John Dixon

When a tough sixteen-year-old boxing champ sentenced to an isolated boot camp discovers it is actually a mercenary training facility turning "throwaway children" into scientifically enhanced killers, he risks everything to save his friends and stop a madman bent on global destruction.

Phoenix Island

Amanda

Vilde

Read through netgalley.com

A fast-paced action novel, but incredible brutal. Perhaps too much, in my opinion, but I'm kinda squeamish about gritty details. The novel is filled with menace and heart, a strange combination, but Dixon makes it works. It's a good novel, but I still believe that there's something left to be explored, though I'm content with it as a stand alone.

Neva Davies

This book, while falling into a category of young adult fiction that I read from quite a bit, is not something I would have picked up on my own. It is well written and at times almost believable, and I found myself not wanting to put the book down. 

That said, while I was reading, I found myself outraged at the treatment the kids are forced to endure for the sake of "progress." I found myself outraged at the fact that in this book's setting, orphans are considered easily disposed of since no one cares for them anyway. I found myself seething every time Carl had to listen to the leader, Stark, go on about his dream for humanity. Realizing that this is fiction and not real, the subject matter nonetheless invoked frustration at the orphans' plight, because no matter how you looked at it, who would have believed these kids anyway? 

This is not a book I would recommend to everyone, because there is violence and abuse. But if you are interested in dystopian fiction, then definitely feel free to pick this up.

Phoenix Island

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