Title: Divided World
Series: EMP Aftermath
Author: Grace Hamilton
Publisher: Relay Publishing
Release Date: 10th May 2023
BLURB from Goodreads
They went looking for their daughter. They found a civil war…
Laurel and her husband Bear are finally reunited. But South Minneha Hospital is no longer the haven it once was. Together, they take on a new quest: leaving the hospital behind, and setting off to find their daughter, Mae.
Accompanied by Trent and Jess, Laurel and Bear leave the safety of Minneha and begin their search, knowing only that Sergeant Mae Petersen was serving in the US Army when the EMP hit. The Internet is just a memory, and phones are now quaint relics. Finding out where one soldier was stationed—and where she might be now—will take a miracle.
Laurel is up for the challenge, but the world changed while she was fighting to save South Minneha. Roving bands of gunmen have given way to organized paramilitary groups. The land she and her companions must cross is contested by two factions, the Militia and the Freemen. Tensions are rising, lines are being drawn, and one fact is painfully clear…
If Laurel and Bear are to reunite their family, they’re going to have to fight.
REVIEW
I think the cover of this book fits really well with the rest of the series and it would certainly make me pick it up from a book store shelf to learn more.
I’ll be totally honest I thought that this series may have ended after bk 3 Dangerous World when Bear and Laurel were finally reunited and seemed to be happily building a small secure settlement at the hospital. When I discovered Divided World was being published, I knew I had to read it. I had thought the characters of Bear and Laurel could not and would not truly settle to their lives in this changed world without at least trying to find their daughter Mae.
Bear and Laurel find it difficult to leave their friends at the hospital but know in their hearts they have to attempt to find Mae. Trent is at first unsure as to whether he is welcome o the journey but his mind is soon put to rest by both Bear and Laurel telling him he is part of their family now and always will be. In fact, they do ask if anyone else wishes to go with them, but everyone else has reasons they need to stay behind at the hospital in relative safety.
We are told the story from the points of view of Bear, Laurel & Trent and from Sergeant Mae Peterson too.
Bear and Laurel soon discover the world is a much harsher place than they remember but push forward in their almost impossible task of finding their daughter Mae, a Sergeant in the army. Bear, Laurel, Trent and Jess discover the world is full of roving groups of people willing to kill to take what little you have as well as two larger main factions. The first is a military, Militia group and the other group are calling themselves the Freemen. Neither Bear not Laurel intends to get involved with any of the groups, they just want to find their daughter. Bear, Laurel and Trent’s dream of ideal is to find Mae and then head back to Bears home and create their own little secure settlement there.
Bear has a rather eccentric friend who has “contacts” and access to records as to the whereabouts of people in the army. However even getting to him is a journey filled with danger. Then when they get to the area where Bear’s friend lives, they have to navigate the traps he has in place to capture intruders. There is a rather large important fact Bear has kept from Laurel, his friend may not recognise him! After a dangerous start, Bear’s eccentric friend agrees to send word to some of his other “prepper group” via pigeon to see if they can check their records for the possible whereabouts of Sergeant Mae Peterson. Bear, Laura & Trent & Jess head off together but are tricked and attacked and become separated with Trent seeming to disappear.
Mae is with a group of soldiers being led by a leader new to most of them, Captain Cornell. Captain Cornell doesn’t reveal where they are headed to, or what his orders are or even the plan of action for when they do get to their destination. Mae doesn’t like it but decides to keep her head down knowing the Captain doesn’t like being questioned. When the militia get to their mysterious rendezvous point there is clear evidence of a battle. Someone hobbles out of a bush with a message for the Militia leader Captain Cornell from the Freemen leader Art King. Art warns for the Militia to leave, go elsewhere or prepare for battle!
It's during an attempted raid that Mae is taken in by the Freemen. She has been shot and her own army colleagues left her for dead, or that’s what the Freemen say happen. Mae cannot imagine fellow soldier Gideon leaving her behind, but then she reflects if Captain Cornell ordered him to leave her Gideon would have no choice. Art and his settlement of people nurse Mae back to health though she is clearly suspicious of them to begin with she seems to mellow and almost change her mind to the point of seeming to agree to join them. It’s whilst Mae is with the Freemen that a young boy and his dog arrive and are accepted into the group when it turns out he has previous history with some of the Freemen. It’s not long before Trent & Mae reveal themselves to each other, with Trent recognising Mae from a photo Bear has shown him and Mae recognising the little white dog Jess. Sadly the Freemen are once again attacked and Mae & Trent are tasked with accompanying the children of the camp to the relative safety of nearby cave. It’s there that Trent discovers a side to Mae that he doesn’t like. He had automatically thought he could trust Mae as she is Bear and Laura’s daughter and he trusts them with his life. Trent rushes off back in the direction of the fighting to tell Art that Mae cannot be trusted. It’s not long after that Bear and Laurel arrive at the cave and are both shocked yet relieved to be reunited with Mae. The relief and reunion doesn’t last long when Bear & Laurel realise Trent is missing. They vow to set off in search of him the following morning. However, things don’t go exactly to plan as Art insists Laurel stay to help attend to the injure. Bear and Mae set off in search of Trent but they end up being captured by the Militia.
So much happens in this book, it is seriously packed full of all sorts of action and angst.
There is a sad but expected loss of one of the much-loved characters, I have to admit I shed a tear and had a little sob when reading.
Laura catches up with one of the Doctors from the hospital and introduces Bear to him, and Bear feels a little jealous and suspicious of the Doctors feeling towards his estranged wife Laurel. There is a lot of Laura and Bear getting used to being around each other and learning what their true feelings are for each other. I adored how Trent was finally settling in and accepting that he is part of the Peterson family. I’m really hoping for some sort of happy ending for them, for them to settle somewhere though, I don’t know where and exactly who that may be with yet!
Then there is the introduction of Mae who I had presumed would be like her parents who are quite black and white with what they think is right and wrong. However, it seems that Mae is happy to exist in the grey zone and play her cards close to her chest going along and stringing along people then possibly betraying them in favour of her military ties.
Of course, those are the character aspects of the book there is also the whole warring faction’s aspect too. With the Militia made up of military and civilians who have since armed themselves and joined forces with them on one side trying to take control of a warehouse full of supplies that shouldn’t fall into the hands of “the wrong people”. The Freemen, led by Art King are groups of civilians who have joined forces who have control over this warehouse that the Militia want. Art Freemen says they are a passive group and do not want trouble but that they will fight for what is theirs and will defend themselves too. Small groups leave the main Freemen compound to gather supplies but there seems to be some confusion as to how they get these supplies with Bear & Laurel witnessing first hand one of the small groups of people attacked and literally cleaned out of supplies by the Freemen. Does Art know the methods his small supply teams are employing when gathering supplies? It hasn’t really been revealed yet.
The end of this book leaves Bear and Laurel separated again as Bear and Mae are captured by the Militia, Laurel is with the Freemen tending to the injured, and Trent is still missing. I can’t wait to read the next book, How will Bear & Laurel be reunited? Where is Trent? Can Jess help to search and find him? Which side will Mae choose? Who will get ultimate and final control of the warehouse and what is in it that is so important to shed so much blood for?
My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading the book were Wow! What a rollercoaster journey this book plot is and it sure plays with your emotions, from sad heart goodbyes, heart breaking characters deaths to thinking everything just might be going to go okay now, to everyone separated again!!
Summing up I can't wait for the next book, I want to read it right now!!
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