Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Review: Counteract (The Resistance Series #1) by Tracy Lawson

Counteract (The Resistance Series #1) by Tracy Lawson
ebook
Published by Buddhapuss Ink, LLC. on August 6, 2014
Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary (Goodreads): Two strangers-their destinies entwined-must work together to thwart a terrorist the country never suspected.

The Office of Civilian Safety and Defense has guarded the public against the rampant threat of terrorism for the last fifteen years with the full backing of the US government. Their carefully crafted list of Civilian Restrictions means no concerts or sporting events, no travel, no social media, no cash transactions, and no driver's licenses for eighteen-year-olds Tommy and Careen. The OCSD has even outlawed grocery stores, all in the name of safety.
Now, there's a new threat-airborne chemical weapons that could be activated at any time. But the OCSD has an antidote: Just three drops a day is all it takes to stay safe. It's a small price to pay for safety.
Or is it...

My Thoughts: 
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. 

I really enjoyed getting the chance to read this book. The novel is based in the United States in the not so distant future. There's a new thing in the government, the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense (OCSD), which was created to help fight against terrorists and keep the people of the US safe from them.

The story seems to jump right into something from the first page. There's an alert, and people find out that there are toxic poisons in the air released from terrorists and they needed to get the antidote, CSD, and take it daily or they would risk death. They talk about it being a "small price to pay for your safety." This is when I knew something wouldn't be right about this, and it drew me into the story even more.

This novel is very intricate with a variety of characters. The perspective changes throughout the novel between several of them This gives the reader a full view of all that is going on. As a reader, I learned so much about the OCSD from both the inside and out, and I got to see the way each of the characters' thoughts changed throughout the novel which helped me understand all of their actions, regardless of my thoughts about them. 

The two main characters were interesting to get to learn about. I enjoyed seeing their changes throughout the novel. Careen is a feisty girl, but when she does what she is told, take her CSD, there's a complete change in who she is. It's honestly crazy that the OCSD has enough power in the novel to incorporate something like this into the daily lives of the entire population, and it's scary to think of it happening to our country.

Tommy on the other hand is pretty down in the beginning of the novel, having lost his parents and injuring his leg, but he seems to get a grasp on himself as the novel progresses. Seeing both Careen and him on CSD made me angry at their government, and I was ecstatic when things went awry and they couldn't take any for a few days. They were able to clear their heads, and they realized what was going on. This is when I feel the story really picked up because they sprang into action.

The other perspectives I found really intriguing were Kevin and Trina. I loved getting to see the inner workings of the OCSD and the corruption throughout it. They learn about the awful things their director is planning on doing, and they begin discretely working toward eradicating this issue before it's too late. 

It was really interesting getting to see all the changes that Lawson made to the US throughout her novel. It takes place much sooner than most novels, only about 20 years, and because of that, all that was happening in her world resonated with me on a different level than most dystopian novels located in the US. Some things are definitely the same, kids go to college, they have cell phones to communicate, etc, but there were also drastic changes that shocked me. People stopped shopping outside of the home entirely, and air travel became restricted. It's a little difficult for me to picture this happening now, since in the novel it happens in 4 years. Then again, I can also understand it in this circumstance to a level because the nation does crazy things when threatened by terrorists. 

Overall, Lawson created a terrifying concept that shows the epitome of corruption and the thirst for absolute power over an entire population. I honestly can't wait to get the next book in this series. I hope certain things happen in the next novel that are good for the characters, though I also know there will be plenty more things that don't go the way I want them to for Careen and Tommy. 


★★★★½

1 comment: