Grace by Elizabeth Scott
Dutton, September 2010
read for A-Z Challenge
read for A-Z Challenge
Summary from Goodreads:
Grace was raised to be an Angel, a herald of death by suicide bomb. But she refuses to die for the cause, and now Grace is on the run, daring to dream of freedom. In search of a border she may never reach, she travels among malevolent soldiers on a decrepit train crawling through the desert. Accompanied by the mysterious Kerr, Grace struggles to be invisible, but the fear of discovery looms large as she recalls the history and events that delivered her uncertain fate. Told in spare, powerful prose by acclaimed author Elizabeth Scott, this tale of a dystopian near future will haunt readers long after they've reached the final page.OK, lesser of two evils, anyone? Can anyone fault Grace for desperately trying to escape both of these horrible worlds? All of Grace's fellow Angels are happy--ecstatic, even--to complete their mission (thereby killing themselves in the process). It's been drilled into them that Angels only exist to fulfill their mission, and for these girls that's enough. At a pivotal moment, however, Grace discovers what want feels like and nothing can stop her from trying to escape the only life she's ever known. Even the knowledge that she'll be making this journey with a stranger, Kerr, who has his own story to tell, isn't enough to stop her from finally living her own life.
Through glimpses into the past Scott shows us the world Grace was brought up in, and readers will easily grow to sympathize with her plight. I can certainly understand the People's point of view--the land is the land and Keran Berj is really an evil dictator. However, over time they have completely warped their vision until their violent retataliations are just as bad as Keran Berj's ruling. This story gives a shocking glimpse into the world of suicide bombers--how brainwashing is such an integral part of their propaganda.
Dystopian fans will enjoy this novel...dystopian fans who are ready for a stand-alone dystopian novel will enjoy it even more!
*Living Dead Girl will always remain my favorite Elizabeth Scott novel, though!
Enjoy your reading!
Christi
I have to agree with your comment about stand-alone dystopia...there's so little of it, and it's an entirely different experience. Stand-alone YA in general, actually! I've heard great things about this one, I'll have to get my hands on a copy. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteGreat review! I read this one last year, and really, really enjoyed. Elizabeth writes such an amazing variety of books- ro-coms one minute the next startling and morbid dystopians.
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