REVIEW - FALLING - AFTER THE THAW BY TAMAR SLOAN & HEIDI CATHERINE

Title: Falling

Series: After The Thaw

Authors: Tamar Sloan & Heidi Catherine

Genre: Sci-Fi, Dystopian, Post Apocalyptic, 

               Climate Change Fiction

Release Date: 3rd April 2020

BLURB from Goodreads

Only the chosen shall breed.

Nova, Kian, Dex, and Wren.

Four divided hearts. Four teens no longer sure what they’re fighting for.

Their society was meant to mold human evolution. Their future, and that of Earth, was to be decided by the kindest and smartest. Askala was supposed to be a beacon of hope in a flooded, desecrated world.

Except the line between the Bound and Unbound is blurring. The Outlands is no longer some distant, faceless world. And the Remnants have a leader who knows more about them than any Remnant before.

In a world devastated by global warming, the fight for survival has always been deadly. Now, the battle for Askala is about to define the very future of humanity.

But...does the greatest threat lie within?

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REVIEW
After reading the other books in the After The Thaw series as they were released I was eagerly awaiting the release of this book. This time the bird on the book cover is in green and fits the aesthetic of the other covers very well. I bet these books look amazing in paperback all together on a book shelf. I think they will definitely stand out on a book store shelf too.

In this book our favourite characters all seem to have to separate in order to fight for a future and favourable outcome for Askala. Unbound Nova pregnant by her Bound ex-boyfriend Kian feels neither she nor her unborn child have any sort of future in Askal and when she discovers their plan impulsively flees with Thom and Flick who is also pregnant. Thom cleverly adapts a raft adding a sail which he hopes will provide extra speed to their journey across the ocean to the Outlands. Unfortunately, they are not as far as they would have liked to be across the ocean when a bad storm hits. The very thing that had helped them now puts them at more risk as the lightening strikes ever nearer the pole the sail is tied to. Disaster strikes as they are all thrown into the sea. Flick and Nova soon realise they may have been seeing the prospect of the Outlands through “rose-coloured” glasses and are soon in trouble. The Askalan’s are quite naïve and seem to expect everyone to have the type of “be kind” ethic they have. They assume that people will help them for nothing in return which Nova and Flick are at first shocked by and then horrified when they realise what they may be expected to do in return for a favour. Luckily for them there are still some kind hearted people in the Outlands and they are rescued by a disfigured woman called Avis who has created a home in what is left of the city.

Meanwhile in Askala, Kian plans to go after Nova and offers payment in pteropods for volunteers to go with him. However, all this is interrupted by the arrival of Cy, Wren’s father, who some of the Askalan’s remember as Ronan. Naturally from Cy’s point of view he was thrown out of Askala for not being good enough. It seems he has forgotten what he did to the pteropods, and the whole illegal action of stealing bound chips. Cy soon begins to wreak his revenge on his old friends that he perceives as enemies. He holds his very own ceremony where Bound and Unbound alike are expected to declare him as leader. Anyone who does not declare Cy leader is beaten and are to be banished.

There’s a great scene between Kian and Dex, where Dex encourages a Kian to still go find Nova. Kian is once again torn between the love of his life and the love and duty to Askala. In the end Kian names Dex as leader of Askala in his absence and leaves with fellow Bound Shiloh and Unbounds Finn and Dean. Dean wants to leave Askala as Cy is his brother and they really do not get on so he chooses the option that suits him the most. It soon becomes apparent that Dean could be an asset as he is strong so helps with the rowing and when they land on the shores of the Outlands and head into the same Outlanders that Nova, Flick & Thom ran into Kian shows his naivety and ends up parting with some of their precious pteropod food source in exchange for information that isn’t very good. Dean comes across as a bit more street wise, as an Unbound he is suspicious of people “wanting to help”.

Back in Askala, Dex is trying to help the Alaskan’s, made up of Bound and Unbound that have refused to call Cy leader. When there’s a confrontation between Cy and Dex and Wren reacts her father Cy, is quick to order his men to hold her back and keeps a closer eye on his daughter. He is not impressed by her feelings for Dex, even though Dex is the son Mercy, the woman he declares he has never stopped loving all these years. Things begin to look pretty bleak for Dex and his band of followers when Cy orders them to be banished to the forest for the bears to eat. However, help comes from a surprising source.

I enjoyed the way Bound and Unbound united in this book to fight a common enemy, to stand firm on what they believe in. Though it was a shame that Cy came along just as Kian was planning to make so many changes for the better that should have brought a more equal society.

In this book we saw different sides to some of the characters, such as Flick wasn’t as selfish and created a great bond with Nova when she revealed she was pregnant, assuring her she would be with her to help. Dean seems to redeem himself a little and really find his place in the Outlands, but he plans on forming an army to fight Cy as he believes that will be the only way to regain control of Askala from him.

You can already see the parental sides of Nova and Kian coming out when they become attached and take care of Luca a young resident of Fairbanks.

I immediately fell in love with the characters of Avis, a woman whose babies had been snatched from her and was cast out alone, but had the strength to help create a safe haven for other youngsters and those who were different. The type of people that would be considered disfigured or disabled.

I had my doubts with both Wren and Phoenix at different points in this book, wondering why they didn’t stand up for their new friends. Though you do realise when you “see” them with Cy that though he loves them, it’s a tough kind of love and they can easily fall out of favour with him. Ultimately his word is law, but how far will they let him go in Askala before they choose a side and stick with it to whatever the end may be. Wren seems quieter in this book wary of her father, worried about showing her feelings for Dex too much in front of her father and being unsure if Dex will still love her after discovering who her father is. It’s like Wren and Phoenix are different people, they have a role they have to slip into when they are with Cy, both to fit in and to survive. Who would have thought Phoenix could have a soppy side and want to find someone to fall in love with and be envious of Wren’s budding relationship with Dex. Who could Phoenix fall in love with? I mean he hints he really liked Nova, but Nova only had eyes for Kian, so he had no chance there! Hmm I’m thinking (without explaining as it could give spoilers away) Shiloh, or Flick maybe.

Finn an unbound Askalan resident seems to find love in this book too, with Dharma who lives in the relative safety of the home Avis has created called Fairbanks.

I had some ideas, or inklings/suspicions on a few of the mysteries brought up in this book, as to who Avis and her children are. The really subtle hints are there to spot and then there’s a further much clearer hint before the end revelation.

Again, I found the writing and world building fantastic, the subtle hints at what is to come. The characters are so well thought out and the authors have put both good and not so good qualities in the “haves” and the “have nots” in this book. Even though initially the Outlanders are categorised as being tough and are portrayed as being violent towards Nova and Flick, their eventual rescuer, Avis is also an Outlander, and yes, she is tough, she has had to be to survive but she is also fair and kind. I enjoyed how the different Askalan & Outlander generations had different thoughts on what the future should look like. Magnus and Amity believe they must continue living as they are with the Bound and Unbound as it is the only way the earth will recover. Magnus makes it abundantly clear to Kian he doesn’t agree with the direction he wants to take Askala in. Kian thinks that whatever the Askalan people have should be shared equally between the Bound and Unbound. Kian wants to stop using the labels of Bound, and Unbound, especially as he and Nova have a child coming into the world they are living in. Where would their child fit in within the current parameters of their society as it has a Bound father and an Unbound mother. Cy, of the same generation as Magnus, wants to be the ultimate leader and everyone that stands with him can share in the bounty so long as they do as he says. If they disagree then they are banished to the forest. Wren and Phoenix the same generation as Kian, Nova and Dex have a similar view as Kian and want an equal fair society for all, but how can they get Cy to see reason? What will have to happen for them to openly stand against him? I could honestly ramble on about the differences and similarities between different characters, as well as lots of possible future scenarios and possible outcomes. This amazing series really has you thinking about society, and the whole reasoning between the separation of the Askalan’s into Bound, Unbound and High Bound. With what is happening in the world right now you cannot help but draw comparisons with real life.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading this book were
Wow! ....just wow!

To sum up this book was as action packed as the other books in the series and there was so much action going on both in Askala and in the Outlands. The ending! What a cliff hanger! What a book! It left me with so many questions and theories. When is Wren going to remember to check out what Phoenix told her to? Is Phoenix going to end up with Flick or Shiloh....or someone else? I love Luca and how Nova & Kian seem to have officially adopted him! Will they need Dean's remnant army after all? I am really looking forward to Avis reuniting with her children, and those children learning the truth! I bet that will be a bit of a tear jerker! What more can I say? . . .Oh ...yes....when can I read Reckoning?

One more thing I honestly I wouldn't compare this brilliant series to The Hunger Games & Divergent, hand on heart I love this series more!! There are a few small elements that are similar, such as there being factions in Divergent, districts in The Hunger Games and the Bound and Unbound in this series. I certainly agree with the comparison in that this series could be turned into films or a TV series, though I would want Tamar & Heidi to have a lot of input so it was kept true to the books. I think that it would be as popular as The Hunger Games & Divergent but in its own right as it has its own feel and uniqueness. Highly recommend reading this series, and I am both looking forward to reading more, yet at the same time dreading the series coming to an end.