Steven Dos Santos

"A year after winning The Establishment's brutal Trials and becoming a soldier, seventeen-year-old Lucky Spark's mission to undermine this totalitarian government is upended when he becomes an Incentive in the next round of the Trials"--

The Sowing

Jessica Nottingham

Well, this book threw me for a loop. The Sowing sits right in that grey area between a book that is so well-paced that it's a ridiculously quick read, and a book that doesn't quite live up to what you were hoping for. While this definitely wasn't as good as the first one, in my opinion, it isn't lacking in the action department! If you've read The Culling, and you were hooked on the manic pace it follows, you won't likely won't be able to put this down either.
 
I can actually pinpoint exactly what made this a three star read for me, and that's the lack of character development this time around. Lucian Spark completely stole my heart when I originally met him. His loyalty, his fierceness, and the fact that he was an LGBT main character were big selling points for me. Lucian and his fellow recruits all came alive, which made it that much harder to watch them suffer. In this sequel, I never felt that. Even our villain, the boy I loved to hate, didn't spark a reaction. Instead, the focus was heavy on the action. I know Dos Santos was pushing me to a twist ending, but I really missed my characters.
 
Admittedly, the plot did keep me invested. It moved at such a lightning quick pace that there wasn't a moment for me to breathe. Talk about never catching a break, poor "Lucky" Lucian is pretty much the king of unfortunate circumstances. Thwarted at every turn, this book was a lesson in bleak situations. Being honest, the brutality that I came to respect in the first book didn't feel as shocking here. I almost feel like it moved a bit too fast. There was no time to mourn, no time to let it sink in, because before I knew it someone else was on the chopping block.
 
For a twist ending that actually made me excited to read the next book, and a plot that made this book a compulsive read, I'll give The Sowing three stars. This definitely isn't a bad way to pass a few hours. Especially if you're a fan of bloody battles and a deliciously evil dystopia in your books.

The Sowing

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