Chorus

April 15, 2014
Eight years after the fall of the Corp during older brother Anthem's rebellion in Coda (2013), teenage Alpha struggles with its legacy. Alpha left the Web for Los Angeles, needing to get away from tracking--the use of encoded music tracks as a mind-altering drug--as her childhood exposure left her with lingering problems, such as flashbacks and an addiction waiting to take root. In Los Angeles, she's not only safe from the temptation to use, but able to pursue medical studies, with the lofty goal of finding a cure for the special addictions forced on her and her twin, Omega. When she gets the message that her older brother (and Coda's protagonist), Anthem, is succumbing to ill health due to his use as a human battery by the Corp, she returns home to say goodbye, accompanied by a few others, including her Los Angeles-native boyfriend. But strange things are afoot--someone's sending peculiar messages to Alpha, and tracks are somehow getting back to Los Angeles. Someone is resurrecting the Corp; Alpha must find out who it is and stop the Corp again. Slow pacing in the first half stretches the story thin, and the action-packed ending is disorienting, particularly due to the large number of characters any given pronoun could refer to. Although Alpha is a weaker protagonist than Anthem, most of the plot twists are effective. All things considered, though, an unnecessary sequel. (Science fiction. 13 & up)

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June 1, 2014

Gr 8 Up-In this concluding sequel to Coda (Running Pr., 2013) set eight years after the successful revolution led by Ant and Haven, a new president leads the Web. The Corporation is gone, tracks of music are no longer used as drugs, and people are no longer used to power the network. Alpha has left The Web and her brothers Ant and Omega to make a new life for herself in Los Angeles where she hopes to become a doctor and find a cure for the nightmares and reactions caused by her one-time exposure to an extremely addictive musical track. When Alpha receives word that Ant is dying, she and her fellow band members head to the Web to tell her older brother goodbye and to see her twin Omega. Things have changed, though. People are beginning to look like they did before the revolution-addicted and ill. Alpha's blackouts from her exposure to the track are becoming more frequent. When she and her friends try to enter into the mainframe of the city to discover what is happening, they unleash a danger to both them and the rest of the country. Complex and thrilling, this sequel provides a satisfactory ending to the two volume series. Characters introduced in the first book are given voice and a further development. The musical themes and imagery are rich and often discordant and sometimes muddy to the plot. The book does not stand alone, but for those who have read it, Chorus is an exciting conclusion.-Janet Hilbun, University of North Texas

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2014
Grades 8-11 After Anthem took down the Corporation in Coda (2012), his little sister, Alpha, fled to L.A. to start a new life far away from the Web. Years later, lingering flashbacks of her one experience with tracking remain and fuel her desire to find a cure for addiction to encoded music. When Anthem nears death, Alpha and her friends return to the Web only to discover that the insidious forces they thought were gone were really just lying in wait. In a breathy first-person narrative, Alpha gives voice to her inner struggles as she bravely reignites her brother's cause and fights for real freedom.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)