It’s been a hot minute since I’ve read a sci-fi/dystopian book, and The Shattered Ones was the perfect reintroduction. Even though we’re looking at the aftermath of a great battle that ravaged Earth, the heart and soul of this book is so encouraging. I typically stay away from dystopian because it tends to make me feel sad and disheartened, but The Shattered Ones was such a breath of fresh air. Like Gabriel, I felt like I was an outsider welcomed into a family, like someone who was scared to face the world but found courage and hope.

Ratings for The Shattered Ones

Story: 5/5

Worldview: 4/5

Story

The story here was phenomenal. At first we met quite a lot of characters, but I couldn’t help but smile at every new face. Gabriel knew them from stories of his youth; he knew them as his heroes, and his wide-eyed excitement was infectious. Also, even though I knew this was the first book in a series, I had to double-check because I thought maybe I had missed a prequel or something. It was confusing at first to have so many things referenced that I didn’t know, but I loved it by the end because the whole book just felt alive. I really felt like I was looking at the aftermath of something big. I felt like an outsider with Gabriel, only to know what it’s like to trust and find family.

Worldview

This is not a Christian book, but it has really nice themes. I saw courage bleed through the pages, and hope raise its head after crushing losses. I really loved the cozy feel as well. I’ve been to Arizona, but seeing the landscape through Gabriel’s eyes really made me feel like it was a home long-since forgotten.

Worldview lost a star because there was a few instances of cursing (darn, darn it), probably about half a dozen. There were no innuendos. Actually, I liked that there wasn’t any romance in the book here. I felt like it allowed the reader to focus on the heart of the story. We could root for the future of the world and not necessarily the future of a couple.

Spoilers

Now, I’m going to get a bit spoilery here, so if you don’t want spoilers you can ignore the rest of this review. About halfway through the book, when Gabriel gets his powers, he is referred to as an empath/empathic. I know that’s typically a New Age thing, but because it was within the context of sci-fi/mutation, I was okay with that context. It’s kind of like with superhero movies I have a different suspension of disbelief. There are also pop culture references (Star Wars, D&D, movies, etc).

Overall Thoughts

Overall, a great read, and I will absolutely be picking up the next books in the series! If you like dystopian but want to read a book with a different heart than the norm, I highly recommend The Shattered Ones.

It comes out September 25th! Make sure to snag your copy here!