbreaks of wildfires; with massive constant hurricanes, typhoons, tsunami’s, earthquakes, etc. etc. – basically earth is trying to shake mankind off the planet.

The book opens with two main characters - Devin Rossi and Karissa Decker. Unseen in the story, but mentioned – both women received a ‘disc’ about a year ago that indicated that the government would be collecting them . . . eventually. Well eventually is now. And both women react quite differently with the pick-up. First we see Devin Rossi calmly being picked up – even being saluted and stuff (Devin, along with being a top geologist, was also a Lieutenant in the Air Force). Then we see Karissa being picked up – Devin was picked up from a falling apart (from ‘conditions) home, by herself, Karissa has her two parents there – mother dying from ‘the fever’, and father. Karissa puts up a fight – though, since Devin was picked up first, she was able to bring the tension levels down (by reminding/stating/asking if Karissa wanted her parents last memories of her being tasered until unconsciousness and dragged away, or . . .something calmer?).

Devin and Karissa, you see, have been picked up by a government convoy – that’s been going around picking up top tier scientists (stop for a moment to inject: it’s not the only convoy for this project). They are told nothing – even though Devin is respected and stuff, they are told nothing much. Just get into the truck and sit there while the truck wanders the countryside.

Eventually a new point of view suddenly appears. Unexpectedly. *glances at book description again* Yep, unexpectedly. We move, the reader does, to the point of view of ‘Van’ – one of the leaders of a survival groups (I can be more exact, but I’ll let things unfold for the reader like they did for me). The book alternates between two plot-lines (except for moments when it splits into three – when the two lead women from the beginning, Devin and Karissa, are too far apart to keep in same line), one following the ‘top-tier scientists’ and one following ‘Van and the raiders’.

And that’s how the three women meet – while stuffed in one of the trucks, Devin and Karissa hear gunfire suddenly break out. Then a voice, and tapping. Raiders force the scientists out of the truck, then start raiding the supplies.

The two-plot lines show the diverging paths of humanity in this era (well, there are more than two paths, but these are two of them) – the attempt to ‘restart’ humanity ‘elsewhere’ (and this is why Proxima Five feels like a sequel – because that’s how the book opened, earth is ravaged, people get onto ships to try to ‘make a restarted humanity better through the experience and knowledge and mistakes from ruining Earth’ – and the book opens with one of the ships on a ‘new earth’). Distracted myself. Ah. And the other path (or another path) – those who stay behind to try to ‘save humanity’ here and not there.

I loved watching the story unfold, the tension, the action, the moments of insanity, and the moments of sanity. Quite enjoyable book.

Of the now four books I’ve read by Brey Willows, I’d put this one at the top of the list of favorite Willows books. This one gets a full five stars. The first book in the Afterlife trilogy received 4.75 stars.

Rating: 5 stars

October 2 2018




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