Review ~ Rebellion ~ Karen Sandler

Title: Rebellion

Author: Karen Sandler

Published:  16th May 2014

By: Lee and Low Books.

First line: Devak Manel floated in nothingness, without sight, without speech, without sensation.

Last line: Thank the Infinite, thank the Lord Creator for the beautiful new world opening up for them. 

Source: Eidelweiss

And so another series comes to an end! Tankborn was one of the first books that I read for review so it’s a little weird to see this story reaching its conclusion.  It feels as though I’ve been forever waiting for this last instalment although I think it’s only actually been a year. Year or no, one of the downsides of long periods between book releases is that, especially with books like Rebellion, where new language is created it can  sometimes take a while to get back into the swing of things. I did go back and look at my notes for #2 Awakenings however and they did refresh my memory so I could move on! So, moving forward, here’s the blurb for Rebellion:

In this final installment of the Tankborn series, Kayla has been kidnapped by the group that has been bombing GEN warehouses, and she must pretend to sympathize with them in order to escape.

In the wake of a devastating bomb blast, severely injured Kayla has been brought to the headquarters of the organization that planted the bomb-and many others like it in GEN food warehouses and homes. Her biological mother tells her that Devak is dead and that Kayla must join her in the terrorist group, which is ramping up for something big. Now Kayla must pretend that she embraces this new role in an underground compound full of paranoia as she plots a way to escape and save her friends. Meanwhile, Devak has emerged from his healing in a gen-tank, only to be told that Kayla is dead and his family has fallen from grace. Can he overcome his grief at the loss of his power to see the clues that point to Kayla being alive? As Kayla and Devak overcome the multiple obstacles put between them while trying to free GENs without further bloodshed, the Tankborn trilogy rushes to a thrilling conclusion!

I like the flicking between perspectives in this final tale of Devak and Kayla.  Having both survived the explosion their lives have changed in so many ways, not even taking into account the supposed deaths of their respective loves. Interesting that it was this loss that made them realise that the barriers they thought were keeping them apart were insignificant in the end and I like the way that their global view on so many things changes. The same applies to Devak and Kayla individually.  Devak has to learn to live in a completely way within his own world now that his status has been reduced.  He now also has to learn to live with physical limitations that occurred as a result of the explosion.  He is fortunate though to have familiar people around him who continue to offer him support, both emotionally and financially.  Not so for Kayla who is in unfamiliar territory, with unfamiliar people (one of whom is her mother) and who is being watched every time she moves.  Whilst Devak is moving heaven and earth to find Kayla, Kayla is pulling apart a web of lies and truths, revealing a few revelations along the way that lead to a fast paced conclusion.

As I said at the beginning of the review it took me a while to get into this book, mainly because of the unique language that Sandler has developed that does give it an ‘other-wordly’ feel but also means that you might be flipping back to the glossary from time to time to remind yourself of the meaning of certain words phrases etc.  Once I was back on track settling back into this world was a wonderful experience!

There is a steady pace to Rebellion, although there are a greater number of challenges that both protagonists face along the journey. It’s not always easy to figure out who is the enemy and who is a friend but I like that as it keeps you on your toes. As for the ending Kayla really comes into her own and it’s good to see a female lead who can stick to her beliefs even when the choices she faces boil down to simple life or death.

Rating: 3.5/5 This was a satisfying conclusion to the series. Fans of the series won’t be disappointed!