Book Review: Dawn of Rebellion
Dawn of Rebellion takes place in a futuristic world where the USA has become an English colony again. Worse yet, the colonies have become a prison where most offenders in the UK are thrown together for committing just about any crime.
The tale is told through the POV of Dawn and Gabby, two teenage sisters who lost their parents at a young age. Dawn and Gabby couldn’t be more different if they tried, though they are tight and look after each other, despite their stark differences.
Little do Dawn and Gabby know that their lives are about to take a major turn when Gabby innocently tries to pick up an expensive bracelet as a birthday gift for her sister while going for a ride with Drew, her rich boyfriend . . . with no intention to pay for the expensive present.
What seems to be an innocent, bold adventure for Gabby leads to a nightmarish outcome when Drew’s father, a stern, high-ranking military officer with lots of clout—who happens to be a perfect illustration of the current cruel British oppressive military dictatorship—decides to have Gabby convicted to the colonies, only because he doesn’t approve of his son’s relationship with a girl who is “below his station”.
In response, Drew and Dawn are drawn into a rather awkward, unexpected alliance as they desperately try to rescue Gabby from what will surely be a terrible fate. And so the adventure begins…but I shall spoil no more.
Dawn of Rebellion is a fast-paced, fun read that leaves you wanting more. In fact, if you pick up this book, you might end up doing the same as I did. I decided to purchase book 2, even before I was done reading the opening act of Michelle Lynn’s futuristic, dystopian trilogy about rebellion, freedom and justice.
What I liked about this book:
The characters, first and foremost. Dawn, Gabby and Drew are all likable, relatable kids, very well written by author Michelle Lynn, especially since writing teenagers isn’t all that easy, in my humble opinion.
I also liked the premise, a world that has been turned on its head because of war, where the mightiest nation on Earth has collapsed and is now basically a huge jail where to dump undesirables from the UK.
What I didn’t like about this book:
Although the main characters have all been brought up in a post-apocalyptic London, Dawn, Gabby and Drew all seem to speak with a distinctly, modern-day American accent. I know this might be seen as snobby and nit-picky on my part, but I really believe that it would be much more immersive if the characters spoke like English folk.
I’m also not a big fan of books written in first person, and I believe that this has also led author Michelle Lynn to mix her tenses up a bit, which can throw you off every paragraph or so, but this is a minor complaint, since it did not take away from my enjoyment of the book.
