Book Review and ARC Giveaway: Guardian by Alex London
In the new world led by the Rebooters, former Proxy Syd is the figurehead of the Revolution, beloved by some and hated by others. Liam, a seventeen-year-old Rebooter, is Syd’s bodyguard and must protect him with his life. But armed Machinists aren’t the only danger.
The second in a duet, Guardian is the brilliant conclusion to Proxy, and tells the story of Syd and what happens after the Network fell. Knox sacrificed himself in the Network in order to take everything down and rebuild the world, and to give Syd a life. Now Syd is the messiah of the Revolution, yet no more than a prop. Give a speech here, give a speech there; nothing is what it is supposed to be. And now things are worse: literally, everyone’s blood is turning against them because the datastream in everyone’s blood is turning corrupt and killing people from the inside out, starting from the Guardians who had the most access and working the way down. Meanwhile the Rebooters are turning more and more violent, and the Council heads seem to have their own agenda, none of which seems to be working with the stated goals of the Revolution. When things fall apart, Syd and Liam must run to the City and find allies in unlikely places in order to save the world once more- and possibly save each other as well.
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My one problem with the book is that now I want Liam’s story, and Alex says that it’s a duet. *sigh* Maybe I can convince him to just tell me in secret….
KAREN is giving away her SIGNED ARC of Guardian (and an unsigned hardback copy of Proxy)! To win, put your email or twitter handle in the comments, along with your favorite dystopia author so far and why. Giveaway is open to U.S. residents. Leave a comment by Sunday, June 14th to be entered.
Filed under: Alex London, Book Reviews, Guardian
About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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Twitter= imaginemischief
My favorite dystopian author so far has to be Patrick Ness. I haven't finished reading all of the Chaos Walking books, because the first two were so intense. However, the ones I've read contain so much raw emotion and powerful characters without sacrificing plot or leading to convoluted ideas like some of the other dystopian authors I've encountered.
email: talesfromtheteenzone@gmail.com
twitter: ksheawes
I hate the “pick a favorite” game – I'm so bad at it! I'm a HUGE fan of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, but if I'm looking at YA dystopian authors, I would have to say Marissa Meyer for Cinder/Scarlet/Cress – I love the combination of fairytale retelling with a futuristic dystopia. It's hard to go wrong when two of my favorite genres are combined.
Moira Young's Blood Red Road is one of my favorite dystopians. I thinks its setting is wonderful, the Dustlands. There's not too many western-like books out. The dialogue and the way it's written makes for an unique and fun read. Plus, the story is action-packed (WORMS) with great supporting characters. It's A-MUST-READ in my book! 😉
alazydaisy [at] yahoo [dot] com
email: rainbowlol13@yahoo.com (Pardon my email address from 13-year-old me. I regret everything I promise.)
Picking a favorite anything is really difficult for me. There's good and bad to every book and series I've read. But, other than Proxy and Alex London— one of the best books I've read this year and one of the nicest authors I've ever met— and other than The Maze Runner series and James Dashner— my favorite book series because of the friends I've made through it— I'd have to say Margaret Atwood's MaddAddam Trilogy(which is dystopian/post-apocalyptic). The world she builds is amazingly complex, and the characters are similarly well-developed and it's just… amazing. It's the kind of story that sticks in your head for a long time.
Email: pinto.lover.2@hotmail.com
Twitter: @ashjellison
My favorite dystopian author is James Dashner. He is original and the books are so amazing. I cried at the end, but I loved the end. Everything made sense and his style is phenomenal. Also, the whole book doesn't revolve around a love story. Yeah, there might be a tiny bit in there, but it's not to the point of an entire chapter is two characters making out. Thank you, Mr. Dashner. Last, he's just so nice. I've met him and he was great. Alex London is so high up, though, because he has much of the same applying to him!
I'm a huge fan of London and Proxy is waaaayyy up there on my list of favorite dystopias. Having now read Guardian (and I agree with you, I was all 'I want to know your story Liam!!!') I'm excited to see if he will continue to write books in this genre.
Proxy was recommended to me by a group of book bloggers who are also huge fans of Marie Lu's Legend series… This is absolutely one of my all time favorite books (not just dystopian) the world building is phenomenal and she literally pulls the 'dystopia' right out if the news… I love when an author makes me think like that!
Twitter @malalcalaS
squirrelmaid13@yahoo.com
At this point my favorite dystopian author is probably London; I really appreciate the minority representation he takes care to showcase in his books!
ekthomp2@illinois.edu
Right now Mindy McGinnis is my favorite dystopian author. Not a Drop to Drink was one of the best books I read this year and I am not so patiently waiting for the release of In a Handful of Dust. McGinnis crafted such believable and relate-able characters in Not a Drop to Drink.
inbedwithbooks AT yahoo DOT com
(I'm not sure if commenting today counts or if I'm too late, but I'll go for it anyway.)
My favorite dystopian author is probably Steven dos Santos. I've really enjoyed the Torch Keeper books so far, although I can only read them when I am in a good place to handle the intensity.
Twitter handle is @lez_brarian
I think my favorite dystopian book will always be The Giver by Lois Lowry, maybe because it was unlike anything I'd ever read before. But as for authors, Alex London is probably at the top of my list at the moment, tied with Veronica Roth. And Margaret Atwood. There are TOO MANY GOOD ONES!!!