In The Afterlight by Alexandra Bracken

Contains mild spoilers for books one and two

In The Afterlight

The Darkest Minds: Book Three
Check out my review for book two Never Fade

Written By Alexandra Bracken
Dystopian, Paranormal
Published November 3rd 2014
512 Pages
Thank you to Harper Collins Australia
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Ruby can't look back. Fractured by an unbearable loss, she and the kids who survived the government's attack on Los Angeles travel north to regroup. Only Ruby can keep their highly dangerous prisoner in check. But with Clancy Gray, there's no guarantee you're fully in control, and everything comes with a price.

When the Children's League disbands, Ruby rises up as a leader and forms an unlikely allegiance with Liam's brother, Cole, who has a volatile secret of his own. There are still thousands of other PSI kids suffering in government 'rehabilitation camps' all over the country. Freeing them, revealing the governments unspeakable abuses in the process, is the mission Ruby has claimed since her own escape from Thurmond, the worst camp in the country.

But not everyone is supportive of the plan Ruby and Cole craft to free the camps. As tensions rise, competing ideals threaten the mission to uncover the cause of IANN, the disease that killed most of America's children and left Ruby and others with powers the government will kill to keep contained. With the fate of a generation in their hands, there is no room for error. One wrong move could be the spark that sets the world on fire.

Los Angeles is in ruin, the former Children's League has been compromised and Ruby now finds herself as a reluctant leader of the children who have survived. Those who had vowed to keep the children safe have betrayed their trust and now the group need to find a safe house to plan their next move, with Clancy bound and gagged. They plan to use what minor force they now hold, to free the children from the oppressive prisons, gathering information and infiltrating Thurmond, the three thousand strong camp. Clancy's Project Snowfall research has now fallen into the wrong hands, and it seems the battle may be already lost before it's begun.

But when old friends reunite, alliances formed and secrets revealed, sacrifices will need to be made. Attack with force, or employ the power of the underground media to reveal the atrocities of the rehabilitation camps. Ruby finds herself torn between keeping her monster at bay or offering herself to become the martyr of her generation, even it it means returning to Thurmond to fight her own battle... And not everyone will make it out alive.

My Thoughts

I enjoyed The Darkest Minds, I loved Never Fade but In The Afterlight was phenomenal. Ruby is now helping Liam's brother Cole, to gather the children and seek refuge. The former Children's League cannot be trusted and the group are left to make the long journey across the country to what could be the only safe haven that remains. With thousands of children still trapped within the camps, guards armed with high powered riffles and the President himself discounting their efforts as mere terrorism, all the small group of dangerous children have now is the will to survive. They've been beaten and broken, but realise this may be their only chance to live with freedom and without fear, in the hope for a future where they can return to their families.

The freedom to live where we wanted to, with whomever we wanted to, and to not be scared of every passing shadow. For kids not to grow up with the fear that one day they might not wake from their sleep, or that they'd blink out like a light bulb in the middle of an otherwise normal day.

The group are experimental children of their generation. Cursed with abilities that society have deemed dangerous, and the President decreeing those who have survived shall be forced to enter rehabilitation camps. Children aren't being rehabilitated and the only escape from the oppression is death. Ruby was one of the lucky few to escape, where the children are coded by colour to represent their level of ability and danger. She can violate your thoughts, only surpassed by Clancy, the former leader of East River and a teen with a dangerous ability himself. But the President's son is a liability, withholding information and had proven that he cannot be trusted, under any circumstances.

I enjoyed seeing the role reversal in Liam's relationship with Ruby from that of typical young adult. He understands that she is capable of defending herself, but still worries about her nonetheless. I felt that Cole was the more dominant male lead and hides behind a strained and one sided banter with Liam. He carries an enormous weight on his shoulders. The new relationships that formed throughout the storyline were surprising, and fans of the series will rejoice at the return of a few favourites that have been assumed missing.

One aspect that was missing from previous installments, was the inclusion of poetic passages verging on purple prose. I adored them. It provided a much needed softness within the storyline to balance the intensity. The Darkest Minds series may very well be the last of the incredible dystopians we'll see in young adult for quite a while. If you've yet to pick this series up, with all three books released, now is the perfect time. Alexandra Bracken is brilliant. You won't be disappointed.