Promised

September 15, 2012
Gaia's back at the walls of the Enclave, and this time she means business. Teen midwife and revolutionary Gaia has led her people from the false security of Sylum to the gates of the Enclave, determined to build a new city (and strangely confident that the baddies inside the Enclave walls will give her people water, despite her past history with them). But wait! The rich, powerful Enclave doesn't want to share their (seemingly infinite) resources with anyone else, and so Gaia and love interest Leon, disowned son of the Proctectorat, decide to take the Enclave down. The faint feminism of the previous volumes here takes a conservative twist, with Gaia's self-worth startlingly tied into her ability to reproduce; the emphasis on birth family as opposed to adoptive family as "real" may also distress some readers. Meanwhile, the plot hurtles forward with coincidence and convenience at the fore, and characters happily hang about at Peg's Tavern even in the wake of a bloody revolution. At least the love triangle is resolved, and the ending promises a happy future for all. Less polished and more potentially troubling for close readers, but those who have read the first two will want to see Gaia succeed against the odds once again. (Dystopian romance. 12-16)

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January 1, 2013

Gr 7-10-The final book of this trilogy finds 17-year-old Gaia Stone leading the people of Sylum back to the Enclave from which she once escaped. They have nowhere else to go. But once they are there, troubles abound. As Gaia enters the Enclave for negotiations, she discovers that young girls are being coerced into service and used as surrogate mothers for the rich couples unable to produce healthy babies. When she attempts to negotiate a peaceful settlement for her people, she is taken hostage, and because of her blood type, her ovaries are the price for a peaceful settlement to the conflict. Gaia's fiance, the son of the leader of the Enclave, risks his life to save her. Readers who relish romance, lots of action and drama that includes overthrowing an evil regime, and strong female characters will love this book. Because of its place in the series, it is not really a stand-alone title; readers must start from the beginning to fully appreciate the characters and events.-Kathy Kirchoefer, Henderson County Public Library, NC

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2012
Grades 9-12 More than a year has passed since Birthmarked (2010), and in this trilogy ender, 17-year-old Gaia returns to the walled city of the Enclave along with her Sylum followers, who are desperate to once again have female babies. But things have changed in the Enclave. The ruthless Protectorat has created the Vessel Institute: a baby factory for birthing offspring for wealthy but childless couples. Will the standoff between camps be breached by diplomacy or violent assault? (Take a guess.) Though some of Gaia's impulsive actions to save her beloved Leon strain credulity, this is a satisfying finish to a strong series that deftly mixed romance and, of all things, genetics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)